the movement
honor ancestors, serve descendants, nourish all
Photo: I’m making use of a deep squat position to search for shark tooth fossils.
Is it time for spring cleaning?
Is there a drawer in your kitchen that is home to random items? Perhaps you don’t really know what’s in there because you don’t use it? Is it a bag in the back of your closet? Or a box in your garage? Could it be the whole garage?!
You know what I’m talking about. Stuff you forgot you were holding on to. Possessions you tell yourself, “I’ll use again someday” but have not touched in over a decade. Things that someone else said, “you should hold on to this.” They’ve been taking up space and collecting dust in your home.
We are changing apartments at the end of the month and the prep to move has me sorting through that kitchen drawer, the bag at the back of the closet, and the box under the bed. Thank goodness we don’t have a garage!
As I do the work of downsizing our household, I have also observed mental and emotional junk stored in my body. While in my daily asana practice (the physical aspect of the 8 limbs of yoga) I’ve noticed that my hips feel as if they are a garage full of junk that needs clearing out. For example, somedays when in a deep squat position, it feels crowded in my pelvis like there is no room to breathe. The squat shape triggers frustration and anger and sometimes even flashes of long past memories shrouded in thick fog of fear and uncertainty. Do you notice a part of your body that unknowingly serves as your garage?
This is not the first time one of the eight limbs of yoga has shone a light on an area of my mental-emotional-physical-spiritual wellbeing that needs tending. I know to turn to the other limbs of yoga to help me investigate further.
What is the purpose of the eight limbs of yoga?
Ashtanga (Ashta = eight, anga = limb) Yoga is detailed in the Yoga Sutras of Sage Patanjali Maharishi, one of the main texts of yoga philosophy. The science of yoga is offered in the sutras as a path towards liberation. In his book Raja Yoga (a.k.a. Ashtanga Yoga) Dr. H. R. Nagendra explains the process of yoga is to, “thin out mental obstacles,” (ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and fear/anxiety that causes suffering) by indirect and/or direct handling of the mind. The eight limbs offer a way to live, to exist in balance and harmony with ourselves (heart-mind-body-soul), with each other, and with the whole of existence.
What are the eight limbs of yoga?
Yamas – describes how a realized human co-exists with others and the world.
Ni Yamas – describes the personal behaviors of a realized human.
Asana – the physical practice of yoga to prepare for meditation.
Pranayama – how we interact with Prana, vital life force.
Pratyahara – withdrawal of the senses.
Dharana – concentration / focusing.
Dhyana – meditative absorption / de-focusing.
Samadhi – state of total realization we are all made of the same stuff (bliss). Sanskrit root words are sama (together) and dha (to place). Samadhi is total absorption with all of existence; the understanding we are all connected. Humans, plants, animals, land, water, stars, space; all are one.
The first tenet of the Yamas, is Ahimsa (a = non, himsa = violence). Yoga teaches us that Ahimsa (nonviolence) goes beyond the obvious enaction of the principle to not commit violence. Yoga invites us to embody ahimsa by realizing peace in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Sit with that for a moment. It is not a small task. There is no simple box to check and be done. This one moral rule requires a lifelong commitment.
In similar fashion the first tenet the Ni-Yamas, is Saucha (purity, cleanliness). You might already be thinking, “too obvious.” Flossing and brushing your teeth, regular bathing, drinking water, eating clean, are all proven methods of maintaining a healthy body and you’d be correct. Again, yoga invites to go further because Saucha is cleanliness external and internal. For example, clearing debris from our mind and heart space.
Photo: Sometimes your intention is to sort what’s in the boxes but you end up studying family photos from 40 some years ago, oh well!
How can we floss of our mental and emotional realm?
The ultimate aim of yoga is to move us toward liberation, liberating ourselves from the ties that bind. By indirect and/or direct handling of the mind, we can “thin out” mental and emotional obstacles to liberation. It is a welcome reminder that the obstacles we are working with can be thick, layered, dense, and heavy. It takes time to work our way slowly but surely through them, to cull out over time. Much like clutter in a house can block fresh air flow, clutter in our mental and emotional realm piles up forming obstacles in our path towards realization.
In my experience, a daily dose of movement (asana) guides my body through a wide range of movement patterns, like the deep squat I describe above. This is akin to going into the garage where all the junk is stored. When asana is done with steady breathing it is like turning the lights on in the garage, so you can see what is there. Over time you are able to sort through the thoughts and feelings; you handle the junk in garage. In doing so, I gain insight as to what I may be holding on to that is no longer of service and choose to let go. To practice saucha, to purify or “to floss” mental and emotional realms, means to clears out layers of ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and fear/anxiety that causes suffering. This unclutters the path towards Samadhi.
Admittedly, the directive to embody all eight limbs of yoga (a way of life) can feel overwhelming. The good news is we can find a starting point. For many of us the body and the breath are the most accessible portal. The invitation is to move and breathe, go inside, and turn the lights on.
March 2024
