Inside Yoga 321 (14/11/21)
Quite simply put, yoga is an antidote for hectic: it is a solution when our life feels under pressure, too busy, stressed, and all those other words used to describe a life filled and close to overflowing; and a life in need of some quiet calm and space.
Is that all I need to say? Yes, perhaps I could stop here, because most of us know yoga helps reduce the hectic in our lives. You might be reading this and nodding in agreement, but what does need to be said is that most of the time we know what is good for us, but we do nothing about it when we need to do something.
And this is the most important message: do not forget that yoga is an antidote to hectic. Remember to act now or as soon as suitably possible.
Remembering what can be done and acting is the critical feature of a yoga practice. It is no good nodding a head when we read the above and then forgetting its message just when we need it.
Now, of course, we cannot spring into a yoga posture the moment we feel stress and hectic! Though perhaps we should be able to, except when driving or holding potentially dangerous equipment!
Please note: that consciously breathing quietly, even for just a minute, constitutes yoga practice. The process of stopping thoughts, especially troubling ones, by focusing on our own breathing and body awareness simultaneously, is remarkably healing and beneficial. Try it, especially if at your desk when the moment calls for it.
As for formal yoga asanas practices on a mat and with some time set aside, the key is intention. What we need to do is set an intention to do some yoga practice at the earliest opportunity, whether it be a class with me (naturally, highly recommended) or practising at home with some self-practice.
The aim is to create a default setting in our mind, and in our whole being, that when hectic is crashing into our lives the urge to practice yoga rises, and increases to a point when we must practice; and repeatedly.
Nipping it in the bud
Regular practice is a very important part of daily life, because frequent practice even if it is just 15 minutes per day, can do so much to keep hectic at bay and lessen its awful effects on our state of mind and body.
Our life can be like a pressure cooker, simmering away most of the time, sometimes safely and steady, but there can be times when it can be very close to boiling and dangerously close to blowing! Using yoga is a good way of bringing the pressure down; and repeatedly; again and again.
Like most things in life there is no quick fix, but regular small fixes and maintenance of our body, mind and breath. That is why yoga is a practice and why it is an antidote to hectic.
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