Chapter 9

Have you ever compared notes on a past experience only to find out that you and your friends remember the event differently? No matter what your life experience actually is what you take away from the events that you live through is a larger factor in determining your personal state of happiness. I have a tendency to skew towards the negative, to remember the arguments rather than the good times. Through yoga I have learned to train my perception to be more neutral, objective and truthful. Or, memory is so fungible and our desire for personal protection so strong that we can actually block out whole experiences from our awareness. How you engage with memory is how you engage with your mind and body, these two together are the vehicle for the journey of yoga. 

There are three types of memory that play a big part in the spiritual path: 

First, you can remember the words of your teacher in moments of distress along the path of yoga. 

Second, you can remember the sacred teaching of the primary texts of your spiritual lineage that are your armor amidst difficult situations. 

Finally, and most important, you will ultimately remember your true self. 

Yoga philosophy says that each of carries an eternal self within and that no matter how deeply buried under the mountain of personal doubt there is a memory of that true self. Through the practice the light of the true self begins to shine through. For today’s assignment remember a key turning point in your life, whether it was the decision to practice yoga, meeting your life partner, choosing your job or school or some other important event in your life. Be as objective as possible and notice any tendency to skew overly positive or negative. 

Just because you can't do it today doesn't mean you never will. Delay isn't denial. Sometimes the best thing for you to do is sit tight and wait it out. Rushing, pushing, fighting, struggling often tie you up in a big knot that you have to undo before actually moving forward. Sometimes the most appropriate action is non-action. When you drop your will and surrender, then you make space for God's will to be done

If you're like me, type A, rather be doing something than nothing the waiting game of the non-doing state can seem like torture. Even more than patience the non-doing state is the true opposite of the doing state. Drop the idea that you can control it all. Let go and let God. Try it out. I've pushed my will power to its max so many times. It always has blind spots big enough to drive a sixteen wheeler truck right through. But in those rare moments when I had enough faith to sit tight and wait it out, not rush the process or doubt, steadily put in my work and chip away at the monumental project of life change, miracles occurred at every corner. What would you choose, your will or God's will? Do you need it to be all under your control? Or are you ready to receive something bigger and grander than you could possibly imagine?

The compassionate heart of the yogi is the essential gift of a lifetime of practice. There is no end to the mercy of the spiritual heart. Let go of spiteful, vindictive thoughts. Let go of punitive measures that you seek against others. Let go of self directed negativity. Be merciful in body, mind and deed

Called Daya in Sanskrit, it is sometimes included in the list of yamas, moral and ethical a guidelines for how to live the yogi's life. How many times can you afford to show mercy? However many times you are asked for it. The capacity of the heart is infinite, there is no end to love. Show mercy, no matter how many times you are wronged. Seek no action to settle the score. Show mercy, and with humility and love you will change your world. There are no winners in a personal fight, no victors in emotional wars, no heroes in hostile relationships. Mercy is love and any action taken from any other space than love itself will simply lead to more suffering. Your only power is through forgiveness. Your true strength shines in showing mercy. Be merciful towards yourself, towards others, towards your world.

Taking time to find stillness within can seem nearly impossible amidst the hamster wheel of life. But it is only through stillness that the eternal wisdom of the true self can speak. It could be said that the deeper purpose of yoga is actually to train the mind to be quiet enough to finally hear this voice that is always speaking, guiding and loving us from within. 

The experience of Nirodah is the careful redirection of the mind infinitely inward so that the ages of thoughts stop. With the practice of yoga you can stillness within yourself wherever you go and keep your peaceful center regardless of the chaos of the external world. Stillness is reflected in the outer world but if it's not in your heart you can be in the most beautiful, quiet place and find no peace. In fact it could be said that the only peace you find outside of yourself is the peace that your carry inside of yourself anyway. Let stillness speak through you and to you in every moment.