Letting Go
This summer I have been challenged with many “letting go” practices. Much of it was letting go of my plans – what I thought I was going to do. Some of it was letting go of what I thought I should be doing in the moment – level of house cleanliness or amount of work to be accomplished. And some of it was letting go of attachment to something I love – a little brown dog ;). When I am able to pull back and watch the machinations of my mind, I feel that there have been a lot of yoga lessons for me.
In the Yoga Sutras (yoga philosophy from Patanjali) raaga is the term that describes our attachment to things that are constantly changing (like our bodies, the day-to-day struggles) all the things that we are attracted to. Attachment is a natural habit of the mind. There is no moral judgement about this attachment, but there is suffering when we get attached to these ever-changing things.
Think about when your body felt it’s best. Do you ever get frustrated with how your body feels or operates today verses your memory of that past “best” self? I’ve been watching the Olympics this summer and seeing the athletes who have spent years training for this one thing…what do they do after? Who are they when they no longer compete?
Part of yoga practice for the mind is to recognize our attachments (even to feel the sadness or regret from the loss/change), then to let it go. This is vairagya, the term for letting go of the many attachments our minds accumulate. When we take the time to sit still and watch the thoughts/memories that come up, we can make space to honor what was AND we can cultivate clarity about what is happening right now. Even if what is in the now is painful or scary, the practice helps us find our center and strength.
This kind of practice may look different for everyone. Maybe it’s meditation or prayer, maybe it’s time in nature or with others who allow us to be present in this moment. The invitation here is to understand our automatic attachments and desires, then to consciously let go of all that is not in this moment. It takes practice and sometimes what is happening right now is feeling that attachment ;).
To help with your practice listen to this guided meditation “Acceptance of Thoughts and Feelings” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YW-TDOgstSE