Meditation

Today I realized how soon my paper on yoga is due, so I got down to writing more of it. I wrote two parts, one which is much more academic and less creative, and one which is more creative, though autobiographical. Here's that one.


I knew yoga was becoming a permanent part of my life when it had me waking up at six nearly every morning and adjusting my class schedule to make sure it would fit in. People had to hear me going on about the ways my body was beginning to open up. I knew yoga was a part of my life when I stopped noticing the looks I got every time I talked about my wishes to open my hips more.

I always arrived to my morning class extremely early. No one was around as I rolled out my mat and sat to wait. Day after day I'd have time alone on my mat. Sometimes that time would be filled with thought, sometimes with meditation, and sometimes with prayer. Sometimes it was filled with all three. That time on my mat became part of my practice as much as any pose I could try to bend myself into. Sitting cross-legged in front of a mirror I could see the physical effects of my practice while I felt the spiritual effects. My hips opened up and my knees fell to the floor as I learned to deal with crises and bad days and to put a little good into them.

As I learned asanas and let them begin to transform my body, I also learned meditation - the most difficult aspect of yoga. I practiced being still and mindful on and off my mat as yoga permeated my life. Meditation takes as much time as training and strengthening a muscle does. I practiced at first for just a minute or two at a time. Sitting cross-legged with my palms open and receptive on my knees. The light was dark and my eyes were closed as I practiced pranyama - control of my breath. Sitting in meditation, if I really let my thoughts go and just focused on my breath, something happened. I felt myself rise above my body, suspended with each breath. This was an amazing feeling - one of cleansing and centering. I would extend the time I was in meditation, and the time I felt like I was floating. Meditation means so much, freeing the worries of the day and connecting. For me connecting to God in a new and meaningful way.

I knew yoga was a part of my life when it became religious, like and unlike it was for the ancient Hindus who began the practice.



If that sounds fun, you should try out meditation.
-Kat