My wife is pregnant and due to deliver our second child any day. A couple of weeks ago, on a Saturday morning, I was playing with my young son. During the course of our playtime I found myself cleaning up a mess he had made. As I bent forward to place a piece of used paper towel in the rubbish bin a few thoughts went through my mind: ‘In three years I will have a 6-year-old and a 3-year-old. I wonder how I’ll manage to take care of my family? Will I be a good provider?’
In the split second it took to think that sequence of thoughts the lower right side of my back went into spasm. I knew instantly that the spasm was connected with those thoughts. I knew I had experienced a moment of fear about the future which had manifested itself in my body. It was an epiphanic reminder of the purpose of yoga. The physical pain of my back in spasm brought me to the present moment in a flash.
The second of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is roughly translated as: Yoga stills the fluctuations of the mind-stuff. One way of interpreting this sutra is that yoga helps one to stay focused in the present moment. This is not to say we should not plan ahead in life but rather that our thoughts, words and actions should primarily be focused on this moment. When we lose that focus our minds are inundated with conflicting thoughts – what Patanjali aptly called chitta vritti or ‘modifications of the mind.’ In that moment of jumping ahead three years I took myself away from the present and away from personal power. I launched myself into an unknown, based on the demands of being a father and husband, over which I had no true control. My body chose to give me a painful reminder to remain focused in the present, to take the necessary actions to ensure I provide for my family.
I am lucky to have as a teacher one of the world’s top yoga masters – Aadil Palkhivala. One of his passions is the therapeutic applications of asana. Using knowledge gained under his instruction, two yoga straps, and a wooden brick, I was able to put a near instant halt to the spasm in my back. It was still tight for a few days but I was able to take my son to the park that very day rather than needing to spend two days lying on my back.
I am also lucky to have as a teacher one of the world’s finest meditation masters – Mirra. Through using her meditation techniques I have been able to explore further the relationship between mental, vital and psychic energies in order to remain connected with my soul and focused in the present. Through Purna Yoga Meditation I am able to bring light into the muscles to help them release the residue of being in spasm.
For a single moment a couple of weeks ago I felt lost. Thanks to a dedicated and sincere practice it was a brief relapse and a great reminder of the true purpose of classical yoga.
Wishing you constant growth on the path of yoga,
Drew
