Let’s imagine that we jump into to a car and go for a drive; work, home, shops… for this example, it doesn’t matter.
There ain’t much to it.
Most adults can manage to manipulate the accelerator, brake and steering wheel reliably enough to get where we need to go.
Quickly, the car becomes an extension of ‘us’ – the pride, the joy… the never ending costs.
From the yogic perspective, our ‘identity’ is doing what it is intended to do – it makes something ours.
But there is a catch…
Someone cuts us off; a flash of surprise. The heart beats quick. Anger simmers.
A quick “beeeeeep!” and the one finger salute later, we are back on our way.
Later in the day, we might find ourselves recounting the tale to a loved one; “you should have seen what this jerk did to ME!”
Enter the ego.
Yoga teaches that one of the necessary functions of the mind is the ahamkara, literally the ‘I’ maker, commonly known as the ego.
It’s sole function is to make our experience ‘be about me’ and it does this by attaching itself to our sensory experience and thoughts.
‘I’ felt offended.
‘I’ felt surprised.
Left unchecked though, we believe ourselves to be the selfish rantings of the ego.
The interrelationship between mind and body is nothing new; much of current psychology understands that psychology and biology are one.
Let us examine.
Our mind is not independent from our body.
The seat of the mind is the brain, and the brain is the coordinating centre for a nervous system that is distributed throughout the entire body.
In our very mentally stimulated modern world, the mind rules supreme.
In close second are the pleasurable experiences we seek, which are brought to the mind through the body and it’s senses.
There is nothing inherently wrong with this arrangement; watching a movie or enjoying a nice meal aren’t ‘bad.’
The Yoga teaches us, however, that these obscure our true Self, they cloak our Soul.
Disconnected from this essence, we make decisions that are rooted the seeking of pleasure for the body and mind.
And what is the result?
By believing that ‘I am this body, that I am this mind’ our lives can get caught up in stimulation and pleasure.
The great irony of life is that when we proceed through life in this direction, rather than getting the pleasure we seek, we encounter pain.
The pain of suffering.
Pleasurable experiences like good food or a nice holiday, or the status from a new promotion, are temporary in nature.
When we ask of them a permanence they cannot deliver, we suffer. The buzz wears off. The love dries up. The gourmet meal gets… excreted.
So what can we do about it?
Yoga begins at the top (or it should at least) by reminding us first and foremost that we are a Soul, that we are consciousness inhabiting a body/mind system.
This knowledge helps us to realise that we are not the car, but are ‘in’ the car.
This gives us a slice freedom.
A glimmer of hope.
Through regular yogic practice; which consists of physical and energetic practices to temper the excesses of the brain-body-nervous system, and meditation which promotes balance in the mind, something strange begins to occur.
Like a mechanic, the yogic practices help us get under the hood; we are able to tune our vehicle.
With a tuned mind-body, we then experience something.
Peace.
The peace that arises from Yoga is not the temporary type from stimulation or pleasure.
It pushes us to recognise that our nature itself is that ‘peace’ that we were seeking.
We are peaceful…. simply from being.
Why is it like this?
Our nature, says the Yogic tradition, is that we are ‘that.’
Beyond the body, beyond the mind, Yoga posits that consciousness IS blissful.
It is a feeling of coming home.
So what?
Examine the actions born from this peaceful place; kindness, compassion, truth, courage. They come without effort.
These virtues ease our own suffering and make the world a brighter place.
A tuned, well running car (i.e. a balanced mind and body) can then take us (the Soul) where it is our destiny to go.
And that is a trip worth taking!
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Are you in need of a service?
If your mind-body-soul system are calling for some scheduled maintenance, I suggest the best thing to do is to learn the ancient, performance-enhancing art of Yoga and Meditation.
Our Soul Retreat is a great place to start (or deepen) your journey.
Over 4 nights at our homely retreat centre, Kailash Ashram, you will join an intimate group of Souls as you learn authentic, traditional practices made relevant to modern times. For many of our students, it’s a real game-changer; a turning point on their path.
Our December retreat is beginning to fill and will set you up for a slightly less silly end to the year.
To learn more please click here.
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May you have a blessed week,
Much love,
David, Raya and the Kailash Ashram team.
