One of the good things about a commercial model for our Ashram was that it acted as a screen that separated the sincere seekers from the tyre kickers.
I’m guessing 90% of people saw our old $3000+ price tag of a retreat and simply… disappeared.
“Too expensive”
“Not in my budget”
Or maybe even… “what a rip-off”
But you bet that if the car engine blew up that afternoon, somehow, magically, there would be the $3k+.
Friends would be asked.
Loans would be taken.
Things would be sold.
A kidney anyone?
Why is this?
For many of us, a car is a necessity.
It is the cornerstone of our daily life; dropping the kids off, commuting to work, shopping, errands. Pleasure
It is valuable.
But as we are learning at the Ashram, value is a funny thing.
Here is a thought experiment;
Imagine that someone approached you with a proposition; give me $3,000 by tomorrow, and I’ll guarantee I’ll turn it into $30,000 the day after.
Would you be able to find the $3k?
Honestly, for that kind of pay off, even in my tightest of times, I could make it work (who’s joining me in a bank job?!)
Why is this?
Guaranteed results.
When we were certain of an enormous pay-off, it not only makes sense to find the $3k, but it would be foolish of us to not do so.
What does this teach us?
We are way more industrious than we think… if the ‘pay-off’ is juicy enough.
But what does this have to do with Yoga, and meditation?
One of the first things we help people understand is why they are embarking on this arduous, difficult path.
Unless you know why are you drawn to yoga, and why you want to learn to meditate, you’ll last about 2 seconds.
The practices are painful, difficult, and boring.
But, with a juicy pay-off, they become worth it.
For many, we find that they are drawn to yoga to tackle the age old problem of suffering.
This is actually what Yoga is here for, by the way, not to get the body in shape!
And I’m not talking about the kind of suffering of a clapped out old commodore that just blew a head gasket… but the suffering associated with the trauma, difficulty and horrors of life on planet Earth.
I’m sure you’ve ‘been there.’
Freedom from suffering is the big juicy Yogic pay-off.
It is also called nirvana, moksha, samadhi and it is the promised fruit of the path of Yoga.
What matters is not the name (however mysterious and cool sounding) but the fact that it is an inner state of well-being, one of Inner-Peace that most of us desperately want.
Now it’s time to get brutally honest, what is the cost of such freedom?
Short answer; depends on how much you value it.
How invested are you in the cultivation of inner-peace?
Currently, is it something you give any time to… whatsoever?
Contrast it to how much time you give to earning money (I’m guessing 38 hours a week?)
Or entertaining yourself (your weekend?)
How much time is given for ‘you.’
It can be rough looking into the mirror, but this is what Yoga is about; looking at ourselves and learning to love what we see.
If you are really game, and want to drill down on numbers, tally up all of the investment by way of time and money you have put into your car in the last year alone.
Rego. Insurance. Petrol. Servicing. Depreciation. Tolls. Washing.
Now compare that to the investment you have made in your own body.
Are they even?
Which one is more important to you?
“But I need my car for work… and I need work to live.”
Yep. I hear you.
But you need your body to ‘Be’ I say back.
Again, which one is more important to you?
We can go on and on…
How much have you invested by way of time, money and energy in pacifying your mind?
How much have you invested into cultivating a relationship to your Soul?
If you are feeling beat up by life, and are suffering, and are asking me why it is so, I have some honest truth for you.
If the sum total of your investment in ‘you’ is a handful of pocket change or less than you spend on your car, you have your priorities wrong.
This is why you are suffering.
If you are like most people, you probably throw endless amounts of money and time into the material world.
Don’t worry, this is completely normal and we have no judgement against you!
In our tradition we call this part of life ‘bhoga’ and it is the journey into the world. This is our inherited default setting.
This is what causes suffering.
Compare this with the path of Yoga.
The anti-venom. The cure. The solution.
Meditation. Sitting still for 30 minutes, daily.
Cultivating the body to achieve greater health and vitality. Daily.
Reciting mantra to pacify the mind.
Finally, worshipping something bigger than you to touch the Soul.
These practices that have been done for thousands of years. Why?
Simply, they work
How much time do you spend on this aspect of your life?
For many of us, there is a direct relationship between the perceived pay-off (ie what we stand to gain) and how much time and energy we put into something.
If we put in not much, don’t expect much in return.
On the path of Yoga, how much one wants to be free depends on how much we have had to suffer.
In the pit of my deepest suffering, I would have given everything to be free.
My pain was costing me my sanity. I became someone I didn’t recognise. I did things I knew weren’t right.
It got so bad that I begged God to be free (and I was an atheist!)
Now, flash forward 7 years and we have helped hundreds of people begin or deepen their journey towards inner-peace.
We have made it our whole life.
We are all-in.
In the morning, we practise meditation (Raja yoga,) Hatha Yoga for the body and mind is a morning thing too. Also, we are devotees of a great Saint (a practice of Bhakti yoga) and we run an Ashram as an act of Karma Yoga (service.)
There is very little wiggle room in our lives for the typical worldly concerns, and even still, we can find more areas to grow and expand beyond our suffering.
What you may learn from this example is not that you should quit your job and start and Ashram, but that to be free, it requires a dedicated, concentrated and whole of being effort.
Not just a weekly stretch class in the local gym and a meditation app on your phone.
Knowing the demands of the path, and the potential pay-off… is guidance a valuable thing for you?
For us, the value we have received from studying with our own guides has been priceless. The retreats in India and abroad, and the constant grind of our own practice are a small price to pay for what they have brought us.
$3k/$30k
Our belief is that Yogic teachings are the greatest knowledge we possess as a species, because they have the ability to create individual and collective peace.
To fully ‘get’ this, you need a good guide, but also some personal experience. Which is why we feel an immersive retreat is the best way to kick-start (or deepen) your journey; it’ll load you up with a bunch of teachings, tailored guidance and also a transformative expereince.
It does take time, energy and money and is a massive investment in ‘you’ but my God, it’ll take you a lot further than your Car.
If you find yourself struggling to come up with enough dosh to make a retreat work, we invite you to think along the lines of $3k / $30k.
For when the pay-off is big enough, you know you can make it work.
