“I am Peace, I am Love, I am Light, I am Soul; I am at once everything, and one Part of the Infinite Whole. Namaste. – Laura Jaworski
A lot of meditation teachers dismiss the yoga asana practice as not being true yoga. Even though, the practice of the yoga postures and meditation are both part of the The Eight Limbs of Yoga. Most people are moving pretty fast; scurrying here and there. They need some help to get to a meditative state. I sure did when I started yoga.
Savasana (corpse pose)
What does the Sanskrit word savasana actually mean? Corpse pose. Ooooh…very uncomfortable word for most people in the US. What do you mean, I am not going to live forever? But truly as the saying goes, ‘No one gets out of this world alive.’
My first yoga teacher would tell the class that ‘the real practice is savasana. That it is the hardest pose and most important one.‘ She taught a rigorous class and by the time she called savasana, we were elated to lie down and rest. I happily climbed on my Magic Carpet, my yoga mat, and got ready for savasana. Lying still and lightly breathing it was not too long before – ‘Bingo’ I was in a very special place. Not always the same experience, but I did see that when my body and mind went ‘off line’ – I was there. Hmmmh how could it be? Very little thought just a feeling of ‘bliss’. Sometimes my body would feel very heavy, sometimes very light. Sounds would happen around me, but as long as I stayed relaxed, they had no effect on me.
Starting a Meditation Practice
The experience that one taps into during savasana is one of the benefits of meditation. Other benefits are: seeing the thoughts running through your mind, quieting of the mind, becoming calmer, knowing who you truly are and being more centered.
To get these benefits one needs to start somewhere. Someone with a lot of nervous energy or a body which is tight and or in pain would benefit from a yoga class with a savasana at the end. After awhile, they could enjoy ‘sitting’ for 10 minutes at a time and slowly increase the amount of time. Or seek out a meditation class or teacher to show them how to practice. Remember, you are ‘not’ the only one with a busy mind or ‘monkey mind’.
Breath Exercise
So Hum Breath – ‘I Am All That’
The yogic mantra “so hum” is not only a reflection of the sound of the breath but also carries a contemplative meaning: “I am that” (so = “I am” and hum = “that”). Here, “that” refers to the ‘all of creation’, the ‘one’ breathing us all.
https://www.yogajournal.com/meditation/so-hum-contemplation-meditation
She let go.
She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go.
She let go of the fear.
She let go of the judgments.
She let go of the confluence of opinions swarming around her head.
She let go of the committee of indecision within her.
She let go of all the ‘right’ reasons.
Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she just let go.
She didn’t ask anyone for advice.
She didn’t read a book on how to let go.
She didn’t search the scriptures.
She just let go.
She let go of all of the memories that held her back.
She let go of all of the anxiety that kept her from moving forward.
She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right.
She didn’t promise to let go.
She didn’t journal about it.
She didn’t write the projected date in her Day-Timer.
She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper.
She didn’t check the weather report or read her daily horoscope.
She just let go.
She didn’t analyze whether she should let go.
She didn’t call her friends to discuss the matter.
She didn’t do a five-step Spiritual Mind Treatment.
She didn’t call the prayer line.
She didn’t utter one word.
She just let go.
No one was around when it happened.
There was no applause or congratulations.
No one thanked her or praised her.
No one noticed a thing.
Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go.
There was no effort.
There was no struggle.
It wasn’t good and it wasn’t bad.
It was what it was, and it is just that.
In the space of letting go, she let it all be.
A small smile came over her face.
A light breeze blew through her.
And the sun and the moon shone forevermore…