8 fold path to liberation - pratyahara (#5)

pratyahara: withdrawal of the senses, disengagement from body image, retaining vital energy


what i love about the 8 limbed path is there is no particular order in which to embrace the teachings......they are circular, and create a spiral of learning.


each limb builds and intertwines with the next, and at the same time, you've got to have paid attention to the first 4 limbs, because without them, this one would be much tougher to indulge in.........


but as of late, it's pratyahara i've been thinking about.  i all too often walk by a mirror and wonder how i look....good?  bad?  are my pants flattering?  is this top hitting at my waist the way i want it too?  


i realize that our western upbringing and our society reinforces this concern....this idea that it matters what we look like, not only to ourselves, but to others....and i know that it truly does not.  i know that my clothing, my hair color, my manicure do not define who i am.  i know that even my job, my car, my neighborhood mean little....for they are not definers of who i am.  they are only external qualifiers.  


i have found it hard to be living in this world and attempting to shed these old belief systems.  i'm a creature of habit and it's hard to be different when society around you is so stuck in unhealthy dynamics. i mean, all we want is to be loved and liked by those around us.  why act like we are less of people because we look a certain way?


it'd be rad if we all practiced pratyahara a little bit every day, right?
right.

must.....post......something of relevance

spring is sort of here in portland. we got a little snow on the budding cherry trees!


yoga schedules are a changing as studios shift classes around to mesh with the seasons....so i'll be updating the calendar soon....check back to see if more classes get added :)


on a news front, i tried anti gravity yoga this month with two rad ladies in town, check 'em out here.  it was amazing.  hopefully it will help me along my journey to be able to float.  curious about floating?  watch jason and his nipple rings here in a two minute video give you the deets.  skip ahead to the minute mark to get the visual.


why float?  so many reasons. i think the most appealing is the lightness and the joy it requires.  it would seem to me that it would be much harder to float if you were angry, and bogged down with issues, creating a heavy heart or mind. be light, be joyful, be strong and float!  


goal for floating - spring of 2013.


trips coming up in may and june to see mi familia.  can't wait.


xoxo - RLD