Very often, when God is speaking to you through your intuition, you will get all kinds of confirmation of what you've been hearing...until you decide to act! This is what has happened to me over the past week.
It all started one week ago when I went to yoga class. The teacher, Cara Sax, told us about a 40 Day Community Sadhana being sponsored by The Yoga Co-Op at The Garrison. A Sadhana is a discipline undertaken for a set period of time, in pursuit of a goal. I tried a 40 day Sadhana in the past and I failed. Each time you miss a day, you have to start over. I kept missing days. So when I heard about another chance at a community Sadhana, I listened. Cara told us that she will focus on Saucha, the first of Patanjali's niyamah (observances) in the Yoga Sutras. Saucha translates as purity or cleanliness. Cara explained to us that it means not only physical and environmental purity, but also purity of thought. I started thinking about committing to the niyamah, and the spiritual practice of developing self-control.
I have never thought of myself as someone who struggled with self-control--until recently. I have never been an addicted smoker, drug user, alcoholic or yo-yo dieter. My weight has been fairly consistent and I do not overeat. However, in 2011 when a Mom friend brought her cigarettes to my house and wanted to step outside with me and smoke one while our kids played in the backyard, I smoked with her. That was in April. Over the remainder of the year, I smoked 2 or 3 cigarettes per day. I was playing a little game with myself, as I have at various times throughout my life, seeing if I could smoke a few cigarettes without developing an addiction. How very "un-yoga" of me, right? So I committed to give up my little habit in 2012. I haven't smoked any cigarettes so far this year, and I only missed them for 10 days or so. But, I have had a nagging feeling that I need to give up some other stuff, too. Like: Facebook; Checking e-mail on my Iphone throughout the day; and, compulsively confessing all of my inner conflicts about my interfaith seminary program to my closest family members and my pastor. Basically, I have been on communication overload, and I need to back off and go within for awhile.
The 40 Day Community Sadhana could not come at a better time for me. On Cara's recommendation, I contacted Siri Chand Kaur for a 40 day disciplined meditation practice based on my goals. I told her I want to focus on restraint and self-control in communication. She got back to me with a meditation practice that is short enough to fit it into my schedule every day, yet difficult enough to really kick my self-control and inner power into gear. Here is a link to my new 40 day meditation practice:
http://www.yogibhajan.org/ybkriyas/index.php?id=101
Here is a link to Siri Chand's blog: http://manymoonsyoga.wordpress.com/
My meditation practice is basically a breath control exercise, which requires me to repeatedly hold out my breath three times as long as it held in, for at least 11 minutes. It is more challenging than I thought it would be! Today, the second day, was much easier since I knew what feeling to expect. Yesterday my body was resisting the practice quite a bit. I wonder what it will feel like on the 40th day. I plan to build up the practice by one minute, every other day. So tomorrow I will try 12 minutes.
Over the next 38 days, in addition to the daily breath exercises, I plan to give up a few other things: 1. Facebook. I am taking the app off of my Iphone and will ask my husband to post my blog entries on it; 2. E-mail, other than checking it twice per day for school and work related reasons; and 3. All frivolous communication. I will make a conscious effort each time I speak or write anything, to make sure that the communication comes from a place of authenticity and necessity. This may sound a bit extreme, however, I feel very strongly that I need to commit to this practice...right now.
I received direct confirmation of my desire to undertake this practice, in various conversations I have had over the past week, and in an article I was assigned to read for my volunteer chaplaincy class: Conquering Addiction with Spirituality. In the article, reference is made to the practice of fasting. I have been considering an electronic fast for months. When I thought about my own addictive behaviors, this quote jumped out at me: "When a person's inner self becomes damaged or distorted, their spirituality can become damaged or distorted, resulting in addictive and self-destructive behavior." I feel like excessive electronic communication and superficial communication is distorting my inner self. So I am kicking those habits to the curb. I hope I can gain increased self-control through this practice, along with some good habits that will inform the way I communicate for the rest of my life.
Wish me luck.
It all started one week ago when I went to yoga class. The teacher, Cara Sax, told us about a 40 Day Community Sadhana being sponsored by The Yoga Co-Op at The Garrison. A Sadhana is a discipline undertaken for a set period of time, in pursuit of a goal. I tried a 40 day Sadhana in the past and I failed. Each time you miss a day, you have to start over. I kept missing days. So when I heard about another chance at a community Sadhana, I listened. Cara told us that she will focus on Saucha, the first of Patanjali's niyamah (observances) in the Yoga Sutras. Saucha translates as purity or cleanliness. Cara explained to us that it means not only physical and environmental purity, but also purity of thought. I started thinking about committing to the niyamah, and the spiritual practice of developing self-control.
I have never thought of myself as someone who struggled with self-control--until recently. I have never been an addicted smoker, drug user, alcoholic or yo-yo dieter. My weight has been fairly consistent and I do not overeat. However, in 2011 when a Mom friend brought her cigarettes to my house and wanted to step outside with me and smoke one while our kids played in the backyard, I smoked with her. That was in April. Over the remainder of the year, I smoked 2 or 3 cigarettes per day. I was playing a little game with myself, as I have at various times throughout my life, seeing if I could smoke a few cigarettes without developing an addiction. How very "un-yoga" of me, right? So I committed to give up my little habit in 2012. I haven't smoked any cigarettes so far this year, and I only missed them for 10 days or so. But, I have had a nagging feeling that I need to give up some other stuff, too. Like: Facebook; Checking e-mail on my Iphone throughout the day; and, compulsively confessing all of my inner conflicts about my interfaith seminary program to my closest family members and my pastor. Basically, I have been on communication overload, and I need to back off and go within for awhile.
The 40 Day Community Sadhana could not come at a better time for me. On Cara's recommendation, I contacted Siri Chand Kaur for a 40 day disciplined meditation practice based on my goals. I told her I want to focus on restraint and self-control in communication. She got back to me with a meditation practice that is short enough to fit it into my schedule every day, yet difficult enough to really kick my self-control and inner power into gear. Here is a link to my new 40 day meditation practice:
http://www.yogibhajan.org/ybkriyas/index.php?id=101
Here is a link to Siri Chand's blog: http://manymoonsyoga.wordpress.com/
My meditation practice is basically a breath control exercise, which requires me to repeatedly hold out my breath three times as long as it held in, for at least 11 minutes. It is more challenging than I thought it would be! Today, the second day, was much easier since I knew what feeling to expect. Yesterday my body was resisting the practice quite a bit. I wonder what it will feel like on the 40th day. I plan to build up the practice by one minute, every other day. So tomorrow I will try 12 minutes.
Over the next 38 days, in addition to the daily breath exercises, I plan to give up a few other things: 1. Facebook. I am taking the app off of my Iphone and will ask my husband to post my blog entries on it; 2. E-mail, other than checking it twice per day for school and work related reasons; and 3. All frivolous communication. I will make a conscious effort each time I speak or write anything, to make sure that the communication comes from a place of authenticity and necessity. This may sound a bit extreme, however, I feel very strongly that I need to commit to this practice...right now.
I received direct confirmation of my desire to undertake this practice, in various conversations I have had over the past week, and in an article I was assigned to read for my volunteer chaplaincy class: Conquering Addiction with Spirituality. In the article, reference is made to the practice of fasting. I have been considering an electronic fast for months. When I thought about my own addictive behaviors, this quote jumped out at me: "When a person's inner self becomes damaged or distorted, their spirituality can become damaged or distorted, resulting in addictive and self-destructive behavior." I feel like excessive electronic communication and superficial communication is distorting my inner self. So I am kicking those habits to the curb. I hope I can gain increased self-control through this practice, along with some good habits that will inform the way I communicate for the rest of my life.
Wish me luck.
Of course I wish you luck! I had no idea you had started smoking that much, so I'm very glad you've quit that habit, and I completely understand the need for no/less technology. I was speaking to someone about that yesterday - how when I go on vacation I like to get rid of my phone, email, everything... I hope you don't stop talking to people though! :)
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