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Santosha, derived from Sanskrit Sam, complete, altogether, entire, and Tosha, acceptance, or being comfortable, means to make peace with, or to reconcile multiple truths. Santosha asks us to develop our capacity to hold comfortably the varied elements that comprise the complete truth, and to accept dichotomous or paradoxical realities. This is a practice of mental flexibility, that we may stretch ourselves beyond one limited view and exercise ‘both/and’ competency, allowing for seeming opposites both to be simultaneously true. We must build our faculty for uncertainty and contradiction. Santosha invites us to be present with all that is, to face what we’d rather not see. We must sift, sort, and structure the multiple aspects of truth to create space in our minds and foster a sense of clarity and ease so that we are not overwhelmed or burdened by the enormity of true reality. Santosha is often translated as contentment, and this is an important element. We must not be frustrated or deterred when the multiple components do not readily align or make sense within our active framework. We must be content to keep with the practice, to build space to accommodate our own blind spots and allow for gaps in our understanding. Practice with Santosha requires calm receptivity, persistence in reflection, and a willingness to rearrange concepts, rule out false paradigm schemes, imagine ideas inverted, follow corollary patterns, and redefine our sense of truth, reality, and identity. In conversation with Layla F. Saad, Sarah Jones exemplifies Santosha, our capacity to entertain multiple diverse perspectives, in their Good Ancestors conversation exploring personal identity in discourse with racism, sexism, and economic mobility.
Satya is often translated as non-lying, or truthfulness, with the implication that as long as we are honest and impeccable with our word, we are practicing this virtue. Satya entails so much more than this limited interpretation. Satya means non-falsehood, non-distortion, non-ignorance. We must allow for multiple truths; we cannot ignore or deny the truth of others. In Sanskrit, Sat indicates the ultimate eternal truth, with the suffix ya indicating doing or accomplishing. Satya requires active investigation in seeking the whole and complete truth. We must be willing to question the dominant cultural narrative; we must be willing to hear and digest multiple perspectives and to exercise our own discernment. We must analyze the validity of our usual information sources and evaluate entrained biases, inaccurate assumptions, hidden interests, and covert agendas. We must identify which voices have been silenced, unduly discredited, or eclipsed. We must consider alternate views and sort facts from opinion. We must amplify the voices that long have been oppressed, and bolster the stories of those vulnerable to violence in speaking their truth. We must encourage courageous free-thought and nourish fresh perspectives; we cannot feed the fear of dissent. We must piece together a more complete picture. Satya means to dedicate practice to cultivating our understanding. Satya means to propagate a more consummate, collaborative, and comprehensive truth. In the Yoga Sutras Patanjali outlines the eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga, beginning with the Yamas and Niyamas, which illuminate yoga’s inherent design. In Sanskrit Yamas connotes reins, the restraints employed by a charioteer. The Yamas steer our interactions with others, teaching us how to navigate our interpersonal world with ethical behaviors to respect all others and create harmonious coexistence. “May all beings everywhere be happy and free...” Niyamas shares the same root, with the added prefix Ni, in this instance indicating inward or within. The Niyamas guide our internal practice and right relationship within ourselves. “...and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.”
The Yamas and Niyamas direct and focus our actions to achieve freedom and happiness for all, to reach ultimate union, or enlightenment. They are often described as guideposts, numbered in order reflecting Pantanjali's elucidation in the Yoga Sutras. However, we might consider the Yamas and Niyamas more as trail-marking cairns comprised of stacked stones. We might imagine that the stones have tumbled, and that we may rearrange them more stably in such a way to better illuminate our path and lend to more coherence. Let's consider a cairn with Satya & Santosha at its base, and place Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya second. We stack Aparigraha & Tapas third at the midpoint, followed by Asteya & Saucha. We cap the cairn with Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana at the pinnacle. Arranged in this way, we're clearly directed toward social activism and anti-racism; it's the only way forward with applied practice.
"Silence becomes cowardice when occasion demands speaking out the whole truth and acting accordingly." - Gandhi
Silence and listening are important keys in the work with Satya & Santosha. So many voices that we’ve too long suppressed and ignored are coming to the forefront of global conversation and upsetting what’s been the dominant/dominating narrative. There’s a lot we need to hear. There’s a lot we need to digest. There’s a lot we need to reframe in our understanding of the truth. It takes time and dedication in quiet reflection before we can know how to respond thoughtfully and appropriately. Let's honor this process and allow ourselves the time and space we need, and let's recognize when we are ready to speak out the whole truth and act accordingly. yoga & anti-racism SERIES, PART 1.1 OF 8
June 5th reflections, as shared in the Coco Yoga Community Forum: I am committed to incorporating a lens of social justice to my yoga practice both within the container of the yoga shala and outside in our larger communities. I recognize that as someone who has benefited from a system ingrained with racism and white supremacy at the expense of black, indigenous, and people of color, I have responsibility to take part in actively dismantling racist systems and attitudes, and co-creating new systems and attitudes that honor and bring healing and justice to those who have borne the immeasurable inhumanity of racism and white supremacy. I recognize that my part in this work begins with my own active and committed contemplative practice. Where are my limits? I will never fully understand the multi-layered experience of those who live the oppression of these systems day in and day out. Furthermore, I will never fully understand the extent of the benefit and privilege I garner owing to these systems. I am not qualified to lead this revolution, and given how blind I have been to my own complacency with systemic racism, and how unaware I have been around my own ingrained white supremacy, I am not qualified even to assess how well I am doing in this practice. Is this work risky or counterproductive? Given my place of privilege, this work does not pose any risk to my own wellbeing. The risk that engaging with this work poses is the possibility that my own unidentified racism surface in damaging ways, causing real harm and perpetuating racist beliefs and systems. I must be thoughtful in this work because it puts others at risk, but ultimately sincerity in pursuing new systems and ways of being with cautious care could never be counterproductive. This work is the only path for my personal liberation in dedication to raising my own bar for understanding, compassion, empathy, and integrity; and each person’s commitment to doing better is what will achieve the new reality for all for which this revolution is calling. What are my capacities? I am capable of educating myself, of seeking out and hearing BIPOC thought leaders as well as common and varied BIPOC voices and experiences. I am capable of engaging with what I am hearing, bringing new ideas and perspectives into my practice however uncomfortable I may feel, however difficult it is to hold the truths of the experience of oppression. I am capable of leaning into the discomfort, sitting in stillness with ideas that I have previously avoided, and applying yoga philosophy to reorganize and attune to a better way of being. I am capable of listening and reflecting on feedback, of taking proper time for rest and pause. I am capable of owning my blind spots, faults, and mistakes, and dedicating to repair damages done. I am capable of learning, and unlearning, revising and updating my perspectives and understandings. This is not easy work, but I commit to keep with it into the long-term and stretch beyond my own resistance and discomfort. Yoga & Anti-Racism Series
Part 1: How Yoga & Social Justice Intersect: A Contemplative Practice ..... Part 1.1 A Personal Commitment to Social Justice Practice Part 2: Setting the Stage for Contemplative Practice: A Personal Reflection Part 3: Social Justice & The Purpose of Yoga: Invoking Satya & Santosha Part 4: Karma Yoga & The Paradox of All-One: Invoking Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya ..... Part 4.1 Bonding Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya with Satya & Santosha Part 5: Dharma, Divisiveness & Sustaining Activism: Invoking Aparigraha & Tapas ..... Part 5.1 Bonding Aparigraha & Tapas with Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya Part 6: Appropriation & Holding Space: Invoking Asteya & Saucha ..... Part 6.1 Integrity Review Part 7: Surrender to Activism: Invoking Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana Part 8: The Yamas & Niyamas Activism Model Yoga & anti-racism SERIES, PART 3 OF 8
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu This sanskrit prayer we so often invoke at the end of yoga asana practice speaks to the purpose of yoga. “May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.” Here we state our desire for the wellbeing of everyone, and our intention that our own practice contribute to this greater good. Yoga invites us to walk the path to freedom and happiness, for ourselves and for all--the path to inner peace and peace on earth. The Yamas & Niyamas In the Yoga Sutras Patanjali outlines the eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga, beginning with the Yamas and Niyamas, which illuminate yoga’s inherent design. In Sanskrit Yamas connotes reins, the restraints employed by a charioteer. The Yamas steer our interactions with others, teaching us how to navigate our interpersonal world with ethical behaviors to respect all others and create harmonious coexistence. “May all beings everywhere be happy and free...” Niyamas shares the same root, with the added prefix Ni, in this instance indicating inward or within. The Niyamas guide our internal practice and right relationship within ourselves. “...and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.”
The Yamas and Niyamas direct and focus our actions to achieve freedom and happiness for all, to reach ultimate union, or enlightenment. They are often described as guideposts, numbered in order reflecting Pantanjali's elucidation in the Yoga Sutras. However, we might consider the Yamas and Niyamas more as trail-marking cairns comprised of stacked stones. We might imagine that the stones have tumbled, and that we may rearrange them more stably in such a way to better illuminate our path and lend to more coherence. Let's consider a cairn with Satya & Santosha at its base, and place Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya second. We stack Aparigraha & Tapas third at the midpoint, followed by Asteya & Saucha. We cap the cairn with Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana at the pinnacle. Arranged in this way, we're clearly directed toward social activism and anti-racism; it's the only way forward with applied practice. Satya & Santosha As a white American woman late to the anti-racism discussion, my first step in this journey is to educate myself, to listen to those who live the realities of racist oppression, and to pursue the full truth of our history and current state of affairs. I invoke the Yama Satya, propagation of comprehensive truth, and the Niyama Santosha, multiple truth reconciliation.
Satya is often translated as non-lying, or truthfulness, with the implication that as long as we are honest and impeccable with our word, we are practicing this virtue. Satya entails so much more than this limited interpretation. Satya means non-falsehood, non-distortion, non-ignorance. We must allow for multiple truths; we cannot ignore or deny the truth of others. In Sanskrit, Sat indicates the ultimate eternal truth, with the suffix ya indicating doing or accomplishing. Satya requires active investigation in seeking the whole and complete truth. We must be willing to question the dominant cultural narrative; we must be willing to hear and digest multiple perspectives and to exercise our own discernment. We must analyze the validity of our usual information sources and evaluate entrained biases, inaccurate assumptions, hidden interests, and covert agendas. We must identify which voices have been silenced, unduly discredited, or eclipsed. We must consider alternate views and sort facts from opinion. We must amplify the voices that long have been oppressed, and bolster the stories of those vulnerable to violence in speaking their truth. We must encourage courageous free-thought and nourish fresh perspectives; we cannot feed the fear of dissent. We must piece together a more complete picture. Satya means to dedicate practice to cultivating our understanding. Satya means to propagate a more consummate, collaborative, and comprehensive truth.
Santosha, derived from Sanskrit Sam, complete, altogether, entire, and Tosha, acceptance, or being comfortable, means to make peace with, or to reconcile multiple truths. Santosha asks us to develop our capacity to hold comfortably the varied elements that comprise the complete truth, and to accept dichotomous or paradoxical realities. This is a practice of mental flexibility, that we may stretch ourselves beyond one limited view and exercise ‘both/and’ competency, allowing for seeming opposites both to be simultaneously true. We must build our faculty for uncertainty and contradiction. Santosha invites us to be present with all that is, to face what we’d rather not see. We must sift, sort, and structure the multiple aspects of truth to create space in our minds and foster a sense of clarity and ease so that we are not overwhelmed or burdened by the enormity of true reality. Santosha is often translated as contentment, and this is an important element. We must not be frustrated or deterred when the multiple components do not readily align or make sense within our active framework. We must be content to keep with the practice, to build space to accommodate our own blind spots and allow for gaps in our understanding. Practice with Santosha requires calm receptivity, persistence in reflection, and a willingness to rearrange concepts, rule out false paradigm schemes, imagine ideas inverted, follow corollary patterns, and redefine our sense of truth, reality, and identity. Practicing Satya & Santosha with Anti-Racism As I continue with this first step of listening, educating myself, and investigating the full truth of our history and current reality, I’d like to share a few resources that I’m finding helpful as a white American woman new to the anti-racism movement:
Thank you for engaging with the anti-racism discussion and exploring with me how yoga calls us to activism for social justice. In my next post I continue with this practice and explore Karma Yoga & The Paradox of All-One, invoking the Yama Brahmacharya and the Niyama Svadhyaya. Namaste ~ Teagan
Teagan studied International Studies with Professor Sean Kay at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio, including a six-week internship under the guidance of Tara Leaman at Our Place D.C. serving woman in prison and recently released in Washington, D.C.  keep Safe & start a Block Party#SATYAWITHSANTOSHA This Yoga & Anti-Racism Series streams forth in personal practice in response to Michelle Johnson's call to radicalize yoga to create a just world, as I've detailed in Part 1. Many words around Satya and Santosha reverberate themes from Sarah Varcas' framework interpreting the astrological signature we are experiencing in these times. Thank you Michelle Johnson and Sarah Varcas for your guidance and your invitation to come into better alignment.
Yoga & Anti-Racism Series Part 1: How Yoga & Social Justice Intersect: A Contemplative Practice ..... Part 1.1 A Personal Commitment to Social Justice Practice Part 2: Setting the Stage for Contemplative Practice: A Personal Reflection Part 3: Social Justice & The Purpose of Yoga: Invoking Satya & Santosha Part 4: Karma Yoga & The Paradox of All-One: Invoking Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya ..... Part 4.1 Bonding Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya with Satya & Santosha Part 5: Dharma, Divisiveness & Sustaining Activism: Invoking Aparigraha & Tapas ..... Part 5.1 Bonding Aparigraha & Tapas with Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya Part 6: Appropriation & Holding Space: Invoking Asteya & Saucha ..... Part 6.1 Integrity Review Part 7: Surrender to Activism: Invoking Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana Part 8: The Yamas & Niyamas Activism Model Yoga & Anti-Racism Series, PART 2 OF 8Normally I don’t share such personal musings in such a public way--and never at such length. However, last week listening to Michelle Johnson’s book Skill in Action: Radicalizing Your Yoga Practice to Create a Just World, I received a key that unlocked the gateway marking the threshold to contemplative practice. I’ve been approaching this path for some time, but now the door has swung open, and the force of what lies beyond is beckoning me emphatically with its gravitational pull. Last week I extended an invitation to our community to join me in contemplating How Yoga and Social Justice Intersect, and the first step requires an honest reflection on where we’ve been and where we are, so that we can identify our true potential and limits, and enter into this practice with great care. I urge you to read or download Skill in Action and follow the guided practices to begin shining light on your own history and evolution, and I hope others in this community will take time for this practice, that we may build together a supportive sangha for active exploration. What follows in this post are my own thoughts on my own recent experiences, the dark night before the bright dawn, appreciating the birth of a new day. As I mentioned, this post is lengthy and personal, but it’s the necessary foundation upon which I will be building my contemplative practice; it’s the context for upcoming posts as I begin to explore Social Justice & The Purpose of Yoga, Karma Yoga & the Paradox of All-One, Dharma, Divisiveness & Sustaining Activism, Appropriation & Holding Space, Surrender to Activism, and The Yamas & Niyamas Activism Model in practice with Anti-Racism. I hope that sharing my own experiences may somehow help someone, even in a small way. In practice, in presenting our stories with clear intention imbued with an earnest sense of purpose, we liberate our sentiments to fulfill their highest potential, and we free ourselves from what has been occupying our attention and drawing from our energies, creating space within for something new. Thank you for reading. Namaste ~ Teagan At the end of September 2019, moving into October, the heart of our rainy season here in Costa Rica, the season when things slow way down, the time that businesses take reprieve closing their doors for a week, a month, a breath, a pause in the absence of the usual tourism upon which they rely, with empty streets and cloudy skies, intermittent showers and sudden downpours, the idea of a week away from teaching brought a profound sense of relief, and we planned to close the yoga studio for a week for ‘Rainy Season Break’ to rest, play catch-up, and recuperate. My friend and colleague Veronique offered to guide me through a Peak States Therapy session, and I thought--yes, perfect, that’s exactly what I need--a good healing session to recharge as I kick off this week, so I’ll be energized to make the most of this time and attack the slew of tasks that have been accumulating on the back burner. At that time Veronique was fairly new to Peak States Therapy, and she was eager to get more experience under her belt. I had never heard of the technique and had no idea what was in store for me, but I trusted Veronique and greatly appreciated the bodywork sessions we often exchanged. The two-hour session was the most subtle form of healing therapy I have ever experienced. It was like a very slow and gentle conversation as Veronique asked me to imagine a series of life scenarios, identifying the person and emotion that ever so faintly peaked into my consciousness in relation to the memory or experience, and she instructed me to hold a couple pressure points on my hands. It felt as though nothing was happening at all, just quiet listening and imagination. When I went home my impression was that while it was a peaceful and pleasant experience, I wasn’t sure it had much value. I definitely hadn’t felt the distinct reset and realignment I so often receive in her Neuro-Cutaneos Technique bodywork treatments, noticing clear shifts in my body throughout the sessions, and a significant improvement in my state by the time she finishes her work. The Peak States Therapy was different. I left thinking that maybe this work is too subtle for me, or maybe she just needed more practice. I would soon realize that I couldn’t have been further from the mark. In the “week off” that followed it was as though all the most condensed and potent emotions buried in the deepest trenches of my being, rose up and poured out of me. I had never known myself to be capable of expressing such fiery anger, such fierce rage, such devastating grief, and in such rapid cycling succession. My body was purging too. My cycle began two days ahead of its normal schedule and extended two days beyond, essentially doubled in length, and physically manifesting the same qualities as my emotions--the purifying expulsion of the most stagnant, foul parts of myself. Needless to say, it was not the week I had planned; by the time I was to get back to teaching I hadn’t completed any of the work I had hoped to put behind me. Throughout the month of October, I struggled to get back to normal. I was feeling burnt out. My yoga teaching and practice felt hollow, like I was going through the motions, vacant of any sense of the spiritual, purpose, or meaning. It was a difficult month. October marked the ten-year anniversary of my younger brother’s suicide, and adding to that, I had made the commitment to create and lead a Breast Health Self-Care Workshop and Healing Circle in support of the local Breast Cancer Awareness group’s events. Buried emotions were still surfacing, albeit more gently now, as I reflected on those in my life who have been affected by cancer. The month presented new and unexpected logistical challenges as well, between navigating the new corporate legal requirements implemented at the time, and in losing a valued member of our Yoga teaching triad who was called home to be with family after her grandmother’s passing. To-do lists grew longer, and complex emotions entangled. I tried to keep positive and push through, to have fun with the Halloween festivities, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something really needed to change. The weekend following Halloween, at the portal of Day of the Dead when they say the veils are thin, I set aside a large block of time for ritual to delve deep into meditation. It was the reboot I desperately needed. Profound visions poured through imparting prophetic images, scattered puzzle-piece clips of information, and the most uplifting sense of energizing inspiration. I saw myself pregnant, and also our Mother Earth pregnant, the sensation of innermost stillness, the depths of gestation, a visceral sense of the void in interlude between caterpillar and butterfly, impossible to express in its expanse and fullness. I was flooded with a mix of open-ended ideas and possibilities paired with fortified inner-knowings and convictions. I knew I needed to engage with contemplative practice, and I knew I needed respite from asana, yoga’s physical practice. I announced that I would be canceling my regular asana classes for the month of November in favor of a weekly satsang to explore the principles and philosophies of yoga, and to address and engage with what was real and present in our community. I knew I needed an opportunity for realignment before we’d be back in full swing for the launch of our high season in December, and given that our community is at its smallest in November as even our most committed students who live here year-round venture away to visit family at Thanksgiving, there couldn’t have been a better time to reset. In the first satsang we explored the value and the challenges of self-guided practice, the dynamics of moving on the mat without the cues of an instructor, in solitude away from the momentum that arises in group practice, where our coordinated flows foster a sustaining current akin to geese flying in pattern. I couldn’t have guessed how pertinent this discussion would prove five months down the line in the face of Covid-19’s global lockdowns. Home practice or no practice. In one satsang our group gave full attention to one member who was in the process of fulfilling his Yoga teacher training and was looking for experience leading class, and for constructive feedback. He guided us through a mini class, and afterward we discussed what worked well, what was unique to his voice and style, and aspects he might consider exploring further. Another satsang turned out to be a one-on-one meeting with a local environmental activist doing important work in the community, and we brainstormed and thought through plans for the upcoming year. We couldn’t have known how many of those plans would prove moot for now in the face of lockdowns and new norms of operating. Hit. And miss. For myself the satsang that stands out was the conversation centered around the five Yamas and five Niyamas, two of the eight limbs in Yoga philosophy. I’d first learned these concepts a decade earlier in my Yoga teacher training, and had since encountered them on several occasions in workshops and classes, and in reading articles online or in magazines. They always felt elusive; I never held them all clearly in my mind, and much less in my heart, except for a few that I had come to grasp and internalize through lessons and practice with Kundalini. Before the satsang I read up; I did not feel at all prepared to teach these concepts, but was comfortable enough at least to open up and guide a discussion. It was an important conversation. Although at the time I didn’t come away with any breakthroughs in understanding, I recognize that I was planting seeds in very fertile ground. My call to reset and my distinct realignment in priorities marked a clear divergence from my then business partner. The pivot catalyzed our recognizing that it was time to part ways. While I had imagined that the extra time cleared in November’s schedule from canceling regular classes would be applied to bolstering our business and getting ahead of the game for a prosperous high season to come, instead I needed to dedicate that time to the difficult and involved task of unraveling the partnership as delicately as possible to preserve its fruits and keep integrity intact as much as may be allowed under the stress of the separation. Emotions were high, feelings were hurt, and all variables seemed up in the air. We passed through a prolonged period of shifts and changes, waiting for pieces to fall into place, but each new development brought more elements into the equation. I wrestled to reconcile my intuitive compass and the puzzle pieces from my vision with reasonable rationale and judgment. The rational part of me felt energized and keen for new developments. I was excited to launch for the first time in December a complete Pranayama class equipped with a lens linking Pranayama and free diving in our SCUBA-centric community. Plus logically, it made sense to keep the studio open through the high season, until the end of March, meeting the needs of the community and harvesting the fruits of our labors. However, my intuitive heart was telling me it was time to close shop, to bring the machine to full stop. I wanted to clear the canvas and apply all my energies to visioning the future. I wanted to start preparing for a family and building our home and the new yoga space. When I had entered the business partnership a year and half prior, the yoga studio had already been operating for more than a year, so I hit the ground running, learning as I went. Even though things for the most part went well and we made steady progress, the absence of a clear vision, purpose, and mission statement lurked in the back of my awareness. It seemed we could never make focusing on this foundation a priority as there were always the day-to-day tasks with which to keep up, and some other event or project requiring our attention. I was determined for December to dedicate the time to get clear and put the vision, purpose, and mission for Coco Yoga and Wellness in writing. Blessed as I am with a father who sends me pages and pages of articles suggesting how one might approach this task and achieve great results, I felt well-equipped for the work. What I didn’t realize then was that it was never a question of making it a priority to set aside the hours or weekend and apply myself to the goal--my real resistance was the unidentified inner-knowing that I wasn’t ready with clarity and conviction. Ultimately, with December bringing the blessing of the foretold pregnancy despite our family planning, my intuitive heart grew stronger and the voice of my body wisdom grew louder. I needed rest. I needed stillness. I spent January wrapping up the loose ends to close the yoga studio and fulfill responsibilities to clear the way to retreat. By February I started powering down, and with March’s global shutdown, I fully cocooned. I was ready to allow my entire sense of self and personal history to dissolve, for my elemental parts to rearrange, reorganize, and recreate into something new. Full stop. Pure creative energy. Wu Wei, non-doing. Pure imagination. While others complained of boredom, nothing to do, I wouldn’t engage with my lengthy to-do list; I couldn’t be called to motivation. Only inspiration. I did only what I was moved to do. No expectation. I made myself the seed, planted deeply in the earth. Now the seed coat is cracked. A small sprout is shooting forth, slow but determined, looking for the light.
This Yoga & Anti-Racism Series streams forth in personal practice in response to Michelle Johnson's call to radicalize yoga to create a just world, as I've detailed in Part 1. Thank you Michelle Johnson for your guidance and your invitation to come into better alignment.
Yoga & Anti-Racism Series Part 1: How Yoga & Social Justice Intersect: A Contemplative Practice ..... Part 1.1 A Personal Commitment to Social Justice Practice Part 2: Setting the Stage for Contemplative Practice: A Personal Reflection Part 3: Social Justice & The Purpose of Yoga: Invoking Satya & Santosha Part 4: Karma Yoga & The Paradox of All-One: Invoking Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya ..... Part 4.1 Bonding Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya with Satya & Santosha Part 5: Dharma, Divisiveness & Sustaining Activism: Invoking Aparigraha & Tapas ..... Part 5.1 Bonding Aparigraha & Tapas with Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya Part 6: Appropriation & Holding Space: Invoking Asteya & Saucha ..... Part 6.1 Integrity Review Part 7: Surrender to Activism: Invoking Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana Part 8: The Yamas & Niyamas Activism Model yoga & antiracism series, PART 1 OF 8
Step 1Commit to self-awareness and being honest with yourself in recognizing your abilities and honoring your limits. As in any Yoga class, some suggestions may feel good to you and may feel easy to complete. Other suggestions may pose a challenge--you may feel resistance, discomfort, or difficulty, but you may be surprised how you feel afterward whether you achieve the suggestion in its fullest expression, or you have a new experience in making the effort and taking a step in progress. Other suggestions may not be accessible, or an attempt to complete the instruction may pose a risk or be counterproductive to your wellbeing in this moment. As always in Yoga, we must bring awareness to where we are in this moment, what helpful and beneficial practices we should pursue, and what risky or counterproductive practices we should avoid. We need to bring awareness to what resistance and discomfort we feel, and observe our process in being present with these feelings and striving to stretch ourselves in facing them. We need to be open to how our distinctions may differ on a given day or in a given moment as we assess what’s accessible and desirable, and what’s risky or counterproductive, and we can witness how these may evolve or change drastically as we continue our journey and our experiences shift and transform. Recognizing our abilities and honoring our limits with honesty and sincerity are acts of self-love; they are not selfish, but in fact, are expressions of love for others. Consider your capacities and limits and write down an expression of your commitment. Step 2Consider how Yoga and Social Justice intersect. What initial thoughts come to mind? Do you have a clear answer, or is this question something new? Write down your initial ideas and perceptions. Step 3With which of the 8 limbs of Yoga are you familiar? Are the Yamas and the Niyamas a part of your practice? If you are unfamiliar with the Yamas and Niyamas, take some time to look them up and familiarize yourself with these tenets of Yogic practice. Once you have familiarized yourself with them, consider how they relate to Social Justice. I’ll be reflecting and writing more on these in the coming days and weeks; I’d love for you to be part of the conversation. What are your initial thoughts or questions connecting the Yamas and Niyamas with Social Justice?
Step 4Watch Michelle Cassandra Johnson’s TEDx talk There is No Neutral (17 minutes). What resonates with you in how she speaks about Yoga and the breath in relationship to racism and white supremacy? How do you feel in your body listening to her presentation? What initial thoughts or questions come up for you? Step 5
Step 6 Visit Pranamaya.com and download Skill in Action: Radicalizing Your Yoga Practice to Create a Just World. Listen and engage with the audiobook and practices. The regular price is $16.95, but it is on sale now for $13.56. You do not need any special app to listen to the book; you will receive an email to access the book and listen through your internet browser either on your phone or computer. The book includes 3 chapters on Skill in Action (2 hours and 12 minutes) and 5 practices: Where I’m From (2 minutes), My Heart’s Desire (4 minutes), Uniquely Positioned (6 minutes), Justice in the Body, Justice in the World (5 minutes), Multiple Truths (4 minutes). The monetary investment and time investment to complete this step are comparable to two yoga asana classes in local studios here in Playas del Coco, Costa Rica.
Step 7Read over what you have written and take time to reflect. Share some of your thoughts in the comments below. If you do not feel comfortable or called to share your responses, consider why. Are you feeling resistance and discomfort, or would it be risky or counterproductive to share? Step 8Take time to connect with your heart and your breath. Lean into your feelings without any judgement around what you should be feeling or how many of the suggestions you were able to complete. Simply notice where you are and how you feel. Honor your feelings and your experience and thank yourself for taking time to engage with this practice. Allow this sense of gratitude to grow within you as you consider all the blessings you enjoy in this life, and all the blessings on the horizon already on their way to coming into being. Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu. May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all. Namaste. Thank you Michelle Johnson for your years of dedicated work around yoga and anti-racism, your guidance and call to radicalize practice, and the invitation to come into better alignment.
Yoga & Anti-Racism Series Part 1: How Yoga & Social Justice Intersect: A Contemplative Practice ..... Part 1.1 A Personal Commitment to Social Justice Practice Part 2: Setting the Stage for Contemplative Practice: A Personal Reflection Part 3: Social Justice & The Purpose of Yoga: Invoking Satya & Santosha Part 4: Karma Yoga & The Paradox of All-One: Invoking Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya ..... Part 4.1 Bonding Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya with Satya & Santosha Part 5: Dharma, Divisiveness & Sustaining Activism: Invoking Aparigraha & Tapas ..... Part 5.1 Bonding Aparigraha & Tapas with Brahmacharya & Svadhyaya Part 6: Appropriation & Holding Space: Invoking Asteya & Saucha ..... Part 6.1 Integrity Review Part 7: Surrender to Activism: Invoking Ahimsa & Ishwara Pranidhana Part 8: The Yamas & Niyamas Activism Model
It’s time to announce that I will close the Plaza Nino Coco Yoga & Wellness space at the end of this month. I am so grateful to have been invited to partner in running the space over the past year and a half, and I am so grateful for the warm welcome I received returning to the local yoga community. It has been an incredibly enjoyable and fulfilling experience, and I learned so much in this time as I stepped into more responsibilities in holding and managing this space. Yet however much love, thought, time, and effort I put into this space, Miranda was the real heart of it; the vision belonged to her, and I can only imagine her tremendous efforts and dedication in creating the space and running it on her own before my return to Coco. By November, however, I began to feel called to begin focusing on my own dream—the land nearby sitting empty waiting to host the beautiful yoga shala I envision. This shift in my energies and priorities marked an inevitable fork in the road; and I sense that my decision to close after March this year played a part in Miranda’s decision to end our partnership in November. While I agreed to take over the rental contract in December and keep the space open through the summer season; I did so with the understanding that both Miranda, Metzi, and myself were committed to teaching through the end of March this year. However, by the end of December Miranda’s plans had changed, and last week with complications in the Monkey Trail commute getting worse, Metzi decided that it’s become too difficult to keep up. If I still were able to count on myself for the season, I’d definitely make it work as I had planned, but at New Year’s Eve my husband and I had news, which although gave us more cause for celebration, also made us put away the champagne. In these early weeks of pregnancy I’ve needed considerable rest, have had much less mental and physical energy to put toward work, and have acknowledged my recent ankle injury a clear sign to step away from teaching. While a big part of me would love to fulfill the commitment I made both to our incredible instructors and to our amazing students, to keep operating the space through the end of March, I must make the difficult decision to honor first my commitment to myself. This is a precious time in which I need to care for myself and draw my energies inward in conscious creation. Having previously experienced the pain and difficulty of miscarriage, I don’t take anything for granted and will do everything I can to support a healthy pregnancy. I have spent much time in contemplating this decision to close early, and it has weighed on me these weeks, but ultimately my intuition has given clear direction and by now I know to follow always the heart’s call. I am so grateful to Marcos and Vanessa who will step in to fulfill the January yoga schedule; they have such bright light and tremendous wisdom to share. They both plan to continue teaching classes beyond January and will be available for private sessions as well; more information about their public classes beyond January will be announced as it is determined. For those who will have remaining classes on passes that extend into February, you will have the option to apply these to Marcos and Vanessa’s classes or to receive a refund for unused classes. Please plan accordingly in purchasing new passes through the rest of January; for those accustomed to purchasing the more economic pass options, pass extensions will be available to buy additional passes at your usual class rate. Veronique and I will continue to be available for healing treatments and may be contacted through Coco Yoga or individually to set up appointments, and Angel can be reached through her Soul Sisters group. To those who have already offered your support and encouragement in making this decision, I truly appreciate your kind words and care. Thank you to all for your understanding. While this marks the close to one incredible chapter, the story is but beginning, and I look forward to the day that I will open again the doors to Coco Yoga and Wellness in a space created with love to foster healthy and vibrant community around Yoga, Arts, and Healing. |
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