Balance

Lately a lot of people are going through their winter ups and downs, stresses or challenges, including myself in certain moments. I noticed that when I was in this, I was aiming to be centred in these emotions thinking that the journey in these polarities was not healthy. I was then recently reminded an Osho teaching, where he discusses the art of living in balance is not to reject these ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ emotions but to feel them wholly, and only then we can reach the balance in between. But to know and accept that this is only temporary too, as a passing phase. I keep trying to aim to be centred in these emotions, thinking that the journey in these polarities was not healthy. I was then recently reminded an Osho teaching, where he discusses the art of living in balance is not to reject these ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ emotions but to feel them wholly, and only then we can reach the balance in between. But to know and accept that this is only temporary too, as a passing phase.

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Balance is not a noun it is verb-it is balancing. The tight rope walker continuously moves from the right to the left, yes there is a moment when he is in the middle or too much to one side there is fear of falling. It is a dynamic process. You cannot be in the middle. Do not avoid extremes and do not choose only one extreme. The secret of balance is to remain available to both polarities. Both utterly happy and utterly sad have their own beauties. Both states are bound to be there! Both are inevitable and unavoidable. Life brings great pain and pleasure, by living one you live the other.  You cannot avoid the negative and have only the positive. Osho says this a fallacy” they are two aspects of the two energies.’ In the same way, our personal asana practice should not be balanced but should balance us, and our asana classes should balance our students. Effort and rest. Elimination and assimilation. Yang and yin. Day and night. Extreme action leads to death and so does extreme inaction. Finding balance leads to health, happiness and a discovering of who we really are!

Simple Reminders:

·       Do not fight with the emotion, welcome it ;

·       See deep into the emotion with love, care. Be a real host to the emotion whatever it is and you will be surprised beyond comprehension;

·       Discomfort is a signal to pay attention;

·       Balance comes out of the experience of all elements of life;

·       Learning to live with our negative parts of ourselves we can become whole;

·       Balance is something that comes with the acceptance of all of these dimensions of life.

I accept all that life offers me, knowing that nothing is static. Aadil Palkhivala  shares: “It is a cosmic principle that we either live in imbalance or act to create balance. Though we may be comfortable in imbalance (which we often perceive as balance), we cannot grow in such a state. It is through shining light on that which we are not—our opposite—that we illuminate the road to progress."

I also just want to honor Tara, the beautiful goddess of compassion in these moments. Her mantra Om tara Tu tara, Ture Swaha, guides us into a deeper place of compassion for ourself and others. We can call on her energy when it is us in these states of emotion, or for the compassion when holding others around us in the harder times. Thank you Tara....

Blessings,

Seriya x