An offering from PJ Papale:
I attended a lecture by John Friend (the founder of Anusara Yoga) last Friday night at Tulane University. John spoke about the origins of Halloween and the significance of this time of year as relates to yoga. In times past, 3000 years ago or so, the Celts celebrated a holiday called Samhain (pronounced sow-in). This festival commemorated the “end of summer”, a middle time between the Autumn Equinox (our end of summer around September 20th) and the Winter Solstice (our beginning of winter around December 20th) when our days start to become dominated more by darkness and less by daylight.
This is a time of transition, similar to dawn and dusk, similar to the pause between our inhales and our exhales. These times of transition are important in spiritual practices as they are an auspicious (marked by good omens; the promise of success or happiness) time when practitioners can connect more with themselves and with the divine. It is a time to reflect on our lives, on what has transpired, and to set some intentions for the future. The Celts and other cultures also used this time to connect with the spirits and memories of their ancestors, and to avoid harmful spirits. It was a time to honor those who had gone before by visiting their graves and bringing them gifts. It was a hallowed (holy; regarded with great respect) time, thus the night before was the eve of all hallows or Halloween.
John explained that as yogins, this time of year affords us a great opportunity to reflect on our lives and set some good intentions for the coming months. It is a time to connect with those who have gone before us for we are a part of them. It is an auspicious time that affords the chance to connect with our spiritual side and plant the seeds of a promise for the future.
In following this advice, I have been reflecting on my parents these past couple of days. My relationship with my parents both while they were alive and even now that they are not has been a struggle. My usual thoughts were that they did not give me what I needed emotionally or spiritually, and that I suffer because of it. However, after thinking about John’s lecture, it occurred to me that, hey, they are my ancestors, that I am a part of them and they me, and that maybe, just maybe, I can shift my position from a judgmental one to an accepting one. Can I embrace them as my parents with all of their faults, drop my critical thoughts, focus on how they loved me, and become more whole in the process? I think so. And, what promise does that hold for me?
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PJ what a thoughtful and powerful post. Thank you for sharing such an interesting experience. Your intimate thoughts and reflections about your relationship with your parents have struck a sensitive chord.
ReplyDeleteSadly, it is only now through the newness of motherhood that I am capable of even Trying to relinquish the blame we place upon our parents for all the ways in which we (the children) are not enough. My yoga certainly provides the opportunity to help me with this.
I am going to spend some time with your last few questions and see if maybe I can make additional strides in letting the "injustices" of their parenting (and my future parenting) go....
PJ, I also appreciate your great insight and wisdom regarding your relationship with your parents. The is one area that I struggle with as well(really, who doesn't?), and after just returning from a family wedding this past weekend, being in their physical presence stirred up many of these questions, emotions and feelings of disappointment. It can be very easy to blame our family for the voids that we feel in ourselves, and while recognizing the affect that they have had on us as individuals is so important to understanding who we are at the core, why is it that we always jump to the negatives and the aspects that we don't like about ourselves as a mirror of what we don't like in our parents?
ReplyDeleteI coincidently had a conversation with Vicky today about the relationships that we hold with family, and that we can feel a constant pull or need to make "them" understand who "we" are when what we really need to do is welcome in a bit of acceptance of where they may be coming from. Like any relationship, it's not one sided. Vicky noted that this shift in perspective has helped her find a great sense of ease with one of her siblings. It also strikes me that when struggling with familial relationships it is easy to feel that we are isolated in the experience we are having when obviously this is so not the case. So thank you for igniting this conversation - a very important one.
PJ, so wonderful to read this today. And Sarah, how timely was our conversation, there is no mistake of the wonders of the promiseland and the energy of a community that comes together. The fact that we share many of the same strengths and challenges only deepens our connection as a community and when one of us grows it plants a seed in all of us giving us the opportunity to grow as well.
ReplyDeleteThank you both for opening up your spirits today, it has helped to open mine.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteYoga is beneficial for the health in ways that modern science is just beginning to understand. Even though it has beenapplied with therapeutic intention for thousand of years, Yoga Therapy is only just now emerging as a discipline initself.
More health care practitioners are starting to include yogic techniques in their approach to healing -- andmore yoga teachers give a therapeutic intention to their teaching. People who have never tried yoga before are startingto consider including Yoga in their treatment plan.
As science begins to document the importance of understanding the interrelation of all existing things, it looks to Yogawith an intrigued eye, for Yoga speaks Unity in every word. As yoga techniques are researched and new data is gathered,it becomes easier for science and the medical establishment to understand and accept the benefits of Yoga Therapy.Yet there is still not one consensual definition of the discipline.
In order to arrive to an adequate definition and tocome up with proper standards for Yoga Therapy, it is crucial at this early stage to properly address some delicateprofessional and ethical issues. At the same time it is important to educatethegeneralpublic about Yoga Therapy'sbenefits and careful use.
so this article will really helpful to me..