Change

Change is inevitable. People die, babies are born, we get old, hurt ourselves, etc. We all know this but on some level we are resistant to it. Clinging to the way things were and maybe a little afraid to focus on the way things are now because it means you have to let go of something.

Yoga teaches us that being in the present moment is a way to ease our suffering. That clinging to the way things are is one of the main things that causes suffering. And yet, easier said than done. Why? What are we so afraid of? What is this need to stay the same even though we know that this is impossible? And, more importantly, how do we learn to let go of this clinging? I don't have the answers to these questions but I do feel the years of my yoga practice has allowed me to at least bring some thought to what some of the answers might be. We like what we know, what makes us comfortable, the familiar. Letting go of clinging to how something used to be means we need to step into the unfamiliar, be it kicking up into handstand for the first time or moving forward after losing someone close to us.


Patanjali teaches us in the Yoga Sutras that the 5 Kleshas, or causes of suffering (such as clinging to the way things are) can be reduce by meditation, by returning to the true self within us that is constant and unchanging. This does not include our bodies, our jobs, what we own, etc. This is the essence of ourselves, our spirit, if you will. By returning to this source through our practice the clinging can subside and we can know what is real and true and what is superficial.

Peace and blessings to you all.

Lokah Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu- may all being everywhere be happy and free.