"The Darkest Place Is Beneath The Lamp."
Getting back into my practice means I have a lot of time to think in those 90 minutes each day. Some people may tell you that "you are not supposed to be thinking in class. It's meditation. You let everything go."
And "awesome!" for you if you can actually accomplish this. I never have. I still need to work on it. And while I am working through the postures for those 90 minutes each day, thoughts float into the mind... I am getting better about letting them float back out seconds later. But one memory keeps coming back and slapping me in the face in each practice...
It's of when we were at teacher training, and Bikram was giving one of his lectures. I can't recall what he was focusing on with the lecture (bad teacher, I am!), but he told us a proverb...
I wrote it down in my notebook. But didn't really get it. And Bikram went off on some tangent about what it means. I was too sleep-deprived to get it. So were most people.
Since moving to Boston, and making me the number one priority again, this saying keeps appearing. Either someone will post it on Facebook... I'll read it in a book... And it floods my mind as I am looking in the mirror or lying on my back in Savasana.
We spend a lot of time ignoring what is around us. We only focus on what we can "see" and are comfortable with in our lives. We avoid truly connecting and evolving with what is around us. We get used to patterns and habits and tangible things, thinking they are the best path for us. We ignore the things that orbit around us like natural satellites around a planet. We have trouble accepting that they may be able to offer an opportunity for us to be challenges and grow.
On so many levels, lately, I keep feeling this proverb Bikram taught us.
And "awesome!" for you if you can actually accomplish this. I never have. I still need to work on it. And while I am working through the postures for those 90 minutes each day, thoughts float into the mind... I am getting better about letting them float back out seconds later. But one memory keeps coming back and slapping me in the face in each practice...
It's of when we were at teacher training, and Bikram was giving one of his lectures. I can't recall what he was focusing on with the lecture (bad teacher, I am!), but he told us a proverb...
"The darkest place is beneath the lamp."
I wrote it down in my notebook. But didn't really get it. And Bikram went off on some tangent about what it means. I was too sleep-deprived to get it. So were most people.
Since moving to Boston, and making me the number one priority again, this saying keeps appearing. Either someone will post it on Facebook... I'll read it in a book... And it floods my mind as I am looking in the mirror or lying on my back in Savasana.
We spend a lot of time ignoring what is around us. We only focus on what we can "see" and are comfortable with in our lives. We avoid truly connecting and evolving with what is around us. We get used to patterns and habits and tangible things, thinking they are the best path for us. We ignore the things that orbit around us like natural satellites around a planet. We have trouble accepting that they may be able to offer an opportunity for us to be challenges and grow.
On so many levels, lately, I keep feeling this proverb Bikram taught us.
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