It is another beautiful morning at Yog Sadhana Dham as the orange sun rises into the pastel sky. The fog brushes over the silhouette of the mountains and a bird flies by. The chilly air cools my fingers and toes and your toothbrush is kissed by the brown Patanjali Ayurvedic toothpasteacquired in the nearby village.

You splash cool mountain water across your face and grab a yoga mat. You walk down the stone steps, rustic and rawl. The mat rolls out on the ledge overlooking the valley and you find peace. All is quiet in my mind. You hear the leaves shiver in the wind and the birds sing with my heart because you found peace amongst the aloe plants and the sweet sound of Ama’s voice. You found peace because you allowed yourself to understand it. What was so familiar in youth and as time passed the mind grew louder with haste, always seeking something more, discontent with the space. Like time was running out, your ego said that you must be great and do great things, and you’ve wasted so much time.

What we are born with and die with is what is here, we need nothing more than that, everything is already inside of us. Peace resides in your heart as you give the biggest gift you can give to yourself, the gift of silence. So let the thoughts pass on this beautiful morning, attached to none. A simple observation of the mind that passes like clouds in this pastel sky and knows you have to power to either hold them or let them pass. Take what serves and leave the rest. You choose to focus on happiness today. What makes you happy?

Sadhana is becoming more fruitful with each passing day at Prakriti Yog This morning during meditation you see yourself. With a minimalist wardrobe in the backpack that holds all my possessions, you find expression where you once felt lacking. It is how you perceive the object that creates your reality. You choose the door, perceived creation and art in the surrounding construct that you have made for yourself. Today you are grateful to be alive and make a gratitude.

Harmony is walking smoothly. It’s looking up at the blue sky as a smile breaks across your face. When energy flows smoothly throughout our body, a harmonious day is created. Energy flows through 3 channels of the body: left, right, and central.

We harmonize the left and right side channels to harmonize the left and right hemispheres of the brain. Nadi translates to flow or note. These notes of music flow in order to create the song that is you. Think of yourself as a vessel made of channels of water. The quality of the water that flows through you is your perception. When we hold onto things it causes blockages in the channels and water cannot flow through. In our physical body, this shows up as tension and projected pain in our everyday reality.

Our left side brain controls the right side of our body. This is the Pingala or logical, extroverted, active, solar nadi. The sun side passes down the right side and correlates to blood and the color red. It is the channel that holds onto the mind and objects. We are the subject and everything outside of us is the object. The material objects surrounding us are a direct reflection of what going on inside of us. We open the flow of the sun channel by moving the body intentionally with yoga postures and breathing. Pingala is yang, “Ha”, sun, mountain, light, conspicuous, and active.

The sun channel is spicy! The negative thoughts we experience when disliking something bring feelings of anger and jealousy. Ignorant dislike of the sun channel stems from seeing the objects around us as separate. The anger/ jealousy is then projected onto the object and gives us a logical reason to feel this way. The reality is that anger/ jealousy does not come from the object. It comes from you and how you have treated others in the past. Feel this to let it go. Forgive yourself! If you shine a flashlight in a dark hole it becomes lit and less intimidating. We face ourselves to be the best version of ourselves. When we align with our truth we radiate this truth and gain the capability to lift others. We lift others because one of our basic needs is a sense of contribution.

Ida is the introverted, lunar nadi that governs the left side of the body. “If I have this thing I will be happy” and “By not having this I am less than I am now” are common thought misperceptions when the left side is blocked. We already have everything we need inside of us, we just have to listen. The left side is our emotional side. Cool as a cucumber, the channel of the moon runs up our left side and is represented as a milky white color. The moon side holds up and onto. It withstands and supports. This is your creativity and voice. Own it to free yourself from the shackles that have limited your greatness. Listen to your intuition. It has more wisdom than your mind. The mind keeps us safe. The brain holds knowledge. The wisdom of your gut is infinite. Roll onto your left side after yoga class to ground if you had a particularly stimulating session. Ida is yin, “tha”, feminine, moon, valley, dark, mysterious, and calming.

When energy flows smoothly throughout our body, a harmonious day is created. When the left and right side channels of energy are fluid, the central channel is opened. The central channel is pure essence and is opened when both side channels are running smoothly. The central channel is in alignment when we are thinking well of others w/out effort. When we are thinking well of others it is a reflection of our internal world in a state of homeostasis.

*Homeostasis
[ hoh-mee-uh-stey-sis ]
noun
the tendency of a system, especially the physiological system of higher animals, to maintain internal stability, owing to the coordinated response of its parts to any situation or stimulus that would tend to disturb its normal condition or function.
Psychology. a state of psychological equilibrium obtained when tension or a drive has been reduced or eliminated.
Entomology. the ability of members of a colony of social insects to behave cooperatively to produce a desired result, as when bees coordinate the fanning of their wings to cool the hive.

When we let go of fear we are left vulnerable, united with self and raw. This vulnerable state is where everything in the universe is sourced from. It is effortlessly beautiful and flows smoothly with grace. This is home and damn, it feels good to be back.

Meditate at sunrise and sunset because it is when the channels are in Sushumna and optimal energy is absorbed to be assimilated.

*Dictionary.com

*Diamond Heart Yoga School Teacher Training Manual