When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all thoughts break their bonds; your mind transcends limitation; your consciousness expands in every direction; and you find yourself in a great, new and wonderful world.
-Patanjali
I was thinking about this wise master this morning for all kinds of reasons. Heard him mentioned in an old Wayne Dyer video. I also had a conversation last evening with my daughter about my approach to teaching yoga which is partially based on my studying in depth The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.
I cannot verify the following. I took them from AZ quotes. https://www.azquotes.com/author/91621-Patanjali None of the listed quotes refer to the translation of the sutras they were taken form and we all know how different translations of ancient scripture or text can be from one translator to another. So bear with me and try to dwell on the meaning of each piece of wisdom instead of trying to authenticate the source. :)
Let's look at the opening quote.
Inspiration
Wayne Dyer loved this quote and recited it often. It touches a chord in me as well. Inspiration has a way of carrying us away from our mental prisons and limitations. It expands our consciousness making us see ourselves for who we really are and the world for what it really is. Everything is suddenly completely 'awesome'.
What is inspiration?
According to Patanjali, it is what happens when we get lost in something that has true meaning for us deep down and 'spiritually'. Being inspired is being "in" "spirit". We could discover a great purpose for our lives or undertake a project that we are passionate about. We know we are deeply 'inspired' when all our doubts about our abilities, all our obstacles, our effort and our sense of time slips away.
As I mentioned, I have been writing my sister's story and it has been taking me a fair amount of time. I was getting these 'blocks' and found myself avoiding coming to the page. I certainly wasn't doing the 2000 word a day limit I like to complete when I write. It became an emotional process rather than an inspired one, in which I am as a person deeply invested. A few weeks ago I reached out to my sister, who is also a writer, and asked her to read it. I thought if I had someone as invested in me in this story it would help me to decide if I should walk away from it or not. As soon as she agreed to read it, I made a conscious decision to give her the best version of the story I could and to give her at least half of it. So I went back to the novel with an intention of revising, editing and completing at least 40,000 words.
An amazing thing happened. I became inspired. The 'personal' and 'mental' limitations I have been putting on myself slipped away and I began to write, not for ego, but for spirit and the words are just coming out. I am connecting to the story at a deeper level and I am feeling it. I write about 2000 words a day and time just slips away. Getting that word count is my purpose now. Nothing else seems to matter quite as much. I am passionate about it. This I believe is what Patanjali was speaking to. When spirit guides us rather than ego...we can get past our self imposed obstacles and do amazing things.
How cool is that?
A mind freed of all disturbance is yoga.
-Patanjali
This is why I want to teach yoga. My goal is to help people calm their unsettled minds and relax into their bodies, their worlds, their lives. I am certified to teach Hatha yoga which focuses on the asanas and on breath. Though, I am far from qualified to teach Raja yoga (the Yoga of the mind) I am going to make peace of mind my teaching goal rather than a great, fit and tone body for each of my students. Physically, I am not able to do yoga myself the way I used to. I am able, however, to do gentle postures and relaxation techniques. I can slip in some subtle and non aggressive teaching in there as well. I will call my teaching practice "Serenity yoga" and my description will be "a gentle yoga practice for peace of mind." I don't profess to be able to free all minds of all disturbances but for at least an hour, so many times a week, I can offer a serene environment and instruction that will help in that area.
It is all good.
There are so many quotes I wanted to discuss but my daughter is anxious for me to make breakfast. I will get back to you.
All is well.
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