“Sthira Sukham Asanam.” ~Yoga Sutras 2.46
“Asana is a steady, comfortable posture.”
Do you ever just feel “off”? Without any particular cause that you can think of, you just feel scattered and unsteady, unstable. Rhythm is essential to life: the earth circles the sun, the tides rise and fall, the heart and lungs work rhythmically, the yin and the yang, the five elements in nature, and so on and so forth. All work together to bring our inner and outer worlds together in this rhythm we call life. Prana or Chi, life force, draws the body, mind, and spirit together with the breath. It has a natural rhythm, one that is steady and comfortable.
And yet, we constantly try to create our own rhythm. We fight against the natural order of things and resist what “is”. We glorify busyness and over schedule and over commit ourselves causing an unnatural and overburdened rhythm. And then we wonder when we feel “off” and why we are so tired! We work long hours and allow our workday to seep into our evening & weekend, and we stress out as we rehash the past & worry about the future, all throwing the delicate balance and rhythm of nature off-kilter.
Ayurveda is the sister science of yoga and is referred to as the “Science of Life”. It teaches us to become more sensitive, more aware, of the Prana moving within us so that we can live with more Sthira (steadiness) and Sukha (ease). It can help us to reduce stress and stimulate a sense of grounding in our life by teaching us to live in rhythm with our Prana. Establishing a graceful rhythm in life through routine – when you awake, what you eat, when you go to sleep – all contribute to the ease and steadiness.
Ayurveda asks you to make a shift in your definition of health. We typically think that if we have no symptoms and disease is absent then we are healthy. Ayurveda defines health as a state of Swastha, meaning established in the Self. To be healthy you must be firmly established in your Self: physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
Life demands of us a perpetual relationship with our outer world, and we in turn influence our environment. You may follow the cycles of the moon or maybe you blame everything on Mercury, but it really is true! We move and feel and exist within the five elements of nature and cannot deny their effect on our emotional & spiritual lives. Everything is energy. Reiki is referred to as “Life Force Energy” and channels the healing energies of the five elements. Come learn for your Self how you can channel these energies to live with more steadiness and ease.
Just for today:
Do not be angry
Do not be worried
Be grateful
Work hard (on your Self)
Be kind to others.
~ The five precepts of Reiki, by Mikao Usui