We are strong because we rest

Last time I was full of how strong we can feel when in a warrior pose. However, yoga is about balance. We all know that life can be busy - it can drive us to the brink and the pressure can easily overwhelm. Our candles deserve to burn bright but the pressures can too easily snuff our lights out and the recent hour change can lead to a further feeling of discombobulation. Learn to notice when your light is beginning to dim and if you want to, try to do something about it. This usually involves conscious resting which many people find a real challenge.

This begs the question: What does resting mean? It can obviously mean different things to different people. Sometimes our bodies need a rest. Sometimes our minds need a rest. Sometimes both need a rest at the same time. And yoga can help.

How do you know you might need rest?

Your tired body might feel achy, weak and fragile. Ironically a tired body can feel restless and fidgety too. When our minds need a rest it might be because we need a rest from the chatter. A tired body and a tired mind are often (but not always) experienced at the same time. Yoga philosophy encourages us to move away from suffering; we know that fatigue (if not nipped in the bud) can lead to burn out, i.e we suffer. The candle is snuffed out and it can happen suddenly if we are not careful to consciously rest as exhaustion sets in.

The body is easier to rest than the chatter in our minds. Chatter is like the bits of glitter in a snow globe; shake it and it is scattered around the mind. Yoga can still the chatter, so it settles at the bottom and ceases to churn and cause chaos. Yoga can inspire us to reflect on the chatter and work out how we can react to the external stuff.

“Between stimulus and response there is space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom”

Viktor Frankl

Yoga quietens the chatter and provides a way of investigating and being curious about the space between stimulus and response. Yoga can help give us the permission to use the space wisely which might mean that the space is used to rest.

Try these things if you want to incorporate a little more yoga to ease your suffering:

When your body needs to rest, try some of these asanas: legs up against a wall, child’s pose, standing forward pose (let gravity do its thing and let your head and neck go).

When your mind needs rest, focus on your breathing, use a guided meditation or spend some time just focusing on information from each of your senses; one sense at a time. If the glitter is scatters again, return your attention to your breath, the voice guiding your meditation or settle your mind to consider a different sense.

When the body and mind need your attention try a breath led practice which is often more effective if you are led by a teacher.

In sum:

• rest before you need to;

• yoga is your friend and can help you rest your body and quieten a busy, tired mind.

I look forward to reading your comments!

Love

Karen x