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YogaIsLife
641 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 21 2008 : 05:05:54 AM
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Hi,
I recently re-read the initial lessons of Yogani and the one about devotion kept ringing in my head, since the beggining. I was wondering what other people thougth about this and what their motivations to start to practice and continue are?
In my case I do it because a lot of things was happening in my life - in my health particularly - that I didn't understand and was deeply affecting my quality of life to a point I believed life was very hard and not worth living like this. So I took time off to try to put myself back together and adopted many new ways to try to find balance in my body and mind again, and especially ways to mantain this balance. In short, I was searching for tools.
AYP sounded very good to me. Something inside told me it was good. So, the idea of it bringing balance to my life and especially mantaining it is what makes me sit every day, twice a day. I was wondering if this was a very egostistical reason.
I also have a thirst for the truth and understanding of life but I guess I was not very good in the tools I used (probably just my mind!) and ended up messing everything up. So, althought I do want to find the truth (but at the moment the "truth" sounds overwhelming and scares me a little bit) I guess the main thought and motivator in my head for practicing every day at the moment is "This is going to make me feel good again".
Do you think this is selfish? What is/was your reasons? Do they change along the way as your own energetic/body state changes? I am only in this for a month and half now 
Thank you. |
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Sparkle
Ireland
1457 Posts |
Posted - Jun 21 2008 : 06:46:49 AM
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Hi YogaIsLife
Very good question.
For me the one word that stays with me in this is "lonliness".
I can fill my life with things that may ease the lonliness for a while but this is very temporary.
Ultimately the lonliness is about separation from our true selves. The pain that this can create can be immense.
The motivation is to move away from this pain to a place of peace, joy and love.
This is also what motivates people to look for it in all the other ways we are so acustomed to - television, drugs, food, nice cars, nice religions and virtually everything we do in order to be happy - except reside in inner silence.
So I guess my motivation is to move away from lonliness to a place of peace, joy and love - which is my true nature, my inner silence.
quote:
AYP sounded very good to me. Something inside told me it was good. So, the idea of it bringing balance to my life and especially mantaining it is what makes me sit every day, twice a day. I was wondering if this was a very egostistical reason.
Well, you are looking for your natural state - is this egotistical - I've no idea but don't think it matters too much. Whatever gets you to practicing twice daily is "what it is", ego or not it doesn't matter - just keep up the practice.
Perspectives change, we become more balanced, easier to live with because we are easier within ourselves - we are more in touch with who we really are - this beautiful divine being of pure love and joy.
If wanting this is egotistical then this is good
However in the usual understanding of the word ego it would mean that in this journey the ego is being diminished and so it is probably something else that is drawing us to our practice.
My two cents
For further reading and perspective you can go to the YogaFAQ, here is something about Bhakti
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic....OPIC_ID=2118
All the best
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YogaIsLife
641 Posts |
Posted - Jun 22 2008 : 09:30:06 AM
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Hi Sparkle and thank you so much for your reply!
Yes, I can relate to that feeling of loneliness you talk about. Loneliness, emptiness, that unspokable feeling that just something isn't right :) If indeed we are peace and silent joy then I want to find out that as well! I used to say that the only thing I was afraid of in life (ultimately) was of the feeling of being alone. I know now I was speaking of the feeling of seperateness from the whole.
I guess I'll just keep practicing to find out. I am very skeptical in a way. I really don't know who I am. I think it was Socrates that said that the more you know, the less you know. I think I feel like that. So much baggage but none the more happy. So I just eager to find that simplicity of life again, kind of like when you are a child and you don't think much about things and just be and feel. Is this enlightment? :)
In a way it can be good to practice from a point of view of no expectations...I feel I was so beaten by so much useless search that I just want to find peace again!
Greetings! |
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Divineis
Canada
420 Posts |
Posted - Jun 30 2008 : 6:39:34 PM
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I guess results motivate me. Except what I do, there's nothing motivating it. Think of it as "no-thing" I guess, not making a thing out of it. Being "ok" with whatever happens. That's what keeps me going haha. I don't wanna pretend to be enlightened or anything, but I've been sort of force-fed the lesson that "there's no me to tie me down to... there's just... me". I don't think that makes sense, there's no making sense of it, cuz once you have, the thing you've made sense of is already gone... see, there's no motivation there really, life these days just seems like a happening. It's not always a pleasant one, but good or bad, I've never found where to tie "me" down to, I never found it, but not finding was my greatest discovery, it was the only thing that kept me sane in some troubled times. Really, this is almost how I look at the world... if you know who you are, you're crazy, not knowing is the only sanity. That's what motivates me haha. That's what keeps life flowing, growing... not knowing.
I love knowledge, and I'm not indifferent to life or anything like that. I say "know nothing", I always just mean emptyness ready to be filled though.
Call me crazy but, nothing motivates me!!! haha |
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what is your motivation?
