Staying Connected in Isolation | Insights from our Teachers
“We never know what others are learning, and we cannot judge someone’s spiritual practice quickly or easily. All we can do is look into our own hearts and ask what matters in the way that we are living. What might lead me to greater openness, honesty and a deeper capacity to love? ”
Image | Shaan R Ali Photography
What a pivotal moment in history we're sharing together. As intelligent life-forms interested in self-preservation, we are hardwired to be wary of (and sometimes extremely resistant to) change.
And yet the ability to adapt to flux and spontaneity is exactly what we need to learn right now.
It is hard to not think about what might happen next, when a pandemic shifts our way of life in dramatic and persistent ways. Our minds - especially the parts which are fearful, and reactive - want to plan and cling to plans. Fair enough too.
The seeking of control in a world which seems out of control is tiring business - a bit like having decision fatigue on caffeine. So when we hear you say ‘I can’t focus on the mat’, or ‘There’s just too much going on’, or ‘I have no energy to practice’ - we get it! For some of us, there’s the whole other aspect of shame as well - that incessant chatter of ‘should’s which can pile up, to make what could have been a straightforward endeavour into a prickly, smelly heap of no-thanks. Yep, been there. But what if the stickiness is really a messenger?
We - the intelligence governing our bodies and consciousness - already intuitively understand what will be beneficial; it is a matter of following that call. The more resistance, the more discomfort.
We know that spending the time and effort to retune our focus on the present (whether you do that through a dynamic movement practice, conscientious breath or sitting in stillness) always holds benefit, whether we see it immediately or not. There’s the potential to change the weather, or pressure systems within the body, including reducing tension in our nervous system and muscles, improving the function of our immune system and lymphatic flow, amp up our ability to digest and assimilate both physically and mentally. When our body’s chemistry and energy is in harmony, we are naturally more able to settle into acceptance of what is happening, and to act from this calmer, steadier place.
Of course, you may have been levitating on a spiritual cloud all this time - and if you have, good on you! In reality, most of us will go through fluxes of mood and emotion, one day feeling ‘on top of it all’ and the next, lacking in any form of motivation.
A yoga practice, as it was originally intended, is not about making shapes with your body; it is about becoming increasingly attentive of how we shape our lives.
The below reflections from our teachers is shared here as a reminder that although dedicated time to connect inward can be hugely beneficial, it is not the determinant of how ‘good’ you are. As circumstances change, like the seasons, what is required for harmonising our being also changes. As you’ll see below, there is no right way because we are all figuring it out!
How we live our inner lives flows into how we live our outer lives. Let’s practice the same compassion and inclusivity with ourselves, day by day gathering more awareness of the choices we DO have, and how we manage the power of our attention.
Image | Shaan R Ali Photography
“Perhaps once the restrictions lift hindsight might grant me the clarity to fully understand what lessons 2020 has given us, but so far it has been a long lesson in accepting slowing down, turning inward and tuning in to what needs to be listened to. All lessons and experiences I learn whilst on the mat I guess!
My practice has some days felt amazing, some days been non existent, and perhaps everything in between. What I love the most about practising On Demand classes from home is tailoring it to what I need it to be on that given day and not having to worry about the person on the mat next to me, or the teacher, wondering what I am doing!
My hope is that once things lift, I carry forward with me some of these lessons, like slowing down, like going for long walks with friends and do not rush to “busy” my days just because I can :) ”
“I’ve been leaning heavily on both my movement practice (especially Yoga, but also jogging and the occasional parkour training...on the ground, not jumping from rooftops!) and on my meditation practice.
For the former, practicing in the privacy of my lounge/garage or even in a quiet park area has been quite freeing, encouraging me to listen to my body even more, and really explore my intuition - not necessarily follow set sequences (though...I’ve also been loving accessing online classes with my favourite teachers, live or archived).
I’ve been meditating a lot over the last months on the niyama of santosha – contentment/acceptance. Focusing on finding an angle to view each new obstacle that I come across so that it transforms from a barrier into an opportunity for growth/learning...even if that means changing direction sometimes. There have been plenty of chances to practice this mindset! ”
Image | Sarah Pollok
“A pandemic has afforded us time to focus our energy on aspects of our life that we can be grateful for, to nurture and/or to learn more about, if we so choose.
Even though so much has altered in our external world, for any expecting mama (including myself!), nothing alters the progression of pregnancy and the creation of a human being. This becomes a constant to return to.
The process and practice of honouring self and baby thus becomes even more imperative, to navigate through these foreign times. ”
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Image | Shaan R Ali Photography
“One reminder the pandemic has sounded for me is the importance of stillness. In the rush of trying to take action all the time, we tend to lose sight of the truer, bigger picture. Why does this thing feel so urgent, and is it really?
I’ve discovered that most ‘urgent’ things are only so because they seem an easier, perhaps less uncomfortable thing to deal with than the really important or deeper experience which wants to be seen and felt. Even if just one breath, that extra moment of staying and being with what is here has helped me become clearer and more courageous, in understanding what drives much of my daily choices and actions. It feels like the complex chain of changes, and the isolation we are currently in IS that enforced pause. It’s up to us how we respond to what it reveals.
For me there have been days which feel like riding the crest of a wave, days which feel like shadowy valleys...and it’s totally OK to let them be. Like everything else, it comes, and it passes. The virtual connection with friends, keeping the body moving, lots of writing/drawing/reading, getting hands and feet into grass, and watching the changing light of dawn and dusk have all become good companions to remember the world keeps spinning.”
IMAGE | Estuary Yoga Space
“To encapsulate 2020 is to try to give language to a seemingly endless sea of dichotomies. I have experienced some of my most graceful moments along with many crude moments. Through it all, I have relied on my practice to ground and support me; though these days it occurs a bit less on the mat and a bit more at the easel, or walks in the fresh air.
This year has been a potent reminder of why we nourish the container of our bodies with our practice; each time we arrive to Presence, we are creating and expanding space to hold and contain the tumult of life experience. When the wild storminess of existence blows in, we have a place to buoy ourselves whilst we ride the waves of environment, circumstance and emotion.
It is a place where we sense purpose, grounding and refuge. So that if we, or more appropriately, when we must weather the murky depths of our own shadow self or collective experience, we can be assured that we will resurface intact and with strength.
Beauty and abhorrence walk side by side; growth and destruction; mercy and cruelty. It seems we have witnessed all of it this year. And so we must learn to regenerate. To tend, and nourish, and renew ourselves and our communities throughout this vast, changing and wild experience of life here on Earth. Then we can perceive how wonderfully rich this life is in all of its vivid unpredictability.
Joanna Macy, buddhist, ecologist & lover of this wild world said “The biggest gift you can give is to be absolutely present, and when you’re worrying about whether you’re hopeful or hopeless or pessimistic or optimistic, who cares? The main thing is that you’re showing up, that you’re here and that you’re finding ever more capacity to love this world because it will not be healed without that. That is what is going to unleash our intelligence and our ingenuity and our solidarity for the healing of our world.” ”
( The Work of Our Time, an interview with Joanna Macy, speaks to these topics can be found HERE )
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As the Melbourne lockdown continues, you can find our presence online via two Livestream classes per week, and freely available classes via our Practice Online page. Don't hesitate to get in touch if you have suggestions or need support around your practice. We look forward to seeing you online, and reconnecting with you in person - hopefully late October!