Asana (pt 3.): Meditation in Motion.

(2minute read)

Through our asana practice, we begin to find meditation within movement & make contact with a sense of stillness that sits within us.

We’ve all heard about the benefits of meditation, however, many of us find ourselves too restless to sit down & quieten our minds, to watch our own thoughts rather than getting swept up in a whirlwind of thoughts. We may feel like we constantly need to be in a state of ‘doing’ & sitting quietly may seem like an impossible task.

Through an asana practice, we begin to transform this restless energy, first by physically moving we allow this stagnant energy to move through the body, to flow & ground itself. Simultaneously, by turning our attention inwards, into our bodies & focusing on breath & sensations, we come into the present moment. 

Our asana practice becomes a moving meditation. 

During our practice, we place ourselves into a unique position, heightening our self-awareness to watch mind, body & emotions. We can begin to watch what types of thoughts or emotions come up & how these interact with our practice.

We might start by noticing areas we find resistance in our practice - this could be physical, mental or emotional.

How do we feel when we’re unable to get into a pose in the way we’d like? How about when we are? Can we keep a neutral mind without attachment to the outcome?

How about when the person next to us is able to but we’re not there yet?

How do we feel falling out of a pose?

Do we compare ourselves to others in a class? How do we tend to fare in these comparisons?

How do we react to a challenging class or posture? Does this mirror how we react to challenges in life?

Through this noticing, we begin to understand the workings of our own mind. Our practice is a microcosm of our own lives, our own mental patterns & layers of conditioning are laid bare, from this understanding, we can start to find liberation from these patterns & make contact with a deeper sense of being.

Through choosing to narrow our attention inwards & to our practice alone, gently bringing ourselves back & noting where we’d gone whenever the mind starts to wander, we begin to make contact with an unchanging awareness that sits behind, watching the flow of changing sensations, thoughts & emotions, a centre of stillness that sits behind the movement, starts to emerge.