The World of the "Self"

We are truly in the world of the Self.  I chuckle when I see kids taking "selfies". When we were kids, if we were captivated my our image we were chastised for being too self absorbed. I had a friend from Somalia who thot that cell phones were called "self phones" .   And now we self quarentine.  In yoga, we talk about "self Study" .  The sanskrit word is "Svadyaya". It is one of the Niyamas in the 8 Limbs of Yoga. Asana is one of those limbs.  Self Study involves a bit of introspection.  Observing yourself and your reactions to things .. not to judge or condemn yourself, but with the goal of improving ourselves. Yoga helps us to slow down, focus, and practice "svadyaya".  We notice that we have a tendancy to rush thru the poses and if the flow is too slow, maybe we get anxious or bored.  We notice that we like the slower poses and that perhaps we dont push ourself enough.  We notice that we have trouble relaxing and we wish we could exit before savasana so we could get home and get things done.  We notice that its hard to stop the chatter in our minds. What are you noticing about your Self now during this self quarentine time?  Take some notes.  And, come to my Tues am yoga class from 9:30-10:45 . You will have to contact me so I can invite you via Zoom..  It's pretty easy to set up and it s been fun to do yoga with others this way. Enjoy this chance to practice Svadyaya.