“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.” ― Rainer Maria Rilke
The Spring Equinox - a time of the year when the days and nights are almost equal – has always had me reflect on balance, and what it means to be balanced.
There is often a desire for balance to be constant - something achieved and then held. But then of course, like everything else, balance is always changing, never static. To stay in balance, one must re-connect, re-assess, and re-adjust constantly. It is a dynamic process in which, again and again, we are asked to recognize and work with opposite, yet complementary forces: heaviness/lightness; hot/cold; sweet/sour; light/dark; joy/sorrow.
This is something I need to keep reminding myself of.
One of the main principles in Yoga Therapy and Ayurveda is “Like increases like and opposites balance”. For example, if we are experiencing an excess of a particular quality and associated discomfort, exposure to more of that quality will only aggravate the problem. By the same token, if something is dry, we add water; if something it’s cold, we add heat.
Over time, I came to look at these forces through the lens of “reciprocity”, recognizing that as long as we are on earth, we are always held within the grace of reciprocity.
We have a direct experience of reciprocity every time we step on our yoga mat: inhalation-exhalation; extension-flection; back bend-forward bend; right side-left side; one muscle contracting-the opposite releasing; striving-surrendering.
Bringing mindful attention to the opposing but complementary forces we work with on the yoga mat, could shine a light on our more unconscious patterns, on our relationship with reciprocity, on and off the mat…
Are we striving, pushing, giving more than we are yielding, surrendering, receiving?
Are we taking more than we need? Are you forgetting to share what we have excess of?
Are we living from a place fear and scarcity? Or are we living from of place of generosity and compassion?
Reciprocity is part of our natural rhythms, yet it is easy to take it for granted.
A reciprocity-centered life takes effort and without it our earthly life would cease.
Let this upcoming first equinox of the year be invitation to use our practice as a way to bring awareness to our unconscious biases that are getting in the way of the grace of reciprocity.
Love,
Oana ❤️
Mindfulness practices for body, breath, and being.
Saturday March 24, 4-6p EST
In person at Brevard Yoga and live-streamed on zoom.
Fridays March 8, 15, 22, 29, 4-5pm EST
In person at Brevard Yoga and live-streamed on zoom.
Limited spots available through May 2024.
Limited spots available in March.
**Cleansing is considered an essential element of seasonal routines in Ayurveda. It is at the season changes that our constitutions are the most challenged as our environments change.
Right now, we have one foot in the winter, and one foot in the spring and it is likely that our habits are not yet taking into account the need to shift our food intake or our lifestyle habits to be more seasonally appropriate. This is potentially leaving us with a feeling of sluggishness from the winter diet and lifestyle, which can set us up for poor digestion, toxicity, congestion, aches and pains, etc.
Cleansing is a great way to ‘lighten’ our bodies and minds as seasons change.
