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Yoga: The Ultimate Car Wash!

Submitted By:

Ronna Sanchez
Svaroopa Yoga with Ronna
Watertown, MA

The yogic text, Shiva Sutras, begins with the pronouncement:Caitanyam-atma." You are perfect! You are supremely great! If you are fortunate to have the capacity to dive into this blissful truth, there is nothing else that needs to be known. The bliss of your being pours into everyday life without being diminished by events or interactions on the outside. And, it doesn't stop. Yoga keeps going and going as is further described in the Shiva Sutras: "Vismayo yogabhumikah." Yogic realizations are truly amazing, wondrous, ever evolving, "uninterrupted joy." If this is so, why is it that life can seem challenging, even difficult at times? Just where is this unending bliss revealed by the sages? How can bliss be followed when, sometimes it doesn't seem to be visible at all? Life is remedial education, a process of "re-calling or "re-collecting" what has been forgotten about the true essence of all beings. Yoga calls this true essence bliss. As you go through living life, perhaps you may have noticed an ache of sorts, a yearning for "something more" that can't quite be identified. This ache or yearning isn't satiated by traveling to beautiful vacation spots, buying things, making money, developing a career, eating culinary delicacies, having a "beautiful" body, or even being in relationships. It may be possible to experience a glimpse or glimmer of bliss but it doesn't last. Just as waking from a dream in which you were holding a long desired possession, all that remains is a sense of empty handedness. In the process of grasping and groping for happiness, "vision" becomes more and more blurred, like a car's windshield covered with a film of dirt obscuring what is right in front of you on the road. Yoga is about cleaning your windshield! The physical practices of yoga start with the body. Within a short period of time, Svaroopa® yoga poses provide relief to the body's aches and pains. Increased flexibility, improved health, and more energy are ensured. These results are wonderful and seemingly more than sufficient. Yoga doesn't stop here. Yoga opens one doorway after another eventually revealing that you are the very stuff you have been searching for all along. How can windshield cleaning show up in a yoga class? It may be experienced subtly at first, what Svaroopa® Yoga refers to as, "bliss bits." For example, you may find yourself experiencing complete and utter contentment while resting in Shavasana, yoga's relaxation pose. Or, after a yoga class, you may discover that traffic doesn't rattle your mind so much. Over time, you may find that your buttons aren't getting pushed like they used to. Or, you may notice that you are procrastinating less. Or, you may find that people are smiling at you more because they are seeing a look of contentment on your face. Bliss is contagious! Yogic realizations are truly amazing. You are truly amazing! If you haven't yet recognized these qualities in you, come to a yoga class. Time to get your windshield cleaned!