I have been thinking about surrender lately, giving in a bit to what will be. Not easy for me, I am, admittedly, a recovering control freak. I hear some of my friends and family snickering, recovering? Really? Truly, I think so.
I have done some research into my behaviors, the need for things to be well organized, neat, in the right place. I have self-diagnosed myself as exhibiting symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD). The definition of which is “a personality disorder characterized by a pervasive need for orderliness, perfectionism, and control, often leading to rigid behaviors and difficulty adapting to change”. I can get thrown off course if I open a drawer that is particularly messy (needs to be organized) or a load of laundry on top of the dryer (needs to be neatly folded) and, yes, the chairs at the counter need to be pushed in and lined up! I think retirement has enabled me to feed into these rabbit holes, if I were late for work or had an appointment, I would have to walk away. On the other hand, retirement indulges me, allows me to experience less anxiety around these little “projects”, because, really, I have the time. While arranging drawers and organizing may not seem like a big deal, the traits can translate into more problematic areas like rigidity and difficulty adapting to change, read, bumps in the road.
My yoga has helped with this a lot; and yes, it is a work in progress.
Remembering the five Niyamas, the second limb of yoga, rules of personal behavior, we invoke Isvara Pranidhana, the final one. It is translated from Sanskrit as Isvara, Supreme Being. The sutra then means bowing to or acknowledging a Supreme Being. This could mean God or Brahman or True Self or any higher power. Using the word God(s) can be problematic for some yogis; keep in mind that yoga does not force God or religion. In fact, Desikachar, one of the founding fathers of modern yoga, in Heart of Yoga explains, “Yoga is not a religion and should not affiliate with any religions”. He goes on to say that “yoga is a system that helps the mind, and Hindus may use it as they have been, and anybody can use it.” So, back to surrender.
As we experience bumps in the road of our life, entering new or challenging situations or experiences, we can remind ourselves that there is much of life that cannot be controlled. This does not mean we do not do our best or prepare adequately for these occurrences but knowing that we have done our best work to “get there”, we can then let go and surrender to the outcome rather than perseverate or anticipate outcomes.
I know this in my brain, putting it into practice is where I (we) must do the work. Stepping outside ourselves (and scientists and therapists agree on this) is the key to happiness. We all spend so much time and energy listening to the endless chatter of our monkey minds, inwardly focused, sometimes on inconsequential nonsense. At church recently (and this makes sense regardless of religion) the priest was talking about not waiting around for God (supreme being? Life?) to call us, but to take action to come out of our own heads and reach out to others, recognize that we are, believe it or not, are not the center of the universe (my words, not his). While I am not suggesting that we toss it all in like the disciples to follow Jesus, I am suggesting that we take time to focus outward, smile more, offer a helping hand, perhaps volunteer for a cause that we believe in. When we are outwardly focused, surrendering to a higher power, joy and ease will begin to find us.
I was reading an article on ishvara pranidhana as I was thinking about this blog. There are so many ways to experience this Niyama from walking at the beach or in the woods, noticing the beauty of nature or a small child, bringing food to a neighbor, holding the door open for an older person, worshiping in your own way. If we dedicate ourselves in some small way to benefit humanity, we are dedicating ourselves or giving over to a higher being. All these small actions of noticing, listening and acknowledging connect us to that state of surrender, recognition, and devotion.
There is a wonderful interview with Desikachar by Leslie Kaminoff in 1992 which discusses this and many more topics. Really good.
Our Practice – Surrendering in Savasana
I think that we can all benefit from a little bit of surrender, practicing surrender to a higher power can help us connect with ourselves and the world around us on a deeper level. When we practice on the mat letting go of expectations of how a pose should look or feel and just surrender to where our body is so empowering.
Acknowledging that there is something bigger than ourselves may help us develop and deepen our practice and our overall wellbeing. When we let ourselves give into the idea of a higher power, we can begin to learn acceptance which in turn leads to a more peaceful, joyful and meaningful existence!
When we practice (surrender to) savasana, we are also withdrawing our senses. We might fidget, listen to the sounds around us, but eventually all of us at some point experience those magical savasanas when we reach a beautiful meditative state. This is our cumulative, peak pose, where we reap all of the benefits of our physical practice - accepting the restorative properties of this posture. Do not fret if it does not happen all the time, even for the most experienced yogis it can be a real challenge. For me, it is the most challenging pose of my practice (obviously) 🤣😂.
Meditating on Surrender
The Serenity Prayer was written by the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr.
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference. “
“To some people, surrender may have negative connotations, implying defeat, giving up, failing to rise to the challenges of life, becoming lethargic, and so on. True surrender, however, is something entirely different. It does not mean to passively put up with whatever situation you find yourself in and to do nothing about it. Nor does it mean to cease making plans or initiating positive action. Surrender is the simple but profound wisdom of yielding to rather than opposing the flow of life. “ – Ekhart Tolle
Nurturing with Food – Spiced Pumpkin Bread
When we study Ayurvedic medicine we learn that spices and herbs have healing properties. Cinnamon helps regulate blood sugar, ginger has many uses including boosting metabolism, soothing the belly and clearing congestion. We use nutmeg to also support digestion and promote calmness while cloves help with circulation. Cardamom has detoxifying properties. Whether this bread will cure any illnesses remains to be seen but eaten (after yoga?) with a lovely cup of tea is truly lovely.
Link to recipe:
Enjoy!
See you on the mat,
Namaste
Julia Anne
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