by MJ LaDuke
Whether said in jest or with roots of blatant truth,
words can pierce the heart like a dagger, melt the heart not unlike a snowman
on a sunny day, or create a lasting impression that not even time can erase. I
consider the latter the worst since they can eat at your soul for the rest of
your life! Words are so vastly different
than thoughts. Once spoken, they cannot
be erased. Once written and even worse, read,
the damage is done. Scars remain and a
piece of our soul continues to silently ache no matter how much faith and
tenacity exist to overcome the eroding torture.
But then what if the words were constructive, based
on love and spoken with an underlying wit? What if we could see beyond the hurt
and momentary blow to our ego and use the advice or criticism to evolve, change
or grow? So, I think it is safe to say
that the source of the word is critical and the measurement of foundational love
determines how the words are received and perceived.
All too often we react swiftly with verbal mistakes before
we process a thought. If we only took
just a few breaths we could have altered the possible hurt and pain to the
receiver. Slowing ourselves down allows us time to
change the words or even not speak any at all.
Who are we to judge anyway? Why
are we reacting so harshly? Is it
because we love the person so much we are speaking to or is it because we are
internalizing our own personal pain and lack of love by projecting outwardly?
Constant awareness is key in slowing the delivery of
our words, choosing more appropriate words or as mentioned before, not speaking
at all. There is a beautiful gift in silence. For me, creating this awareness or even the
ability to be silent requires either a unique trait or daily yoga practice/meditation.
Since most of us are not blessed with an innate gift or trait of knowing
exactly when to speak and not to speak or knowing what to say or not to say, we
have to work on our delivery throughout our lives. I do this through prayer and yoga. The two seem to go inherently together.
In yoga we yoke.
We yoke, or unite, with the divine or the divinity within us. It is unique to each of us, but it brings us
peace, i.e., whatever we yoke with does. When a student can't seem to find
something that brings them peace I tell them to go to their "happy
place". Whether it is our happy place, faith in a deity, nature, or the
universe, this divinity should bring us to a place of peace, comfort and even
love. And whether you call it a prayer,
thought, mantra or intention, our method
of connecting or yoking with our divinity is one in the same. Like traveling in different vehicles arriving
at the same place. We all get there in one way or another.
Many think of yoga as a physical sport. It is, but it offers so much more! Yoga is
comprised of body, mind and spirit. The
latter two are often not sought out at the onset of a yoga journey, but
unintentionally evolve naturally. The
time frame is unique to each of us; it could take months or years to achieve a
spiritual path through yoga. However,
once one achieves this trifecta, the practice becomes sacred and our outlook on
every facet of life is altered.
Take eating for example. I gradually gave up meat and poultry not as a
trend, but because it was a natural progression of peace, tolerance and will on
my yogic path. I view food differently
than ever before. I view it is as a gift
and as energy. If we lust after food and
gorge ourselves we have no control over our will and lose all gratitude for
those who harvest and prepare the food.
If we pause before we eat something we can reflect on this amazing
process that occurred to bring us sustenance.
Imagine the transformation that occurs as we process
the food through our digestive system.
Our body takes the nourishment and vitamins it needs and disburses it
throughout the body and rids itself of anything wasteful. The major energy center involved in this
process is called our Manipura, which governs our will and right. It is also associated with the fire element
and is located at our solar plexus.
Keeping this energy center balanced allows us to process any physical,
emotional and even spiritual transformation.
Because yoga takes us also on a spiritual journey, a
person of faith can intertwine prayer during a practice. By this I mean either at the onset of the
practice as we bring awareness to the breath to clear our minds, perhaps in
vrksasana (tree), during shavasana (final relaxation) or seated
meditation. I have come to use yoga as
my prayer time since evening prayer is often a challenge as my eyes grow heavy
all too fast. I can go deeper into
prayer in the morning and in the setting of nature and I also find that
Scripture keeps me rooted in awareness and brings my entire being back into
balance not even realizing it was astray.
Utilizing several resources, e.g., different authors and anecdotes, allows for different perspectives to better
prepare us for unique situations. From literary giants to social media to the
Word, choose your resource and expand your mind.
With the awareness and gratitude I create through
yoking with the divine in yoga, I become more conscious of my word
choices. In continual prayer, I bring
peace, love and wisdom to my heart allowing more insight into my word
choices. Both allow me to process
incoming words differently. Should I be lacking
yoga or prayer during a moment in question, unfortunately I may speak too soon
or speak the wrong words. I can't change
that moment, but I can correct it as soon as I realize it, learn from it and
prepare for the next moment of challenge.
To avoid any future challenge, the answer is to maintain a healthy yoga
practice and as well as daily prayer.
Namaste ~ MJ
"Whoever restrains his words has
knowledge. And he who has a cool spirit
is a man of understanding." Proverbs 17:27
