Weekly Letter: Grounding to Expand

There is a yoga technique rooted in the Samkyha philosophy which guides a person from a very deep, internal awareness and then begins to add pieces until the student is completely out of their body and intimately aware of the entire planet.

When learning this method and how to teach it safely, the teacher takes their time bringing the person back into themselves for a bit before taking them out of the meditation completely. By not doing so, it can mess with a person’s sense of grounding and balance. It would be like snatching virtual reality goggles off someone’s face in a really intense scenario.

A constant in all life is change, and our practice gives us variety to better prepare the body and mind for it. Have you ever gotten so comfortable with a teacher you began to anticipate what they were going to do next? Maybe you didn’t even notice until they changed it and you were suddenly out of step with the sequence.

When change or uncertainty is happening, the reaction is to ground/regroup. Our primitive defense mechanisms freeze and reassess instead of leaving ourselves open to risk.

Expand and contract. Expand and contract. Grow and ground. Grow and ground.

By contracting or grounding, you’re checking in and ensuring your immediate situation before you begin to expand or grow again. Without a firm base within ourselves, we cannot grow very far.

Your practice is a quick and efficient tool to create grounding within yourself. By establishing yourself in regular practice, you can then emerge stronger and more solid than ever.

Those moments you find yourself lost, defeated or shaky, the practice is the place to go to find your way forward.

~Carmen