December 2022 Week 1

December is here and we have finally made it to the 5th Klesha, Abhinivesha. This is the desire to cling to life or the fear of dying. It is said that of all the Kleshas, this one is the most difficult to free ourselves from because life is miraculous and beautiful, and because we love our people in life, learning to accept that life ends can be a real struggle, especially when it feels like it’s not happening when we are ready. Achieving freedom from Abhinivesha can only come when we are aware of and understand the dangers of the other four Kleshas. Once we have a handle on the other four, learning to not cling to life is the only natural progression, or so they say. Easier said than done for sure!!! Last month was my 3 year anniversary of my breast cancer diagnosis and for the first couple of months I was riddled with Abhinivesha - fear, distracted ruminating thoughts, lack of appetite, lack of focus on what was in front of me - it was awful and this extra layer of suffering was created only by me!! Ok enough about that aspect of Abinivesha.

For this busy month of December let’s study this Klesha in terms of the fear of losing control, the fear of letting go. Once again whether we look at our fear of dying and clinging to life or our clinging to control and not letting go, we can see how we are the cause of our own suffering. These Kleshas are very simple yet very profound if we break them down during times in our lives that we are uncomfortable. If we can identify a particular Klesha ruling our thoughts, attitudes and actions we can then simply circle back to Klesha #1 - Avidya, spiritual ignorance and get reconnected with our spiritual self. During this busy time of year it is very important to take time out to reconnect again and again with our spiritual path. This always seems so simple, yet life takes us down scary paths in our minds sometimes. It is up to each of us to set ourselves straight! I started teaching yoga and developed the Calm Crew to help me and all of you live our most authentic lives. I was taught early on in my training with Patricia Moreno that the comfort lies when our thoughts, attitudes actions and words all line up with who we say we want to be. I am assuming that like me, you all want to be calm, centered and connected to your higher source, yourself and others. Together we have a chance at this, but it takes daily work. My hope is our intention this month will keep bringing us back to acceptance and presence of the holiday moments - “I don’t mind how it goes!!!!!”. All month repeat this!!!! Whether you are in line at a crowded store or with the most annoying family member…… just say - I don’t mind how it goes!!!!! Let this simple intention defuse any tension in your physical, mental, emotional or spiritual self and give up the control!!!!