July 2024 Week 4

In Pandit Rajmani Tigunait’s book The Secret of the Yoga Sutra he writes: “The mind is the greatest of all mysteries. A clear, calm, one-pointed, friendly mind puts all the treasures of the world at our disposal. But a mind that has become dense, agitated, scattered, confused, and unfriendly robs us of our most fundamental privilege - our indomitable will to excel and achieve what only humans have the capacity to achieve. Unveiling the mystery of the mind is the core of Yoga philosophy and practice.”
He goes on to say, “The mind’s discerning power declines only when it falls from its perfectly still, clear, tranquil state. With that, it loses its confidence. It becomes prey to doubt and fear and begins to seek validation outside itself. Yoga enables us to restore the pristine nature of our mind and recapture its immense power and wisdom.”
Wow, that is powerful stuff! And all of this is written in Sutra 1.1 at the very beginning of this yoga “bible”. This month we have been discussing Sutra 1.9 which references the 3rd of the 5 modifications of the mind. Remember these 5 modifications can be painful or painless or selfless or selfless. The 3rd modification of the mind is imagination and Sutra 1.9 states: Imagination is knowledge, which due to the use of words appears to have content, but in reality is devoid of content. Our imagination can distract our calm, centered mind. During meditation, imaginative thoughts block the peaceful and inward flow of mind. Pandit says, “Even though they lack substance of their own, they are powerful enough to derail the mind from its spiritual course. To acquire a one-pointed mind and restore its innate luminosity, we must arrest this seductive mental tendency.”
Our intention this month is lining up perfectly with this sutra and this week I have been challenging my students to use it in the following way:
Have you ever been at a point in your life where something is happening or about to happen and you are absolutely certain that you KNOW how it should be and you KNOW exactly what you need to do to make it happen that way. And you will only be content and happy when “it” happens THAT WAY??? Welcome to the world of Karen and her head😂. Well to be fair, that is how I used to be - I am getting much much better. This week I have been asking all of us……what if you let go of the idea that you KNOW XY and Z? And do you see that when we live in the energy of thinking we KNOW, we are making our life smaller than maybe it could be. When we let go of the thinking we KNOW, life becomes bigger and more expansive, we are now in what Pandit refers to as “a human being is an island of excellence.” Is your mind a clear, calm, one-pointed, friendly mind? Or has it become dense, agitated, scattered, confused, and unfriendly because you are furiously doing and being because you think you KNOW! So this week, let go of what you think you KNOW and let in the EXCELLENCE of your life!