Noticing what no longer serves us

Welcome to Summer! And what a summer it has been so far ☀️

During this term we will be investigating the topic of attachments, these are elements in our lives where we hold onto behaviours, attitudes and actions that no longer serve us, that may restrict and control us.

Through our Yoga practice we will attempt to recognise what these are and to question if they are still valid. It could be something as simple as a long-held conviction that learning a new language is not within your skillset. The first step is to recognise this and then to challenge it, is that belief holding you back? Is it true? This process can be applied to all parts of our lives; everyday actions, relationships, employment, likes and dislikes.

The concepts of attachment and non-attachment are mentioned several times in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, a seminal yoga text. The sutras maintain that attachment is neither good nor bad. However, the sutras also say that attachment can lead to suffering, to being unhappy.

The essence of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras can be summarised in a few simple lines. It observes that our inherent nature is one of peace and contentment, however when we start to misidentify with the transient parts of ourselves, such as our possessions, our bodies, or our thoughts, we lose touch with that peace and experience frustration and pain.

Yogis believe that there is a calm, peaceful, and pure awareness residing deep within all beings. With our Yoga practice we start to work towards our inner self to achieve that contentment.

That’s a loft objective I know; over the next few weeks we will be exploring ways in which to work towards this goal.

I hope you can join me.

Om Shanti 🙏