March 22, 2005

Off The Mat (Part 1)

By Antar Goodwin

There is a funny story that circulates around yoga schools and meditation centers. Two people are driving and accidentally Driver 1 cuts in front of Driver 2. Driver 2 proceeds to hurl a few insults and flash a hi beam or two at Driver 1. Driver 1 gets a little upset at this and slows down and makes sure that Driver 2 cannot pass.

This continues for a while, at the height of it they are both driving side by side yelling at each other with the windows down. They do this until they turn into a parking lot together. It turns out that they are both headed to the same yoga/meditation class. Now, whether this is yogic urban legend or not, it bring to the forefront some interesting things, mainly, how can we bring our yoga and/or meditation practice with us into our daily lives.

Your practice away from the mat will be a topic that will be revisited often here, so for now we will deal with the preliminary steps. First and foremost you must take time for yourself, minimun once daily. Schedule it if that what it takes. Your life is not a to do list, but, if you do happen to have one lying around put this at the top and bottom of it.

Ideal times for your self appointed quality time are in the begining of the day, at the end of the day and of course somewhere in the middle. This quality time does not have to be long, 5-10 minutes is fine. If possible, take it at the same time daily. Some sort of ritual is also good. Here is a sample mid-day ritual that works for many of my clients-

1. Stand up.
2. Inhale, and as you reach your arms overhead think about your day thus far.
3. Exhale,and as your arms gently come down to your sides let your day go.
4. Sit down
5. Gently allow your eyes to close and breathe deeply for a minute or two.
6. Gently allow you eyes to open.

This may seem a bit basic for some, but the results in your overall life can and will be great.

Another great tool in your practice away from the mat, is focused intent. Focused intent is the tool that crystalizes your bodies ability to get something done, what atheletes commonly refer to as getting in the zone. In the "modern world" multi-tasking has become somewhat of a nessisity. Focused intent is the other side of the proverbial coin.

Tasks such as eating, driving, reading, talking on the phone etc. are great things to begin with. Begin by picking the task. Next, pick an amount of time that you feel is appropriate to get this task done. Set a gentle alarm (watch, cell phone etc.).This enables you to fully concentrate on the task at hand without having to worry about time. As you begin the task, focus on your breath, allow youself to take deep, full breaths.

Concentrate on the task at hand. If having a conversation, focus on not only what the person is saying but what they mean as well. When speaking, be clear and direct. Focus on what you want to convey as well as the best way to convey it.

If you are doing a solitary task such as eating, be aware of your mood at the time, the quality of the food as well as how you feel about it. This again may seem basic to some but this is the beginning of developing meditation in motion. It begins with intention and travels through doing into being, where the task is no longer a task but an opportunity to delve deeper into yourself and your process for growth.

In future articles we will go further into the topic of bringing our practice into our daily lives. Along with this, other topics will include Embracing the Shadow, The Road to Forgiveness, The You Today vs.The You Yesterday and Effective Visualization. I welcome your comments and questions. I can be reached at integratedcounseling1@yahoo.com

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