For My Needs

For my needs: 

through the course of a lifetime my yoga asana practice has been a constant, yet fluid, presence in my life, shifting to the needs of my body and emotions, but the commitment to practice has never once wavered. Even now in a year that's been difficult, with an injury keeping me from so many of my favorite poses, I find that I adapt to the circumstances at hand and perform with the body that I have each moment. It's been a much gentler practices for me over the past several months, 

and it's perfect for my needs. 

my back injury has allowed me to shift focus, giving me an opportunity to explore the fifth limb of yoga, pratyahara, withdrawing my senses from the outer world to an inner review of sensations of the body and ever changing flow of thoughts. The simplest asana now becomes a meditation of its own, diving deep into the motion of an inner world that somehow always seems to unfold to a greater stillness. I'm truly listening to my body, a silent communication of its sensations, and how they each having a message to share with me, even if it's only a whisper. 

and the message is almost always...

pay attention.

and it's the perfect message for my needs.

this isn't a sharp focus on every detail of my practice, it's much softer, a gentle awareness that just flows through my body, unencumbered by concerns, leading me towards an easy stillness that's carried through every pose. Amazingly, I am falling in love with the present restrictions of my practice, not at thinking of the asanas that I can no longer do, but giving myself completely to every pose that's now available. It all feels unlimited, unbound, a true flow of awareness through the course of my body. 

it's the perfect practice for my needs right now. 

~

Peace, Eric