One weekend my mother was visiting her best friend, Barbara, who had married into an Indian family. We were in New Jersey and my brother and I were under the care of Barbara's in-laws. The fabrics were rich and colorful. The scents of Indian fragrances filled the house. I couldn't stand it. My ears and nose were not accustomed to this culture and I was having cultural shock, if you will. My only Asian exposure was to my friend Eileen and her Filipino cultural words and scents. That memory of me lived strong in my memory ban as having been a child in a place I couldn't relate to, and crying for my mother to come get me.
My theme for this week's classes was "non-attachment." We talked about letting go of things that did not serve us. Expectations of how others would react. Expectations of how others would engage with us. Attachment to physical "things."
I recall how practicing this theme this week opened up opportunities for me. One evening I put my cell phone down, but couldn't find it. My cell is my alarm clock and I was looking for it in all of the usual places, getting nervous about not finding it before bed. I knew the battery would run out, my alarm would not go off, and I couldn't call it as I keep the ringer off during the day. I made a conscious decision to let go of looking for it and get myself ready for bed. I could look again in a few minutes. Just as I let go and started walking towards my bedroom, I felt my body turn around, my arm outstretched and walked right over to where I left it.
When we are able to let go, we make room for miracles to happen.
While my experience as a child in an Indian culture was not favorable, as an adult, I had let go of that memory and became attracted to the Indian culture. I found myself drawn to Indian food, chanting, became a student of yoga and wanted to travel to India and live in an ashram learning yoga for a month. In the past few months, the Gita, came into my world. A former teacher at Barefoot gave me her Gita one day, leaving it with a note on my desk. I placed the book in our little alter area in our downstairs classroom. As a lover of books, I fell in love with the pages, the binding and the ornate cover. I did not understand the words or context as my fingers ran across the pages. After the initial gift, I did not look through it again. In the past few weeks at a yoga teacher training, I found myself learning about the Gita, the story, the words and translations. In the Gita, we learn the path to spiritual enlightenment.
This morning, before class, I looked lovingly at my Gita and opened it once again. I turned to Slokah 17: 11.
Translated by Sri Swami Satchidananda, the Slokah says "Any devoted action offered up without desire for reward, but with the entire mind focused on the action for its own sake, is in the true spirit of scripture and is a pure (sattvic) sacrifice." He continues on and brings up the story from the Mahabharta, the story that contains the Gita. The story he shares talks about the conversation between a husband and wife from a royal family when they are banished into the forest by their cousins. She asked the age old question, why must we suffer like this? And then her husband says how beautiful the mountains were. How amazing the animals and trees, the nature surrounding them. Without this forced exile, they never would have come to see the beauty around them so intimately. He looked at it as a reward.
I used this Slokah in this morning's class. When we are able to detach ourselves from our own expectations, the miracles around us become all the more visible. I posted this video on Facebook. Another miracle when we choose to let go of those things we hold onto and make our truth. When we truly let go, our lives change. If you haven't already, check out the video we posted on our Barefoot Facebook wall about the inspirational story of Jerome Hutson and his healing experience through yoga. Make room for miracles to happen to you.
