“Encounter every life experience as ‘prasad,’ a gift from God. See all hardships and joyous occasions as grace coming to you.” Swami Kripalu
Try this experiment for one day: See every moment as a “perfect situation.” This moment is the absolute best thing that could happen right now. It was uniquely designed for you to learn from. This sounds simple, but way of seeing runs contrary to the habit pattern of the mind.
Most of the time, the mind makes things wrong. The judgmental mind is rarely content with things how they are. It always wants Reality to be different. If Reality changes the way the mind wants it, the satisfaction is brief. The mind latches on to something else that is wrong and it wants that to be different. This mental action of always looking for what is wrong creates an inner conflict and the spaciousness of the mind ins lost.
For two years, I did seva (selfless service) in the Kripalu kitchen in Lenox MA. It was one of the most transforming experiences of my life. We served 400 - 700 people three meals a day, seven days a week. The kitchen was steaming hot. The pace was really fast. The dish washing machine was deafening. You had to shout to be heard. This intense environment is a far cry from the silence of the meditation hall, but the yoga is the same. The practice is to not react to the reactive part of the mind. In the heat and confusion of the Kripalu kitchen, my mind was easily upset. It made practically everything wrong.
When I started as a cook, my typical thoughts ran like this:
“Why are the vegetables not on time? What is wrong with them downstairs? Processing their feelings no doubt. We are out of tamari. It must be Harry, in kitchen supply. He screwed up. How are we supposed to cook Macrobiotic without tamari? Who made this mess? Look at this mess here: messes here, messes there. I am the only one cleaning this place! Oh great, Ellen burned her dish in the kettle. I’ve got to clean that thing before my dish can go in. We are going to be late. Jane has called in sick. Now we have to cook her dishes as well. Is she really sick or is she faking again? Who keeps stealing the measuring cups? This really pisses me off. Oh god, Bob just cut his finger, down one more cook. Bob should be more mindful. Doesn’t Bob know spiritual practice is about being mindful? I keep telling him to watch what he’s doing. You chop vegetables and not pay attention and look what happens.“ And on and on and on.
Then I got the hang of yoga. “Oh, reality is absolutely right, just as it is showing up. Relax. This moment is a gift from God. Everything is okay. In this moment I have a unique opportunity to observe my posture, observe my breath and sensations, observe my reactive mind. From this place, I have a unique opportunity to be of service. Instead of blindly reacting, making wrong, blaming and criticizing, I can now be helpful. There is nothing to fight here. There is no reason for upset. Even breath, even mind. It is just as it should be.”
One day, a junior cook got upset with all the guests walking into the kitchen asking for things. He hung up a sign “No entry. Please do not disturb the cooks.” I believe it was Chandrakant, the Head Cook, who wrote underneath the sign “We are already disturbed. We don’t need your help.”
In a yoga class, the same exact thing happens. The disturbed mind is never in the moment. It is always talking and rationalizing and praising and avoiding and clinging and blaming and liking and disliking. Without training, it keeps focusing on what is “wrong.”
The predictable reactive thoughts go like this:
“Its too hot in here. Its too cold in here. I hate this pose. I love this pose. Why don’t we hold it longer? The problem is the teacher. The problem is this practice. “My body is “bad”. I have these ‘bad’ knees. Bad elbows, bad shoulders, bad neck, bad back, bad, bad, bad. Why are they so bad? I am bad. Look at me teacher, I am the best one in the class. I just want to be comfortable. I thought yoga was going to make me comfortable all the time. I wish I had longer arms. Why can’t I meditate. I am no good. My mind is crazy. My mind is supposed to be quiet.
I hate those little grunting noises Sally is making. Why can’t Sally be quiet. After all, this is a ‘yoga class’....She is disturbing me.”
The truth is we only disturb ourselves.
Keeping a clear and non-reactive mind is a yoga best friend. Once I had a water pipe burst during class. We took advantage and practiced in the hallway. We called it “yoga on the bus.” One time during class, the ceiling tiles fell down. After a few Chicken Little jokes, we moved people over, never missed a beat and kept the rhythm of the class going. No one seemed to get upset, because I wasn’t getting upset. No problem, do the next thing. Meet the situation with a clear mind. Every situation is okay. One time, the fire marshal banged on the door and ordered every one out of the building. We took advantage of the “problem” and practiced in the sunshine. It is so much nicer out here anyway. One time, I had a student pass out from heat exhaustion. I kept the rhythm going and helped her to a cool spot, put her into Viparita Karani (legs on wall pose) put a wet towel on her head and kept leading the class the whole time. Real problems happen and have to be dealt with. If my mind was in a reactive, fearful place, the situation could have been unmanageable. Those situations are relatively easy. The really tough situations are remaining non-reactive when it seems personal. When a student blames, makes wrong and say hurtful things in front of the class. This requires one’s most compassionate self and skillful means. That is the advanced yoga practice.
The Kripalu kitchen taught me to show up in the moment, without baggage. The answer will come. In the non-reactive place, the best answer arises of its own accord.
Every moment is perfect. Every moment is Grace coming to you. Are you awake to see it? Laugh at it?