In today’s restorative class, we will be looking at the ways in which we can maintain clarity and peace of mind even as we are holding poses that could be viewed as more strenuous. Even though this is a restorative class, we will be performing a few poses that demand quite a bit of effort on our part. The thing is, though, that the more advanced you get, the more capacity you acquire to redirect your thoughts, to settle down into a calmer state in spite of hardship.
This is where the invocation stage of the class can prove to be very useful. At this point, we have the opportunity to observe our state of mind, to witness the “head struggle,” and to sweep away any scattered thoughts that aren’t contributing to our practice. However, it is also important that we aren’t too hard with ourselves at this stage: don’t try too hard to rid yourself of nagging thoughts. Instead, just observe, become aware of the fact that you are not defined by the calamity that at times takes over your mind. This realization will make it easier to know when to let go and thus to be able to do so more effectively.
