Yoga, Bliss and the Water

"Vitarka vicharanandasmitaroopanugamatsampragnataha"

“In the state of conscious awareness or sampragnata samadhi, special logic is accompanied by the appearances of, or experience of meditation in which all experiences and thoughts exist, accompanied by bliss and the experience of just ‘I am’.”
- Patanjali Yoga Sutra #17

There are perfect moments in yoga and in life when we are both grounded and lifted, holding on and letting go. These moments are rare, at least for me. Usually my mind is continually working and thinking about something or someone. I worry about my business, my children, the future. I worry about getting older, and I am conscious of time, all the time.  There is not enough time, I tell myself, to do all things that I want to do.

And while I live in this constant chatter that is chattering on, I take refuge in the small moments in between - in the spaces between here and there. In fact, I go in search of those moments.

Yesterday I participated in a workshop in Mission, British Columbia hosted by my sister Laurie at her home on Hatzik Lake.  The workshop was led by two local teachers, Wendy, the owner of WakeupSUP and Karen, the owner of Epic Yoga in Maple Ridge.

I had never been on the water on a board before, standing and paddling, or doing yoga for that matter. At home in Saskatchewan, I practice on an air mattress in my swimming pool, but the limitations are obvious.

When we first went out on the SUP board, I became immediately aware of the environment - and how small and powerless I felt.  I was afraid at first to be this small in the environment that could easily over power me.  We practiced the prone position (laying down on our stomachs), kneeling and standing.  Knowing how to get up and get down on the board, I began to feel like I could manage the environment.  As the boats whizzed by around us, the waves would come, and at first, I would go down on my knees to lower by center of gravity, to find more stability. Throughout the day on the water, the more I learned how to maneuver the waves as they came, and how to control my own emotional response, the more stable I became, and the more I was able to stand and paddle.

Our group gathered in a circle on the water, to practice yoga on our boards.  Wendy talked about the environment, and the water.  She asked us to feel the waves and become like the water - soft, flowing, moving and flexible, yet strong.  As I began to integrate my being with the being of the water, the board upon which I was sitting in a cross legged position became less important.  This board was something I was no longer afraid of, or afraid of falling off of.

We moved onto our hands and knees for cat / cow, and with each breath, I could feel my hands connecting but not holding on. I could feel my hips balancing, and I could feel my breath moving through me like I never had before.

Moving into downward facing dog, I placed my hands out in front of me on my board, and stepped back mindfully with one foot and then the other, finding the balance at the centre of my body, creating the perfect apex with my body.  Again, breathing, the board moved underneath me as the waves would pass by us.  We would adjust and the water would be still once more.

Moving from downward facing dog to full plank, and then to locust pose, creating a wave of breath and motion. The waves would roll in, and as I move through locust, exhaling and inhaling lifting my chest up to the sky, I was becoming part of the environment, making waves with my board, and accepting the waves as they came by.

Back to downward facing dog to recenter, and stepping forward into a deep forward fold, head becoming heavy and back lengthening, my feet both grounded and lifting.

Raising up to mountain pose, hands to the sky, reaching backwards, the sun in my eyes, and the warmth on my face, the board was no longer separate from me. It had become a part of me, and me a part of the environment.  We were moving in unison, together, in harmony.

Beginning to flow now, exhaling to forward fold, stepping back into downward facing dog, moving to side plank, a low lunge with a twist, mindful of each and every movement, exploring each time to find centre, and balance.