This month our Moving into Meditation class is studying the Yoga Ethic of Aparigraha.  Here are some of the resources we used in this morning’s practice of guided relaxation, mindful movement and sitting meditation.

We used mantra and mudra seed our breathing consciousness in our pranayama practice.

In Vajradhara  the wrists are crossed, over the heart, with the right forearm placed in front of the left one; this gesture symbolizes the highest energy and the union of compassion and wisdom necessary to reach enlightenment. In vajradhara mudra, one is free from judgement, notions, theories, fate, truth and any concept that defines enlightenment; as they say, enlightenment is not defining it.

Hands in Vajradhana Mudra . . . inhale . . . hold the breath in . . . hearing & silently chanting Om Asatoma Satgamaya release the breath out: Lead me from the unreal to the real. . . . inhale . . . hold the breath in . . . hearing & silently changing Tamasoma Jyotir Gamaya . . . release the breath out: Lead me from darkness to the light . . . inhale . . . hold the breath in . . . hearing & silently chanting: Mrityorma Amritam Gamaya . . . . release the breath out: Lead me from separation to the Infinite.  Om, shanti, shanti, shantih . . .

Guided Relaxation

Welcome . . . to this present moment . . . as you feel your breathing . . . you extend a welcome to each breath . . . receiving and releasing . . . taking in and giving out . . . each mindful breath . . .an affirmation of your intimacy . . . intimacy with yourself . . . intimacy with all beings . . . . “Come new to this day. . . . “ Feel your breathing and “. . . Remove the rigid overcoat of experience, the notion of knowing, the beliefs that cloud your vision.”

Feeling breathing nourishing you . . . and then feeling the outflowing breath affirming the life of other beings . . . with every breath “Arrive curious, without the armor of certainty, the plans and planned results of the life you’ve imagined. Live the life that chooses you, new every breath, every blink of your astonished eyes.”

As we continue this simple practice we come to know, through direct experience, through feeling in our bodies. . . we can only fill ourselves so much, we only truly need that which sustains us . . . letting the life of each breath be enough . . . and then realizing we have to let go in order to be filled again . . . Feeling the natural release as we empty . . . the emptying just as vital as the filling . . .

We come here in offering . . . offering ourselves one breath at a time . . . our presence an expression of miracle, of life giving birth to life moment to moment . . . realizing blessings . . . giving yielding to receiving . . . receiving yielding to giving . . . we are, ourselves, an offering . . . This is the realization of Aparigraha. The Yoga principle of generosity . . .

aparigraha-sthairye janma-kathaṁtā saṁbodhaḥ ॥39॥

“Acknowledging abundance (aparigraha) we recognize the blessings in everything and gain insights into the purpose for our worldly existence.”

Sutra 2.39 translation by Nischala Joy Devi, The Secret Power of Yoga

Non-Possessiveness (Aparigraha) – Graha means “to grasp” and pari means “things”: aparigraha means “not grasping things,” or non-possessiveness. It helps us achieve a balanced relationship with the things that we each call “mine.”

We realize “All the things of the world are ours to use, but not to own.” That is the essence of aparigraha. Whenever we become possessive, we are in turn possessed, anxiously holding onto our things and grasping for more. It’s as if we fall from grace . . . the grace of the state we enter in offering . . . the grace of giving yielding to receiving . . . receiving yielding to giving . . . (From Letting Go of What Keeps You Moving Forward)

We can take a few moments to reflect on what we are holding . . . whether in the form of possessions, emotional attachments, the ideas of how, what or who we should be . . . Notice what you focus on . . . be curious about the lens of your perception . . . how narrow? how wide? how fixed? how moveable?

Can the energy of Aparigraha – non possessiveness relieve you of any burdens? Can it lift the veils of separation? Can it relax our bodies, our hearts, our minds? What can we offer in service of letting go? What can we offer in finding our place in the great circle of life?

And as we let go, as we open the doors of perception . . . what becomes illuminated? What blessings, what offerings can we see arising all around us? No worries about counting our blessings as they manifest with every breath at any given moment . . . when the clouds part we can acknowledge and affirm life’s abundance . . . And our ability to be grateful for what is present brings more goodness . . . goodness that we freely give and receive . . . We can feel it now as we breathe . . . The energy of abundance ebbing a flow, the receiving and giving.

We can reflect on the underlying current flowing through our lives . . . where is it taking us? As we develop abundance consciousness, we begin to see more clearly the meaning and purpose of our lives perhaps it’s just glimmerings, a faint light we can follow or a beacon that gives us the courage to keep going . . . To share the love in our hearts, to offer time for service or a listening ear to someone who needs support gives purpose to anyone’s life.

This is the treasure of Aparigraha . . . We practice because we want to help. We practice for the benefit of future generations.

As we magnify the love in our hearts through the glass of abundance, giving freely, we become life’s offering.

Rebecca del Rio offers this poem as an invitation to renewal and beginnings:

Prescription for the Disillusioned

Come new to this
day. Remove the rigid
overcoat of experience,
the notion of knowing,
the beliefs that cloud
your vision.

Leave behind the stories
of your life. Spit out the
sour taste of unmet expectation.
Let the stale scent of what-ifs
waft back into the swamp
of your useless fears.

Arrive curious, without the armor
of certainty, the plans and planned
results of the life you’ve imagined.
Live the life that chooses you, new
every breath, every blink of
your astonished eyes.