Salamba Shirshasana:The Headstand pose in Hatha yoga tips my perspective upside. When I was younger standing on my head was easy. I wasn’t good at cartwheels or many “sporty” kinds of actions but I could easily stand on my head.
Today, I attempted one. To my chagrin I couldn’t do it. I accepted my current abilities and laid down with my feet propped up against the wall. The question to meditate with in this pose is “What would happen if my world was turned upside down?”
I just finished an eight week session that explored yoga practices related to the Kundalini system. I really enjoy the connection with the group from Yasodhara ashram and find that I learn an incredible amount about myself each time. One of the very clear realizations is my need for a firm foundation. This includes a discipline of practice. I am a bit stubborn and pride myself on being spontaneous and free to do whatever I want when I want. This attitude has some merits but it also has some flaws. I took two years off of life, just to float ( sometimes literally in my kayak on many lakes near my home). I put my watch away, and had no idea what day it was sometimes. Spring, summer and fall of 2022 was a blur, to be honest the last two years have been a blur.
So why am I feeling a need for a change in my behavior now? I feel like I need more. Time is speeding away. Hours have become days, days have become months and months have become years. The world is almost unrecognizable. I am well rested, I have ample opportunity for a great reset and have a plan to plug myself back into the grid of the living that exists outside my current bubble.
But first what I thought I might try is a deep dive into the theory and practices of the Kundalini system. I am going to use the books and techniques prescribed by Swami Radha as those are the ones I am most familiar with from being connected to the Yasodhara ashram. I am including other tools I have found effective in my yogic practice such as mantras and card decks. I will include the tools and references each day that I practice with in case you wish to try them yourself.
It’s time to plant my feet in the sky. Feel the ethereal energy flow and realize that it is a lot harder to just walk away when I am unable to find purchase easily in my steps. Walking on air is something to strive for.
How do I feel when my world is turned upside down?
Shaky, vulnerable, a bit dizzy, inability to walk away, head rush, reverse direction of energy and blood flow.
I feel alive and ready to explore.
For reference: Kundalini-Yoga For The West and Hatha Yoga Hidden Language-Swami Radha
