We are nearing the end of the Mahabharata.
Through this rich story, the Pandava brothers lost their kingdom in a
dice game, were banished to the forest for 12 years, returned to battle their
cousins the Kauravas, (led by Public Enemy #1,as I have come to call him,
Duryodhana), and won their kingdom back. The Kauravas perish in the war,
and the Pandavas are restored to their royal place. They regain their
land, their elephants and horses, their chariots and castles. All is
right with the world, right?
Well, not exactly: “Joined with Arjuna, Yudhishthira with his brothers and Draupadi, all wearing bark, walked into the north.” (i.e. back to the forest - the north is the Himalayas, a place of hermitage and wisdom).
Huh? So
they get the castle, the riches, the parties, the food that they fought a
vicious war to win back…and they walk away? If this were a movie (and it
is - check out some of the videos on You Tube for the "Cliff Note"
version of the story!) I think I'd be a little annoyed at the twist ending!
This is a story ultimately about Dharma, the true path
each person is destined to follow in their life. And their path took them
on that whole journey – to the dice game, the forest, the war, the kingdom and
back to the forest - all of it was part of their story. So although the
banishment to the forest was at first seen as a punishment of sorts, it was
there that they ultimately learned what was truly important to them. They had
to come back to fight for their kingdom and, of course, to destroy the evil
that had overtaken the land, but it was the means, not the point. Theirs
was a higher purpose.
I have shared before that my family has moved around a
lot. When we moved to Chicago (2008 –
2011) I went kicking and screaming. But once we were there I embraced it,
made it my own and carved out a beautiful life for myself and for my
family. The experiences I had there transformed my life dramatically and
created new and unimagined pathways that I never would have found if we hadn’t
gone. Ultimately the path led back here, but I’m so much more open now to
where my path might lead me in the future. Since we’ve moved frequently
I’m always saying I’ll never do it again (because really, moving is
exhausting!), but when I think about it, that move that I so resisted was one
of the best times of my life, a time of tremendous growth and abundance on so
many levels. One of the greatest gifts of
that time was learning to not pre-judge a path presenting itself simply because
it is not the one that was in “the plan”, and even when it’s not been one of my
choosing.
Our path leads us where we are meant to go.
Every journey becomes an opportunity for growth and even abundance. It’s not
always the obvious choice (like the one filled with the riches of a kingdom),
but when we live with the intention to devote our lives to the highest purpose
of yoga, to connect with innate grace and goodness, it makes the path we do
choose (or are forced to choose for one reason or another) easier to follow. And we know that that path will eventually
lead us to what is most important. When we open ourselves to all the
possibilities and paths that life has to offer, we align with the fullness and
abundance of the universe.
Off
the mat, reflections for your week:
Was there a time when you found yourself in a
situation not of your choosing? Looking back, can you see how it was part
of the larger path of your life, how it fits in with the whole of your
existence?
On
the mat:
Open To Grace: Want what your creator desires.
Step into your breath and into the flow of your dharma.
Let yourself be carried by that great river to the places you are meant to go.
Become aware of what is really important to you, where
your path is ultimately leading regardless of the winding road it might take to
get there.
Muscular Energy: As you tone your skin to muscle to
bone, move from external to internal, from superficial to deep and deeply
important values.
Firm your muscles to embrace what is really important,
and whatever route might get you there.
Inner Spiral: Widen your sit-bones to open to the
abundance of pathways that will lead you to fulfillment of your goals.
Widen your inner thighs to broaden the perspective of
“having” (whether it’s a kingdom or a pose) and recognize that that is not “it”.
Outer Spiral: Scoop your tailbone to come full circle
back to the forest, to the things that are truly meaningful in your life.
Organic Energy: Stretch into the unknown.
Expand into the awareness of your highest purpose of
life, regardless of the path you find yourself on.
