Bhakti Yoga

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.
"Anthem" Leonard Cohen

I've been having a few rough days. A lot seemed to be happening at once, and I was challenged keeping up. I felt inadequate. Then nobody showed for my yoga class, and my ego really took a hit!

Yes, my ego is still intact. I have yet to burn through all my illusions and attachments to come into a perfect state of enlightenment. I stopped waiting for it to happen. Yes, I am on my path. I study, pray and meditate. I am learning to trust that I am where I am supposed to be. When no one showed for class, that trust cracked a bit.

The truth is this happens. People have job, families to care for, they aren't going to make every class they would want. My ego convinces me otherwise. Maybe I'm failing. Maybe I'm not doing enough. Maybe I am not enough.

I am learning that we don't always see the entire picture. What looks bleak can become our blessing. What feels uncomfortable or even painful may become our breakthrough. It can fuel us to create the changes necessary to move forward.

The next class I taught was filled with wonderful people that I see every week. They are so lovely and open to whatever I'm drawn to share with them. I feel useful. They have grown more comfortable asking me questions and giving me feedback after class. This gift of community gets me out of my self-depreciating rut.

I have been listening to the CD "Seva Volume 7, Sounds of Bhakti" shipped to me from Kripalu. I use it in my home practice, and recently began sharing the music with my classes. Seva is Sanskrit which translates as service. Bhakti is the yoga of love and devotion. It is leading life with an open heart and connecting to the Divine. This is what I stopped appreciating in myself. It was time to be reminded.

On this day,  I led this wonderful group of yogis inspired by this music. I spoke very little, allowing the class to connect to the mantras being sung. Every word, every pose had meaning. They sprang from a divine source, guiding me. The energy in the room was palpable. I saw each person shine brighter and brighter. My ego got very quiet.

In my Kripalu teacher training, Jurian Hughes shared the most essential requirement to being a yoga teacher. "Just love them." There's a message from the angels, "we wish you could see yourself as we see you." I close my sessions, "the light in you is seen and honored by the light in me. Namaste."

This is Bhakti Yoga.