911

Emergency. Or today's date. Or both, depending on the day. 

Today's yoga class was right in line with what I've been sharing the last couple if weeks. 

In the yoga sutras of Patanjali, sutra 1:27 talks about the ever present sound, the pranava. The great commentator, Vyasa, refers to this sound as "aum." But regardless of what you hear, this ever present sound, this pranava, permeates all things. Is accessible to all things. 25/7. Even in a 911 situation.

Pranava means "that which softens" referring to that which softens the ego - our attachments, our expectations, our self proclaimed identity. We soften those hard lines in our mind, not to become more diffuse or vague, but to become clearer. Clearer because we open ourselves up to seeing a bigger picture. Clearer because we invite and welcome other points of view. 

So today on 911, we can use this day to heal (yoga sutra- sutra means "suture" that which heals) by softening the hard lines in ourselves. By welcoming other walks of life and points of view. By doing more than just "tolerating" differences. Instead of bracing and hardening ourselves, resisting the unfamiliar, we challenge ourselves to lean in and soften,  so we are not pretending to listen, but to soften our ears and actually hear. We hear the unstruck sound of the pranava and let it pierce our hearts, softening fear and pain, freeing ourselves to experience our own vast and infinite light. The light that propels us deeper into the softening of understanding and acceptance. 

911. Emerging. See? Emergency.

#911

#yogasutra1:27

#pranava

#om

#thesecretoftheyogasutra