Depth of Time

Tick-Tock.  The sound of a clock marking the passage of time.  In our culture we schedule our days according to the hours and plot our lives along the pages of a calendar.  Even within the yoga practice when we are asked to “Be Present!” and focus on the right here right now, we are aware of time. Counting our breathes we see another student moving effortlessly through some incredible posture.  We wonder how long it will be until we are capable of that.  Or maybe we fear that we are already too old and don't have enough time to develop those postures.  In this world where everything is moving so quickly, give yourself the gift of slowing down.  At least in yoga, don’t hurry!
    Rather than looking at this practice only as some track that progresses forward in time like a two hour class or a six day a week practice, realize that there is also a path that moves inward, spiraling into depths of the NOW space.  When you choose to slow down or perhaps by injury or some physical resistance you are forced to, you have the opportunity to explore your practice on new levels. It is easy to become attracted to the forward progression of a yoga practice when flying through a vinyasa sequence one pose to the next or trying to accomplish some difficult bind.  It is natural.  We want to be able to do it all and we rush our bodies towards it.  Inspiration is an essential element of the yoga practice but what is the hurry?  Most often we are looking for some way to measure our progress.  We are looking at how long it takes to become adept at a challenging pose or how long we can remain in that posture, at the same time already thinking about what comes next.  In looking forward to what is currently beyond our reach we miss the potentials available in exploring the depths of the moment we are currently in. 
    When we first discover a yoga posture we learn how to place the physical body.  This leg goes here, the arm over there and I look this way, etc.  As we settle into that form the attention moves to the subtler layers of muscular awareness.  We learn where we can release and what needs to remain active, where we lengthen and where we draw in.  Layer by layer we dig deeper beyond the physical sensations toward the energetic ones.  We become aware of prana, life force energy moving through the channels we have opened by placing our body in this certain way.  This energetic experience is a yoga that we would miss if we were rushing through.
    Each of us has our own internal rhythm and tempo.  We are drawn to different methods of yoga sometimes based on this internal timing and how it urges us to move our bodies.  While still honoring your own personal clock, try to find a drawing out of each present moment.  The breath not only moves you forward but every inhale draws you inward.  If you find yourself speeding through your sun salutes, lengthen the breath and slow down.  Experience each moment as you move through it.  Allow yourself to really be in your chaturanga dandasana. Feel that exhale spreading out and expanding time so that you can have the space to explore the depths of that experience before moving through into upward facing dog.  Like controlling a movie with the remote control, putting it into slow motion so that you can see every element of a scene, the actors expressions as well as the background details.  Bring that element of discovery to each breath and see every aspect of what is happening to your body, your mind and the sensations of how energy is moving through you.  Rather than just hitting the main markers along the road, fill out the scenery and see everything. 
    As you explore the yoga practice as a landscape you will find less urge to rush forward.  The forward will reveal itself to you along its own time line, learning new postures and progressing organically.  You will be less focused ahead of you as you will become present in the richness of the moment.  When you discover this depth available in the yoga practice you can realize that it is present out there as well, in the world beyond the mat.  In your jobs or relationships, wherever you give your attention and energy, slow down, fill out the scenery, look at the details and explore its textures.  The future will come, that is an inevitability.  Extend your breath and experience the depth of time as well as its length.