Field of Being

 

 

In the true sadhana, one soaks the flesh in the stream of blood, rubs the mind with each cell and brushes the intelligence to burn the defective seeds so that prana flows smoothly, invigorating the very core of the being….This experience is the nectar of the sadhana and should be savored by all sadhakas.

BKS Iyengar, Core of the Yoga Sutras

There is a step-by-step rhythm in asana practice which moves us from the periphery of our body/mind into the deeper core of our being.  It does not happen all at once or even every time we practice.  But overtime, little by little, when we practice consistently, self-reflexively, and reverentially, we open the way for the consciousness to spread, the mind to settle, the Self to be known to us more fully.  In that clarifying knowing of the Self, the deepest parts of ourselves which long to offer gratitude, generosity, and love can find a fuller expression in our actions in the world. 

In his rendering of this process, BKS Iyengar describes how asana first allows us to soak more and more of the flesh in blood.  This might be experienced as a tingling in the body, a vibration, or even an ache as dormant cells are newly awaken.  These sensations then draw the senses (manas) towards the newly ignited parts of the body opening up a pathway for the intelligence (buddhi) to remove obstacles to the flow of prana.  Fed by this deep and gathering source of energy, we are less drawn to the material for what can only be nourished by the spirit.  While we also necessarily draw energy from the material world (our food, relationships, the warmth of the sun), the inner wellspring freed up through asana nourishes our inner heart.

  

I imagine my body as the field of my being that I come to know more and more intimately through asana, the flow of blood, the sensations of movement, the cleansing removal of impurities, the spreading of the flame of the Self.  The Self doing the asana, the Self directing my actions in the world, the Self finding expression in generosity, kindness, open heartedness.