Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

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I Stretch My Arms, by James Harpur

I stretch my arms like a swan flying And watch, weightless, the world turning So high up I can see – endlessly it seems Rome and white mountains rising beyond, Triremes at anchor in still Alexandria Pearl-divers practising from rocks The wind wandering through the wilderness. The sun casts no shadow of the compass. I am rooted to the spot, rotting inside I had no choice but to choose this perch And now I cannot choose any more Each choice I made was like a nail Fixing my arms to embrace the world.

From Oracle Bones (Anvil Press, 2001).

Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

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From The Waves, by Virginia Woolf:

How much better is silence;

the coffee cup, the table.

How much better to sit by myself

like the solitary sea-bird

that opens its wings on the stake.

Let me sit here for ever with bare things,

this coffee cup,

this knife, this fork,

things in themselves,

myself being myself.

Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

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A conversation between dancers/choreographers Martha Graham and Agnes de Mille, found in the 1991 biography Martha: The Life and Work of Martha Graham.

Agnes de Mille writes:

I confessed that I had a burning desire to be excellent, but no faith that I could be.

Martha said to me, very quietly: “There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. As for you, Agnes, you have so far used about one-third of your talent.”

“But,” I said, “when I see my work I take for granted what other people value in it. I see only its ineptitude, inorganic flaws, and crudities. I am not pleased or satisfied.”

“No artist is pleased.”

“But then there is no satisfaction?”

“No satisfaction whatever at any time,” she cried out passionately. “There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.”

Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

---

From The Waves, by Virginia Woolf

How much better is silence; the coffee cup, the table. How much better to sit by myself like the solitary sea-bird that opens its wings on the stake. Let me sit here for ever with bare things, this coffee cup, this knife, this fork, things in themselves, myself being myself.

My 2016 word of the year

Many years ago, thanks to initiative from Susannah Conway and Liz Lamoreux, I gave up setting New Year's resolutions in favor of selecting a "Word of the Year."

I've really come to appreciate how focusing in on one word provides guidance for how I want to orientate my days, and, more broadly, live my life.

Last year my word was courage. And, boyhowdie, in looking back, I can see how courage flowed through the entire year.

As I wrote back then, I knew I wanted a strong word. Something to push me to take challenges, to have tough conversations, to leap sometimes without looking.

Courage, also, to me spoke of approaching challenges with heart. Not ignoring or stuffing any fear involved, but intentionally moving forward through compassion, both for myself and for others involved. Taking the risks necessary to grow and change, and come out the other side a better woman.

I'm proud to say I did a lot of that. And I think I am a better woman for it.

Having courage as my word of the year was so beneficial that part of me wanted to hang on to it through 2016. And when I consider the signs around me, I can see how courage is still playing a major role. (Of course, I'm not sure you ever really "get rid of" any of your words.) But I also know I have somewhat different needs this year.

Courage was about overcoming fear — an internal issue, yes, but in many ways, externally motivated.

For 2016, I have chosen to come back home, literally and figuratively.

I have chosen "nourish."

Nourish allows me to focus inward. To take care of my body — from what I eat, to how and when I move, to honoring this form that carries my heart and soul as it is, here and now.

Nourish allows me to focus on my home. From mindfully caring for the space where I spend much of my time, to taking into consideration the "stuff" inside — Do the things within make me happy, are they beautiful, do they bring pleasure?

Nourish also allows me to focus on healthy relationships. Am I nourishing those around me, my husband, my friends? Am I being nourished in return? Am I giving Lucy the care and love that she needs?

I know that nourish is not going to be easy for me. But then courage was not easy for me from the get-go either. It's all just part of this thing we call life.

Did you choose a word for 2016? I'd love for you to share it in the comments below. And of course, just because it's now February doesn't mean you can't still choose a word.

(If you'd like some guidance, it looks like you can still get in on Susannah's free "Find Your Word" 5-day email workshop. I highly recommend this process.)

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P.S. Thanks to Jo of The Darling Tree for the nourish art above. She does beautiful web design work and art. Check her out!