Good Wishes & High Hopes for 2021

I’ve heard so many cliches coming out of my mouth ‘happy new year’, and ‘new year, new you’, ‘time for resolutions and change’, ‘clear out the old and bring in the new’ etc..

All in all, I feel there are three most important ‘As’ - acknowledgment, acceptance, and appreciation. And so as not to repeat them mindlessly, it’s important to be mindful about what those words mean and what obstacles are standing in your way.

It reminds me of the 9 interruptions as listed in the Yoga Sutras and how that helps me with self-enquiry and yoga therapy clients.

When we are disturbed, distracted, or feel misunderstood, the rocks on the path can feel like insurmountable mountains, too hard, too high and requiring too much.

When we look at them, they can prepare us for greater resilience, more clarity on what it is that is ACTUALLY GETTING IN THE WAY.

Being stuck and getting started are the main obstacles and often, once we manage to get going, uproot ways of being that can take root in habitual patterns too deep to change, we surprise ourselves at what we find when we are tested, whether its our choice or out of our control, we can access a deeper understanding through self enquiry and mind/body connection, our inner knowing as the our ultimate teacher, our own source.

"Take a close look at the obstacles – are they really that deep-rooted, what effort will it take to take one small step in a different direction, to find the chink of light or crack in the pavement where something new can grow? Take a deep breath now and dive deep into the ocean of resources you hold inside. Notice what you find here below the surface." Judy Hirsh Sampath

The most important method of removing obstacles in the Yoga Sutras is Iswarapranidhana - our spirit! To trust and be lead by a higher power, that part of us that surprises us by an untapped force found in adversity.

Can you think of a time when that happened? A time when you were forced out of your comfort zone and discovered some strength or ability, a coping strategy or resilience about yourself that surprised you?

If you are reviewing your year, start with the resources you forgot you had, or you didn’t have time to acknowledge because you were distracted by whatever was going on outside.

You still have those resources – bring them forward now, stand shoulder to shoulder with them like allies as we cycle round again, whether you’re inside, outside, sitting looking at a tree, or running through the wind, sounding and seeing your own breath in the cold air.

Acknowledging and accepting is a way to clear the air, raise your spirits, shield you from harm.

Cheers to all, especially if the cliché ‘Happy New Year’ doesn’t feel happy or new to you right now. Let us know how we can support you further.

Love from
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