Enough is enough. Or is it? I grew up listening to Jim Croce and especially loved his "Time in a Bottle” lyrics: "But there never seems to be enough time to do the things you want to do once you find them.” I had a feeling similar to that yesterday, as I soaked up the beauty of a gorgeous Easter day and shared it with those close to me. Whether it is the feeling of life’s inevitable transience, or the feeling that we, ourselves, are somehow inadequate to the task of achieving our goals during this life, this sense of scarcity is pervasive. It permeates every aspect of our culture. But it helps to analyze it more closely –to look at the kinds of scarcity we sense around us. On one hand, acknowledging the transience of life can be a helpful reminder to live each moment to the fullest. On the other hand, however, feeling that we, ourselves, are lacking or that we don’t have enough to be satisfied, is another matter altogether. Faced with impermanence, we are often goaded to try to fill our short lives with more accomplishments, more possessions, more stuff, as though the brevity of life means that it is a race that can somehow be won. It is this different sort of poverty that leads us to strive constantly to acquire the next thing, job, title, degree, relationship, etc. And, while we may experience a moment of satisfaction when we finally get the new car, or job, the luster soon begins to fade and we set our sights on the next thing. This is not to say that growing and having aspirations is all bad, but can we learn to be both content with where we are and what we have, while still evolving? Can we act on the desires that come from our higher Self rather than those desires that are governed by our egos? The key lies in understanding where our motivation is coming from. Are we trying to fill some void in our emotional lives? Are we trying to be who our parents or friends think we should be? Are we stepping on someone else in order to make ourselves feel more successful and important? Have we reduced every accomplishment to the status of an object we can acquire in order to somehow “win” the race of life? Ancient yoga texts tell us how to find a balance in being content in this precise moment in time, exactly as things are...while also growing and becoming who we are meant to be. The Bhagavad Gita, 2:47 tells us, “You have a right to action alone, never to its fruit. Your motivation should not be fruit of action, nor should you be attached to inaction.” It goes on to advise us that contentment comes not from increasing our possessions but from decreasing our wants. I’ve always heard, "Show up. Do right action. Let go of the outcome.” The third step is always the hardest, but I believe there is a prerequisite to this charge that makes all the difference: Know and align with your higher Self. If we can start with enough discernment to know where and how to show up, it will make doing the right thing and letting go of the fruits (or lack thereof), much easier. Join me on the mat to experience Tantra Hatha
Yoga techniques that help hone our discernment from deep within and ultimately make letting go all the sweeter. Yes, enough is enough.