Tilted off your axis...

I read the other day that the earthquake in Chile tilted the Earth off it's axis. My first thought was, will this mean that the rotation will now be wonky? I also realized that the earthquake happened right around a full moon. What I notice in my yoga classes around a full moon is that it tends to throw people's balance off for a few days before and a few days after. So I wondered will this axis tilting affect people's balance and make it wonky as well? More wonky or less?

What I noticed is that it did affect people's balance, not sure if it was any more than the usual full moon reason or a combo of both. The thing with balance through out your life is that it changes on a daily basis and it is something that as we age we lose but with practice, patience and consistent work it can come back. Yes there are a lot of things we see change as we age but one that we actually practice to retain and improve, now that I like. I have students that are living proof that with consistent work you can improve your balance. Some struggle with it but they keep at it and little by little I see the balance improve and the confidence comes with it.

Many things can affect your balance, colds, inner ear issues, vision problems, body aches and pains and your mental outlook most definitely. Your inner emotional balance can affect your outer physical balance. Of course the outer physical balance is much easier to see and gauge most times than that inner emotional balance. The physical practice of yoga is only one part of yoga. Traditionally the physical practice of yoga was done to quiet the body and the mind so that a meditation practice could follow. For many people in our society there is more focus on the physical aspect of yoga, but a good teacher can slip in those inner pieces without scaring people off and the transformation is amazing when it happens.

Yoga is a humbling practice, it forces you to be very honest with where your body is at. If you force it shows all over your body. Ease, surrender, relaxing into the poses and flowing with the breath is harder than it looks for many people. I can see those that struggle with that ease as they try to force themselves into a pose and then they hear from me "relax into the pose, use your breath, where could you make a small adjustment to make it easier for you to be where you are?". Or something so simple as, "now drop your shoulders down". It is like magic, everyone lets go of that tension in their shoulders trying to hold their arms out and suddenly their shoulders are no longer up by the ears!

The practice of yoga is also all about subtlety. Things in your body and your inner space shift in small increments, many times without people realizing what has happened. It isn't about big results but the building of small but intense shifts of the body and the consciousness. In our world these days it all about fast and big and how quick can I get there, get this done etc. There is a change happening, more and more people are drawn to yoga and what it has to offer to their daily lives. People are becoming more aware of their breath, their body and how it moves and for many a way to reduce stress in their lives and find some quiet in their day.

All this talk of balance and tilting on the axis got me talking with my students about not only physical balance but inner balance as well. It got me thinking about how using my physical balance can help me gauge what is going on with my emotional balance. It is at times easier to work on the physical piece and get to that space of balance outwardly than inwardly. When things come blowing through our lives that tilt us off our emotional axis it can create quite an upheaval just like the earthquake did in Chile. Sometimes being honest physically with yourself is easier than emotional honesty but I do know that the physical balancing act can help you with the inner if you pay attention.

Things can come into and out of our lives as quickly and unexpectedly as an earthquake and the shake up can take quite a toll. Those are the times to spend being kind to yourself as you shift and move through all the spaces both physically and emotionally. Remember that just like the physical practice of yoga, the shifting can be small and incremental and it takes practice and consistency and appreciation for all of the small things that add up to the whole. Think of it like this, when you do tree pose think of all of the small shifts and movements your foot, ankle and leg have to do to keep your balance. Just like a tree with roots to hold it steady so that the top part can move with the wind, your body does the same thing both inside and out.

So when you feel like you are tilted on your emotional axis spend a little time finding those roots, being grounded in what is important and what feels good it will help you with the blowing winds that will inevitably come into your life.

Namaste,
Sherry