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Deconstructing Ashtanga, Reconstructing Me
Here are the words from that post: Asana is a trap. All yogic techniques are a trap. The Yoga Sutras constantly talks about this idea of our soul, and the objects of this world, shining alone without the need to draw meaning from the outside world. Yogic techniques help you to build new positive patterns that override the negative. The next step is to get rid of the positive patterns too!!!! Why? What is even seen as positive in this world is a result of conditioning and our environment. “Positive” can even be another form of bondage. For the yogi, “positive” is not just another set of rules and personality…
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Performative Love
On FB, someone posted a beautiful statement celebrating the life of an activist and a cry of justice for their death. All these beautiful condolences from strangers started pouring in. Someone, who knew the person, thanked everyone for their beautiful heartfelt messages and said that the pronouns for the deceased were “they/them”. All hell broke loose. It was as if a light switch was turned off. People went from love to hate in an instant. Sweet condolences switched to raving critiques, mean comments and inappropriate questions. Because of their pronouns, their death no longer mattered. The grief of the friends and family members no longer mattered. The post was no…
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Taking Away Attention, Taking Away Power
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Turning Failure Into Compassion
Sometimes, I feel failure when my practice does not look the way I want it. From the first to the last samastitihi, I want stability and ease in each asana. I want audible breath and a feeling of reassuring improvement. When my practice does not go the way I want it, I feel anger and judgment towards myself and inevitably towards others. It took me a while to realize that dialing my practice down and lessening the pressure I put on myself to be perfect, creates space for friends and trips, exciting new work experiences, and compassion. Discipline, and commitment, blinded by the fear of losing poses or the greed…
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The New Spiritual Slavery
“We are all one”. “There is no you”. “That is just your ego”. “That is just their/your pain speaking.” All these sayings have become the opiate of the spiritual masses. The new religion. A new way of getting people to shut up and allow injustice. They are being used in the same way plantation owners used Jesus to placate slaves. It is being used in the same way that missionaries used God to sooth Africans as they stole their land and their children. I am not saying these aphorisms are not true. I am saying they are being used to pacify the unrest that people feel deep in their bones.…
