Undress Your Ego. Uncover Your True Potential.

Now that I have your attention…

The Naked Yoga Challenge is not as suggestive as it may sound.  My objective is to encourage you to consider adopting some yoga beliefs which will help you bare your soul, uncover your real essence and tap into your inner truth.  Allow me to elaborate.

There are Eight Limbs of Yoga that serve as guidelines for those who choose to pursue a yoga lifestyle. They are concepts that have been around for over 5,000 years, and they are not going anywhere.   The Eight Limbs are equally weighted in value and assist in harmonizing one’s body, mind, and spirit. Click here for an image of the Eight Limbs.

The purpose of this challenge is to inspire you to align with the first Yoga Limb – the Yamas. Yama, in Sanskrit, means moral restraint and serves as an essential building block for designing inner peace.  Altogether, there are Five Yamas.   As your resident “Yama Mama,” I will explain each Yama and issue a challenge for you to surrender to some or all of them throughout your yoga journey.  If you are already living a vibrant, yogic life, you may benefit from recommitting to the Yamas.

Ahimsa is the first Yama.  It means non-violence, non-harming, and kindness. Most of us wouldn’t intentionally hurt anyone or tolerate harm to be inflicted onto others.  However, there are times when we let our opportunities for an Ahimsa practice slide.  I don’t mean physically harming ourselves; although, this may occur when we overwork our physical bodies, neglect our basic needs or overindulge in food and alcohol.

Rather, I am alluding to your emotional health.  Do your self-care patterns include kind, loving and non-threatening self-talk?  Are you unnecessarily critical of your appearance, your relationships or your professional initiatives?  The Universe listens to every thought you create, and it responds quite literally.  If you constantly tell yourself junk like “my thighs are huge” or “my butt is too fat”, the Universe is going to serve you a set of thighs or a butt like none other.

Shedding this layer of negative self-talk will create miracles for your physical body and self-esteem.  Replace self-defeating thoughts with some uplifting affirmations like, “I honor my body” or, “I accept myself as I am in this moment.”  Such affirmations will reinforce peaceful thoughts.  It may sound corny, but there are many folks who have written books about the power of positive thinking. And they earned a bankroll doing so.

Challenge # 1…Abandon thoughts that define your self-worth through your pride, your appearance or talents.  Be kind and forgiving with yourself and embrace your individuality.  Stand tall. Take deep breaths.  Acknowledge your strengths instead of disguising your weaknesses and inspire others to do this same.

Satya is the second Yama and, in Sanskrit, is defined as truthfulness.  It is accomplished by being true and honest with yourself and others.  The pursuit of truth involves looking inward at your beliefs and actions. The days of living in denial or kidding yourself are over.   Ask yourself this question:  What do I need to learn about myself?  Don’t ignore the messages you receive.  Identify your life purpose and what makes you happy.  This inner wisdom will empower you to let go of everything that doesn’t serve you. It involves exposing yourself by peeling away the false protection of the ego and learning that you don’t need anyone’s approval or validation when you pursue your passion.

Be sure to seek your truth with every trip to your yoga mat.  Somedays you are more flexible, and some days you may need a restorative practice.  Self-acceptance is essential to developing your own truth.  Lately, I have been coping with some injuries that have impacted my yoga practice.  I try to practice with such tunnel vision that my eyes are closed as much as possible.   I visualize myself safely in each pose, which helps my focus and concentration.  My intention is to practice without discomfort and risking further injury. As such, my focus is inward and not comparing myself to anyone else.

Challenge # 2…Identify the excuses of the ego that prevents you from pursuing your path to peace and fulfillment.  Explore the source of your inner truth.  Heed the guidance from your intuition.   Don’t be manipulated by others who choose to act out ego behaviors.  Let them live in their state of yuck.  You will live as a lightworker.

The third Yama is called Asteya, or non-stealing.  We are not talking about the literal act of theft, but rather the many innocent ways we rob ourselves and others.  I will discuss a few in detail.  Specifically, we often steal time.  Do you keep others waiting for you because you have not managed your time effectively?  Do others make you wait on them?  No one likes the feeling of being disrespected.  We all feel our time is valuable and limited.  We don’t get it back.  There is something dismissive about having to endure an unwanted delay – unless there is a legitimate emergency. Think about that the next time you plan a meet up with someone or have an appointment.  Allow yourself sufficient time to avoid stealing your peace by rushing around, creating stress and basically operating with unbalanced chakras.  Give yourself the gift of punctuality. Stay calm in the moment.  Act with grace and ease. Breathe.

There are other ways you can get fleeced.  Are you a good listener, or do you constantly interrupt people to make your points?  Or worse, do you finish their sentences?  Are you stealing their voice?  Their joy?  Are you denying yourself an opportunity for effective communication?  There are some people who just don’t have impulse control when communicating.  Here’s another chance to unpack some ego baggage.  Let people be heard.    Don’t steal their moment.  And try not to let this happen to you.  Many times, I catch people doing this to me, and I simply say, “I didn’t finish my thought.”  Sadly, most people want to be heard so badly, they have lost their finesse at listening.

Challenge # 3…Determine the situations where you feel you are being robbed of your time, your voice, and your joy.  Take a step back and focus on the present moment.  Don’t take away anyone’s moment to shine. Good listening skills will help make you a more confident communicator.   No one has the power to put you in such positions unless you allow it. 

Brahmacharya is the fourth Yama and means “to abstain.” While there are many ways to interpret this Yama, we will view it in terms of refraining from habits and patterns that prevent you from living authentically.  Do you overspend on clothes, vacations or housing to keep up with others?   Does your spending give you joy or just higher standards to live up to? Do you work out excessively and subject your body to injuries?  Do your eating habits nourish your soul or do you follow someone else’s diet plan, blindly in the hopes of achieving their figure or appearance?  If so, what a vicious cycle, often resulting in discouragement.

Challenge # 4…Live, breathe, eat, spend, sleep and love in a manner that allows you to feel comfortable in your own skin.  Be unapologetic about your discipline and contentment.  Living in a manner that serves your highest good is living well.

The fifth Yama is Aparigraha, which is non-attachment and non-greed.  I find that the more I immerse in a yogic lifestyle, the less I am attached to material belongings.  Don’t get me wrong, I would much rather invest in few quality items than buy a ton of superficial things.  I no longer need to have voluminous amounts of stuff.  I am not interested in being a “clothes horse” or collector of any sort. Less is the new more.  Less allows you to be organized and grateful for your possessions that have sentimental meaning.

The same philosophy applies to non-attachment of fear or pain.   It is important for us not to make our pain be our purpose.  The grieving and transformation process is slow for a reason.  We need to delve into life’s aches and pains, the losses, and disappointments, and to feel the brokenness.  It is the critical step of the surrender, acceptance, forgiveness and relief process.   Doing so allows us to gain a new level of enlightenment and growth.  Don’t be afraid to tell your story.  Every time you do, you will heal a little deeper, while helping others.

It takes time to intellectually release the pain.  Our mind knows we need to move forward to heal.  It can take even more time to emotionally release the pain.  This won’t happen until our heart is ready to do so.   I have been there on several occasions, and I know what it’s like to feel completely gutted.  Even with my many resources for inner peace and my commitment to lean toward the light, there is always a lingering speck of darkness or fear.  Evolution is not a destination.  It is a continuous path of development.

Challenge # 5 …It is no coincidence that so many people relate to the Disney song, “Let it go”.  On a subconscious level, we resonate with the prospect of non-attachment.  Adhere to this mindset and release any attachment to people, things, emotions and beliefs – guilt, shame, regret and anything that that doesn’t truly shape how you identify yourself.  Be free!

I encourage you to take my Naked Yoga Challenge to undress your ego.  Be kind.  Find truth and contentment. Be honest and honorable.  Exercise self-control.  Disconnect from unhealthy habits.  I am not asking you to be perfect.  Just be your best self.  You will enter a phase of self-awareness that is liberating.  It is not necessary to please everyone.  Be prepared to evolve beyond the comfort zone of others.

Bare your soul!  Uncover your true potential!

 

My Love and Blessings,