Mudras and more

Buddha amongst the flowers

I took this picture yesterday while at the Food Co-op, looking for something to enhance today's post. I didn't have a walk yesterday, since Steve was busy and I was feeling a little lost without anybody to walk with. I did get in a short walk and then took the bus to the Cordata Co-op. The entire Co-op garden is filled with different statues, along with seasonal flowers, and this one spoke to me, being one I've seen many times in many places. It also gave me something to write about: my time doing yoga and sitting in meditation. I did start when I was in my twenties. It was something I've always been attracted to and decided long ago to try it.  I was living a very full and interesting life at the time. Now I seem to be winding down from being so active, and I'm actually finding it rather peaceful. There are advantages to learning how to settle into being old, and many of them are beginning to feel quite normal, rather than feeling stuck in old habits. In the mornings, once I get out of bed, I usually take a shower and dress, and then make my way to the privacy of my front porch and perform the Five Tibetan Rites on my yoga mat, which only takes about ten minutes. It's been decades now that I've been an aficionado of them, and I do notice when I've injured myself I cannot do them all, but I always try and see what happens. Sometimes my back goes out and I cannot do the last Rite properly. But my body always manages to get better as I keep working on it as the days and weeks pass.

After that, I come inside and get out my meditation bench, which I started using because my knees no longer enjoy being in lotus pose, or even wanting to bend and sit cross-legged. When we first moved to Bellingham, I sought out someone who makes these benches and had one made especially for me. Then it sat for years in a corner, until I decided once again to sit in meditation. It makes all the difference in my ability to sit with a straight back comfortably. When I am in yoga class, I use a block and a blanket to simulate the bench. The main thing is that I need to find a way to sit without pain or needing to squirm. 

I had also forgotten the best mudras to use when sitting, so I did a little research to find the best ones. What is a mudra, you ask?

Mudra means “seal” or “closure” in Sanskrit. We use these gestures mostly in meditation or in pranayama practice to direct the flow of energy within the body by using the hands. When we place our hands in yoga mudras, we stimulate different areas of the brain and create a specific energy circuit in the body.

You follow an ancient tradition when you sit quietly in meditation with your hands clasped in your lap. The one used by this statue and by myself is called the dhyana mudra and is used by most beginners. I learned it years ago and still feel it's the easiest for me to sit with. Here is a link to 7 Common Yoga Mudras Explained.  Some of them are pretty elaborate and must be used by experienced practitioners. The other one that I use every day is the prayer position, with both palms clasped together at the heart (the Anjali mudra). We also start and end our yoga class with that one.

Am I any different today because of practicing yoga and sitting in meditation? I don't know, but if I skip a session, I don't feel quite right; the day doesn't start like I feel it should, but what do I know? There is only one of me, so I cannot do a double-blind study to see what might be different. It has now become a habit to begin my day and so I continue to enjoy sitting quietly and counting my breaths. Years ago I used a mantra when sitting, but I don't any more. I might explore doing that again someday. 

After those two exercises, the Tibetans and meditation, I am ready to start the rest of my day. I slip on my shoes and head out the front door in order to catch the bus. There are only two days during the week when I don't, on Sundays when John picks me up and takes me to breakfast. And Saturdays, when I drive to the coffee shop in order to get there early. The buses don't start running on the weekends as early as they do on weekdays. And of course there are holidays when there are no buses at all. But my morning routine is pretty much the same every day, rain or shine.

I see the same people on most mornings who also ride the bus, and most of them are busy on their phones, not really present to the world, in my opinion. I keep mine on its pocket and observe the world around me. I spend some time wondering about the others and notice that they also have habits that they must use to get up every day, and I wonder about how they start their mornings before catching the bus. It's not something people talk about much, but I'm pretty sure everyone has a routine. Or maybe not. Do you?

This past weekend my niece Sara had her second baby, another girl, and I got to see a picture of the beautiful eight-pound new resident of our planet. The two girls are about the same distance in age from one another that my sister Norma Jean and I are, two-and-a-half years. I don't remember a time when she wasn't part of my life, and I suspect it will be the same with these two. Welcome, Clarke! She still hasn't been given a middle name, but I'm sure that is coming. And here we are, starting the cycle again. I have the old song from Cat Stevens rolling around in my head:

Oh very young, what will you leave us this time

You're only dancin' on this earth for a short while

And though your dreams may toss and turn you now

They will vanish away like your dads best jeans

Denim blue, faded up to the sky

And though you want them to last forever

You know they never will

You know they never will

And the patches make the goodbye harder still

It was a favorite song of mine from the 1970s, and I still think it's relevant to the world we live in today.  And just writing this and listening to the song again, I am feeling very content and happy to begin another day in the same old way. I do hope you and your loved ones will have a good week until we meet again. My dear partner is sleeping quietly next to me. He's facing his challenges bravely, and I love the days we share and get to hang out together. Until next week, dear friends, I wish you all good things.