Have you ever dedicated your yoga practice to someone else? Have you ever practised yoga for the benefit of all beings? If so, you may have felt the levity of surrender, as you shifted your attention away from yourself, towards the bigger picture, seeing the interconnectedness of everyone and everything on this planet.
What is Yoga?
Hatha yoga literally means “union with god,” but most yoga classes focus on union with ourselves, by making the goal of our practice physical or psychological health. Yet how many yoga classes have you attended that invite you to connect with a greater force outside yourself?
It is reasonable that many yoga classes and yoga teachers tend to skirt the contentious and gray area of spirituality (which is all too often confused with religion). Nonetheless spirituality is at the very core of yoga.
Even without entering too deeply into the conundrum of faith and belief in the existence of god, divine nature, or life force energy, you can explore how your hatha yoga practice can bring a sense of deep connection to the world around you. In this way you will see the greater forces at play — forces which will help you connect to yoga on a deeper level. This can be done through the yoga practice of Ishvara Pranidhana, or “surrendering to god’s will.”
The Yoga of Surrender
The first step to shifting your focus away from yourself lies in accepting a degree of surrender. We can become so entwined in the illusion of control — controlling our bodies, our minds, our lives — that we easily forget that the results are external to us. Indeed, it is our efforts and our intentions that count, not the results.
Stepping into the Unknown
Opening up to the larger picture of what is going on outside yourself and giving up control can initially be scary, as you step out into a place of trust, of surrender, into the unknown. But soon, as you give up your singular focus on the self, you will become more attuned to the larger picture of life. You will start your true yoga practice when you come to sense this deep connection to the universe.
Within the first few minutes of getting on your yoga mat, dedicate your practice to the well-being of all living things. Surrender your attachment to self-centred desires and you may begin to feel a lightness in your heart as you lose your grip on selfish desires and open to the realities of the world. Connect to the suffering, the joy, the love that everyone feels.
How will you walk around in the world after your yoga practice ends? How differently will you talk to and connect with other people?
The World is a Stage
As Shakespeare put it “all the world’s a stage” and we are players on this stage of life. Ishvara Pranidhana (“surrendering to god’s will”) is about perspective: we are all equally important on the stage of life. Your life is intricately affected by and in turn affect sothers. We can receive the greatest personal good by living and practising yoga for the greatest good of everyone else.