Yoga Beyond Belief: Insights to Awaken and Deepen Your Practice

understanding, wisdom, artistry in living, awareness of the miracle of existence, and love, it becomes easier to see how this process can take place during any activity. Instead of meditation being one more thing to do and practice, everything we do in life becomes part of meditation.
    Many define the goal of meditation as a silent, even empty, mind. But we must also realize that there are numerous other petals to the flowering of the mind, and of life, beyond the singular ability to have a calm or silent mind. The blossom in its fullness is made up of far more than one petal. While extraordinarily important, inner silence is still only one petal of the flowering mind. A vibrant mind, an activemind, a sharp mind, a clear mind, a penetrating mind, a questioning mind, an aware mind, an intelligent mind, an efficient mind, a mind that knows its own limits, a reality mobile mind, a flexible mind, a receptive mind, a free mind, a multidimensional mind, and of course, an open mind—these are just a few of the myriad valuable capacities of the mind. There is no end to the possibilities of a mind free to resonate at different levels and frequencies. Because our minds seem so overly active and agitated, the value of a silent, empty mind has been, perhaps, overemphasized. Considering other qualities and possibilities of mind reveals their importance and cultivates the ability to access different realities, and different states of consciousness. To have insight into your mental dynamics, structure, and inner nature is part of the essence of meditation, and part of life itself. The deepest insight will not come from studying someone else’s sutras, though they may be of some help. Seeing comes into being through the study of yourself in daily life. Sitting meditation is only one part of self-realization. It is also important to develop a full repertoire of possibilities, levels, and dimensions of mind and not overly, nor exclusively, focus on emptiness and silence. Meditation is the exploration of the myriad possibilities of mind, all the petals of the lotus of consciousness.
    We seem to be habituated to sanctifying instructions and prescriptions from the past. This is probably because prior to the modern era an ordered society depended on unquestioning obedience to elders and ancestors. Obedience to elders and authorities lies in deep strata of our social, cultural, and religious conditioning. Many modern yogis seem to have such a need for validation from past authorities; they feel it necessary to find justification, in past texts, for every discovery and every innovation in yoga. Patanjali’s sutras, for example, are relied upon for answers to everything about life and therefore have been extrapolated in every possible way and stretched to include every possible meaning. These sutras may still hold useful teachings, but we must also acknowledge that these texts came out of archaic worldviews anddo not have all the answers. For example, Patanjali had little or nothing to say about nature, relationship, and love, and he dealt mostly with areas of practice and mind control. The sutras, other ancient writings, and contemporary teachings can all stimulate and guide, but you must go through the doorway of your own self. Your own mind is the sutra, your own consciousness, your own life, is the meditation. Everything in life contributes to unfolding awareness.

(There Is No) How to Meditate
    It has been said that “meditation cannot be taught, but meditation can be learned.” This implies that meditation involves subtle dynamics and not just mechanical practices of technique. Structured meditation practices can be useful and valuable. Sitting meditation can contribute with great value to inward awareness, stilling the mind, relieving tension; it can become a catalyst and impulse for creativity and new ideas. Sitting can be part of increasing self-knowledge and understanding, learning the nature of mind and thought, and entering the inner world. At the same time, it is wise to realize that any tool can be either beneficial or detrimental. It takes sensitive and careful awareness to perceive the appropriateness and usefulness of any practice at any given time.
    Formal spiritual practices tend to be put forth as intrinsically good and always of positive value. However, we would be better served by understanding that all things can cut both ways, even if intended to have only positive effects. Spiritual practices, such as