Article originally published in Dutch, in Yoga International magazine, Netherlands (January 2017)
by Lucy Draper-Clarke
I spent much of my childhood upside down;
headstands, handstands, cartwheels, flips. It felt liberating to defy gravity,
wave my legs in the air and see the world from a different perspective. Could
this be why I moved south, from England to Botswana, and now South Africa? This
is a part of the world where things feel upside down more often than not, and
no day is ever predictable. Perhaps it was inevitable too that I would teach
yoga and mindfulness, and help people navigate the uncertainty of living a
human life.
Although I run regular classes, my favourite
way to offer what I love is to lead retreats. People arrive in one mind state, hyped
up and anxious from life in the urban centres, and depart in another, having
touched on the tranquillity, clarity and contentedness that is our true nature.
They feel different somehow, without their external world having changed at
all.
Time on retreat is a wonderful opportunity to enter a
transitional space consciously. We can recharge before heading back into the
normal cycles of life, and it may help us to prioritize daily activities, or to
clarify the intentions behind them so that we can make subtle shifts of
realignment. These shifts may come in a number of forms:
· Shifts in priority: making a commitment to spend more time on
certain activities, particularly those that nourish us, and less time on those
that we find depleting.
· Shifts in attitude towards daily life activities: Once we learn to imbue daily chores with meaning, they can shift from
feeling dull and dreary, to having significance and value. We find that the
tasks we do to help others can also bring benefit to us.
· Opportunities for healing: particularly from
sickness, situations of trauma, or from addictive tendencies that keep us
trapped in constant grasping or aversion.
·
Shifts in habit patterns: Once we learn to refine our awareness, the habits that others see so
clearly, which we are often blind to, can be revealed and transformed into more
skillful behaviours.
For the last eight years, I have led a New
Year Intentions and Yoga Retreat at a beautiful haven, known as the Tara Rokpa
Centre (www.tararokpacentre.co.za). It is located in a wooded valley, surrounded
by streams, with unpolluted air and a fantastic night sky, half way between
Johannesburg and Gaborone (Botswana).
The retreat content and process has changed
as I have evolved, and has become a way to witness my own unfolding, and the
alignment of my inner world with my outer activities. It has become an annual
opportunity for the yoga community to set their own intentions, to reconnect
with what brings them joy, and to get a sense of how they might best contribute
to the world around them. We combine asana and mindfulness practices, with an
intentions setting process, so that we create a life of meaning and purpose,
given our unique talents and interests.
We all find our life purpose in different
ways. A few… a tiny few… seem clear from the beginning. They know who they are
and what they want to do, and this intention gives them the courage to stay on
the scent, whatever barriers cross their path. These are not usually the people
who come to the retreats! Most of us have to feel our way, listen for clues, or
chase up a few blind alleys before we realise we were probably following the
right route from the beginning. We sometimes don’t even need to change what we
are doing, but rather change the way we do it, or the perception we have of our
contribution. At one stage in my life, I felt that I was following multiple
paths simultaneously and my attention and energy felt too scattered. Then I
realised that they were all tributaries leading into the same river; a sense of
meaning emerged, my body relaxed and my mind felt soothed. Sometimes we don’t
need to change the external circumstances, we need only release the internal
sense of struggle or striving.
So now, whenever I feel turned upside down by
the unpredictability of daily life, I check back in with my intentions to see
whether I am still aligned. I ask whether the feeling of discomfort can provide
a place of creativity, so that something new and unexpected might emerge, or
whether I need to stop what I am doing and just breathe. My yoga adventure has
taken me from school-based teaching, to a mindfulness doctorate, into doula
work, and now I am a celebrant for weddings and other rites of passage. The
retreat process is a rite of passage in itself, and I am learning to hold space
for others while they explore their authentic selves, in the same way I might
support someone as they try a headstand for the first time. It can be so
liberating to wave our legs in the air and see our life from a new perspective,
as long as we feel a sense of being held by our inner world of intention.
The Retreat Process: 5 steps
1. Present Moment Awareness
Mindfulness and yoga practice forms the core
of the retreat. In order to identify what is deeply important to us, and then
to gauge whether we are living our intentions, we require a constant,
present-moment checking in at the levels of the body, heart and mind. We need
to be aware of the moment our body or heart contracts and tightens, or opens
and feel spacious and energised, as well as the inner commentary that takes us
forwards, or holds us back.
2. Passion
We then tune in and remind ourselves what we
love doing. Many people find it hard to identify what their passion might be as
they are not used to opening up emotionally. However, by looking back over the
year, we can highlight the moments of greatest joy, inspiration or achievement;
the times we felt fully alive and engaged, or maybe lost track of time; the
moments when we felt deeply content or happy. It can be subtle shifts that
bring alignment, just as we experience in a yoga practice.
3. Life Purpose
Fulfilling our own personal needs is a
critical first stage, but after that, many of us feel the need for something
more. Most spiritual traditions teach that by helping others, we bring great happiness
to ourselves, as long as we are giving from a place of fullness. When our daily
activities help us to move away from an ego-centric focus, and we help wherever
help is needed, then each day has been a success. By knowing that the work we
do contributes meaningfully to others also provides motivation at times of
difficulty.
4. The Inevitable Roadblocks
By recognising our passion and mission, our life purpose might emerge from that
small quiet place in between. It doesn’t mean it will be an easy ride though!
Combined with our intention to keep moving toward that purpose, we galvanise
motivation to get us over the hurdles. Linked with this is the support we get
from others, our sangha, or spiritual
community. We co-create our existence, even though we often feel we are doing
things single-handedly. Remember all the people who have helped you get to this
moment, and then allow that sense of community support to carry you onward.
5. Living Daily Life with
Intention
We often use the retreat opportunity to plan for the big events, yet we need to
give equal consideration to the daily activities that can bring us joy and
contentment. When we commit to daily life activities that soothe us, nourish
us, or keep our hearts open to possibilities, then we have the energy for other
intentions that may require a greater commitment.
