The breeze of divine grace is blowing upon us all. But we need to set the sail to feel the breeze. ~ Ramakrishna
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Category Archives: Blessings/Meditations
The Mystery of Namasté & Yoga Blessings
UPDATED: AUGUST 2016
For many years, I attended a yoga class where the teacher would close our practice by joining her hands together and saying, “Namasté”. We all sat quietly and then class was done. I eventually discovered that I was not alone; I don’t think any of us in that class knew what Namasté meant, no one knew to return the greeting, and the instructor never told us.
She was a very good instructor, don’t get me wrong; she just assumed that many of us were smarter than we actually were.
(Sure, could we have asked her? Of course! Did we? Umm, no. Why not? I don’t know. Maybe we were all just embarrassed that we might be the only one who didn’t know what it meant.)
Today, in the Wikipedia world, one can find the meaning of most anything quite quickly. But those were slower times and so we wondered.
By the way, I define “Namasté” as “The divine within me bows to the divine within you.”
It’s sort of like a sacred “Aloha” greeting to me — it can mean hello or goodbye.
Deepak Singh said on National Public Radio in 2015 that Namasté is simply a formal greeting in India and that we Yoga students here in the West define it much differently than he knows it.
Maybe. I’m not so sure. I think we are on the same page.
We use it as a greeting, too. Hello. Goodbye. But, I think it has a much deeper intention and offers great respect to the person being addressed.
When we say Namasté, we look beyond the physical, we bow to the purest essence of the person before us. That’s the light that resides at one’s heart. I sometimes like to say that Namasté means, “I can see past your bad hair day today and all the stresses and strains you endure, to see and honor the true, beautiful and vibrant you that is the really, truly you.”
By the way, Singh also says that Western Yoga students pronounce Namasté incorrectly: “I say, ‘num-us-teh’ vs. the Americanized ‘nahm-ahs-tay.'”
Yup. He’s right about that. But, Yoga is about bringing the pose to the body, not the body to the pose, right? So maybe our uniquely American pronunciation is simply our way to bring the Namasté to the mat in the way that fits our practice best. (Or, maybe we’re just saying it wrong.)
So, here’s the question: What should you do when your Yoga instructor greets you at class with “Namasté”? That’s easy. What do you say when someone says “Hello” to you? You say “Hello” back, right? So it’s lovely to respond with “Namasté.”
I really like when my students say “Namasté” to me. I like to think it’s their way of seeing past my bad hair day and the mistakes that I might make as the class unfolds (mixing up my right and left as I mirror, forgetting an asana as I guide them through a flow, falling out of a pose as I demonstrate). It’s their way of saying, “It’s ok, we know you’re trying your best.”
And a suggestion for Yoga instructors: Don’t assume that students know what you’re talking about. Sanskrit is a beautiful poetic language. But, a bit of translation can help those words blossom more fully in a student’s heart.
And, now … to practice what I preach. I’ve been closing recent classes with a loving yoga blessing. I offer the translation in class as well. But, in the off-chance that someone actually wanders through this blog (aside from my journeys through it looking for typos), I offer it here. It’s a beautiful blessing and it inspires my practice.
Loka Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu
There are many translations from the very simple “May all be happy” to very long and detailed translations. But, here’s the one that I like best:
“May the universe be filled with peace and joy, love and light.”
I like to share other blessings in my Yoga classes from time to time, and when I think about it, I add them to this website. To find them all in one place, just click on the Meditations & Blessings link at the bottom of this post.
Or, LIKE Peaceful Hands on Facebook, where I regularly post Yoga blessings and other information on the healing benefits of Yoga. Here’s the link: Peaceful Hands on Facebook
Namasté
What Is Necessary After All …
On a day when things haven’t gone quite right … and the world seems to be spinning a bit out of control and I’m not hanging on too well …
… it’s nice to sit in my studio, safe and dry, watching the thunderstorm unfold outside.
And, I haven’t shared a blessing or a poem on this page in a long, long while. And, so here you go. This is from Rainer Maria Rilke, an early 20th century German poet. His poem for you today:
What is necessary, after all,
Is only this: solitude.
Vast inner solitude.
To walk inside yourself
and meet no one for hours —
that is what you must be able to attain.
Enjoy the quiet, peaceful place that is inside you. Ahh, paradise!
The Frosty Skies
Meditation doesn’t always have to be about chanting Sanskrit mantras or adhering only to the words of an ancient swami or guru. Sometimes a meaningful prayer will come into your heart organically. Sometimes you’ll trip upon something you overhear … or perhaps a line of a poem will inspire you. And, of course, the most exhilarating meditations are often the ones that bring you into perfect quiet with no words or thoughts to weigh you down.
You simply need to let your meditation evolve into a practice that is beneficial and meaningful to you.
This line is from a poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson (perhaps not the first person you think of when you are stretching out on your yoga mat or settling onto your meditation cushion). But, as our Meditation circle met last month just as winter was beginning, it seemed like just the right words to carry us through our practice.
Make Thou My Spirit Pure And Clear
As Are The Frosty Skies
The poem is from St. Agnes’ Eve. Perhaps it has a place in your next quiet time.
Namasté
Joyful Balance
In classes this week we explored the joy of balance … balancing warm and cool energies, right and left sides of the body, as well as exploring the balance of heaviness and lightness, and water and air, in the body. (Oh, and we stood on one leg too, which certainly counts as balance!)
When the weather turns so drastically hot (or cold), it’s good to remember that we need to adjust our internal energies and find that comfortable balance that will sustain us. (And, of course, your yoga mat is a good place to start balancing!)
Here is the quote from this week’s classes. I think it’s a good reminder …
“You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose.” ~ Indira Gandhi
May your day be a balanced and happy one!
The Wonder of It All
I was putting my yoga class together the other day when I happened upon an old, old class plan I had tucked in a book. The reading we used for that class had slipped my mind, and I’m so pleased it has been slipped back in! I share it with you today because I find it a wonderful reminder of the joy of turning inward and how nice it is to take the time to celebrate our unique and beautiful inner spirits. May it be a special reminder of your inner beauty, light, and wisdom, as well.
Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without wondering.
— St. Augustine
Age Is Not Measured In Years …
A few of you asked for the quote which we used in yoga class last week. It came from Swami Bua who offered this wisdom when he was 110 years old. I last read of him in The New Yorker a few years ago. He was living in New York and was, at the time, 117 years old and still teaching yoga classes.
As I searched further, I discovered that the last line of this quotation has been attributed to many people over the years, most notably Douglas MacArthur.
So, with thanks to Swami Bua and General MacArthur, here is their wisdom for you:
“Youth is not a time of life — it is a state of mind. It is not a matter of ripe cheeks, red lips, and supple knees. It is a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions. It is freshness of the deep springs of life. Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years. People grow old only by deserting their ideals. Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
Namasté
Navajo Blessing
This blessing was first taught to me as a Navajo blessing, but over the years I have seen it, in similar form, from many other cultures and heritages. But, I stay with this one, because it was the first I learned.
Energy follows intention. So, as you bring this intention to your heart, feel it bloom within you … and let that peacefulness radiate beyond your physical boundaries. Let peacefulness fill you and all those around you.
I use this blessing in yoga classes often and in my own practice. It helps remind me that peacefulness — in my heart, in my mind, in my life — is only a small intention away. But, the key is to first look within and then allow your inner peace to radiate outward.
May this blessing bring you the peace you need today!
Before me, peaceful.
Behind me, peaceful.
Under me, peaceful.
Over me, peaceful.
Around me, peaceful.
Namasté
Springtime Renewal
As the springtime begins, we have a special opportunity to reconnect with nature. Typically, we connect as observers – enjoying the warming sunlight and the lengthening daylight, spending more time outside, playing in the garden, inhaling the fresh spring air and the fragrance of new flowers. But, our connection is truly much deeper than that. We are part of nature and the cycle of nature, just as the birds, the squirrels, the new daffodils, and all of the outside world that renews with the springtime.
Our internal energy grows, we respond to the lengthening days, we shed our winter layers (and perhaps even a few of our winter pounds). We blossom.
Take time to remember and honor your connection to the world and to nature, not merely as a passive observer, but as an active, living part of the springtime nature that is now unfolding. Notice the renewal of springtime within you.
This is the Navajo chant that was used as part of our meditation in yoga classes last week.
The mountains, I become part of them.
The herbs, the fir tree, I become part of them.
The morning mists, the clouds, the gathering waters, I become part of them.
The wilderness, the dew drops, the pollen, I become part of them.
Enjoy your springtime. Enjoy your day. And, breathe.
Namasté
Wisdom From The Dalai Lama
As we focused on balance in our yoga classes on 2/26 and 2/27, this was the foundation of our relaxation and savasana … words from the Dalai Lama and a different way to look at balancing ourselves:
Peaceful living is about trusting those on whom we depend and caring for those who depend on us.
It isn’t one or the other. It’s achieving a natural balance of not only caring for others, but allowing ourselves to be cared for as well. And, sometimes it’s allowing ourselves to depend on others that is the most challenging part.
As in so many things, when we find that gentle balance, peace comes.
Namasté
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