Momentarily Out of Our Minds

Yogafolk v.6 | Writing is inseparable from becoming.

Hello and happy full moon, the first of this new year.

I am beaming to you from London, where I’ve arrived to complete an MA in Traditions of Yoga and Meditation. Since landing across the pond I have been furiously writing term papers, which for me, is a whole-being, all-consuming process.

In the act of writing, as in spirit possession, sexual ecstasy, or spiritual bliss, we are momentarily out of our minds. We shape-shift...We stretch the limits of what is humanly possible.

— Michael Jackson, The Other Shore: Essays on Writers and Writing

Writing with my whole breath and body my attention is utterly given over to the task at hand. Lama Willa says that “attention has a weight” and I notice that I use this attentive weight with all of its heft and force to bring a compelling narrative to life. But if I’m not careful I bury myself beneath that same load. So I pause to lift my gaze from the screen and quiet my nervous system; I craft interstitial rituals to mark the tiny, mundane victories; I dance around my flat to get the juices flowing; I walk around my new neighborhood, press my feet into the ground, and feel the weight of my attention shift.

“When you finish with a task (or email, message, reading something) … pause…Take a breath. Celebrate.” — Leo Babauta, Interstitial Ritual

“Writing is inseparable from becoming, always incomplete, always in the midst of being formed.”

— Gilles Deleuze, Literature and Life

As this new year ebbs, I invite you to write with me, to break the fourth wall, and come out of our screens to write each other into being. I’d love to get to know you, who you are becoming. True, yes, we’ve lost some people skills in the last two years. So let’s stretch our social muscles together. I’m curious to know any or all of the following (or anything else you’d like to share):

1. Where in the world are you based?

2. What is your primary form of practice? Writing? Singing? Sitting? Ashtanga? Rocket? Painting? Chopping vegetables? Carrying water?

3. What are you reading?

4. A link to something that’s inspiring you - a quote, a photo, a blog, a piece of music, anything at all.

5. Something you’re moving away from and something you’re moving towards in 2022.

6. An emoji (or string of emojis) that conjures the aspirational spirit of 2022.

As a thank you for making time to connect, I’ll be sending a special New Moon practice on February 1st to those who participate. So let your weird, awkward, unsocialized self out!

You can see my own answers in the comments below. I’m really looking forward to learning more about you,

Erica

“We evolved as a social species. So we are caretakers of each other's nervous systems.” — Lisa Feldman Barrett | Thierry Noir characters on Rivington Street

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1, 2, 3: A spring course on counting

A key component of Ashtanga yoga practice is the count — every breath of every pose is counted, like a sacred choreography. Counting the breath is one of the tools that we have to hold our focus and attention steady rather than meandering towards the overflowing to-do list or fluttering towards the magnificence of Yellowjackets.

In this course we’ll learn the Sanskrit count, and how to apply it to our practices. This is primo for practitioners who want more steadiness and focus on the mat, and teachers who want to lead a counted class with confidence and ease.

This workshop will be held online on Saturday March 26 at 10am PST.

1, 2, 3 | Brick Lane

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There is…no power equal to yoga.

— Mahābhārata 12.304.2ab

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Alphabetical animism —

“Much as other animals, plants, and even “inanimate” rivers and stones once spoke to our oral ancestors, so the inert letters on the page now speak to us…”

Magic and the Machine by David Abrams at Emergence Magazine

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Delightful sounds to rise slowly to, or practice gently alongside:

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ॐ