Let Go and Live Love

As we cross the threshold of this new year, we are invited to pause and attune to what is ready to be released. Letting go of our clutter and heaviness will unfetter us so we can fly freely into what is unfolding. This month we are learning about aparigraha, the last yama or restraint in yoga's ethical teachings. This practice is often translated as nongrasping or nonattachment and guides us to let go of what no longer serves us. In Deborah Adele’s book The Yamas and Niyamas she gives the beautiful metaphor of the trapeze artist. As these acrobats develop their skill, they learn that if they cling to the old bar or over reach for the new bar, their timing will be off and they will fall. Instead they must learn to let go of one bar and, for a moment, be suspended in space. That moment of suspension can feel like free fall and can be both vulnerable and scary. But when partnered with complete trust, the experience is freedom.

Are there identities, beliefs, thoughts, habits or any other patterns that you are ready to release? Holding on to images of how we should be, or what we want others to be, blinds us to what is already here and to what is possible. Our expectations sow seeds for disappointment and discontentment. When we release our attachment to how we think things should be, we open ourselves to experience the magic of life and are able to see the beauty in the present moment. With each breath we have an opportunity to practice aparigraha. As we exhale fully we release; in the pause between we feel a freedom that opens us to completely receive our inbreath. A bird must let go of its perch to take flight. We also must learn to let go to experience the freedom of our full potential.

Much Love and New Year’s Blessings,
Sue