Om Shanti

I took a yoga class this morning, which was great. I love doing yoga here even more than at home because the focus here is much more on the spiritual than the physical exercise, and I've found that I can actually bend and twist myself into much more difficult positions because I'm not thinking about the body at all. Today's class was incredibly inspiring because we were facing large windows that displayed the mountains in all their glory. I was reminded of what John Muir said: "Oh, these vast, calm, measureless mountain days opening a thousand windows to God." It's no wonder all the religions of the world convene here and people come in droves to find enlightenment; you'd have to be made of stone not to be inspired in some way.

My dad once told me that it was natural for me to be attracted to yoga because it's the combination of religion and exercise, two things I value. I said I like it because I like any workout that involves lying on your back with your eyes closed for fifteen minutes. Actually, the mediation part is the most difficult for me. Clearing my mind isn't easy because it's usually running at a thousand miles per hour, thinking of dozens of things at once. But today I listened as Yogi Shivam talked about making our thoughts like still water rather than a quickly flowing river. I think I managed to slow mine down to at least a trickling stream. But I did use the time for my own peacful, spiritual thought, and even though Sivam wanted me to focus on nothingness, I think the inspiration I pulled from that time was more beneficial.