Read this book:
The Great Work of Your
Life: A Guide for the Journey to
Your True Calling
by Stephen Cope
This book will deepen your understanding of one of our
important yogic texts, The Bhagavad Gita. The author, Stephen Cope, uses examples
of extraordinary real life figures such as Jane Goodall, Henry David Thoreau,
Ludwig van Beethoven and Mohandas K. Gandhi to illustrate what it means to LIVE
FULLY.
The Bhagavad Gita
is a text that should probably be studied throughout our lives, examined in bits
and pieces to really arrive at a deep understanding. I feel like I am only beginning to appreciate the profound
teachings within its pages. That
is one of the reasons why yoga is a lifelong practice…to study and absorb and
question and look again and again at the many teachings through the lens of
wisdom gained from our years of living.
The Great Work of Your Life is
a fascinating and enjoyable introduction to the Gita that may entice you to further explore its many teachings.
On the most basic level, the Bhagavad Gita is a conversation between Krishna and Arjuna. As a warrior, Arjuna is struggling with
whether or not to go into battle.
Krishna counsels him by saying, “Arjuna, you do not know how to act
because you don’t know who you are.”
I have been pondering this line for weeks (months?) because
it speaks to the very heart of our yoga practice. We are trying to discover who we are so that we can better
move through the world, make better decisions, be better
citizens/friends/lovers, do less harm and more good. Lao Tzu wrote:
There is no need to run outside for better seeing
Nor to peer from a window.
Rather abide at the center of your being;
For the more you leave it,
The less you learn.
Search your heart
And see
The way to do
Is to be.
In other words, all we need to figure out our place in the
world is already inside of us. Of
course, we need other things to be and survive in the world, but we have so
many answers already percolating within us, if we would only take the time to
look and listen. I have been
trying. It’s not easy.
So, if you’re reading this, you have homework: Who are you? Does your work align with your values? Do you feel, in your gut, that you are
doing what you should be doing with your life?
Not easy questions to consider. If they are easy for you, congratulations, you’re on the
right path. If they’re not easy
for you, that is ok. Perhaps by
sitting with the questions and looking within yourself, you may find some
answers that will help illuminate your path. Maybe your yoga practice can help.
Good luck!
When to find Kim Larking at Devotion Yoga:
Tuesdays: Open Flow - 9:30am - 10-:45am
Wednesdays: Bhakti Basic - 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Thursdays: Open Flow - 9:30am - 10:45am
