28 Jul AN IMPERFECT PLACE TO PRACTICE
Often in the world of Yoga, we seek a quiet isolated place to practice Pranayama as suggested by Patanjali. What happens if you do not find yourself in these ideal conditions? Would you stop practicing? No, of course not. You would begin to practice by not focusing on distractions and drawing inward into hightened awareness of your breath and finding stability in your body.
I am in Hungary without a Yoga mat…therefore, I have improvised by using a towel. There is a miniscule balcony which is outside my room. Yogis can make themselves small, so that problem is resolved. There are noises of all sorts: the old-fashioned yellow trams screech on their tracks, blue stream-lined busses stop and go, cars honk and motorcycles rev their motors. Is this disturbing? Yes, of course. Do I avoid practicing? No, of course not.
Visible from my perch is the flowing Danube, a working river. Barges, small ships, ferries and sight-seeng boats all flow incessantly along this majestic river. Their movements are sure and quiet. Finally, I remind myself that the Buddha was at ease meditating in the market place and I draw on this knowledge to hone my skills of living and practicing in the everyday world.