Monday, April 10, 2006
The Facts of Life Are All About You...
You take the good, you take the bad,you take them both and there you have
The Facts of Life...The Facts of Life.
There's a time you got to go and show
You're growing now you know about
The Facts of Life, The Facts of Life.
When the world never seems
to be living up to your dreams
And suddenly you're finding out
the Facts of Life are all about you
It takes a lot to get them right
When you're learning the Facts of Life ... Learning the Facts of Life.
Understanding how the 5 elements relate to the 5 senses of the human experience is an incredibly important practice in Yoga, and one that can help us to feel at peace and ease in the moment, which allows us to connect to the Greater Universal Life Force which is ever-present, everywhere...
"Not from eyes nor ears nor smell nor touch shall the yogi be strayed from his path. The ability to focus inwardly rather than on external stimuli is known as pratayahara. In the west this practice is often thought of as meditation. When people first learn to meditate this is actually what they learn before moving on to more advanced practices. By learning to not be distracted by sounds or smells or sights the yogi purifies their inner being and begins to follow the path of self discovery. Pratayahara lets the practitioner listen to their inner voices."
The drawing of the 5 senses inward is known as Pratayahara. I've often had a hard time understanding what the practice of Pratayahara entails, however, thanks to the teachings of John Friend, I am now beginning to see how my 5 senses can serve as incredible tool for realizing a meditative state/experience through the conscious connection to the world around us.
The 5 elements are Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. Each of our 5 bodily senses relates to a particular element.
Our sense of smell is connected to the element of the Earth. Imagine yourself sitting in a grassy field, surrounded by nature & trees, smelling all the scents of the natural world around you.
Our sense of taste is connected to the element of water. Notice right now you have an awareness of taste in your mouth, and the saliva/water element which is present that allows you to have this sense.
Our sense of sight is connected to the element of fire. All of the world is illuminated by the sun, the large fire at the center of our solar system, which brings light to everything around us.
Our sense of feeling is connected to the element of air. Imagine the wind blowing on your skin, feeling it blow through your hair.
And, our sense of sound is connected to the element of space. There are sounds around you right now as you sit here reading this. These sounds are traveling through the medium of space in sound waves that are entering through your ears and resonating on your ear drums.
When you take time to be aware of what you are hearing, feeling, seeing, tasting and smelling and how it is connected to the world around you, it will help you to feel connected to the infinite peace within this moment, within you, and bring you into connection with the Universal Life Force in every molecule of air we breathe.
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posted by Leanne @ 12:30 PM 
