Have you ever heard the phrase "Skill in Action"? The practice of Yoga itself is often referred to as 'skill in action'. In one of the best-known Indian scriptures 'The Bhagavad Gita', we are guided along the yogic path towards discovering our "purpose."
"Purpose", or "Dharma" in yoga, does not necessarily mean what we do in this world. It does not need to be defined by our titles, our jobs, our positions within the family etc. Instead, it refers to how we "sustain" ourselves and the world around us, including the others in it. It teaches us a path towards the alleviation of suffering, for ourselves and others.
And so our yoga practice, not only the physical part where we are moving around on the mat, but how we make choices and move through the world, is about that journey towards discovering our "dharma" and living our life in devotion to it or in alignment with it. This could be referred to as 'Skill in Action'. And is a strong tool and force for social change and justice in the world. Not only this, but living in alignment with our "purpose" is scientifically proven to affect our own health and happiness and leads to "eudaimonic well-being", a term I'm only recently familiar with coined by Aristotle. "Eudaimonic well-being", means connecting to unchanging, unwavering joy ('awareness') and ultimately results in contentment,"Santosha" in the yoga world.
Don't we all wish to be content?
Below I share with you some prompts from a recent workshop I did around this topics, that may help you make some personal connections between your own dharma and connection to eudaimonic joy.
~> What connects you to "eudaimonic joy" - unchanging joy or awareness, independent of momentary events?
~> What does the word "purpose" mean to you?
~> What do you believe brings meaning or purpose to your life and what values help you align with this?
~> What connects you and what disconnects you to this?
~> How can you make space or time in your life to integrate daily practices of connection?
I would love to hear your feedback and thoughts on this topic and do get in touch with any questions.
Marie