August 15, 2014: Here in San Francisco, the news of Robin Williams suicide has hit many people hard. Russell Brand wrote an eloquent essay which struck a cord for me (posted on my personal page). He said, that when a celebrity who we hold up as having it all in terms of the modern definitions of success extinguishes his life it causes us to question ourselves and the world that we live in. I have a dear friend who was trying to quit smoking. He is HIV positive. He told me that he realized that every cigarette he smoked was a death wish. That was many years ago now but I still remember that conversation. I too was a smoker and until my friend put it that way, I didnt realize how much my smoking was also an unconscious desire to not be here. Now, I think that it is not death that we fear but the suffering of life that we most want to avoid. I still have moments when a part of me cries out I dont want to be here. Recently, when I felt this way, I asked myself, where do you think you are going, Cynthia? Its an interesting questions to ponder.... Benjamin Franklin most famously said, In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes. And, yet we wake each morning and accept an illusion that we have many more mornings to come while this is not actually a certainty. When my mind cries out, I dont want to be here, its not that I want to be dead, I just dont want to be HERE in whatever present condition I am experiencing; under some illusion that there is a better HERE somewhere else. I have had a job where I made more money that I needed. I have experienced deeply passionate romantic love. I have been in positions of power where I was leading a lot of people with a lot of responsibility. None of these things offered me a lasting peace. In fact, quite the opposite. At least 10 years ago now, I was walking down the street feeling sorry for myself with my head hung low like Charlie Brown. The squares of sidewalk passed by me like film segments until I saw something etched in the concrete which read Serve Others. I stopped in my tracks and lifted my head. The most powerful reason for living a human life that I have found is to serve others. This doesnt mean to the detriment of your own health and well-being. This means caring for yourself so that you may be of service to others and the world. Seeing the outpouring of sentiments from people after Robin Williams death, I wonder if he truly appreciated how much of service he was to people. We all have something unique and special to offer the world. In my experience, yoga helps us to uncover that and nourish the parts of ourselves that are whole and good. In our own practice of yoga, B.K.S. Iyengar encourages us to experiment and experience our practice each day, each moment freshly. In that spirit, I offer a short video of a vinyasa sequence of standing poses and a favorite quote of mine from the Dalai Lama: “Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.”
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 15:59:10 +0000
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