A Sutra a Day: II-4 – Plant Now, Harvest Later

Jul 18, 2012 | City Life, Gardening, Nature, XSutras, xTmp, Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Yoga teaching  | 0 comments

Did you enjoy a gloriously sunny winter day today? I did. It called to me to get into the garden and weed and plant.
I’m a metropolitan girl from places like Chicago, New York and Sydney. Gardening is not my first language. What does that matter, though,  when Nature calls?
There’s rocket, lettuce and dill in the dirt now. I’ve checked the weather report and it will be cold over the next few days but not frosty. So, good.
The beauty of the winter season is that you can watch things grow slowly and then speed up as spring energy starts to course course through Mother Earth’s veins.
Winter is a perfect time to be inward, to be quiet. Without the temptations that drive us to express our extroverted personas, such as,  beach picnics, barbecues, outdoor cinemas, music festivals, we can settle in.
In my garden, the weeds are lugubrious and half-hearted, so it’s easy to get on top of them.
Similarly, with yoga practice, you can see the kleshas (sorrows) as they are coming down the road when you’re quieter, more collected.
The yoga teacher can see that low attendances in the wintertime don’t mean anything. That all there is to do is teach.
Avidya ksetram uttaresam prasupta tank vicchinna udaranam
Lack of true knowledge  is the source of all pains and sorrows whether dormant, attenuated, interrupted or fully active.*
*The Light on the Sutras, B K S Iyengar.

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