Spring is the time of rebirth, of renewal, of breaking through the darkness of winter and reasserting our life force energy. But the emotions that are sweeping most of the world right now are more in line with Autumn. Grief, loss, letting go.
During this time when uncertainty is the only thing that we all seem to be certain about, the teachings from the Autumn element are striking.
So many of us are grieving losses. The most intense are those who are losing loved ones. This is followed closely by those losing jobs, homes, livelihoods, and most importantly, hope.
The great spiritual traditions teach us that during times of loss, we must deeply grieve, and at the same time, we must be able to find faith in uncertainty. The great illusion is that we have control. And during normal times, that illusion seems easily supported. We make decisions, we take actions, and things seem to flow from there. But the deeper, unacknowledged truth, is that we really don’t have control over much in our lives, except our responses to outside forces.
But this seemingly sad take on the human situation, is actually a huge opportunity. We have the opportunity to see this illusion, and to reclaim our power over our own responses. This is even more important in light of the emotionally manipulative forces of the media, which surround us.
In this time of isolation, the call to prayer and meditation could not be more important. It is by going inward, into the truth of who you are at the core, that you can find the solace for the myriad unexplainable, unwanted, unbidden events happening outside you.
The antidote for Grief, according to the ancient spiritual teachings, is to let go, and to have faith. There is a higher power, a bigger force at work here, that we are not privy to. We can support our own journeys and the journeys of our friends, families and neighbors, by keeping our faith. This is not a call to let go of your responsibilities. In fact, now, more than ever, we are urged to Do The Right Thing, to make the Ethical Choice, to have Right Relationship with every single thing in our path and on our planet.
Once we have that strong, moral and ethical core within us, we can more easily release our need to know why things are as they are. At that point, we can grieve and praise the things we’ve lost to the high heavens. We can allow ourselves to feel the cathartic release of our pain, and the tenderness in our souls that follows. We take as long as we need for this process. And even with our lack of understanding of why, we are able to move forward and trust. Even from the deepest darkness, something magical and illuminated will emerge….
About Lauren Walker:
Lauren Walker is the author of Energy Medicine Yoga: Amplify the Healing Power of Your Yoga Practice (Sounds True, 2014) and The Energy Medicine Yoga Prescription (Sounds True, 2017). Both book won the Nautilus Silver award for best Mind/Body book. She’s been teaching yoga and meditation since 1997 and created Energy Medicine Yoga while teaching at Norwich University. She teaches EMYoga across the US and internationally and has been featured in Yoga Journal, Mantra +, Yoga Digest, and The New York Times. She was named one of the top 100 most influential yoga teachers in America.
Learn more about Lauren at: energymedicineyoga.net