be still, my mind, be still

Yogas Citta Vritti Nirodaha 1.2
Yoga is the stilling of the turbulences of the mind.

Often, Patanjali's second aphorism is considered the definition of yoga. My teacher Nicki Doane said, "It's the intentional calming and stilling of the self-judging, self-limiting tendencies of the Citta, our subconscious mind, that makes the difference. Without intention, yoga is merely physical exercise."

In other words, yoga is not really about the pose. It's about how quiet you can keep your mind while you are in a pose. Although our Western interpretation of yoga includes mostly the physical asana practice, Patanjali barely mentions poses in his text. Yoga asana used to be a means to strengthening the body to sit in meditation for longer periods. The intention always was to get a closer connection to God, or the Universal Consciousness.

Stillness is the cornerstone of any mindfulness practice. In "Wherever you go, there you are", Jon Kabat  Zin wrote, "Your mindfulness will only be as robust as your mind's capacity to be calm and stable. Without calmness, the mirror of mindfulness will have an agitated and choppy surface and will not be able to reflect things with any accuracy."

A restful mind is like the clear, calm surface of a mountain lake that perfectly mirrors the surrounding peaks. Thoughts are like rocks thrown into the water. They draw increasingly large, concentric circles, disrupting and distorting the view of the mountains. 

Just like the heart is made for beating, the mind is made for thinking. Therefore asking your mind to be quiet is like asking your pulse to stop. But with practice we can learn to slow down the frequency of thoughts. I haven't counted mine, but supposedly we have between 50-70,000 thoughts a day. That's like having all apps open on your smart phone. If you need your phone to work more efficiently, you need to close some apps. That's where meditation comes in or a slow, mindful yoga asana practice. 

The next time you roll out your mat,  attune your mind to the sound of your breath to still the monkey mind.

As Jon Kabat Zin suggests, "You cannot stop the waves, but you can learn to surf."