264 A JOURNEY INTO YIN YOGA
on a colossal scale. For this deep healing to take place, the change needs to
happen within our own bodies, minds, and hearts. Guess what does that?
Yes, of course, your yoga practice!
As long as you live separated from the Tao, you will never be free. You will
never contribute to a global awakening this is possible right now. It starts by
becoming still. When you get into a yin yoga pose, that is when sensations,
memories, and emotions start to surface from the depths of the connective
tissue and from the depths of the heart and mind. Sometimes what comes up
is fear. In fact, often when we are suffering, it’s because we are trapped by fear.
In some traditions, they call it the body of fear or the small self. Mythologist
Joseph Campbell dedicated his life to the message of the hero’s journey. The
hero in every story must move through their biggest fears to become their
greatest selves. As he poetically put it, “The cave that you fear to enter holds
the treasure that you seek.” To be all that you are capable of being, you must
recognize and address your fears. This, of course, isn’t easy, and that’s why you
have people with so much busyness in their lives. All the yang-type activity
is a distraction from the reality of what people are dealing with. They would
rather check out and numb out than face their own uncomfortable thoughts
and situations.LETTING GO
The Tao teaches us the courage of letting go. My meditation teacher, Jack
Kornfield, says “Fear is often excitement holding its breath.” At some point,
you must have the courage to indulge in a full exhalation and give yourself
the permission to let go. Let go of the fear, let go of the anger, and let go of
the grief. Through this letting go, deep realization is possible. The following
story provides an illustration of this.
A man sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). For those of you
who live outside of the United States, the IRS is the government’s tax collection
agency. The following is his letter.Dear IRS Tax Agent,For the last several months I have not been able to sleep at night.
The reason for this sudden insomnia is because I cheated on my tax
report. Enclosed you will find a check for $2,000.P.S. If I still can’t sleep at night I will send you a check for the rest later.This is a funny and fascinating glimpse into the psychology of what goes
on inside of people’s minds: Let me let go of just enough so that I can deal
with my own guilt. The question becomes why not just write a check for the
entire amount, clear the slate, and fully let go? In the words of the legendary