than from the things with which you are surrounded.
When svadhyana is lively in your awareness, joy arises
from within rather than being dependent upon outer
accomplishments or acquisitions.
The final Niyama, Ishwara-Pranidhana, is often trans-
lated as “faith” or “surrendering to God.” Ishwara is the
personalized aspect of the infinite. Even when considering
the boundless, the human mind wants to create bound-
aries. Ishwara is the name applied that makes familiar the
infinite and unbounded field of intelligence. Ultimately,
Ishwara-Pranidhana is surrendering to the wisdom of
uncertainty. The seeds of wisdom are sown when you sur-
render to the unknown. The known is the past. True
transformation, healing, and creativity flow out of present
moment awareness, which means relinquishing your
attachment to the past and embracing uncertainty.
A deeply spiritual friend of ours once contacted us
from the coronary care unit at a New York hospital to say
he had just had an emergency three-vessel coronary
artery bypass operation. Only forty-two years old, he had
never smoked, he was a vegetarian, and he meditated
regularly. We obviously were very concerned about how
he was doing and feeling, but he quickly reassured us he
was doing well and was confident that everything would
work out fine.
He explained that a few days earlier he had been vis-
iting Long Island and had driven to Coney Island to ride
on the roller coasters. He enjoyed riding the roller coast-
ers because despite the turbulence, he knew he was safe.
In an analogous way, because of his deep connection to
spirit, our friend was able to surrender to the unknown
38 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga