A Peaceful Practice
by Kathryn Smith
In the Celtic tradition, May marks the beginning of Summer. Although the saying “Never cast a clout until May is out” can be quite negative (a clout was a piece of clothing; thus suggesting that you keep your warm clothes on as the weather can still be cold) perhaps this is now the time for us to start to venture outdoors once more.
After the Spring rains which have watered the earth and the longer hours of daylight, nature has been kick-started once again. The birds are nesting, animals are giving birth and all around us shows the blossoming of life.
It is now time to find a quiet space outside where we can contemplate the dreams and plans which we made over the cold Winter months. Can we now be true to them, rather than slipping back into our old lazy ways?
Let us get out into an open space where we can practice our Yoga with the help of nature using the earth as our mat.
After your chosen practice you could sit down to meditate or to enjoy the following visualisation:
Interior
You are sitting high up at the edge of a cave looking out across the land and the sea. You are sitting cross-legged with your thumbs and forefingers touching in Chin mudra, soaking in the atmosphere.With your hands in this position you can feel the gentle rise and fall of your abdomen as you breathe correctly and easily. As you sit here you can feel the gentle breeze against your face and the air around your body feels like a soft enveloping mist.
You close your eyes and bring your awareness to the rhythm of your breath. The rise and fall of your abdomen, the air moving through your nostrils.
You feel the rocky outcrop below you, the vast open space before you and the sweet silence all around you. Feeling each breath as it comes and goes.
You are dressed in a comfortable robe which flows around you. Feel its softness against your skin as you breathe. Feel the comfort of the robe in this high place.
The sky is cloudless, its pale shade reflected in the sea below. From your elevated position you can see the land functioning and busy. In contrast, you are away from the tedium of the world, set apart and secluded.
You breathe from the earth where you sit feeling grounded; breathing up through your body this stability and stillness. Exhaling from the crown of your head up to the sky above feeling calm and quiet.
Feeling connected; the earth and your body.
The sea and the blood in your veins.
The rocks and your bones.
The wind and your breath.
Related to nature.
Your very existence from the essence of creation…
The lines between your body and this place begin to blur…and you find yourself comfortable and rested in a relaxed position.
