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OPEN MIND OPEN BODY The Yoga of Connection |
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Week 41: Who Am I? As promised, this week, some reflection on the answers we come up with when we ask the question "Who am I?" I want to explore this week the ways we answer this question not as a spiritual quest, but simply as a way of navigating the world. One of the ways we answer this question, when we go about our everyday lives, is to identify ourselves by identifying our preferences and aversions: "I am the kind of person who likes ____ and dislikes _____." This means that we know ourselves by expressing how we would shape the world if we had total control. In other words, we know ourselves by the ways we choose to suffer. Because, of course, we don't have control - and every preference, every aversion, is a condition waiting to be met or disappointed. Take a moment to let that idea sink in: our daily identity is strongly shaped by the conditions we set for our own suffering. If this is the case, then it becomes very difficult to have an identity other than suffering. Ask yourself, Is this who I really am? Or is the "who I am" something beyond, or behind, or bigger than a set of preferences? Another way we tend to answer that question is by identifying the things that make us unique, or special. "I am a ______ person." (smart, athletic, artistic, funny, etc.) Or "I am good at ______." In other words, we know ourselves through the constant comparisons we make between ourselves and others. The above examples are the positive spin, but many of us take the negative spin, focusing on perceived flaws or weaknesses. Either way, we know ourselves by the ways we distinguish ourselves from others, or compete with others, or try to win the approval of others. If this is the case, then it becomes very difficult to have an identity other than separation. Ask yourself, Is this who I really am? Or is the "who I am" something beyond, or behind, or bigger than a set of qualities and abilities? There are other ways to know oneself, and next week I'll introduce a yogic view. For now, it can be very helpful to observe how these ways of knowing yourself show up in everyday life. Explore the class archives and audio files at http://www.openmindbody.com/2006emailclass/archive.htm Share your reflections at http://www.openmindbody.com/discuss For both sites, use the Login: yoga and the Password: connect
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