The Power of Intention
02 Feb 2011 1 Comment
in Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, Hatha Yoga, Yoga Benefits, Yoga Juno Beach, Yoga Meditation
“There are no mistakes, no coincidences; all events are blessings given to us to learn from.” ~ Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
Ever since I returned from India, I’ve witnessed intentions manifesting remarkably fast. Hence this story from my yoga class today. Just before leaving the house to teach, I received an e-mail from one of the ladies in my yoga group that referred to a lecture by the head of psychiatry at Stanford. The topic was the psycho-physical benefits of the friendships between women, namely the release of the neurotransmitter serotonin and it’s ability to relieve stress and anxiety. While a male/female relationship also had psycho-physical benefits, they were not as pronounced. I grabbed my things and decided to use this topic in class today. Relaying the information to my students, we offered the class for our best friends, all the relationships (both long and short-term) that we had in our lives, as well as our friendship with our (yoga) tribe members who were not able to practice with us today. About 3/4 of the way through class, one of our tribe members diagnosed with Leukemia about a year and half ago walked in, and for a few minutes, shared in our practice and energy. None of us had seen her since diagnosis. No one called her or saw her prior to class. She just showed up out of the blue. Intention was offered, and returned, seemingly in the blink of an eye, with a visit from one of our own. Often I am stirred by the energy in class, but today was powerful considering there were only 3 of us. I know each of us experienced an a-ha moment of enlightenment when she enetered the room.
People come into our lives for a reason. We may not always know what that reason is while we are in the relationship, if at all, or why it ceases to be after a time. What is known is that these relationships (even the not so great ones) are gifts meant to move us forward on our journey, to teach us about ourselves, perhaps even make the traveling easier, happier. Often we don’t analyze the friendships we have, because by their very nature, friendships should be easy and free of such burdens. However, if we stop to consider, just for a moment, the circumstances of how they came to be, we would realize that there is no rationale for why a particular person connected with us for however long a space in time. They just arrived, and stayed, and made us laugh, and cry, and think, and understand. In the case of my yoga class, we formed a bond around the common thread of yoga and meditation, but I believe there are other connections yet to be understood. We have shared much in our 3 years together, and manifested even more.
I have often said that the intention of a singular person is powerful beyond measure, but the intention of even a small group of like-minded people can move mountains. As I packed up my paraphernalia, I glanced at a note in the sign in book. It was from our friend saying she’d see us next Tuesday.
The eternal light in me honors the eternal light in you! Namaste
