Savasana and I, have a love-hate relationship.
It is a pose I long to get to at the start of the practice, and also the pose that I am loathe to reach after the other asanas because I’d rather skip it and jump straight into my chores for the day.
It is so easy to ignore and neglect Savasana. It is quiet, seemingly undemanding, gentle, kind, compassionate, and comforting in posture. Yet, it is a tricky challenge for the mind and habits of a practitioner living most of our days thinking ahead for deadlines, tasks, bills, and family.
To quietly ask of myself that I lie in stillness and unobtrusively request that I am kind to my psyche and body if only for a few moments, sometimes does not overpower the trembling of nerves in my body that are ever-ready to spring into action and complete the tasks of the day, nor override the neon and noisy sticky-notes in my head.
If I had to command myself to sit and take a breath, it would be done with a hint of violence as my will should battle my will. But accompanied with the yoga philosophy of compassion, I find I can persuade myself into accepting the offer of rest with the path of least resistance.
And what do you know?
I discover that do not feel guilt for giving myself permission to enjoy the sweet reprieve. For that I have gratitude.
A.T.
