Reflections on 2010

2011 is here and as we celebrate new beginnings, let's pause a moment and reflect on our achievements this past year. Our Art of Living Center turned 1 on December 2010! and we have a lot to be proud of, thanks to the dedication of our volunteers. Here is this year's the main highlights:-

• Increased  teacher headcount from 4 to 8
• Started the Art of Living Austin Facebook page, and a very successful blog
• Taught/Hosted the following courses:
  • 14 Art of Living Courses
  • 5 YES+ workshops (3 of which were conducted by Austin teachers)
  • 3 Sri Sri Yoga workshops
  • 2 Know your Child Workshops
  • 2 Sahaj Samadhi meditation classes
  • 2 Refugee Empowerment workshops - one for adults, and one for teens
  • 1 Art Excel course for kids
  • 1 Know your Child Teacher Training
  • 1 Know your Teen Workshop
• Successfully completed a Health and Happiness Seminar Series, and launched a second one.
• Revived weekly knowledge sessions with ongoing sessions of the following series :
  • Ashtavakra gita
  • Patanjali Yoga Sutras
  • Bhakti Sutras.

• Hosted Swami Pragyapad. He taught the Art of Living, and Sahaj courses, and gave a public talk.
• Spent an evening in divine satsang with Swami Suryapada
• Spear-headed and led Sri Sri ashram activities and all ashram renovation work.
• Conducted weekly yoga sessions, and taught relaxation techniques to juvenile delinquents between age group of 11-17 years at Gardner Betts Juvenile Justice Center.
• Conducted free weekly yoga sessions for students at the University of Texas at Austin
• Organized a retreat for University of Texas at Austin Business School students at the Sri Sri ashram.
• Started Hindi workshops for kids and teens as part of center activities.

Becoming an Expert

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are an authoritative text on the practice of Yoga. Ever since I was introduced to this ancient text, I've always liked and remembered some specific lines from it. Today I want to share one of them which has deep meaning for me in the practice of Yoga, Sudarshan Kriya, and meditation, but also in other aspects of my life.

sa tu dīrgha kāla nairantarya satkārā sevito dṛḍhabhūmiḥ

In the context of Yoga, Maharshi Patanjali says three things are needed to establish oneself and be firmly grounded in the practice of Yoga:

dīrgha kāla: For a long period of time.

nairantarya: Without a break.

satkārā sevito: With honor and respect.

Doing the practice for a long period of time, without a break, with honor and respect — that's what it takes to become firmly grounded in the practice of Yoga and all the benefits to the mind, body and spirit that it brings.

But wait, that applies to becoming an expert in anything, doesn't it? All around us we see people who are experts in their domain. More often than not, the above three steps outline how they got that expertise. Very few people are born as prodigies; expertise gets built up over time. And time alone is not enough; steady application of oneself unbroken in time is essential. And these two together do not make one an expert, if the attitude and approach to the task or craft are casual or irreverent. A sense of honor and respect is also essential.

Want to master a musical instrument? It takes years of unbroken practice. Want to become a pro golfer? You need to hit the links several times a week for years together. Want to be great at what you do? Keep at it... with honor and respect! Often we dabble in something and give it up after a while if we don't get results from it, and take up something else... without realizing that value gets built up more and more over time when we stick to one thing.

There are many more such simple and insightful lines I love from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, including the definition of Yoga, which I will leave for another post. Hint: it's not just the practice of tying your body up into pretzel shapes. Thanks to Shriram Sarvotham and his amazing teaching of the Sri Sri Yoga course for awakening my interest in this text. Guruji has given a fantastic commentary on the Yoga Sutras in 11 talks; I highly recommend listening to the whole series.