It's in Your Hands.

You can't shake hands with a clenched fist.
-Indira Gandhi

A friend and I were talking a few days ago about forming the habit of feeling good. I can best relate it to the practice of sitting up straight. If I am not vigilant when I sit in front of the computer, gravity reels me in and at some point I just don't feel good and notice that my spine has begun to slouch. As soon as I sit upright again, all is well. It's a habit that I've acquired, thanks to yoga.

During the last few years, I've come to realize that maintaining a state of joy and happiness also requires a diligent practice. If I am not vigilant, I easily slouch and succumb to the emotions and energies of those near to me, yet I have so much more to offer when I am upright and happy. I'm learning that my emotional posture is my primary concern.

It seems absurd that anyone could find comfort and familiarity in arguing or delight in depreciating another person. It must be an acquired habit, just like slouching. As Abraham-Hicks observes:

"We have a fun way of looking at it: Let's say you have a piece of very fine sandpaper, and you rub it with your fingers. It is so fine that at first, it feels almost like velvet. So you rub it a little more, and a little more, and a little more...

In the beginning, there is no detriment to this experience. But the longer you rub it, the more unpleasant it becomes. Your skin is beginning to feel some sensitivity--and after an hour or two, maybe even some beginnings of blisters. Yet sometimes, that sandpaper is really the only thing visible in the room. And even though the experience is not very pleasant, you've got this habit going.

Then, all of a sudden, you realize "Hey, I don't have to do this!" and you simply lift your fingers up off the sandpaper!

This is a deliberate intent to remove yourself from this irritation. The sensation of lifting up is wonderful. As you lift off, it almost feels like spider webs pulling from your fingers. We want you to begin reaching for that ensuing sense of relief.

You've had your eye on this sandpaper. It seemed justified, it seemed important. People talked to you about it, there's evidence of it in your life, and everything seems to be somehow about sandpaper. But in reality, there is it, and there is the absence of it, and you do have a choice of whether or not to lift your fingers--your thoughts, that is--off of what is evoking this unpleasant experience.

Begin to take pleasure in feeling relief from it."

Handshakes are believed to have originated as a gesture of proof that the hand held no weapon. So the next time you bring your hands together in namaskar , come in peace and give thanks to all of the habits you now engage in that lift you. As your hands press open to each other, feel the relief of knowing that your happiness lies in your hands.

Photo: CDRP