Self-Practice as the Foundation for Social Action: How to thrive and sustain personal well being in the field of yoga service.

2014-02-27T18:36:07+00:00February 27th, 2014|

To be engaged with skillful action in the world requires dedication, perseverance, wisdom and compassion. I’ll describe what I mean by these terms. Dedication to a cause is a commitment fueled by enthusiasm and a conviction that we can make a difference to a particular person, circumstance or to society. Perseverance is “persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success”[1] and may be ultimately understood as a reinforcing combination of conviction, a long-term view, patience and determination (firmness of purpose[2]). Wisdom is the “quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment.”[3] Is also Prajñā (Sanskrit) or paññā (Pāli) in Buddhism an understanding, discernment, insight, or cognitive acuity. “Such wisdom is understood to exist in the universal flux of being and can be intuitively experienced through meditation”. [4] Wisdom is required to see deeply into the nature of a problem, as well as to cultivate insight into the appropriate means of facilitating solutions; it is not rash or impulsive but thoughtful and considered. Compassion emerges from three interrelated qualities: the wisdom of seeing things as they are; an experiential understanding of interdependence (i.e. the absolute connection between ourselves and others); and a genuine concern for the welfare of all sentient beings.

Yoga Service – an interview with Jill Satterfield from the Huffington Post

2014-02-27T18:37:23+00:00February 27th, 2014|

· What emotionally connects you to give back the gift of yoga? Sharing the boundless gifts of yoga and meditation not only pays respect to the generosity of those who have diligently practiced and cared enough to teach others, but is also a beautifully valuable way of life through which we can help others help themselves. Giving back is an organic and natural development of practice. As compassion blossoms, the pollination is action. The action aspect of compassion is what compels many of us, and those of us who are here to rise to assess where and how we might help others and make a difference.

Go to Top