Surrender, a yoga lesson

Learning how to let go, to surrender to your present moment is a powerful lesson. Most people in our culture believe that surrendering means giving up what you want and who you are, giving your power or control to someone or something else. But, what if, surrender is really letting go of your control (force) in order to allow things to happen?

We tend to push and force our way into what we want or we think we are supposed to do, have or be. Yoga can be like this. You see the person next to you perfectly balanced while you topple over, or touching their toes and you can barely reach your knees. If you are like most, you will try to force yourself to touch your toes, pushing your body to a position it is not ready to move into yet. You could surrender to your current position, knowing that today, this is as far as you might go, but the more you practice the farther you will get. When you surrender in this way, you let go of judgement (this is you in judgement of yourself) and allow yourself to fully experience this moment. You get to be okay with where you are, becoming less demanding on yourself. By sitting where you are, allowing your body to relax into the asana and breathe, you will release, finding a deeper connection to your body. Instead of forcing yourself to something it isn't ready for, you allow a stronger and more balanced foundation to build on; getting there when you are ready. 

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Applying this lesson in daily life, translates into enjoying the ride and building a stronger and more stable foundation for your goals. Many people can force success "overnight", however, few can make that success last. The ones that allow the victories to come step by step through allowing, versus forcing, are able to create huge success that lasts. 

Sometimes surrender means allowing yourself to be in child's pose while everyone else is flying in crow. And, that is perfectly good, if that is what you need and where you are in that moment.