your inner roommate
Last week we started our exploration of the Jnana yoga path of knowledge, of differentiating between the small 's' self (ego) and the capital 'S' Self (our true nature).
We explored the concept that you're not the voice in your head, YOU are the one watching, or observing, the voice. Taking time to consider this and allowing yourself some time to sit back and witness your human mind and all its business and chatter in action.
Chapter 2 of Michael Singer's Untethered Soul is 'Your Inner Roommate' and continues to explore the duality in ourselves - the mind and our true nature. Singer starts with 'You're ready to grow when you finally realise that the 'I' who is always talking inside will never be content'. He continues to recommend when a problem is disturbing you, rather than our default position applying to the external world, 'What should I do about it?' turning our awareness inwards and asking 'What part of me is being disturbed by this?'
'To obtain true inner freedom, you must be able to objectively watch your problems instead of being lost in them.' When you're lost in the energy of a problem you can't solve it. The answer is to own how the situation affects you inside, and to realise you can't solve your problems by rearranging things outside of you; you need to take some time in introspection and make a start on letting go of the part of you that seems to have so many problems with life. It can be as simple as being aware and watching what's going on in your mind. Easy said... not so easy to do... and a lifetime practice. This is why the Jnana yoga path is said to be the most difficult.
As you start this process, you might like to see the thoughts or voice in your head as another person or personality in there with you - your inner roommate.
To meet your inner roommate simply sit with yourself for a while, with some quiet space around you. You can do this, it's your inner domain, no one else's. And you will almost inevitably notice rather than there be stillness and quiet there's an incessant chatter... the inner voice challenging what you're doing and why, and giving you a running commentary and judging what you're doing. Know that this is completely normal and happens to all of us.
You might want to be quiet but your inner roommate has other ideas. And it acts like this all day long, it's just that you don't notice how it derails you until you stop and sit back to notice.
So, you're not alone in there - there's 2 aspects of your inner being - YOU, the 'Self', your awareness or witness, observer and the one you watch 'self' who narrates and makes sense of your life.
This week, take time to sit back and notice your inner roommate and how it goes about advising you.... and know you don't always need to take its advice or accept it's judgments.... consider sitting back as your 'witnessing consciousness', and simply observing the cacophony of thoughts, knowing you don't have to act on them, you can step back and watch, before deciding on your course of action.
And know that, in time, you can free yourself from yourself.. set a clear direction and resist allowing the wandering to deter you. You will need persistence and compassion on this journey but it's one well worth travelling on.
Along with classical yoga classes, for which this is our weekly focus, we offer:
Yoga classes in bayside Melbourne on Monday, Tuesday & Thursday evenings and Wednesday mornings
Qigong - Movement & Meditation class on Wednesday mornings
Introduction to meditation courses running throughout the year
Corporate Wellness Programs - Intro to Meditation (a 5 week course) and Cultivating a Healthy Lifestyle (a 6 month program) along with 1:1 coaching
Wellness coaching for individuals