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| AHYMSIN NEWSLETTER, ISSUE - April 2020 | ||||||||
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Choosing Tranquilityby Randall Krause (Mokshadeva)Today is all I have. It’s all anyone has. But my mind has had the habit of imagining the future. Now, the COVID -19 pandemic has shown me the folly of this mental habit. In the midst of this crisis, my imagination fabricated terrifying possibilities causing me extreme anxiety and distress. Not wanting to live this way, and realizing what my mind was doing, I began to practice staying out of my imagination and attending to the present moment. Doing so led to feeling peaceful, even happy, again. Being present isn’t easy. My mind has a strong habit of going elsewhere. It’s not like flipping a switch. Rather, I have to watch my mind, moment to moment, to see where it’s going. It’s like meditation; constantly bringing it back into the present. It’s a practice. Knowing that this moment is all I have encourages me to make the most of it; fully experience it. I can take reasonable precautions concerning the crisis, but I don’t have to think about it all the time. Being present, I can respond to the situation far better than if I’m incapacitated by imagined possibilities.Editor's Note:This article has also appeared online. In 2000, the Himalayan Yoga Tradition Teacher Training Program was formed and Randall was at the initial organizational meetings and became one of the first students. He completed the program in 2005 and was certified and became registered with Yoga Alliance at the 500 RYT level. Since that time he’s taught with the teacher training program as a faculty member and serves as Senior Mentor and administrator in the program. He also founded Hym-la (Himalayan Yoga Meditation --Los Angeles). Randall is the author of Pathways to Self-Awareness: Contemplations on Yoga Meditation and Do-It-Yourself Meditation Manual. Randall also serves on the AHYMSIN Executive Committee.
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