Meditation and Equanimity

by Nina

Of course most of us realize that while meditation is an excellent stress management tool this is not its original goal nor its only benefit. But because I wanted to explain something to people who are newer to yoga about the relationship between meditation and equanimity, I’ve been delving a bit deeper into this subject. In general here’s what I’ve come up with so far. 

One of original goals of meditation was to quiet the mind. Because our minds are typically busy with thoughts, many of which disturb our equanimity—regrets about the past, worries about the future, and dissatisfaction with the present—quieting your mind allows you to experience feelings of peace and contentment. Meditation also fosters feelings of compassion, which improve your relationships with others. And you can use meditation to cultivate feelings of gratitude, which allows you to be more content with what you have and what you don’t have. In addition, the process of meditating allows you to observe your habitual thought patterns and emotional responses, which is the first step in changing them to more positive ones. 

Here are my thoughts about these four different aspects of meditation. If you have any of your own you’d like to contribute, I’d love to hear from you! 

Quieting the Mind

In the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali defines yoga as: 

1.2 “Yoga is the stilling of the changing states of mind.” —Edwin Bryant

Stilling the changing “states of mind”—also translated as the “whirls of consciousness”—means quieting the thoughts that cycle over and over in your mind. While not all our thoughts disturb our equanimity, when we are worried, anxious, sad, depressed, or even overly excited, we can be tormented by thoughts and emotions that whirl uncontrollably through us. What if I miss my deadline? What if the plane crashes? What if I can’t fall asleep tonight? If only my lover hadn’t left me. If only I wasn’t so helpless/afraid/overwhelmed. If only my parents had loved me more. I hate that person. I wish I had a different body. I suck at meditating. 

In classical yoga, quieting the mind is a necessary prerequisite for achieving the union with the divine that is yoga. But it is also recommended as the antidote to the kleshas, our reactions to life that disturb our equanimity and that are the source of our suffering. 

2.3 The five afflictions (klesas) which disturb the equilibrium of consciousness are: ignorance or lack of wisdom, ego, pride of the ego or the sense of ‘I,’ attachment to pleasure, aversion to pain, fear of death and clinging to life. —Edwin Bryant

The simple act of regular meditation quiets your mind, but you may find that certain techniques work more effectively for you than others, depending on your particular personality or even just your current circumstances. So you might wish to experiment with several different techniques, perhaps even keeping record of the state of your mind both before and after practice for several days in a row. See Yoga Meditation Techniques for information about how to meditate. See Thoughts About Quieting the Mind for more information about quieting the mind. 

Self-Study with Meditation 

By using our witness mind as we meditate, we can engage in self study (svadhyaya) to learn more about habitual thought patterns and emotional responses that we might not even be aware of. The witness mind is that part of our minds that allows us to observe ourselves in action while we are acting. The Sankrit word for witness is sākshī (saa-kshe), and it refers to the “pure awareness” that witnesses the world but does not get affected by it or involved with it. The term combines “sa,” which means “with,” and “aksha,” which means “senses or eyes.” So the sakshi is an awareness that can disengage from any identification with thoughts and observe them “with its own eyes.” Another meaning of the word aksha is “the center of a wheel.” When a wheel turns, the spokes revolve and the outer rim rotates, but the center—the hub of the wheel—is still. So the witness mind remains steady while events turn around it. 

In meditation, your witness mind observes when your attention has wandered from the object of your meditation—and to what. Rather than floating down the stream of your thoughts, you sit on the shore and impartially observe from a distance. And as you observe with detachment what’s happening within you—your sensations, thoughts, emotions, and feelings—you start to recognize patterns that you may later decide to change. Observing your habits can help you change the way you react to stress (see Changing the Brain's Stressful Habits). And it can help you in general to change your patterns of reactivity (see Meditation and Brain Strength). All of this will help you cultivate equanimity in your daily life. 

You can also use your witness mind during your asana practice by cultivating mindfulness. To do this, step back and tune into the constant judging and reacting to inner and outer experiences that constantly stream through your mind. Eventually you can use on your witness mind during any activity. 

See The Power of Svadhyaya (Self Study) for more information about self study. See Yoga Meditation Techniques for information about how to meditate. 

Compassion 

1.33 By cultivating an attitude of friendship toward those who are happy, compassion toward those in distress, joy toward those who are virtuous, and equanimity toward those who are nonvirtuous, lucidity arises in the mind. —trans. by Edwin Bryant 

In addition to quieting your mind and teaching you its workings, meditation provides interpersonal benefits. Scientists have shown that the practice of meditation increases compassion. And becoming more compassionate clearly fosters better relationships with people in your life as well as strangers who are suffering.

In general, a regular meditation practices seems to have this effect. Scientists who studied this phenomenon speculated that there are two possible explanations for this. The first is that because meditation improves your ability to pay attention, this might improve your ability to notice what’s going on with someone else (as opposed to being lost in your own thoughts). Another explanation is that meditation helps us to experience the interconnectedness of all beings. Interestingly, a study showed that when people meditated on "non-referentail" compassion, the regions of their brains responsible for planned action were activated, as if they were preparing to aid people in distress. So you may find yourself with an urge to help others—always a good thing, both for them and you.

A regular meditation practice of any kind will foster compassion but if you wish to work on this intentionally, you could: 

1. Choose a person for whom you wish to cultivate compassion and before meditating set the intention that your practice will dedicated to them. Then check in again by thinking of that person after you finish. 
2. Use the word “compassion” as a mantra. 
3. Practice the Loving Kindness Meditation, a structured meditation designed to help you open your heart and cultivate compassion towards people close to you as well as strangers. Or practice any other formal meditation designed to foster compassion. 

See Meditation and Compassion for more information about meditation and compassion. See Yoga Meditation Techniques for information about how to meditate. 

Gratitude

Meditating on gratitude can have a profound effect on your mood and state of mind. In fact, scientists have actually identified the biochemical explanations for this. Apparently feeling grateful activates the brain stem region that produces dopamine, your reward and pleasure center, and gratitude toward others increases activity in your social dopamine circuits, which makes social interactions more enjoyable. And even just trying to think of things you are grateful for forces you to focus on the positive aspects of your life, which boosts our serotonin levels, which increases happiness. 

To cultivate gratitude in your meditation practice, you can use the following techniques: 

1. Use the word “gratitude” as a mantra. 
2. Use one thing for which you are grateful as the object of your meditation, either as a mantra or an image. 
3. Set the intention that as you meditate you will notice things you are grateful for as they naturally arise in your mind. 
4. Practice any formal meditation practice designed to cultivate gratitude. 

Of course, when you are being harassed by negative thoughts, it often isn’t easy to find and focus on things you are grateful for. But apparently the effort of remembering to look for gratitude alone provides the benefits. And just like strengthening a muscle, a regular gratitude practice makes you stronger at being grateful over time. So you’ll be improving in your gratitude practice as you age! See The Biochemical Basis for a Gratitude Practice for more information on a gratitude practice. See Yoga Meditation Techniques for information about how to meditate. 

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The Power of Svadhyaya (Self-Study), Part 2

by Nina

Anatomical Body
India, Gujarat, 18th century

While preparing to write this post, I discovered that I had, uh, completely forgotten about some of the things I’ve written for the blog. (Hey, I’ve been writing at least one post a week—and sometimes two or three—for almost three years.) Yes, I was quite surprised to find a post about how we could use the wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita to heal from an election so divisive that even Big Bird wasn’t being nice (see Yoga Philosophy of the Day, Part 2), another about how I was using yoga philosophy to prepare for a trip to Germany that I was feeling uneasy about (see Yoga Philosophy of the Day), and a third about how we can use wisdom of yoga to change our behavior patterns (see Thinking About the Wisdom of Yoga). But it’s no surprise at all to me that I find yoga philosophy extremely valuable in my every day life. And I’ve written about that in a general overview—which I have not forgotten about—called Why You Should Study Yoga Philosophy.  

As I mentioned in my post Svadhyaya (Self-Study), Part 1, there are two different interpretations of the meaning of niyama svadhyaya (self-study). In his book The Yoga Sutras of Patajanli, Edwin Bryant says:

Svadhyaya literally means self-study, but it more commonly refers to the study of sacred texts (in a sense the two meanings overlap, since sacred texts typically teach about the self).

So while one meaning of svadhyaya is to cultivate your inner witness to study your own self as I wrote about my first post earlier this week, another is to study the yoga scriptures, such as the Bhagavad Gita and The Yoga Sutras, and—if you’re feeling brave—the Vedas and Upanishads. And this type of study complements your self-study because as you read these texts, you can reflect how to use the knowledge they contain. I consulted with Ram before writing my posts on svadhyaya’s two different meanings, and he recommended asking yourself these questions about the scriptures:

• How do you use the knowledge for self-empowerment? 
• How do you use the knowledge for the betterment of society? 
• How do you grow in body and mind after reading those scriptures? 

This kind of self-study can also include more than reading just the original scriptures themselves. As Ram said:

S(s)vadhyaya =education, study, or knowledge improvement that is gained from studying not just scriptures but any book or any experience that provides deep meaning or interpretation of life (that is, thought provoking).

So svadhyaya includes any books about yoga, whether books that interpret the scriptures, such as the Edwin Bryant book I mentioned above (which I frequently turn to), books about the history of yoga, such as Georg Feuerstein’s The Yoga Tradition about ancient yoga and Yoga Body: The Origins of Modern Posture Practice by Mark Singleton about modern yoga, or modern books about yoga (plus, our blog, of course). Obviously, texts from the religions of the world will also provide you with food for thought, but you should also consider psychology books and books about human behavior. Two of the non-fiction books that have influenced me greatly include Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn and A General Theory of Love by Thomas Lewis, Fari Amini, and Richard Lannon. Even fiction that explores the human condition can contribute to your self-study (I read an interesting New York Times article For Better Social Skills, Scientists Recommend a Little Chekhov that explained how literary fiction can help you develop empathy and improve your understanding of human behavior).

It makes a lot of sense that in our studies of the self, we should turn to the wisdom of others. After all, yogis and people of other cultures worldwide have been engaged in self-study for centuries, so we can learn a tremendous amount from their experiences. As a matter of fact, the single piece of yogic wisdom that I keep returning to in my everyday life is over two thousand years old:

The wise man lets go of all

results, whether good or bad,

and is focused on the action alone.

Yoga is skill in actions.

—Bhagavad Gita

Brad and I have been talking about that quote a lot lately because he has been taking on some big challenges at work and he finds that taking this yogic approach has helped him maintain some peace of mind. (And, yes, I do remember that I include that quote that in my posts all the time!)

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The Power of Svadhyaya (Self-Study), Part 1

by Nina

Tama River in the Musashi Province by Hokusai

One of the most difficult times in my life—and in my marriage—was when Brad and I were fighting over our future. When our children were small, he wanted the four of us to move to New York City because he was interested in a possible academic position at a university there, and I wanted to stay in Berkeley so I could keep my own job—which felt like a special opportunity to me—stay near my family, and raise our children in a house with a garden rather than a small apartment. Without going into details about our arguments, I’ll just say that our desires for our future were so different that it felt like they were tearing us apart. And I became extremely stressed out and anxious. But here’s the thing: although Brad interviewed for the job he wanted, the university decided not to hire anyone for that position after all. So in the end, all the angst we went through was over nothing. I eventually realized that this was a pattern in our relationship—battling over things that hadn’t happened yet. I also realized I had a tendency to be anxious about possible future scenarios. So after that I came up the following motto for myself: Don’t Panic Too Soon. Believe it or not, just having this simple motto has been quite powerful, and I continue to invoke it to this day. 

When Ram wrote his post The Second Branch of Yoga: The Niyamas, we both realized that we don’t have very many articles on the individual niyamas on the blog. Yes, we have a few posts on santosha (Santosha: Happiness and Longevity and Yoga Philosophy: Contentment) but not much else. So I decided to look at the list of niyamas to see if there was one I felt I could write about. It was easy for me to choose because there is one particular niyama that I’ve found especially valuable in my daily life: svadhyaya. In his post, Ram said of svadhyaya:

“The path to self-realization is also through introspection and contemplation of our own life’s lessons. Introspecting about our emotions, thoughts, actions, and reactions helps us to learn about our own self and our true nature. When we reflect on our flaws and allow our mistakes to serve as learning lessons, we have the opportunity to grow.”

In our journeys toward the equanimity that is yoga, we can all benefit from this study of the self. Ram explained that we do so by becoming a witness to our own selves. As a witness, you observe with detachment what’s happening within you—your sensations, thoughts, emotions, and feelings. The Sankrit word sākshī (saa-kshe), refers to the “pure awareness” that witnesses the world but does not get affected by it or involved with it. The term combines “sa,” which means “with,” and “aksha,” which means “senses or eyes.” So the sakshi is an awareness that can disengage from any identification with thoughts and observe them “with its own eyes.” Another meaning of the word aksha is “the center of a wheel.” When a wheel turns, the spokes revolve and the outer rim rotates, but the center—the hub of the wheel—is still. So the witness mind remains steady while events turn around it.

In meditation, your witness mind is essential. Your witness mind observes when your attention has wandered from the object of your meditation—and to what. Rather than floating down the stream of your thoughts, you sit on the shore and impartially observe from a distance (see What is Meditation?). But you can also use your witness mind during your asana practice by cultivating mindfulness (see What is Mindfulness?). To do this, step back and tune into the constant judging and reacting to inner and outer experiences that constantly stream through your mind. In your asana practice, it can be especially illuminating to use this technique when you practice challenging poses or poses you dislike.

Eventually you can use on your witness mind during any activity. In my post Mental Yoga: Thataashut I wrote about using my witness mind when I was trying to write a blog post while construction was going on outside my window. Observing my thought patterns helped me calm down and find some peace of mind even with people arguing outside and making the kind of invasive noise that only large machines are capable of. Observing your habits can help you change the way you react to stress (see Changing the Brain's Stressful Habits). And it can help you in general to change your patterns of reactivity (see Meditation and Brain Strength). All of this will help you cultivate equanimity in your daily life—not to mention fewer marital battles—and we can all use some of that.

That’s it for today. Svadhyaya actually has two different interpretations, and I was originally going to write about both of them in this post. But I’m starting to feel like I’ve gone on long enough, so I’ve decided to divide the subject into two separate posts. So stay tuned for another post this week on the second interpretation of svadhyaya: study of the scriptures.

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