You Can Move Mountains

I am not sure how old I was when I first thought my mother was a little out touch with reality. I could not have been any older than three years old when I began believing that I had magical powers.

It was a day that I will never forget, slowly rocking under the massive oak tree in the swing my dad had built for us. I was getting a lesson on how to properly button clothing, when it came out of nowhere, “Danielle, one day you will be able to move mountains with your mind.” The statement could not have been any more blatant, and my young brain could not decipher the underlain meaning behind this weird talent I would one day attain. Being so young, I literally thought she meant that I would somehow one day gain the power of telekinesis, the ability to move objects with my mind.

Looking back, I only wish the message she was sending me was that simple.

We all have this power within us, the ability to move mountains. Of course, neither she nor I am referring to physical, tangible mountains that were formed over hundreds and thousands of years of tectonic plate movement. Rather, the enormous peaks that I grew up believing I had a chance at mastering were no more than illusions of my mind; and if it were not for my mother, I would have never realized the potential brewing inside of me.

Within the pages of “Inside the Yoga Sutras” by Reverend Jaganath Carrera, are many written practices, perceptions, and truths to living a happier and more fulfilling life. These Sutras or verbal truths, were orally handed down from guru to student for thousands of years, until someone decided it would be a good idea to write them down. All of these truths are given to us within a yogic practice. . . which essentially allow us to identify forms of suffering & fear within our life. They are referred to as the obstacles: attachment, ignorance, egoism, aversion, clinging to bodily life.

As I see it, each of these causes for suffering or obstacles can be called mountains; and these mountains must be moved. I can be looking directly at a particular summit, but whenever I turn around, I now face the opposite direction and the mountain is to my back. This does not mean that the mountain has vanished, but rather that it is behind me.

The same analogy applies when talking about the Yoga Sutras.

One of our mutual friends is suffering; her significant other just broke up with her and she is under the impression that her life is absolutely miserable without him. As any good friends would, we invite our mutual friend out for a night on the town, eating, drinking, and dancing the night away. Even though we all have a good time, this is only a temporary fix, perhaps even a distraction, to our friend’s problems and maybe even our own problems as well. We both know that if our friend does not deal with her problems head on, they will consume her entire life and lead to even more suffering.

Instead of self-medicating by drugs, alcohol, over-eating or not eating at all, excessive sleeping or exercise, a rebound, or whatever momentary solution tickles your fancy, by bringing problems to life we can alleviate the source of suffering in our lives. Unlike mountains, causes for suffering cannot be ignored; we cannot simply turn around and pretend our problems do not exist. They must be removed from our lives altogether.

Once removed, our attention turns inward and we are able to accept an endless abundance of gentleness, kindness, light, strength, unity, self-worth, and knowledge into our lives, as well as into the lives of everyone around us. The path to peace and understanding, however, is a not an easy one, nor is it a journey that can be made overnight.

Sutra 1.30 states that “Disease, dullness, doubt, carelessness, laziness, sensuality, false perception, failure to reach firm ground, and slipping from the ground gained- these distractions of the mind-stuff are the obstacles.”

They are our mountains. It takes much patience and self-exploration to attain the discipline and clarity necessary for a steady metal focus. Fortunately, the Yoga Sutras are excellent guidelines for removing these obstacles from our lives completely.

When I found yoga, I was enthralled and amazed by the sheer strength that yogis could achieve, and also how smoking hot their bodies were. So naturally, I began my practice with the intention of losing weight and hopefully getting a banging body in the long run. Over the years, my mind has created many different illusions of suffering, it just so happens that my cause for suffering at the time I found yoga was that I was ‘fat’.

Once I deepened my practice, I overcame the ‘fatness’ obstacle, realizing in the process that it was purely mental; there was absolutely nothing wrong with the way I looked, but that it was a personal belief that my mind had created for me.

Being free of my first apparent obstacle is one of my favorite accomplishments to reminisce on. However, it was only the beginning. After that initial goal had been met, something changed within me, and unknowingly, I woke up one morning to find myself waist deep in the thralls of mental and spiritual growth. At the time I had no clue what this journey would mean, but I could tell things about myself, memories buried deep, emotions tucked away for safe keeping, unpleasantries from my past were beginning to resurface. Oftentimes I would be practicing on my mat and just break down crying for no reason. Emotions were escaping; a release was needed because mountains were moving within me. For two years, I struggled with my issues and overcame obstacles without even knowing the science or reasoning behind what I was going through.

Jumping to the present moment, I now have a better grasp of my Self. I am much more patient and loving when it comes to listening to my body.

The Yoga Sutra that has resonated most with me and my yoga journey over the past several years is Sutra 1.15: “Nonattachment is the manifestation of self-mastery in one who is free from craving for objects seen or heard about.”

I think that everyone goes through phases of their life where we feel the need to purge; we can feel compelled to purge clothing, music, items of sentimental value; we cut people out of our lives, avoid certain public places, and quit listening to the radio. The same can be said for cravings as well. At times, we want anything and everything that will help boost our career, make us stand out, give us greater credibility or prestige, or because we think it will bring us happiness.

I would bet money that almost everyone has felt the urge to cleanse themselves of material possessions, emotions, or memories, as well as feel the craving for a shiny new sports car or new wardrobe. However, I can only speak for myself. I definitely go through stages of my life where I get an obsessive compulsion to rid myself of unnecessary things, but I can also become attached to certain possessions as well.

When I feel myself growing anxious or angry at the thought of giving up something that is mine, something I worked so hard to purchase or earn, I imagine my house catching on fire. It is a little morbid, but if everything I owned was destroyed, how would that affect my overall happiness? In all honestly, knowing the type of person I am, the loss of all material possessions would come as more of a relief than anything, but like I said, I can only speak for myself.

Let us pretend for just a moment that the distraction of earthly possessions has been eliminated completely. While we may think that we are free and completely unattached, nonattachment runs much deeper than it appears; selfish desires are the typical motivating forces of our minds, they pull it towards pleasure or away from the dread of pain. We do not have to change our entire way of life in order to eliminate selfish desires, instead we must change the way we think. Self-mastery that is expressed as nonattachment comes through a process of reeducating the mind. Our attachments and aversions, whether people, fear, rejection, love, sex, or desire are deceptive and selfish; we are drawn towards these attachments because we believe they will bring us pleasure, while aversions will bring discomfort.

Regardless if we are seeking pleasure or avoiding pain, as we journey through life we cannot rely on it for permanent fulfillments. The more we rely on the outside world for happiness, the more we experience dissatisfaction and craving. By turning our attention inward, we are able to let go of desire and selfish motivations, gaining a deeper understanding of the nature of our attachments. We must not forget that an undisturbed, focused, clear state of mind reflects the very essence of our being; we must acknowledge and remember that pure, unsaturated happiness comes from within our Self. When we live out of fear and ignorance, we will gain nothing but suffering.

It is only once we have fully accepted and embraced the mountains within our Self that we can begin to move them. To this day, I am grateful for that special moment with my mom, where she challenged my beliefs and where the limits of those beliefs fell. . . She opened my eyes to the true Reality of the world that existed within me. To this day, has never stopped grounding & guiding me in love to be the best version of my Self that I can possibly be.

Namaste.

-Dee