Accompanied

We’re in the midst of Pitru Paksha, the fortnight of the ancestors – a two-week period in the Hindu calendar dedicated to honoring one’s lineage.

This traditionally focuses on the three generations that have passed: departed parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. It can also include beloved teachers, mentors, friends, and even pets.

Consider that your ancestors’ gifts – the strengths they cultivated, the skills they honed, the virtues they embodied - are your inheritance, a legacy you carry within.

It’s a powerful perspective to apply to your yoga practice as well. Just as you embody gifts from your ancestors, yoga itself is a living legacy passed down through generations of teachers and students. Your practice likely originated from someone who passed it on. And that person was influenced by their predecessors, and so on.

While most of what we call modern postural practice bears little resemblance to the practices of the original yogis, the essence of their quest remains unchanged. Though their lives may have looked very different from ours, they asked the same questions and forged the path to self-knowledge that we benefit from today.

Like them, we seek ways to find equanimity amidst life’s tumult and uncertainty, practices that bolster us in facing challenges, and tools to help us flourish.

In our post-lineage yoga world, it can be easy to overlook the influence of those who came before us, causing us to feel disconnected from yoga’s roots.

It’s heartening to acknowledge that when you come to your mat, you step into a river of practice and understanding that has flowed for millennia. You are accompanied by those who have come before you. With this remembrance, you are never truly practicing alone.