Yoga "tree pose" anchors you in the moment

June 9, 2:03 PMOakland Health and Happiness ExaminerSho Sho Smith

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Part 3 in the Living in the Moment series

Our bodies, not our minds, are the portals to the present moment. You can't think your way in. This moment is a room you have to physically walk into. A quick way to get there right now is to stand on one foot.

Tree pose, or Vrksasana in Sanskrit, a yoga balance exercise, literally roots you to the ground. 

1. Start by standing up, legs at shoulder distance, shoulders and arms relaxed, tail tucked under, chin tucked in.
2. Lift the right knee, grab the ankle with your right hand, and place the foot as high as you comfortably can against your left inner thigh until the tightly-pressed heel grips on its own.
3. Move the hands into the prayer-like Namaste pose in front of the chest, or raise your arms into a Namaste above the head.

As you relax into it, notice where your attention travels. The pose immediately requires you to vacate your head space and descend into your body.  Your eyes turn inward. Outwardly they see nothing but a fixed point. Sight, sound, smell, touch, scent, even your tongue, work together to create the downward force of a tree trunk focused on the quivering foot that holds everything up.

Piece of cake, you think, relaxing a bit.  Then along comes a thought – the talk with the boss, weekend plans – and there goes your balance. You right yourself, refocus, and another distraction comes. Wave after wave, you keep falling and righting yourself. Two minutes of this feels eternal, and, unlike ordinary life, you feel every second of it.

This is what it feels like to move between minute and moment, mind and body, centered and somewhere else. You are holding the paradox of living in your physical form. Some moments during prolonged standing feel effortless and as amazing as flying. Trusting in the body, your mind lets go and reaches a rare state of clarity. That’s when you know you have achieved balance and presence. That is what a true moment feels like. 
 

For more information, email Sho Sho Smith at whimsicaltaxidermy@gmail.com.