Namaskar - Oct 09
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Dristi Santosha<br />
Be Yourself:<br />
Santosha & Self<br />
Acceptance<br />
Sara Avant Stover<br />
“I am an expression of the divine, just like a<br />
peach is, just like a fish is. I have a right to be<br />
this way…I can’t apologize for that, nor can I<br />
change it, nor do I want to… We will never have<br />
to be other than who we are in order to be<br />
successful…We realize that we are as ourselves<br />
unlimited and our experiences valid. It is for the<br />
rest of the world to recognize this, if they<br />
choose.” Alice Walker<br />
Let me begin with the disclaimer that I<br />
often need to follow my own advice.<br />
Maybe that’s why I write about these<br />
things. To remind myself. No more fixing<br />
yourself, Sara!<br />
It’s frightening for me to think about how<br />
many years I have spent trying to fix myself<br />
(or being in relationships with people who<br />
told me I needed fixing). Whether it was<br />
what I ate, how and when I ate, what kind<br />
of yoga I practiced, what my body looked<br />
like, how my body felt, how I felt. The list is<br />
endless. Nothing was exempt. I get<br />
exhausted just thinking about it.<br />
Now, thank Goddess, I’ve gotten to the<br />
point of radial acceptance. Who knows<br />
I have a friend who has a two-year-old<br />
daughter named Cecilia. I love going to<br />
lunch with them. Her mother always asks,<br />
“What do you want to eat, Cecilia?”<br />
And she always knows. Sometimes she<br />
asks for beans, rice, and chocolate.<br />
Sometimes, salad. Other times: “Fish<br />
would be just great.”<br />
The world would certainly be a happier,<br />
more harmonious place if it had more<br />
Cecelias. But it’s not too late for the rest of<br />
us, either. We need men, women, and<br />
children who are brave enough to follow<br />
their impulses rather than conform to some<br />
external standard of “normality.” Did you<br />
ever notice that the people whom you find<br />
Just relaxing into who you are is one of the<br />
bravest, wisest, and most generous things we can<br />
ever do for the world<br />
when or how that happened, but now,<br />
whatever I’m feeling, whatever my<br />
experience, I know it’s 100% okay. It might<br />
not always feel good; but I’m not wrong,<br />
weird, or unlovable because of it.<br />
We can get jumbled up, confused, led astray<br />
on these paths we call life. Whether it’s<br />
being swayed by swanky magazine covers,<br />
the woman next to you in a yoga class who<br />
seems to do every pose just right, or the way<br />
one of your colleagues always shines<br />
brighter than you, opportunities abound<br />
for ways that you can convince yourself that<br />
you’re just not good enough.<br />
The world’s fully of beautiful, talented, and<br />
creative women. We can’t always be the best<br />
at everything we do, but we can be<br />
ourselves. This we have control over. This is<br />
more reasonable. In yoga we call this,<br />
santosha, or contentment.<br />
most beautiful in your life are the ones who<br />
are unabashedly themselves?<br />
For today, just do it. Dare to be yourself.<br />
And see how much people love you for it.<br />
Sara is a yogini, writer,<br />
and yoga instructor based<br />
in Boulder, Colorado. She<br />
specialises in empowering<br />
women to lead more<br />
radiant, confident lives.<br />
Formerly living in Thailand,<br />
she returns to Asia yearly<br />
to teach, among other<br />
things, Women’s Yoga<br />
retreats. HappyWomanRetreat.com or<br />
TheWayoftheHappyWoman.com<br />
Just relaxing into who you are is one of the<br />
bravest, wisest, and most generous things<br />
we can ever do for the world.<br />
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