Calming the Fluctuations of the Mind

The past.

She can be a tricky thing.

The characters. The part I played. How it’s impacted my current situation.

And I wonder why. And how. And was I aware or on autopilot.

Probably autopilot.

But sometimes I was aware and I think- Is that worse? I said and did those things knowingly.

Cue the hurt, shame, confusion, spike in cortisol. Rise in blood pressure. Panic.

BUT WAIT.

I’m not there anymore. I’m here. Doing the best I can.

Isn’t that the same for most of us? All of us?

Yoga teaches us to be present in the current moment. It offers an outlet to process experiences in the body somatically. Breathing is not only encouraged, but a requirement. It promotes ‘focusing on one thing at a time’. Which, for the multitaskers of the world, might be a hard pill to swallow.

Gulp.

‘The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’ is a wonderful guide on the theory and practice of yoga (there are other translations available than the one I’ve linked). I turn to it when the ‘traveler’ (we’ll call mine ‘Tink’) in me takes the keys and starts up the time machine. Off she goes to the past, the future - anywhere but the present. Curious creature.

When I’m going through the hard things and struggle to focus on anything (and experience that quick blip where I remember there’s another way). I refer back to Yoga Sutra 1.2:

“Yogas Citta Vritti Nirodhah

The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is Yoga”

The vrittis (fluctuations) of the mind can position themselves as either painful or painless. They’re broken down as ‘right knowledge, misconception, verbal delusion, sleep and memory’. They’re the disrupters of the mind and can take one away from the present moment. They can take away from ones peace of mind.

Which, if one is in a constant state of distress, dis-ease and mis-alignment, it can lead to friction, distrust, conflict.

So how does one get to this calming of the fluctuations of the mind?

Contemplation. Meditation. Single pointed thinking. Non attachment. To mention a few.

Transparently (and I know I’m not alone here), my mind is in overdrive right now. Work is crazy. Personal stuff. The world. Social injustice. Wanting to focus on other things. Wishing there was more time. Wishing I could be in two, three, four places at once. Emotionally exhausted. Home sick.

The hamster wheel keeps spinning.

And so, that’s why I’ve thrown myself back into the Yoga Sutras.

Slowly (very slowly), I’m starting to notice when the distractions starts to consume me. Or when Tink takes over. I then physically shake it off, scream, swear or loudly exhale and then focus on one thing.

And it helps.

So, if you’re here and you’ve made it to the bottom of this post, I’ll leave you with this tidbit of advice.

If you’re driving your car and start to get worked up. You’re laying in savasana and the mind is racing. It’s 3 am and you’re firing off at all cylinders, straight from slumber. Disrupt the flow with noting ‘Thought’. Start there. Just ‘Thought’. And maybe it leads to ‘Thought arising, thought dissipating’. Once you’ve gained some control, you can continue with that, or focus on something, even something simple - I love to count. Or say my ABC’s. Pray (for those where that resonates). It helps tremendously.

Especially at 3am.

“Tat pratisedhartham eka tattva byasah’

The practice of concentration on a single subject (or the use of one technique) is the best way to prevent the obstacles and their accompaniments.” - Yoga Sutra 1.32

I’m working up to being able to focus on that single thing - my mind still wanders. It’s called a practice for a reason though, right?

Zita