We’re an hour into Lent on the East Coast. I am not Catholic but for three days I’ve been racking my brains about what to give up for the next forty. Over the years I’ve given up tangible things like wine, chocolate, and coffee. I’ve tried intangible concepts like giving up fear or procrastination. The first time I gave something up for Lent it was simply for the challenge. Although I was baptized in the Anglican faith we didn’t give things up in our house. But something about the practice appealed to me. Unlike a bet where the impact of failure is material, the spiritual aspect leant a certain gravitas. Later when I did my yoga teacher training I learned about the practice of sadhana: a discipline performed for forty days in pursuit of a goal.
Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best.” ~ Yogi Bhaja
I am completely smitten with the practice. Whenever I’m feeling a little untethered, practicing a Sadhana for forty days gets me centered and grounded. Unlike the fasting principle behind Lent, a sadhana isn’t about deprivation. It is about what will inspire our best efforts.
I still can’t decide whether giving up wheat and gluten (I could LIVE on bread and butter for forty days easily) or committing to early morning meditations would bring out my best. I’m going to have to sleep on it.
I’d love to hear if anyone is inspired to pursue a Sadhana as a personal challenge!
2 Comments
Namaste Consulting Inc · February 23, 2012 at 12:05 AM
I wonder if anyone ever adds practices rather than gives us something.. for insistence, does someone decide for 40 days to give to the homeless, to spend more time with their children, to go to visit a nursing home… I wonder if these things would help the world as much as giving up something…
Good luck with whatever you decide to do!!!
just *k · February 23, 2012 at 9:42 AM
i think those are all great and valid ideas! i think we’ve traditionally focused on personal practices with the idea that being ‘better’ in our own life will make us ‘better’ in society as a whole. any way you look at it it’s all for the greater good.