I learned the power of a mantra (as in repeated slogan or phrase) long before I contemplated the practice of yoga. Our youngest daughter was easily distracted, especially in her early elementary school years. So before school, when we were scrambling to get everyone out the door, one of us said very firmly (hopefully in a gentle, loving tone) "Christie, teeth and hair." Those were her main jobs and by boiling them down to this simple, oft-repeated phrase, we had a prayer that she would emerge from whatever was distracting her and get her tasks done.
A few years back, when I evolved from dabbling in yoga to become a regular practitioner, I searched for my own mantra. I was trying to stop my monkey brain from scattered thoughts when I should have been concentrating and focusing my mind. And for me, it was also about convincing myself that yoga is a personal practice and that it doesn't matter that someone else is more flexible or has better balance. So my early mantra was "Be present in the moment. This is not a competition."
Now, a half dozen years into my practice, I'm better at concentrating and emptying my mind. And I've given up the illusion that I'll ever be as flexible or well-balanced as other members of my yoga community. So now, a mantra becomes more like a theme for the week or the month. How can I boil my priorities down into a few words that I can repeat to myself periodically? This month, my mantra is
Books. Blog. Body.
Notice I'm posting a little more regularly? Maybe this mantra thing has legs.
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