Yoga helps us recover good space

Making space.

 When we have an open, spacious feeling in the center of our chest, that’s sukha or “good space.” Smiling, long smooth breaths, and positive peaceful feelings go along with sukha. When there is a closed or heavy feeling there, that’s duhkha, or “bad space.”  Sadness, short shallow breathing, and negative thinking are associated with duhkha. In these pandemic years, I’ve experienced all of it -- sometimes within the same hour.

In yoga, we give attention to what happens in our interior and inner spaces. When we make time to practice, we tune into the things that are rattling around in the body, mind and emotions. We can acknowledge and attend to our inner experiences. So much of our attention is oriented toward the outer world — but yoga practice isn’t about performing or measuring up. Yoga helps us to recover sukha. Good space.