June Gītā: 6.5

uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ
nātmānam avasādayet
ātmaiva hyātmano
bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ

Elevate yourself
through the power of your mind,
and not degrade yourself,
for the mind can be the friend and also the enemy of the self.

Bhagavad Gītā 6.5

I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from this sloka over the past year. It reminds me that even though most things in life are out of my control I can control how I react to things.

I’m the creator of my internal experience. I can choose to allow my mind to be my enemy by letting it run away with negative thoughts, fears and feelings of unworthiness or I can allow it to be my friend by taking a few breaths, acknowledging my thoughts as they arise, accepting them, and knowing they do not define me.

Remembering this all the time is the tricky part. Personally, that’s why I practise yoga. To create space between my thoughts. So I can recognise them as temporary and separate from my Self.  

Yoga practice keeps my wandering mind in check so we can be friends and not enemies (most of the time) :)

– Lauren Munday