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– Zora Neale Hurston
The winter solstice is out there and not that far away. Only 5 weeks from now our sunlight will already start to get longer each day. As we come up to the last month of the year we start to think about what it is we want for the future. What direction do we want to be headed as we cross over that line from this year to next?
Yoga philosophy has it’s own stories to tell through the wonderful world of Hindu Gods and Goddesses. In these stories we learn to see and develop a better understanding of ourselves and the world through metaphor. The story of GANESH, who is referred to as “the remover of obstacles”, “the lord of new beginnings” and “the lord of the threshold” is perfect for this time of year. He is symbolic of crossing the threshold of where we are now into a new experience. Ganesh represents having the courage, will, and strength to move from what is familiar to us into ambiguous spaces in order to learn and grow and create the lives we want.
So, we head into the dark, toward a new year and prepare ourselves for something new. We make an alter (literally or metaphorically), or in the yoga world it’s called a “puja,” and place in front of us what we want to become. We layer ourselves with experience as we make our way through a new year. We start again, and again and again. The sum total of those experiences is what makes the shape of our lives. It’s way we tell our stories for a new year and every year. What is the story you want to tell for 2016?
