''The Cycling Sutras'' ... ?
Hey there ... welcome to my blog :-) ... and thank you for being interested and taking the time to read the lines I drop here! While you are reading this I have probably already taken off on a two month cycling adventure, taking my yoga practice and mat on the road and connecting this experience with the philosophy behind it... This is also a way for my family and friends to keep track on what I am up to and be sure ... I am safe and in one piece ;-)
So let me tell you about the story behind the ''Cycling Sutras'' ...
During my studies as a yoga teacher and while continuing my practice and teaching afterwards ... diving into the yoga philosophy changed a lot my perspective on things ... and helped me observe more my own life patterns, good and bad ones. Mostly it showed me more the unsorted ‘’mind-stuff’’ I had to work with rather than giving me peace and serenity as a lot of people expect while taking a yoga class for the first time: "inner peace while sitting on lotus smiling’’. This constant practice actually doesn't stop while stepping out of the mat or the class... then it's the time it actually begins. Sometimes holding on to an asana (posture) and endure the physical pain and discomfort is less painful than facing all the ‘’life flaws’’, the mentally and emotionally fixing needs to be done, when the practice becomes more internal. After this first step has been taken … Pandora’s box opens for good! Lot’s of things a practicioner doesn't sign up for comes to the surface ... I just had no clue where to begin with sorting out my ''mental closet'' :-)
I still remember that winter day beginning of February 2015 that I felt my glass filled up with it's last drop.I was sitting on a train coming back home from a busy day. I closed my eyes and took a big breath. And felt how beautiful that is … a small thing you don’t even take the time to notice during the day, that is enough to keep your heart beating enables you to be connected into a body/mind system experiencing life. Breathing is just a miracle on it’s own …I stayed there just observing the little abyss of drama my mind had created to float in, feeling misery and sadness for a while! And then I smiled realising how human beings enjoy creating this ‘’no way out’’ situations to ourselves and feeding of drama. Really, I believe its a needed thing, cause somehow it makes us re-boot and re-motivate ourselves just to give us a sense of accomplishment after. Isn’t that funny?
Suddenly I had an idea! (imagine a lamp icon here :-) ) And for people that know me … that's not always a good thing haha! It was then I decided that this summer I would take a two month solo trip, studying the essence of Patanjali's scripture ‘’The Yoga Sutras’’ reflected on my everyday experiences and life and write about it. And what a better way than cycling for two months? Last year I had some time to join my friend Jamie Anderson on his ambitious journey for a while and cycled around Germany, France and Switzerland, finding it a very inspiring way to re-connect with ones self and enjoy freedom through simplicity of traveling and living with the basics.
Cycling is a really concentrating practice for me, definitely takes me out of my comfort zone, keeps my mind clear, and pushes my limits and discipline. Like an asana … on wheels :-) Having the opportunity to camp in nature, keep up with my healthy lifestyle, staying away from big cities as much as possible, and challenge myself to stay committed to my everyday yoga practice on the mat while being on the road while taking some time to turn my senses inwards. I wanted to make this journey a ‘’constant moving meditation’’ and see if I could find more answers there.
Oh well … I was excited being all adventurous in my pink fluffy bubble … now I had something important missing. First being realistic with making my plan a working one and second: I would start cycling from Netherlands to ... where?
‘’Where to go?’’ … another idea came to my head… a destination that had always been appealing to me and one word came out of my mouth: Morocco! “Sorry miss did you say something?’’ the guy sitting next to me on the train asked me. ‘’No … nothing’’ I replied. Quickly he turned back reading his newspaper while I increased my volume into my iPod …the tune ‘’follow the sun’’ by Xavier Rudd had a whole new meaning for me at this moment and I could see my reflection on the window smiling! Then I decided it was a nice afternoon after all :-) A thought started manifesting...