Yoga is Union to the Self
Yoga is all about union, and there is a misconception that this means union to everything. Well.. it really is about reuniting with yourSELF!
Our Yoga teacher makes the very good point that there are many things in life that we don’t want to be unifying with. Some situations, people, things in life do not give off any type of energy that you will want to unite with. And that is okay! Because Yoga isn’t about all of that external stuff. It is about unifying with your true self, so that you can be a better human and live a better life.
Yoga is union… and what we really mean by this is the ego sense of self and the true self merging. That is how we thrive as a human both physically and internally.
The Ego Self
We do need the ego to navigate human life, it is a very essential part of who we are. However, it is not only who we are. The misconception that it is leads us to forming our self-image around our roles, positions and possesions obtained in life. The reality is that we are more than the ego… and if all of those things fell away we would still be who we are to the core.
The True Self
When all of the things our ego builds into our self image falls away, we are left with who we are to the core. That sense of who we are does not change, no matter how the circumstances in our lives do. That sense of who we are is the true self. The more subtle aspect of who we are that gets forgotten under the ego sense of self.
When we say Yoga is union, we are trying to remember that true self. The core aspect of our being. So, by understanding our ego self and true self, we can unify both and create the perfect combination of physical and subtle energy to carry us through life.
We need both!
We need the ego to help us navigate the world around us, the materalised side to life. And we need the true self to navigate us to ultimate, soul-aligned joy that makes our heart full as we move through our physical experiences. If we rest too deeply in one or the other, we start to lose sight of how to thrive the most in our human experience of life.