Monday, October 25, 2010

"Beware of Tricks and Tempting Treats"

Halloween seems to be escalating in popularity every year, but it's my least favorite day of the year.  From my point of view, haunted houses, ghouls and witches have no part in any holiday (i.e. holy day) that I choose to celebrate. On ordinary days there seems to be enough evil prowling around and waiting to entice us into destructive habits without having a special day dedicated to wickedness, ghosts and pranks.  This is not to mention the known problems that sugar consumption can trigger.
No, I'm not completely opposed to young children "trick or treating" (although in my day the "tricks" of soaping windows and scaring old people were more like mischief-making than acts of kindness!)   Beware of the deception behind Halloween practices, and don't allow evil to enter your home or your mind.  I do know that it's more difficult to keep the door closed when it opens just a tiny crack.  Much like a python wraps its strong, muscular body around its victim and chokes the life out of them, seemingly harmless activities can strangle the unaware before the suffocation takes its toll.  
When you practice the yoga posture that imitates a serpent ready to strike, called "Cobra Pose" or Bhujangasana, remember all of the destructive temptations that surround all of us, not only during the nearly two-month-long preparations for Halloween.   DO NOT practice this posture if you are pregnant due to the compression across the lower abdomen.
  • Physically---After at least one or two "Salutations to the Son" (See the May 2009 blogs) to gently warm your muscles and joints, remain in the "Downward-Facing Dog Pose" for 3-5 long and smooth breaths.  Then inhale slowly forward onto the toes and both hands in "Plank Pose."  On a long exhalation allow the knees, thighs and then hips to float gently to the floor with the inner knees and big toes touching.  Inhale using three-dimensional chest expansion only ("belly breathing" restricts rib cage expansion) and ground into the tops of both big toes, the tops of both thighs and the pubic bone as the tail bone scoops down and forward.  During the next exhalation draw the pelvic floor and abdominals up and inward and press into both palms to create spinal extension in all of the spinal extensors for this basic prone, backbending pose.  Mindfully rotate both thighs internally (toward the center) as the torso and the gaze lift upward for 3-5 deep thoracic breaths.  Exhale to release the navel, ribs, and then one side of the face on the floor and rest for several breaths with the hands resting back beside the hips.  The lifting and then releasing of the upper body may be repeated several times before resting, but be sure to lift the torso during the exhalations and inhale while looking directly above the head, then exhale to release back to the floor.  
  • For a more challenging variation of "Cobra Pose", and since serpents do not have hands, try lifting the palms of both hands just a few inches off the floor with the forearms parallel to the floor and elbows pointing back toward the feet.   Consciously engage the deep back muscles to create lift rather than using the latissimus dorsi in the side body because these long side muscles cause the upper back to flex and the arms to rotate internally.
  • Mentally---It's very helpful to focus the full attention on engaging the deepest back muscles to create lift and space between the vertebral discs because slightly herniated spinal discs may return to their original position in some instances.  However, "Cobra Pose" is not meant  to replace x-rays and treatment by medical doctors.  It must be practiced regularly and mindfully in order to tone the entire spinal region by counteracting all the time spent in seated postures throughout the day. 
  • Spiritually---While entering into "Cobra Pose" I am reminded of how slowly and stealthily the enemy, often depicted as a serpent, creeps into our lives with temptations that are intended to destroy us.  The first letter written by the apostle Peter carries this warning:
"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour."    (I Peter 5:8, KJV)
Be careful how you acknowledge the pagan celebration of Halloween.   Namaste, plf