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From Jan Maslow
A FEW THOUGHTS FOR A WORKSHOP SERIES ON MOTHER’S QUALITIES
Taking the quality of courage as an example:
Part 1: Through discussion, develop a working definition of courage:
- Beginning with a brief period of quiet and invocation of Mother’s Presence, invite people to say what “courage” means to them.
- Using a whiteboard or some other way to visually record the responses, you can organize and integrate them for everyone to see in real time.
- After arriving at a synthesis of the various responses (perhaps something like:“a willingness to do what seems the wisest, kindest action that is in harmony with the Divine Will, according to our highest lights of the moment), you can look at some passages in which Mother and Sri Aurobindo talk about courage, see what may have been missing from the working definition, and create a new synthesis that includes the insights Mother and Sri Aurobindo provide.
Part 2: After collectively coming up with the definition, have a group discussion about how developing the quality of courage is relevant to sadhana (perhaps with some quotations from Mother and Sri Aurobindo). The list might include things like:
- Having a stable intention to develop the quality of Courage can help to focus the mind and strengthen the will
- Since fear is one of the chief obstacles in sadhana, overcoming fear is a great aid
- An intention to cultivate courage brings the fear-mongering antics of the ego into sharper relief
- Because the surface consciousness cannot stably respond with true courage, the intention to cultivate courage forces you to go deeper within
- In the transition from egoic to true identity, courage is needed to remain steadfast on the path and not be turned away by fear
- As the inner subliminal consciousness begins to open, courage may be needed to deal with forces that might be encountered in the inner realms.
Part 3 Having defined courage, and then seen some of the ways that developing courage supports the integral yoga sadhana, consider the obstacles to developing and acting with courage. Going up the chakras, these may include:
- Instinctive fears
- Weakness of the central vital will
- Emotional attachments that would be threatened by acting courageously
- Attachments to cognitive biases, beliefs, ideas that conflict with what the situation seems to be calling for
- An insufficiently developed mental will
- Lack of spontaneous trust in the Divine Grace
Part 4: Practice:
- Sit quietly for a few moments, observing what is present in the mind, heart and body – without judgment, without trying to change or control anything
- Allow whatever reactions, disturbing thoughts, etc., are present to quiet down at least somewhat
(This preparation is crucial. If one goes into this exercise without sufficient calm and detachment, there is a strong likelihood that the old karmic tendencies, and their corresponding neural pathways, will be reinforced)
- Bring to mind a situation that evokes the opposite of the quality of courage – a situation that triggers feelings of fear
- Notice how fear is being expressed:
- In the body
- Emotionally
- Mentally
- Now let go of this situation and turn inward to listen for the wisdom of the soul. Wait passively, without judgement or impatience, to see if an intuitive sense of what a true and courageous action or stance would be in that situation arises spontaneously
- Ask Mother to give you the courage to do what you intuit
- Remain quiet and receptive as you bring this practice to a close
Part 5: Between Sessions:
- Each day, pick one of the obstacles to courage and set a gentle intention to be aware, as you go through the day, of that obstacle being present
- Spend a few minutes each evening to look over the day from a quiet, non-judgmental inner stance and see where courage was blocked or expressed
- Identify some situation or activity that could require courage, that you may previously have avoided, and challenge yourself to do the courageous thing.
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