Unshakable Faith

“No one is free from the inevitable pains of life, and while it might be tempting to lock down in the face of hardship and fight back against hurt, yoga leads you down a different path. It asks you to trust that everything is going to be okay and that you are strong enough to handle whatever comes your way.”

~ Kino MacGregor

I am reading, the yoga teacher, Kino MacGregor’s latest book The Yogi Assignment, and a chapter I read the other day was on Shraddha – or “unshakable faith.” I don’t post much about my yoga journey, but if it has given me anything over the past several years it is the faith described in this quote. Yoga doesn’t just change your body, but your mind and soul as well. It changes the way you think, and see the world. It teaches you to trust yourself. Through the yoga practice, we learn that our bodies are often capable of more than we believe, which teaches us that we are often capable of so much more than we believe we are in life as well.

Doing an arm balance like this (parsva bakasana – side crane) takes more than physical strength. It takes a steady mind, and trust in myself. If I don’t enter an arm balance with a calm mind, and faith in my own strength, I will fall.

Owning horses is not always rainbows and butterflies, but being strong enough to withstand the tough times of horse injuries, setbacks, and “failures” carries us through to the good times of ribbons and fun! I strongly encourage fellow equestrians to adopt a yoga practice! Mine has truly helped me to get through so many setbacks in my riding career, as well as life. There is a style of yoga for everyone too!! Whenever people tell me the can’t get into yoga, I am always tempted to say, “you just haven’t found the right style for you!”

Life will always provide us with challenges, horses or no horses, and through yoga we can find the strength within ourselves to get through them. If you have any questions about how to get started in a yoga practice, feel free to send me an email at laurelashtonwalker@gmail.com!