Day 210 – On the flip side of desire coin, there is aversion. Rolf reiterates that hating something can be even more powerful, writing: “The staggering atrocities of the twentieth century and the horrifying terrorism of the twenty-first are all attributable to aversion.” Indeed, we feel it all around us–you are not like us, we, therefore, hate you. The opening quote by John Bradshaw confirms that aversion “can be exhilerating to the soulds of the toxically shamed person.“
Therefore, Rolf hypothesizes: “We spend our lives riding a wave of resentment and aversion that is so close to the surface that even the innocent person placing his mat too close to ours is enough to trigger it.” On the yoga mat, aversion plays a subtle role, according to Rolf, as “a teacher who is a distraction, or the position we do not attempt, or barely concealed contempt we express when describing different style of yoga.”
Why? Rolf states: “Because we do not want to admit how angry we are, how out of controle we are, and we cannot do anything about it.” Does this not sound like the American dream?
Rolf beautiful frames yoga as a solution, writing” The breath and postures allows us to systematically redifine who we are. The breath calms the mind and draws it inward, severing its ties with desire and aversion. The postures deconstruct our old definitions of self.” #letgo
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