Reclined Butterfly: The Butterfly Dream

Yin and Yang now is mostly understood as Sun and Moon. A day consists of day time and night time. In nature, after the sun is sets, the moon rises. Practicing Yin yoga is to cultivate the Yin side of our selves, and it’s “a quiet practice”. Holding in the position, we can close our eyes, quietly listen to our body, listen to our breathing, and listen to the voice within our heart.

According to Paul Grilley, Yin yoga “is not just another brand name of yoga postures, but the expression of theories derived from Chinese medicine and Taoism.” And one of the leading figures of Taoism is Zhuang Zi.

Zhuang Zi (Zhuang Zhou) is known for his unconventional attitude towards death. He looks at life and death as a natural process like the sequence of the four seasons. Thus, when his beloved wife passed away, he was singing and hitting a drum instead of crying. When people question his behavior. He says, “To go about crying while she is in the  abode of the universe would be for me to declare that I am ignorant of the laws of nature.” Lamenting death is like lamenting the season change from summer to autumn.

Zhuang Zi writes about his famous dream – The dream of a butterfly. One day, Zhuang Zhou was dreaming that he became a butterfly, flying freely and happily. When he woke up, he wondered if it’s the butterfly in his dream or he is in the butterfly’s dream. Of course, he didn’t contemplate too much about who was the dreamer. He knew if he was stuck in worldly material duality, he would be entangled in the web of his own mind. Zhuang Zi sees the duality but is not caught in it. Thus, the attitude he looks at life and death with is all about Qi (energy). And he tells us, “Birth is gathering of Qi, death is dissipating of Qi.” Human beings as well as the whole universe, are merely Qi and its form’s transformed.

The pose Reclined butterfly is similar to the pose Butterfly. However, changing the form from sitting to recline makes a difference. First, the reclined position takes the pressure off the lower back. Second, our chest is opened up and can create more space for breathing. Third, with props placed for support of a needed body part, such as a block under each knee, it becomes a restorative pose for rejuvenation. 

Enjoy the practice!

Notes:

1. Paul Grilley, Yin Yoga: The Foundations of a Quiet Practice, DVD (Pranamaya, Inc., 1993)
2. Paul Grilley, Yin Yoga: Outline of a Quiet Practice (Ashland, Oregon, White Cloud Press, 2002)
3. Zhuang Zi (Beijing: Peaceful Press, 2004). 庄子，中国和平出版社

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The Courage to Face Death

Death is not a topic that people like to talk about. It’s usually associated with sadness and grief, and it’s frightening to think about. However, avoiding conversation about the end of life may be the source of our anxiety when facing death unprepared. Since death is inescapable for everyone and can happen at any time, we should not ignore this subject. Instead of keeping away from knowing, we should learn more about death and let it be associated with the search for wisdom. Such wisdom gives us insights about death and what we can do to fearlessly face the inevitable end of life.

A classical text of Indian spirituality that helps understand death is the Katha Upanishad, which records the teachings of Yama, the Indian god of death. The Katha Upanishad is a dialogue between Yama and Nachiketa, a teenager who was offered to the god Death. Yama played the role of the teacher and answered questions raised by Nachiketa. During the conversation, Yama told Nachiketa the existence of a deathless Self and that “Those who realize the Self are forever free from the jaws of death” (Katha Upanishad I.3.15). According to Yama, people feel sorrow concerning death because they don’t understand the Self, and which is “formless in the midst of forms, changeless in the midst of change” (I.2.22). Just as the beauty of nature won’t be affected by the changing forms of the seasons, the blissful Self won’t perish when one dies.  

Nachiketa, after being aware of the results of Self-realization, next inquired how one could know that blissful Self. In response to his query, Yama mentioned yoga: “When the five senses are stilled, when the mind is stilled, when the intellect is stilled, that is called the highest state by the wise. They say yoga is this complete stillness in which one enters the unitive state, never to become separate again” (II.3. 10-11). The god of death commented that one could realize Self through sense-restraint and disciplined meditation practice (yoga). Even though the path is difficult and “sharp like a razor’s blade” (I.3.14), the reward is incredible: “Eternal joy is theirs who see the Self in their own hearts. Eternal peace is theirs who see the Self in their own hearts” (II.2.12-13). It can be seen that, traditionally, yoga plays an essential role in recognizing spirituality within oneself and exploring the mystery of death.

Acceptance of death helps nourish life. When Nachiketa was given to Death by his angry father, he took it as an opportunity to seek the secret of death. Because of his determination and pure heart, Nachiketa not only overcame death but also brought about teachings from Death that have inspired thousands of seekers to start a journey to understand death and beyond. A person who takes death seriously will eventually come to understand and appreciate life.

Both the dying and the person who sees the death are involved in the death process, the process that causes physical and emotional suffering. Dealing with death is never easy. Perceiving ancient wisdom provides a chance to let go of the fear of death, and the actual spiritual practice gives us the courage and strength to go through the pain of loss. Let our understanding of death help us bring appreciation to life. 

Reference:

Quotations of the Katha Upanishad from The Upanishads, introduced and translated by Eknath Easwaran (Berkeley, CA: Nilgiri Press, 2008)

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No Death, No Life

Even though human beings’ lifespans are getting longer and longer, for me, it’s a blessing if I can die before I get all the age-related diseases, such as depression and dementia. I was sick a lot when I was young. Thus, health is always my main concern. However, as I become older, I realize that no matter how well I take care of my body, disease and death will come sooner or later. It’s simply a law of nature. Just as the elixir of life cannot make us immortal, science and technology cannot make us live forever. In fact, a life without death can be a disaster. As there is no death, there is no life. I learned this from a kid’s fiction book. 

When my son was five years old, his grandfather passed away. To help him go through the process of losing a loved one, I borrowed a few books from the library. One of them, even though I forgot the name of the book, impressed me with a clear message: no death, no life. The story talked about a preteen boy in a small town, and his mother was very sick. One day, when the boy was wandering outside his home, he saw a man in black walking toward his home. Knowing that he is the god of death and is going to take his mother’s life, the boy was so upset and angry that he squeezed the god of death into a shell. 

When the boy went back home, he was happy to see that his mother looked much better. However, when he tried to cook some food for his mother, the boy found out that he couldn’t cut vegetables from the garden or break an eggshell. Furthermore, the next day, when he tried to buy some meat from the butcher, he was told there was no meat available because knives would not be able to cut animals. The boy suddenly realized that when death is contained, life is also gone. He released the god of death from the shell, and the god of death allowed the boy’s mother to live longer. Many years later, when the god of death came again, the boy was able to accept the death of his mother in peace. 

The fictional kid’s story tells us that death is needed for life, a reality for kids to understand. However, I think we all need to understand this reality, as everyone has to face death when the time comes, even gods. In yoga, the warrior pose is named after Virabhadra, who rose as a result of Shiva’s suffering over his wife Sati’s passing. And Shiva is known as the god of destruction. Shiva, also known as the first yogi (Adiyogi), in mourning for Sati, meditated at Mount Kailash. Practicing yoga can be more than just strength and stretching; it can become a journey for spiritual warriors to go through the fire and rise from the ashes; go through death and find peace!

Notes:

1. World Health Organization (WHO), Ageing and health, 1 October 2022.
2. B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Yoga (London: Thorsons, 2001).

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Yoga and Life: One Foundation

To practice yoga, it’s good to know what yoga is for, and how to guide the mind in a desired direction. To teach yoga, it’s good to know others’ purpose for attending a yoga class and how to bridge our understanding of yoga to others’ goals without losing the root of yoga. No matter if we practice or teach yoga, we need awareness. While the mind struggles with duality, awareness and looking deeply help us acknowledge and accept the impermanence of nature. Mindfulness, which “means awareness and looking deeply,” is the foundation to help us see through the duality of the mind and find tranquility in reality.

In addition to ending the disturbance of the duality of mind, mindfulness provides a solid foundation for bringing peace and joy into life—a life that includes unavoidable dilemmas as well as an inevitable end. After seeing my father suffer while dying, I suddenly realized that a peaceful death cannot be achieved by spiritual practice alone. A peaceful death also requires awareness of reality. The reality is that doctors will prolong life at all costs, regardless of the body’s condition and age.

In 2017, my father was in the hospital, and my sisters and I were taking turns by his bedside for about two weeks before he died. I knew he was dying because of his age and overall health condition. However, what upset me most wasn’t his dying, but the suffering he had to go through before his death. Modern technology didn’t help to relieve his pain; in fact, it was another cause of his suffering. He had infusion tubes in his hands and legs and feeding tubes in his nose. My father could not speak, but every time the feeding tubes were put in, I could see he was in pain, and one time I even saw tears come out of his eyes. The doctors said he was incurable. He should not have had to suffer from all these tubes. He should have been allowed to die a natural death in peace. For me, this type of medical intervention to delay death is a crude interference with natural death and is scarier than death itself.

I have experienced my eldest sister‘s death, who suddenly died due to an accident when she was young, but the direct experience of seeing an elderly person dying in a hospital was a shock. I realized that even if my father were a warrior with a strong will, when the body cannot move and the mouth cannot speak, the powerful will is powerless. His life is in someone else’s hands. Furthermore, even if I can accept death when the time comes, facing reality is another story. Without a deliberate act of self-care and serious, careful planning, the dying process can be totally controlled by someone who just follows a hospital procedure. After my father’s death, I looked for information on end-of-life care and hospice care and was glad to find out that, by making an advance care plan, I can refuse or withdrawal from treatment by appointing a substitute decision maker in advance. Hopefully I won’t be kept alive by using “advanced” tools at the end of my life like an animal in a slaughterhouse, at the mercy of others.

Mindfulness, like the moon that illuminates the dark sky, gives us insight into life. In facing old age and the dying process, I know I need to cultivate an attitude of acceptance through mindfulness. Accept that a lifespan has limits, allowing death to happen without relying on modern medicine to remain viable. A dignified and peaceful death requires ongoing mindfulness practice in life.

The following Warrior II sequence includes three poses: Warrior II, Half Moon, and Peaceful Warrior. It starts and ends with Warrior II, which also occurs between Half Moon and Peaceful Warrior. The practice is to cultivate inner strength, the art of balance and awakening the heart with mindfulness.

Notes:

1. Thich Nhat Hanh, The Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness in Awakening of the Heart : Essential Buddhist Sutras and Commentaries (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2012), 117.
2. End-of-life Care, https://www.advancecareplanning.ca/

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The Ultimate Qi – Luck and Fate

Yun Qi means luck, fortune, and fate. We can look at Yun Qi in two ways.

1. Creating luck
2. The laws of nature 

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Creating Luck

Luck can be created. A Chinese creation myth can give us some ideas of how to create luck.

Before creation, the cosmic egg was in a chaotic and cloudy state. Pangu, a giant, was born from this egg. He was inside the egg for about 18,000 years and didn’t like the uncleared and hazy condition. Pangu then wielded a huge axe and broke the egg in half. The murky heavy Yin Qi descended and became the Earth. The clear light Yang Qi ascended and became the sky.

Even though the Yin and Yang moved in different directions, they were also attracted to each other. To keep them separated, Pangu stood between the Earth and the sky and pushed up the sky. Every day, Pangu would grow taller, and the Earth would grow thicker and the sky would separate further and further away.

After 18,000 years of holding the sky, Pangu died. His eyes became the sun and moon. His body parts became mountains, rivers, minerals and plants of the Earth. The world was formed.

So, how to create luck? First, take the time and have a tool on hand, like Pangu had the axe. If we don’t have one, take the time to make the tool. Luck does not happen randomly. “Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.”

Second, take action and open the mind. Obviously, without actually taking action one cannot break through the door of luck. Also, we need to open our minds. A closed mind won’t have enough space to invite fortune to come in. We need to keep growing and expanding our views.

Last, be persistent. Don’t forget the Chinese word luck is Yun Qi and the literal meaning of Yun is to transport. Because of the slippery nature of energy, it’s not easy to transport Qi, to create luck. It needs continuous effort, like Pangu holding the sky for his whole life.

Have fun creating luck and good luck with transporting Qi.

The Laws of Nature

Literally, Yun also means revolve, motion.

Because the Earth revolves around the sun and the moon revolves around the Earth, we see the bright moon become the invisible new moon and then gradually back to full moon again. Lunar phases can be observed and predicted but cannot change.

Similarly, from the point of view of life, we can also see the main phases of life: birth, old age, sickness and death. Yun Qi is the unavoidable fate. A Chinese idiom says, “gathering of Qi is birth, dissipating of Qi is death”. Birth and death are merely the result of the motion of Qi. As time moves on, when it’s time for Qi to dissipate, nothing can stop this. It’s the law of nature.

On the other hand, the law of conservation of energy tells us that energy can neither create nor destroy, that it can transfer from one form to another. In the ultimate dimension, from the point of view of energy, there is no beginning, no end, no birth and no death.

Nothing dies, everything transforms.

– Thich Nhat Hanh

May we be at peace with the ultimate Qi – Yun Qi. May we be at peace with whatever comes.

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