Roadmap to Lucidity
inspired by Yoga Sutra 1.33 which reads: “maitri karuna mudita upeksanam sukha duhkha punya apunya visayanam bhavanatah cittaprasadanam”
The map to LUCIDITY?
YES! Have you heard?
Takes four states to get there~
Not that absurd.
The first is of FRIENDSHIP
toward those who are happy.
Even when you feel distant,
resistance and slappy.
The second is of COMPASSION
toward those in distress.
Tough when annoyed,
imposed on and stressed.
The third is of JOY
toward those who are good
through roadblocks of useless
and misunderstood.
The fourth is of EQUANIMITY
toward those who are foul
who are lacking in virtue,
and react with a growl.
Here in our mapping
Four residents are mentioned.
How we perceive them
Is our fierce contention.
Our attitudes we go for
From composure to kind~
Get us closer to LUCIDITY
Where we STABILIZE our mind.
Memorize these four~
And observe in daily life.
During times of quiet,
Noise, and even strife.
So buckle up~
And prepare for a ride~
To align your attitude,
And try the untried.
Close your eyes~
Feel the state you are in~
Soften your heart~
your throat, and your skin.
Drop your breath
right into your heart~
It’s made up of LOVE~
And that’s where you start.
Inhale with the thought~
May I be friendly~
Exhale with the thought~
May I give friendship.
.
May I be COMPASSIONATE
with your next inhale
May I give COMPASSION
with your next exhale.
Inhale with the thought~
May I have JOY~
Exhale with the thought~
May I give JOY.
May I have EQUANIMITY
with your inhale.
May I give CALMNESS
with your exhale.
When someone comes to mind
Offer these prayers
No matter their issues,
Their stains, or their stares.
May you be LOVING~
May you be LOVED ~
May you be PEACEFUL~
May you give PEACE~
Your states of envy and mean
Get smaller each time~
Intolerance is removed
You get closer to SUBLIME.
Once your mind is CLEAR,
And you’re CENTERED and FREE
Skillfulness in ACTION
Will be … Will be~
Yoga has become a great way for children of ALL abilities to become aware of their body, in line with their breath, and connected to the beautiful truth and peace within them. As an occupational therapist and devoted yogi, Allison Morgan of Zensational Kids (see 
As Earth Day approaches this year, I am struck by what it means to truly foster Peace on this planet. I remember as a child, learning about anti-nuclear protestors who chained themselves to fences and were forcibly removed and jailed. These brave souls became my heroines and heroes in the late 1970’s and 1980’s. I was moved to tears singing Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” and hearing stories of civil disobedience and the message of non-violent resistance. Later in the 1990’s, when I danced barefoot on my very first Earth Day, a lump would form in my throat when I celebrated each small victory (and the Gigantic Hearts) of environmental protestors who sacrificed so much to save a single tree and worked to preserve open space for our children’s children. Peace.
