I have met many incredible souls through the spiritual community. These people are an extended family all over the world. We share stories of beautiful miracles, inspirations, Divine connections, and love. The other day one of these beautiful souls asked me some questions. I asked him if I could create a blog post of these Q & A’s so that I could get some communication going about how the Spiritual path begins and continues to unfurl. He said, “Yes!” Here are the questions and answers from our conversation.
I had a beautiful time meditating over these today and this is what came out.
My interviewer Brian G. from Baltimore writes the following:
Heidegger wrote that he who poses a question always already knows something of the answer, lest posing the question be impossible. Please don’t be offended at my queries just as I shan’t take offense should you choose not to answer. I can’t speak for you, but in you I find a kindred soul, seeking to grasp but a drop of the great mysteries of existence and humanity. I believe that I can learn a great deal from you while respecting you as a friend. Please let me know what you think! Have a lovely evening.
(The question and answer interview follows. All Q’s were posed as written by Brian G. All A’s were written by Alana Roach)
Q.How did you first come to practice Yoga?
A. I believe that we all practice yoga from birth and then slowly begin to forget the practice as we age. I started yoga when I took that first breath and looked into my mother’s eyes.
As time went on I remember the first time I felt that pang of insecurity. I was dancing in a baseball stadium a few steps down from my Mom and an adult male looked at me, and laughed. In that moment I felt like I didn’t belong. I felt embarrassed. I wanted to be anywhere but where I was. In that moment I was unlearning yoga. I was learning about the ego which is also known as the me that is separate from you.
That ego took me on a journey of terror through addictive behaviors. I was incessantly trying to fill in the space that the ego had created in my soul. One addiction led to the other until one day I “Woke up.” My “Awakening,” happened when I started to explore meditation and prayer a little deeper. This “Seeking,” started to happen because I felt so empty. That empty feeling was what inspired me to reach for God. I used to think that God was condemning. That He sit on a throne, judging my every move. What I have found for myself is that He is none of these things. God is Me, and God is You, and God is all around Us and inside each and everyone of Us. I started to feel a gentle guiding hand through out my days due to my seeking. My seeking led me to my first yoga class in 2009. Now I continue to seek with the physical, mental, and spiritual practice of yoga, just as I did when I took that first breath and looked into my mother’s eyes.
Q.Had you a previous interest or did someone introduce you to it?
A. Yes, I had an interest in yoga before I tried it. At the time, Ashtanga was becoming big in the West with popular names like Madonna and Sting promoting the benefits of a regular practice. However, just like everything else that I was interested in, I sort of thought, “Well one day that would be nice,” and I would leave it at that. It was just a nice thought. I never bought a mat until my 4th or 5th class. I didn’t’ research it beyond looking at beautiful pictures and bodies that were the result of a disciplined practice. I didn’t even know what, “Yoga,” meant.
I first attended yoga with some friends. I tried one yoga center that deemed popular at the time and liked it but not enough to truly seek it out again. About 2 months after that, another friend rang me up and asked me if I would like to try another studio that was closer to my home. Remembering the past experience, I was intrigued but not at all motivated by the offer.
Everything in me wanted to say, “No.”
However what came out was, “Yeah, sure!”
Off I went. Today I know that it was that gentle guiding force I spoke of before. At this yoga studio, with this teacher, at this time, I was ready for yoga. Yoga was, in fact ready for me. I believe yoga finds us when the time is right. I believe that I had shown the Universe that I was ready to evolve, to change… I believe that the Universe called me home, to Yoga. I am so very grateful to my friends, whom I believe are channels of the Divine, and for the Divine synchronicities that lead us to our destiny.
Q.What Truth(s) has God or the universe revealed to you? Have you always been so attuned to matters spiritual?
A.The Truths that have been laid out to me by the God or Universe are as such-
We are One. We have chosen to be here as human beings to learn and grow Spiritually in order to Evolve. In order to ascend we MUST seek that which is this, “Truth.” That “Truth,” is that we are One with the Divine. We must know this with every fiber of our being. We must remember this to know that we are all part of the Infinite, the spark of the Divine, pure Love. To know this is to end separation and war. Once this Truth is remembered, we must help to pass it on.
I believe that practicing meditation, pranayama, yoga, and service to others help us all become attuned to that place with in us that is Divine. I did not become aware of this until I had a conscious Spiritual practice.
Q.Lastly, what is one thing I can do now to deepen my awareness of and attunement with God or the Universe?
A. Practice, practice, practice. Find a discipline that calms the mind and brings you to the present moment. Let yourself crumble and then give in to being built back up by this discipline. Breathe deeply. Laugh often. Love passionately. Weep with fervor. Find the art of, “Non-Doing,” and simply just, “Be.” In that moment you will remember that we are all just a breath away from being in tune to the Universe, to God.
(Read more on how I found Yoga on a group and individual level here -> https://explorationsofself.com/2013/03/31/how-i-found-yoga-my-home-practice/. )
Alana Roach
CYT, RYT, Reiki, Wellness Professional, Freelance Writer
Alana’s love for yoga came from firsthand experience with just how powerful the practice is. “In 2009, Yoga found me. Inside the studio, she experienced a deep sense of belonging, but the most profound part was what happened after. “I felt as though I was at true peace. I finally knew what the word meant. Until that moment, I had just understood it cerebrally. There is something profound to be said about Peace dropping into the heart.”