Spring Cleaning
/For many of us, the spring season creates deep stirrings within ourselves to clean house.
We sweep and dust in the deepest corners. We empty closets and drawers to reevaluate the contents, keeping some, donating, repurposing, or disposing of the rest. We clean the windows to let the light come in and, when we can, we open the windows to let the fresh air in. What motivates us to clean this way in the spring instead of mid-winter when there isn’t much else to do?
In yoga philosophy and pranayama study we explore the concepts of sukha and dukkha. Sukha is light space. Dukha is dark space.
Think of a hoarding situation or someone who keeps everything. Things pile up and become stagnant. Even those things that were once useful or beautiful lose their luster and purpose over time. New things (sukha) are added to the space, yet they cannot truly shine, or serve their purpose, when they are crammed in with the old (dukkha). To reap the benefits of the new things (sukha), we first make room for them by removing some of the old things (dukkha). The more space we make, the more room we have to fill with sukha.
Our yoga poses and practices, particularly Hatha, Vinyasa, and other active styles of yoga, remove dukkha by wringing out the muscles, tissues, and organs. Our circulation is increased, and our respiration deepens, facilitating more efficient removal of waste from the body. At times we may even sweat and allow for the release of dukha through the pores of our skin. Now, there is space that may be filled with fresh oxygen and nutrients – sukha.
Massage and other bodywork practices have the same effect, with the practitioner’s techniques of pressing, kneading, and gliding simulating the natural actions of the body in movement. We get many of the benefits of physical movement while at rest. Sluggish dukha is cleared, making room for invigorating sukha. Counseling and spiritual guidance sessions give us the opportunity to remove dukha from the mind, and energy work removes dukha from the subtle body.
We may make space for sukha with a cleansing diet.
You may have noticed that I have suggested the active and intentional removal of dukha while the addition of sukha is passive or allowing. This is not to say that we can’t or shouldn’t seek sukha. We certainly can seek those things which are fulfilling, nourishing, and stimulating if we have space in which they can reside. We do not have to, though. When the space is clear, sukha finds its way or, as one of my teachers often says, “Release fully, and the Universe rushes to fill the void.”
Try this simple, guided breath practice to feel the play between sukha and dukha.
