Really?

One of the basic ideas in yoga is that humans are impressionable. Everything we experience – every movement, every thought — leaves an impression that we carry forward into the next moment. We experience this quite clearly in our bodies. If I spend a long time weeding today, my back, shoulders, and hands may be stiff and sore tomorrow, retaining the impression of their efforts. If I frequently carry a child on my hip over the years, that side of my body will strengthen and shorten and might stay that way the rest of my life.

We develop emotional and mental habits as well. Responding to a situation with anger makes anger more likely the next time we’re in a similar situation. We are even swayed by minor, inconsequential cues that never rise to consciousness.

In Sanskrit, these impressions are called samskaras. The past conditions the present, and because of this, an ordinary person is never really free.

Habit is necessary in order to function. We could not move if we had to think about each muscle. And it is difficult (and sort of offensive) to imagine that everything we do is always predetermined. What do I believe about predetermination vs. free will? I believe it’s very interesting to investigate.

Homework

As you practice this week, be precise in your expectations so that you can observe your habits. Notice this in your muscles and joints, but also in your approach to your practice. How do you decide when to come out of a pose? Which side to do first? Do you have habitual emotional responses?

Urdhva prasarita padasana, adho mukha svanasana to lunge to parsvakonasana, savasana

Some miscellaneous resources to get you thinking

This link takes you to a six-minute clip of a magician manipulating others. Kind of funny. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RksLFJ7A2M

This link takes you to a recent New Yorker review of some books on the subject. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/11/13/determined-a-science-of-life-without-free-will-robert-sapolsky-book-review

My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor is a short book about a brain scientist recovering from a catastrophic stroke. She does a good job explaining the way we develop mental habits (and why and how we might want to question them).