"When I was eight years old, my grandmother told me to perform Yoga to bring flexibility to my body. It's been 16 years since then that Yoga has not left me."

I grew up thinking that Yoga is about flexibility but sooner did I realize that practising Yoga leads to the transformation of mind, body and beyond. Just like any kid, I had umpteenth questions about too many things. So, I closed my eyes to know what is not known to me. Honestly, I didn't find answers but rather realized the enormity of this life.

Yoga means 'union'. When in Yoga, we perceive everything as one, right from the mind and the body to the plants around us which are otherwise distinct in our perception. Yoga works miraculously for people who practice it, as we understand, at this point, the mechanism of the human body thereby taking charge of ourselves. With Yoga, life is healthier and happier.

How does a simple process of turning up soil transform you?

The answer lies in understanding the essence of the earth in life. Every life form on the planet is made up of the Panchmahabhutas or the five elements- Dharti (Earth), Jal (Water), Vayu (Air), Akash and Agni (Fire). The Indian culture has always known the significance of Earth which is why she is adored as a deity. We see temples in the southern part of India, dedicated to five elements, one of them being Earth, where people would perform a specific spiritual practice for the upliftment of themselves. Also, Earth is considered the mother in Indian culture because of the feminine qualities that she carries- the quality of originating, offering, loving and healing.

We walk upon the earth and eat the food that it produces. We have made flesh and bone out of this earth which we call 'body'. This outer covering is nothing but the earth and one day it will disintegrate into the earth, again. Whatever we gather from earth settles down into different layers, one of them being memory. There are different types of memories, too, like mental memory, genetic, evolutionary and karmic memory as stated by Sadhguru in his book 'Inner Engineering'.

Gardening is one of the things I perform at my leisure. It's a fulfilling and happy feeling for me. Once, I was pulling out weeds in my backyard. I had to put in the effort because the soil was stressed and full of pebbles. During the process, a memory from my childhood began to recapitulate and it distracted me. Now, this is something that does not happen to me while I am playing with soil. It's relaxing in the presence of soil. This was a different experience and here's what I noted.

Every soil has a different texture, porosity and colour; but above all, it is alive. Therefore, the experience of being with fertile soil and stressed soil is unique. It affects our mind and the body. In the presence of the stressed soil, I could not concentrate on my work. The first to be affected is the mental memory because this layer can be accessed easily. This mental memory is what we all usually encounter while walking, listening to songs, working and lying on a bed, also.

Can we break free from the web of memories? Is Yoga a solution?

Indian Yogis have always known that the source of everything is within including freedom. The great Indian Yogi, Patanjali states in his 'Yoga-Sutra', that the eight components of Yoga are - Yama (external discipline), niyama ((internal discipline), asana (posture), pranayama (breath regulation), pratyahara, dharana (concentration), Dhyana (meditative absorption) and samadhi (integration).

Yama-niyamasana-pranayama-pratyahara-dharana-dhyana-samadhayo 'stav angani

So, yes. Yoga is the way of transformation from bondage to freedom, from a distracted to a concentrated mind.

Plant a sapling

Here's a simple thing that we can perform at home. It barely takes five minutes of our involvement.

1 Pick up a tool for turning up the soil. You might want to add water to loosen the soil a bit.

2 Begin with the segregation of weeds and any undecomposed matter from the soil.

3 Break the lumps of soil which are there and hold the moist soil for a while. Feel the presence.

4 Pay close attention to your breathing while you dig out a hole for planting.

5 Now, go ahead and plant your sapling.

Awareness of breath is all it takes to still the mind. Only when the mind is still that we can concentrate and connect with the soil, which is full of life; rich with diverse organisms.

If we perform this consciously, we become one with the soil or earth. This is Yoga. This is how we access a dimension within ourselves by turning inwards.

This simple act of gardening has helped me to be aware of the challenges of mind. It has helped me to be conscious of my breath and improved my concentration. I hope it works for you, too.

Thank you for reading my blog.

#savesoil #saveearth