First Light
How First Light worksTuesday 27 October·
- Sunrise
- 07:55
- Quiet hour
- 06:19–07:07
- Brahma Muhurta
- Moon
- Waning gibbous
- Next full moon: Tue 24 Nov
Autumn
The quiet hour (Brahma Muhurta) is the traditional time for practice, just before sunrise.
भवप्रत्ययो विदेहप्रकृतिलयानाम्
bhava-pratyayo videha-prakṛti-layānām
For those beyond the body or merged in nature, this state comes from their very existence.
Yoga Sutras 1.19 · verse 19 of 196
Unfolding the thread
A puzzling verse. Patanjali says some beings (the videhas, "bodiless," and those absorbed into nature) slip into deep absorption simply because of the kind of existence they have, not through practice. Commentators warn that this isn't freedom: it's a pause that ends. The lesson for us is that states which just happen to you aren't the same as clarity you've cultivated.
Try today
Notice a moment of effortless calm today, in nature or music. Enjoy it, and remember that practice is what makes it last.
The Echo
The same truth, heard in another tradition
“Once upon a time, I, Chuang Tzŭ, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of following my fancies as a butterfly, and was unconscious of my individuality as a man.”
Get these in your inbox
No spam. Just honest writing on practice, awareness and conscious living.