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.
व्याधिस्त्यानसंशयप्रमादालस्याविरतिभ्रान्तिदर्शनालब्धभूमिकत्वानवस्थितत्वानि चित्तविक्षेपास्तेऽन्तरायाः
vyādhi-styāna-saṁśaya-pramādālasyāvirati-bhrānti-darśanālabdha-bhūmikatvānavasthitatvāni citta-vikṣepās te 'ntarāyāḥ
Illness, dullness, doubt, carelessness, laziness, craving, confusion, not progressing and not holding steady: these distractions of the mind are the obstacles.
Yoga Sutras 1.30 · verse 30 of 196
Unfolding the thread
A remarkably honest list. Nine obstacles, and every one familiar: getting ill, feeling heavy, doubting it works, forgetting, not bothering, being pulled by desires, misunderstanding, not getting anywhere, and losing ground once you do. Naming them helps. Obstacles aren't a sign you're failing; they're the terrain every practitioner crosses.
Try today
Which of the nine visited you this week? Name it without judgment. The verses that follow turn to what helps.
The Echo
The same truth, heard in another tradition
“That which is a hindrance is made a furtherance to an act; and that which is an obstacle on the road helps us on this road.”
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