Namaste my friend ! 🙏🏽

I am writing this covered with layers of Indian fabric in order to withstand the cold weather in Rishikesh.

This is my first stop in India, I will stay one month in this city where yoga originated thousands of years ago.

Built around the sacred river Ganga, at the foot of the Himalayas, this place is filled with yoga and spiritual traditions.

My intention here is to study with classical yoga and music teachers in order to deepen my understanding of the practice, and share it all with you.

Here’s a snapshot of what life has been like since I arrived 4 days ago:

a vendor showed me how to wear a shawl in many ways, I ecstatically chanted mantras, I got horn kicked by a cow, I stepped in cow shit, I got used to honking, locals taught me 5 ways to say hello, a massage therapist slapped me (a few times), a yoga teacher stretched my legs like never before.

India has taught me one lesson so far.

As I was driving a scooter through the chaos on the street, I was surprised at how calm I felt.

A day earlier, when I realized that I would have to go regularly to the other side of the river, a 20-minute drive, I was a bit anxious at the idea.

It turned out to be quite a meditative experience — while driving, I have to remain super focused.

In that state, I am 100% in the present moment — I can’t worry about what might happen, I just drive and adapt.

Drivers often overtake with a car coming at them, they will occupy the whole road, sometimes three vehicles come straight at me as they overtake each other.

Only one of these occurrences would make an average westerner angry or scared, they would honk and shout all kinds of names — to someone who cannot hear them.

Here, it would be useless — it’s always useless, so let me rephrase.

Here, you’d spend the whole drive shouting and frustrated, it would drain your energy, and you can be assured that you’d be in a shitty mood the rest of the day — not fun.

The solution, and how they manage to navigate this chaos peacefully, is to accept how things are.

Develop equanimity, accept what is happening without judging or wanting different.

Driver cuts your way -> it’s ok
Driver stops without warning -> it’s ok
Driver going the wrong way -> it’s ok

This is an essential part of yoga, and here it is beautifully, chaotically, demonstrated

You too can use the road as an acceptance training, and then apply it to your life.

Start tomorrow, if a driver in front of you is acting in a way that bothers you, that gets you angry — notice it, observe yourself getting triggered, and make the choice to let it go, focus on your driving, on what you need to do to arrive safely at your destination.

Repeat as many times as needed — it’ll get easier!

If you never get angry while driving, good for you!

Is there another situation in your life where you might apply this lesson?

Let me know how it goes :)

Warm regards from incredible India

Julien

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