Justin and I talk about the difference between practical and mystical spirituality—why it matters, and perhaps why one starts to seek out a spiritual practice in the first place.
We share our own individual pulls towards spirituality (and, I keep asking him questions about this whole nonattachment thing I’ve been experiencing—only to lose, and then experience again, and then lose again).
One of my favorite things that he said was:
What brings you to spirituality sometimes is this something you can't identify inside yourself; this hole inside yourself. And then maybe you have this mystical spiritual experience—it doesn’t have to be this direct revelation with the cosmos or this bigger energy or god. It can be something where you feel genuine contentment... And how crazy is that. That this thing that we wouldn't think is extra special: simply being content; sitting in this moment where everything feels right; and there’s not a need; there's not a scarcity and there's not a need. That in itself can be profoundly spiritual.
And what happens when you experience that thing and you wake up the next day and it’s not there anymore?
Watch or listen to this 60-minute talk as we sort through some of the potential "answers."
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Find me on Instagram: @marlasyoga
Find Justin on Instagram: @justincyoga
Practice yoga with us on Sādhaka Studio:
https://sadhakastudio.uscreen.io/catalog
Come with us to Costa Rica:
https://www.wetravel.com/trips/for-the-seekers-ashtanga-yoga-retreat-sadhaka-67726403
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
03:47 Where to begin with understanding spiritual texts
07:03 How the role of suffering plays into our desire for spirituality
09:30 Justin's personal experience with being drawn towards spirituality
12:26 Marla's personal experience with being drawn towards spirituality
16:06 What is mystical spirituality versus practical spirituality and why it matters
23:36 How contentment can be a spiritual experience
24:40 What happens when that feeling of contentment or non-attachment goes away
27:46 Esoteric versus exoteric practices
30:54 Contradictions in spirituality (and in our own minds)
34:15 Transmuting the lessons we learn on a physical plane to mental and spiritual planes
36:11 Human suffering and the idea of reincarnation
38:47 How do we simplify this all
41:20 How building awareness in and of itself is a victory
42:48 Marla's experience of non-attachment
44:40 There's no getting off the path
45:52 What to do when you catch yourself grasping for something
48:14 Marla's cold-plunge story
51:00 The poison becomes the honey--hardships as opportunities for growth
53:46 It is not practical to be in a mystical state constantly--be grateful for the experience then put it back on the shelf