Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it.”

This sentence comes from a talk with Eckhart Tolle that I happened to listen to the other day. Most of the time I find wise words to be immediately inspiring and uplifting, but this time it took me a while to be able to meet the content of this message. It’s quite easy (I think) to find the above to be a somewhat heavy truth in many ways, maybe even too much to bear… Not just because it suggests a full acceptance to all the things that happen to us, but because it encourages each and everyone to also be grateful for the things that present them selves. Grateful for the lessons these things will bring, grateful for the possibilities that they open up to.

…accept it as if you had chosen it…”. Would you agree that this means taking full and complete responsibility, for your self and for your life? The vast dimension of this statement feels daunting to say the least.

What are we doing in yoga? In a way you are being asked to look and look again. Day after day, year after year. To get involved in our own lives, to stay open, to stand up and to take in. So maybe part of being a yogi could be described as an aspiration to become a lover of all aspects of life?

…Learn to give expression to what you feel without blaming. Learn to listen to your partner in an open, non defensive way. Give your partner space for expressing himself or herself. Be present. Accusing, defending, attacking — all those patterns that are designed to strengthen or protect the ego or to get its needs met will then become redundant. Giving space to others — and to yourself — is vital. Love cannot flourish without it.”

Eckhart Tolle