from Dan Seward
Letter to Acharya
I apologize in advance for the biographical nature of this letter.
Acharya’s teachings have quietly, slowly and methodically rearranged my life.
An outside observer might not apprehend the changes, or would chalk them up to natural maturation and mellowing over time. Perhaps there’s some truth to this. Yet it’s not hard to find examples of people for whom the passing of time has brought more stress and misery, not less. I fully credit Acharya’s teachings with an extended, progressive move towards contentment.
I began committed asana practice in 2009, around the time of my 30th birthday. My diet was standard American – extraordinarily un-yogic, full of meat and alcohol – and I was (in hindsight) unwell, stressed by work and poor lifestyle choices. On some level, I must have intuited that a change was needed; Pattabhi Jois’s Ashtanga Yoga appealed as a potential path to health. I followed this path for about ten years, changing my diet and sleep habits, and leaving the workforce to be a caretaking parent. Eventually, I came to study with Guy Donahaye, who introduced Acharya’s book The Sacred Tradition of Yoga around the time of its publication. My sincere gratitude to him for this.
Opening that book was like opening a window in a stagnant room. The core message – that the human system is meant for spiritual bliss, which is accessible through wise lifestyle choices, practice and patience – resonated powerfully. Despite having read many books about yoga, I had never seen spiritual guidance stated so plainly and honestly. The Sacred Tradition of Yoga was a gateway, an inflection point. After re-reading the book a few times, I connected with Kristin and joined the Jivana Yoga introduction course.
In the following years, I have had the incredible opportunity to study dozens, if not hundreds of hours of Acharya’s recorded video lectures. I have been to India twice to listen to his words in person. His lectures have covered many topics, from yogic texts and subashitas to noble qualities, but each talk strikes a similar chord because the core message is the same as in The Sacred Tradition. The lectures are all delivered by a man whose deep insight into the universe is inspiring and whose connection to Truth is infectious. Acharya imparts his knowledge with no pretense, no guile, nothing but pure honesty and an almost otherworldly sense of timing – how many times have his words gone straight to the heart, so correct for the moment, although recorded months or years before? There is no way to count.
Acharya has fundamentally instructed us on how to view the world through an energetic lens rather than a materialistic one, and this reframing is incredibly helpful in living a more resilient life. Once one accepts some of the basic tenets of karma, everything that happens, no matter how small, may be seen as purposeful, nature’s guidance in service of spiritual advancement. It becomes so much easier to accept anything and everything.
Of course, it takes time to truly internalize these teachings on a heart level, and the incredible generosity of his knowledge, allowing his lectures to be recorded and reviewed by students in distant lands, is instrumental. The Truth is an infinitely faceted gem, and Acharya’s lessons simply examine that gem from various perspectives; with each turn, it sheds Light and draws the attention back.
Acharya says that it takes years, if not decades, of practice to achieve any of the canonical yogic goals. With that kept firmly in mind, “achieving” any of the distant heights presented in yogic texts becomes far less important than gratefully accepting any incremental gains in the moment. Acharya always tells us to “cross-check” advice – meaning to put something into practice and keenly observe how it impacts our lives. This focus on the immediate effects of practice is a critical component of what makes his teachings resonate so strongly. Where classic texts offer indescribable bliss, Acharya has let us know practice will first give us small glimpses as the system slowly acclimates to a yogic orientation. The ultimate bliss is there, probably not immediately or even soon, but there is a path of ever-increasing rewards along the way.
By cross-checking this, we can recognize the true guidance in his lessons, and the journey becomes a blessing.
