Yoga is much more than a class that puts the body through different postures. In its traditional form, Yoga is a spiritual path of self-transformation and self-realization. Part of transformation ourselves relies heavily on transforming the mind. The well-known text, Patanjali Yoga Sutra, is specifically about this – Yoga for the Mind. What are we transforming with the mind? Well, to start off with, we need to transform the negative thoughts that affect mood and perception which keep us in the cycle of anger, self-judgement, self-doubt, and reacting without control. 

PRATIPAKSHA BHAVANA

There are a number of specific, concrete practices that Patanjali Yoga Sutra states are helpful for changing negative mind states. I’m going to introduce and talk about one of these today:

“When aware of negative thought waves, cultivate the opposite.” – Patanjali Yoga Sutra 2.33

In PY Sutra 2.33, we are first encouraged to become aware of negative thought waves. There’s no way to change negative thinking if you aren’t aware of it. How does one become aware of thoughts at all?

BECOME AWARE OF THOUGHTS

woman upset with a friend listeningI have found one helpful way is to notice when you have an emotional reaction so that you can then stop and observe it. By taking the time to notice your reaction, you can get curious about the thoughts that go with that reaction. You may then become aware of negative thinking that might be happening with an emotion so that you can start to have control over reactions.

Once you are aware of a negative thought, now you can start to move to “cultivate the opposite.” Before we take a look at how to do this, I want to just mention the word “waves” from this sutra. To me, it shows how negative thoughts aren’t ‘who I am,’ but are like a wave that comes in, engulfing us, but eventually will leave or change. Sometimes those thought waves can leave a residue that sticks with us for long after that wave occurred. This is where we have the power to change and let go of that negative thought pattern. We have a choice to let that wave soak us or remain dry without being touched by it.

In “cultivate the opposite,” I’d like to share a few, simple, yet profound, ways to do this.

QUESTION THE NEGATIVE THOUGHT

boy looking through a magnifying glass to observe1. First, when becoming aware of a negative thought, get curious about it and question it. Is it 100% true? Is it going to matter in 1 year? 5 years? 10 years? Go to the facts of the situation instead of just the emotion and opinion. What are actually the facts of the situation versus how you want it to be or think it should be? Notice if by starting to shift your mind, does it start to change how you feel?

THE OPPOSITE

2. Second, if you were to have the opposite thought or opposite feeling, what would that be? Name it. Then, what needs to happen to move your mind towards that? 

For example, if I was feeling upset that plans changed, plans that I was really looking forward to, I might feel not only upset but frustrated, disappointed and even powerless. I might be thinking, “This always happens to me! Whenever I’m excited about something it always changes. I never get to do what I want to do. The world’s against me.” 

woman with her face painted half black and half white, oppositeWhat would be the opposite of this? The opposite of frustrated might be calm, of disappointment might be excitement, of powerless might be empowered. 

Now, what do I need to do to start moving towards these emotions? Let’s start with my thoughts. I would need to remember all the times things did go as planned and I enjoyed myself. I might go to those memories and remember how it felt in my body. This would help me to move from limited black and white thinking of ‘always’ and ‘never,’ to see a bigger picture. It might help me to remember ‘I can’t control the outcome’ and focus on my intention instead.

FIND THE ABUNDANCE

field of abundant lavender with beautiful sunset3. And a third practice is around lack and abundance. So much of our negative thinking is when our mind is centered around lack: comparing ourselves to others, being mired in self-doubt, and thinking about what we don’t have. The opposite of this would be abundance.

To move towards abundance, there are 3 things we can do. 1.Ask, “What is going well in my life?” 2.Think about what you are grateful for in your life like people, things, and situations and state why. 3.Take a moment to repeat to yourself, ‘I’m exactly where I need to be right now.’ Set a timer for 3-5 minutes and repeat this statement. After doing any of these, notice how you feel afterwards.

KEEP PRACTICING

These are just a handful of ways to practice Pratipaksha Bhavana – cultivating the opposite of negative thinking. It can be a challenging task at first, but with practice, over time, you will start to notice it becomes easier to shift the mind when it’s negative. In fact, I’ve found that it happens for me with much less effort and even just asking myself, “Twyla, is this really how you want to spend your time and energy,’ helps me to let go and move on.

Namaste.