The Yogic Art of Critical Thought

Opening to more is the essence of a resilient life, one where we choose to meet our experiences as they present themselves and trust that we have the tools to adapt, adjust, and expand as necessary.  It is a rebellious process of allowing what IS to be true and daring to step into whatever we find wherever we find it without the requirements of our safety, approval, or certainty.  When we open to each moment whether good or bad, we allow a bigger truth to emerge.  We stretch the boundaries of our limited perspectives, and create space to receive more than we thought possible.  In our opening, we grow our capacity, little by little at first and then by leaps and bounds, not only to endure the difficulties that life unrelentingly hands us, but also to immerse in the simple and profound beauty of being alive. We are able to walk in the world with shattered hearts, heavy disappointments, persistent conflicts, and even great loss without losing sight of the joy which is also and at once present in the most seemingly insignificant expressions.  More is expressed in every bud and bloom and dies away to become more of the ground, the air, and the space that we occupy.

In contrast, when we move from a place of protection, we often diminish our potential and become stuck in our ingrained patterns of behavior and belief.  We can become unwilling to question our current modes of understanding, and often reduce our opportunities to grow beyond our present state.  When we are unwilling to learn, to look, to wonder, and to be curious, we opt to reinforce our existing beliefs rather than expand or change them.  We find ourselves seeking out the experiences in life that reflect and support our resistance, inertia, or attachment without contemplating whether or not the experiences are harmful or helpful.  We may limit our capacity to consider new or different ideas as well as the ideas and opinions of others.  This reduction of capacity and willingness is often directly correlated to a disinclination for critical thought, especially when related to self reflection, and leads us to the repetition of dysfunction over and over again. 

Unwillingness to apply critique to our own thoughts and reflections can have myriad sources. Perhaps it's because we don’t trust ourselves due to past experiences or feedback and judgement from others, perhaps we feel most comfortable with what is familiar and therefore accept it as correct, perhaps questioning ourselves and others feels too threatening to our identities and to the tenuous status quo; whatever the reason, more often than not, unless we are driven to reflect on the situations and circumstances in which we find ourselves, the task is largely ignored. Even when invited to reflect upon our habitual thoughts, actions, and patterns of behavior, resistance is often at the forefront in hopes of preventing us from embarking on any reflection that would put us in the seat of being wrong or mistaken. This resistance to critical thinking is a prime symptom of the absence of resilience and the inability to be fully accountable for our engagement, both in the ability to reflect on our own actions as well as on the actions and choices of others. 

Critical thought about ourselves and our world is at the core of our sovereignty. The art of inquiring about our identity, probing our personal perspective, and alchemizing our wounds leads us to discover a foundation rooted in something deeper than external direction. When we access confidence, inner trust, and willingness to open rather than close and restrict, we are in prime territory for the courageous undertaking of critical thought: daring to question what we know.  The process liberates us from the need to prove or defend our belief systems, and instead become infinitely curious about how the world works and our engagement with it.  We are enthralled by the mechanisms of action and interaction both inside and all around us, and we no longer make assumptions about the truth of things.  Instead we inquire, we wonder, we probe. We dare to question ourselves and the world.  Our queries may lead us to discoveries of the way we were misinterpreting situations based on false understanding, which is the essence of empathy. It may also show us that what we thought was “wrong” is simply different,  and we may be challenged to change our minds.  The latter possibility being the most threatening of all. 

When we live a life of resilience, we build the capacity to think critically, to question what we “know” and to be curious about what we are told. When we dare to think about the nature of things, we expand the limits of what we think and open to what is possible. We begin to live our Yoga in our moments, and gaze through the lens of Tantra. Critical thought is a fragile but necessary art, and it is a revolutionary act.