In my hospital chaplaincy work last year, I spent time with people who were dying or the bodies of those who had died. I saw breath happening, and then cease happening. So, in my own yoga practice, when I am instructed to pay attention to the pause after the exhale, I am very aware that one day, I will pause after exhaling, and then not inhale again.
Perhaps this seems like a scary thought. If one has not resolved ones notions about death and what comes next, then yes, it could be scary. Even if one is sure that good things lie ahead after death, it is still an unknown journey and could be scary.
But what I find amazing is how yoga helps us practice for death, for the ultimate surrender. And if I practice this everyday as part of my yoga practice, then surely the annoyances of daily life seem much smaller! Thus, as many spiritual teachers have taught us, when we make peace with death, we make peace with life. Yoga is one way to do this.
