We have moved through being gentle, being truthful, respecting time, and honoring the sacred trust of our energy. Today, we close out this first set with the fifth Evaluation: Aparigraha. Now, on paper, this means non-greed or non-hoarding. But my teacher always explained it to me in a way that changed my life: It means being truly comfortable with exactly where you are in your journey.
Whether it’s your practice journey, your teaching journey, or just your life journey—the ego always wants more. It wants the pose the person next to you has. It wants the career someone else built. It wants to be ten years younger or ten steps ahead. That constant wishing for what others have is a form of greed that steals your peace.
Aparigraha is the evaluation of your gratitude. It’s about looking at your life and your body today and saying, 'This is enough.' When we stop hoarding expectations and stop grasping for what isn't yours, you finally have your hands free to receive what is actually in front of you. You stop performing for a future that hasn't happened yet and you start being grateful for the breath you’re taking right now.
So, here is my gift to you: Be comfortable in your own skin. Honor the journey you are on, not the one you think you should be on. When you are grateful for where you are, you’ve already won.
We do the best we can with what we’ve been given... and nothing more. I’ll see you for the sixth Evaluation."