by Jessie Carson
“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are." ~ Chinese proverb
We are a society that does too much. We have, on top of all of this, come up with strategies, practices, and scientific reason to convince ourselves to ‘do less’. And, why not? We need support every now and again. I have recently made big changes in my life in order to stop doing the things I really don’t want to do and find a little more space to breathe. I switched jobs and now work less and have a five minute commute, I have taken a hiatus from teaching yoga. These were the external markers of doing less. But, I have a whole lot of internal ‘things’ I do that feel like too much. I do find my thoughts darting around in all directions trying to find my next big move. It doesn’t work this way. Not well, anyhow. It’s so easy to accumulate, do too much and keep looking for new things.
In order not to accumulate, it must be a constant practice of asking, Is this too much? Do I need this? Why am I doing this?
Letting go of action poises the self to let die what no longer serves and simultaneously let come a new unknown possibility. An attempt at non-action is one that both demands and cultivates courage. (Because, how would we define ourselves if not by what we do?).
I find that in doing less, there is space to contemplate the relationship to my body and nature. I have read that these relationships are part of the ‘global identity crisis’, referred to by Montuori and Donnelly in their article titled, Transformative Leadership. Stopping, for me, is essential to settle back into the body and realize that I am made up of the same elements of the rest of the earth. These realizations can be a catalyst to connection with the self and with others; both relationships that give steadiness in times of uncertainty.
Their article states that “transformative leaders do not feel they can simply ‘act’, because they are aware of the extent to which they are steeped in the problematic ways of doing things that have caused the very problems they are attempting to address”.
Not doing is unlearning, which is necessary for anyone wanting to live their own life. Of course there are times to act. But, not doing when doing is not necessary is a radical gesture that pauses actions and allows space for deep structural change of the individual. The letting die or the letting go is how we transform ourselves and then when we do act, it is from a wholistic place of wisdom and steadiness, which is now need for the times we are in.