utah hills (4 of 13).jpg, a photo by jruda8 on Flickr.
Today I was drinking coffee and thinking about coffee. And looking at the beautiful photo above (copyright James Ruda). This led me to think about the simple pleasures in life. What I mean is, those moments when you're so present and so aware that being in the moment is positively intoxicating.
In positive psychology, this is sometimes referred to as a state of "flow." As the ever-reliable Wikipedia tells us: "Flow is the mental state of operation in which a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity. Proposed by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, the positive psychology concept has been widely referenced across a variety of fields.[1]
According to Csíkszentmihályi, flow is completely focused motivation. It is a single-minded immersion and represents perhaps the ultimate in harnessing the emotions in the service of performing and learning. In flow, the emotions are not just contained and channeled, but positive, energized, and aligned with the task at hand. To be caught in the ennui of depression or the agitation of anxiety is to be barred from flow. The hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while performing a task[2]
I've noticed that I often experience this state of flow while doing "flow" series in yoga. Coincedence? I think not. I believe that one of the aims of yoga is to cultivate this state of being. As I practice being peaceful and aware throughout a 90 minute or so practice, this awareness can begin to trickle into other areas of my life.
It seems to me that there is almost something mystical about being in a state of flow, whether that is on or off the mat. At any moment, when I am living in peace, everything seems to just click. Amazing ideas come to me. The right people show up. Everything that I need is provided to me. Work doesn't feel like work. It just feels like another action through which to express love.
yoga in provo, UT here!
