Be wildly devoted to someone or something
Cherish every perception
At the same time forget about control
Allow the beloved to be herself and to change

Passion and compassion
Holding on and letting go
This ache in your heart is holy
Accept t as the rise of intimacy
With life’s secret ways

Devotion is the divine streaming through you
From that place in you before time
Loves energy flows through you r body
And in to eternity again

Surrender to this current of devotion
And become one with the body of love
The Radiance Sutras

Often people tell me “I don’t know what my passion is!” so we are going to unpack what the essence of passion is, why it’s important and how it’s actually part of your Yoga.

The path of passion is as old as time (think 13th century poet Rumi) Before we worshipped science we had a unshakable faith is something greater than ourselves. According to the Vedas and yogic philosophy there are three paths to self-realisation and the path of devotion, Bhakti is one of them. (Stay tuned in the next few weeks for unpacking the other two) It’s understood that by being ‘wildly devoted to someone or something’ we realize the truth of who we are (self realization) the ultimate liberation.

This path of bhakti is not for the faint hearted; it takes the practice and study of yoga philosophy directly into our relationships with other people and ourself. The bhakti path requires radical acceptance and the art of surrender. That radical acceptance means honoring the truth of what is in any given moment, and that sweet surrender is far from a defeat but a divine release of our addition to self sabotage and suffering.

What does it mean to be a bhakti yogi?

It is to embody the quality of Love beyond conditions, that elusive unconditional love that we might be so lucky to experience a glimpse of or maybe dwell in for an extended period. It’s through this experience of unconditional love we feel first hand dissolution of separate-ness and realize “I am Love” Sound too psychedelic?

What is true love anyway?

To live a life that is ignited by passion is to sit in the heart of compassion, for being compassionate to another and to ourselves (since the two are inseparable) is the definition of true love – beyond flowers and fireworks.

But what does it actually mean?

You can be passionate about food, right? You can be passionate about coffee, or football, or piano or pottery or washi tape or belly dancing. …literally anything , so what all this actually means is, it’s about how that Thing – your Thing – makes you feel, and when we are fully consumed by The Thing, we are Present. That precious, slippery, present moment awareness where we lose time and we are ‘in the flow’ we’ve all had that feeling at least once.

The essence of passion is the desire to be present and to cherish every moment. Be wildly devoted, to someone or something and the path of bhakti leads us home to ourselves.

If you want to explore your passion ever deeper and learn some practical tools to walk the path, join me on January 1stfor my New Year's Day activation; Passion Power and Purpose

If you liked this post and want more like it, leave me a love heart and tell me what you are most passionate about in the Comments below!!

Love, Mandy