Yoga and Soccer: The Path to Enlightenment
The start of the World Cup with Mexico vs. South Africa made me think about the parallels of yoga and soccer. The word yoga means union, and the World Cup is just that: The world comes together during this exciting time. Even those of us not lucky enough to be watching the games live in South Africa, are glued to the TV. Which brings me to my next point. In yoga, we develop a focal point to help aide concentration. This focal point can be a candle, a chant, or even the body. In soccer, it's the ball. We follow the ball, or should I say, millions of us follow the ball. During this time, we are not thinking about anything else-- this is the goal (another similarity) of yoga: to quiet the mind. The players are like the mind: running around trying to get focused. But what about when there's a goal? If it's your team, you have experienced enlightenment. If not, you return to the obstacles of yoga: anger, envy, etc. And if your team wins? Euphoria, bliss, Samadhi (the goal of yog