Every Tuesday I teach a class that fills my cup and reminds me again and again why I am so passionate about this work. It’s not a yoga class, it’s a ‘lifestyle’ class. Meaning that, each week we talk about a different aspect of our life that can be supported by Ayurvedic wisdom. The topics range from remineralizing teeth & oral care, healing heartbreak, preparing for pregnancy, reversing grey hair, the best order to eat your meal in (phases of digestion) and so on.
Recently, one of the participants asked about managing Anger. This sparked such a rich, vulnerable discussion that I was brought to tears.
We talked about how Anger is associated with Pitta dosha and ways that we might restore balance through our diet and lifestyle if we notice that anger is our go-to, if we are easily irritated, quick to fire, self-critical, judgmental, perfectionistic. (if this resonates, don’t miss the Pitta balancing yoga practice at the end of this post) we asked one another ; what does a healthy expression of anger look like?! (any ideas we would love to hear in the comments)
But something I always return to, is the foundational understanding that these emotions (while uncomfortable) are not wrong. You are not a problem to be solved. Let us not pathologise our body-mind’s natural response to our life experiences and the state of the world.
Rather than trying to remedy, I love to look for the intelligence in the emotion. Pitts dosha, predominantly the fire element, it is the initiating power of transformation, metabolizing one form into another. Anger points us to the change we wish to see in the world.
There are two key things that have ignited pure anger in me. One was sparked by a conversation I had with a teen mother in rural India. As she told me about her circumstance, having an abusive older husband, having lost babies, having to hustle, unable to breastfeed due to malnutrition - her infant daughter eating nothing but chapati. This made me rage. How having access to education would have freed this young woman from this cycle. (this was the origin of Karma Collab - my NFP project)
The other thing that makes me rage routinely, is every time I hear a woman’s birth story where she was intervened with, not trusted, not heard. Her rite of passage derailed because of ego, systems, drama and a lack of honor for Nature. Which is why, the birth de-brief call is a key part of our pre-conception care for mothers calling in baby two or three.
According to Vedic astrology, tonight’s New Moon is said to be one of the most auspicious and powerful in its placement for our health and healing. Here is a micro ritual that you can practice tonight with your physical and mental health in mind. Gather: Candle, herbal tea, notebook, pen.
After sitting, breathing, all the layers of yourself arriving. Write: I am willing and ready to receive…” Reflect.
As mentioned earlier, I wanted to provide something really practical. Something we can DO when we feel the discomfort of energy moving (e.motion) within us, like anger, irritation, judging others and ourselves. Other signs of excess fire might be skin irritations like rashes, breakouts, eczema. An irritable gut, an urgency to go after every meal, insatiable appetite; that is Pitta. So below is a full length yoga practice to support you in balancing Pitta dosha. Available to practice as often as you like.
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