The God and the Mat

The yoga mat is a magical place where logic is enhanced and suspended, the stress of my mind is replaced by the stress of my body, and peace is substituted for frustration. Each breathe matters and here is where it matters the most. This is a place where I really can breathe out the bad and in the good, a place where I find contentment and satisfaction, a place where I meet God and God meets me and there needs be nothing but me, my mat, and God.

Namaste.

This little word. Salutations to you, it means. Not for me, but for you. The divine in me recognizes the divine in you. The God in me sees the God in you. With the pressing of palms and the littlest of bows, I create a greeting, farewell, and blessing with this little word.

Some call it sacrilege.

My mat and my little word scare some people. The people say my mat and little word cannot be separated from their pagan roots. They shun my mat and little word, they call them heresy. They tell me that I am worshiping something I don't understand with my "Sun Salutations," that I am creating little gods in people when I say my "namaste." And maybe I am.

But here's the thing,

I believe in a God who created all things. I believe in a God who is bigger than all else. I believe in a God who redeems and builds up. I believe that God wants me to be healthy. I believe that God wants me to be happy. I believe that God would encourage me to do those things which lead to health and happiness. I believe that when I breathe deeply and feel connected to His creation, this is a wonderful and awesome thing. And I believe I can worship God on my mat. That He would roll out a mat next to my own.

And I believe in a God who created me specifically. And you specifically. And I believe God lives in us. Not only because of the Holy Spirit, but because I was made in Her image. I believe I was made to resemble Her beauty and grace and power and mercy. So when I say my little word, I mean it. I mean that you were made by a God who loves you and I see what She sees in you. I see your potential and your wonder, because it is also in me! And I think God might say "Namaste" when She sees me, with just a bit of mischief in Her eyes. Not because I am worthy, but because She made me in Her image and She sees that reflection of Herself in me, even when no one else does.

This is my mat.
This is my word.
This is my God.

So I get on my mat and I say my word and I feel my God come up around me and I know.

But that's just me, you'll have to find out what you know.