Mind won't stop Minding

WHEN YOUR MIND
WON’T STOP MIND-ING

You sit down to focus, but your mind has other plans. Thoughts race, your to-do list creeps in, and suddenly, your attention is everywhere but where you need it to be.

Recently our 11-year-old captured this perfectly when she sighed and said:

“My mind isn’t mind-ing.”

Of course, what she really meant was, “My mind is too busy mind-ing.” She was just trying to focus on a simple math problem, but her mind wouldn’t cooperate. Sound familiar?

The truth is, the mind is designed to be busy. It loves to analyze, predict and wander. But in yoga, one of our primary goals is to still the mental chatter - to quiet the constant mind-ing and find a place of inner calm.

Chitta Vritti Nirodhah (YS 1.2) – Yoga is the Stillness of the Mind

The Yoga Sutras don’t focus much on postures, but they have a lot to say about the mind.

This means that yoga is not just about movement or the physicality - it is about learning to quiet the mental noise. The Sutras mention Asana only a couple of times, mainly to say that a yoga posture should be steady and comfortable (YS 2.46) - so the body doesn’t distract us from calming the mind.

That’s why in yoga, we don’t just cue movement for perfect alignment - we cue awareness. When you focus on the sensation of your breath or the contact of your body with the floor, your mind naturally steadies. The more we tune into what we feel, the less we’re lost in thought.

Try This Next Time Your Thoughts Won’t Settle:

Breathe: Inhale for 4 counts, exhale for 6. A longer exhale signals the nervous system to relax. Additionally, deeper diaphragmatic breathing also stimulates the Vagus Nerve, which triggers the body's relaxation response.

Feel: Shift your focus to a sensation in your body - your feet pressing into the ground or your hands resting in your lap. This helps pull the mind out of thought loops and back into the present moment.

Move: Yoga movements, whether gentle or strong, redirect awareness from the head to the body. Choose movements that are familiar but require just enough focus to keep the mind engaged.

Yoga meets us where we are - even when the mind is minding. Whether through breath, sensation or movement, we can step onto the mat and practice returning to stillness.

Will your mind always cooperate? Probably not. But as the Yoga Sutras remind us, yoga isn’t about controlling the mind - it’s about learning how to let it settle.

See you on the mat.

Mind vs. Asana in the Yoga Sutras

Chitta Vritti Nirodhah (YS 1.2) | One of the most famous sutras, defining yoga as “the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind.” The first two chapters emphasize meditation, concentration and self-discipline as the primary means of achieving this stillness.

Asana Mentions | The word asana (posture) is mentioned only a couple of times in the entire text, most notably in:

• Yoga Sutra 2.46: "Sthira Sukham Asanam"
  Translated often to "A posture should be steady and comfortable."

• Yoga Sutra 2.47 - 48
  These verses suggest that mastery of asana leads to freedom from physical distractions, allowing deeper meditation.

However, nowhere in the text does Patanjali describe specific yoga poses (such as Downward Dog or Warrior Pose). Out of 196 sutras, nearly all focus on stilling the mind, ethical principles, meditation and enlightenment. Physical practice is acknowledged but not the central theme - it's simply a tool to prepare for meditation.