Into the Darkness by Keith Partington

My favorite time of the day has always been the night. It’s when I feel most easily myself, and more creative and liberated. The shroud of darkness has always felt like the time when “my people” emerge — those I most relate to. The people I see moving about at night transform into creatures, hard to define beings whose motives always seem a bit more interesting to me. At night it was the seekers who emerged, while the strivers slept. At least that’s how I imagined it.

These embellishments of my mind are what attracted me to New York City. The indelible images of this town, for me, were always nighttime scenes- the twinkling lights, steam coming up from underground illuminated by the light of cabs rushing by and neon signs – as a kid I knew this place I’d never been to would be my home, partly because I figured I could really be myself here. 

I was reminded of all of this when I taught my first class at night since the lockdown began. It was also the first time I taught off of Zoom since then. The first time I wasn’t pinned to my mat “demoing”. Night fell during that class. Only candles and a salt lamp lit the room. I walked around, as I used to, and felt tuned in to the movements of the beings in the room in a way I haven’t for two and half years. I started repeating a phrase that had lost its logic as I found myself always showing poses during lockdown — “close your eyes”.

Hathayoga is traditionally practiced with eyes closed- the internal Drishti held toward the third eye, guiding the practice. A yoga practice is always a journey into the Self. A teachers’ words are cues, yes, but they’re also clues. Clues are all they can be because the steps taken on your journey are yours alone, and those steps can only be revealed through intuition. Breath guides engagement. Engagement leads to direction. Direction takes care of alignment. Closing the eyes closes off the sense that most tethers us to the familiar. We watch others. We compare. The mind carries on much as it does off the mat. Darkness leads to a reliance on subtler messages. Intuition holds sway over intellect. Your Self is revealed. 

Leaving that late class, stepping out into the darkness and reflecting on the time I’d spent with my people in New York City’s own Sonic Yoga, I knew I was back home, finally. I can’t wait till next time. 

Hari Om 

Keith