Greetings Reader -

The world is a pretty unstable place right now.

As if you hadn't already noticed. I suppose I'm stating the obvious.

Nevertheless, I speak the truth. We can blame economic disparity or political fragmentation or Saturn or whatever we want, but the bottom line is that there’s whole lotta shakin’ going on.

A confluence of negative trends have taken us to a tipping point and it feels like things are going to fall apart no matter what we do. It’s just a question of what can we do to minimize the damage and how will we cope with the turbulence we’re about to fly through.

Peter Turchin, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, developed a scientific approach to studying the problem of social instability that he calls cliodynamics, a “transdisciplinary discipline” that cross-references a wide variety of historical developments. He explains,

Yoga philosophy is inclined to agree, but that, in and of itself, doesn't solve the problem. The research Professor Turchin did back in 2006 indicated that social instability and political violence would peak in the 2020s.

It looks like he was right. I guess we’d better buckle up.

In one sense, it's supposed to be like this, at least according to the predictions of Vedic of time cycles: the season of industrialization, quarrel, and hypocrisy known as kali-yuga, which is where we're at on the cosmic calendar, is when everything is expected to go to Hell in a hand basket.

On the other hand, it doesn't have to be like this. One of the functions of yoga wisdom, as we see in this verse from the Bhagavad-Gita, is to provide a social structure that supports individual and collective prosperity, satisfaction, and spiritual advancement.

This division of “social orders” is often, and understandably, mistaken for the caste system, but that is NOT what it is. The difference is easier to see when the social divisions are organized in relationship to a hypothetical “body” and described in modern terminology

It’s also easier to see why the nice stable pyramid of the Vedic social construct seems unrealistic when we put it side by side with the discombobulated social order we currently have:

This is an example of how ancient spiritual wisdom gives us a lens through which to see and understand the world of our lived experience.

The ideal model of social order is also useful—and makes a lot more sense—when we think of it as the way that our own inner bodies are organized.

The “social division” of the inner body provides us with a coherent model for accessing internal assets that we can use to cope with the turbulence we’re about to fly through:

The coherent organization, recognition, and health of our inner social divisions supports positive beliefs and self-actualization.

And "self-actualization" is another way of thinking about recognizing our dharma, our natural aptitudes and inclinations, and acting on them, for our own sake and for the sake of making the world a better place.

Finding our dharma means finding the parts of ourselves that are changeless, which can help us stay grounded while the earth is shaking.

And cultivating a functional inner “social body” provides us with an internalized working model we can reference to work towards creating a functional outer “social body.”

We may have to wait until the smoke clears from the inevitable collapse of the discombobulated social structure we’ve currently got, but we can start preparing for the re-build right now.

We can get through this. And yoga wisdom can help.

Wishing you all good fortune,

- Hari-k

P.S.: Coming up this Wednesday: Our next Community Conversation. We’re going to explore the relationship between yoga, spirituality, and the major ideological shifts that are shaking up the world.

For many, yoga and spirituality are practices that help us to achieve liberation from fear; most notably, fear of change. But a big change is underway; we can see it in the news and feel it beneath our feet. And these changes are going to affect everyone and everything everywhere.

Is there something that yoga and spirituality can connect us to that won’t change? That never changes? And will connecting to something unchanging help us keep our balance while the world as we know it dissolves before our eyes?

Let's find out this Wednesday, March 12, when we talk about yoga, spirituality, and fear of change. Registration is free – CLICK HERE to get updates and the Zoom link!