Tawba, The Return in the Body
Dear Beloveds,
Having practiced many spiritual paths, I have learned that many of them have the practice of repentance as an important part of how we grow closer to the versions of ourselves we most want to be.
On the other hand, no one likes to think of ourselves as sinners who sin. It wreaks of bummer. But in Sufism, I learned a different perspective. We are designed to make mistakes. And we are designed to learn from them. This makes repentance an important part of our moving closer to the Beloved and closer to fulfilling our fitra, our unique purpose.
Repentance, or Tawba, in Sufism and Islam, offers a dedicated practice to repenting. That can sound like the practice of staying guilty. But it’s thousands of miles from that. It’s to think of repentance as more of a “return” to the Divine Unity. For instance, it’s to say to yourself, “Hmm, I’ve just been arguing about how right I am. How does that make me feel? Not great. I feel separated from everything and everyone, especially from God. And I haven’t solved any problem. How do I return to the Unity?
That question, “How do I return?” is the first step to getting closer to that union with God.
Many of us may know that in invoking the divine names and other phrases of Tawba, we can experience overcoming our sense of separation and be again in the Oneness of being in God. Tawba was the first practice I embraced as a Sufi. The result was an immediate change in the way I felt, how I behaved with others and all the good I attracted because of it.
But the other day, I had the idea to practice Tawba, focusing on the various parts of my body as I was doing Sufi Yoga. I did Tawba into any pain I was feeling. I did Tawba into a stiff joint. The effects were visceral, as I felt aches and pains lighten with the circulating light energy of Tawba.
During the next Sufi-Yoga class we will be implementing Tawba through specific qualities while staying aware of how our bodies respond as we move through asana, yoga poses. I invite you to join me for this deep dive into self-healing and awareness.
Monday, August 7 at 6:30 PM PST
Zoom link given upon booking.