Surfing as Sadhana



Not quite done with the Sacred Craft posts but I wanted to change it up today.

The movie "Surfing as Sadhana" came out in 1999 and I never saw it.

But the title has been stuck in my mind for the last dozen years.





Definitions of  the Sanskrit word Sadhana vary but to say "a discipline undertaken in the pursuit of a goal" comes closest to my personal understanding.

Now we all know that surfing is useless.

We ride a wave and after the ride is over there is nothing left.

So how does surfing fit into this concept of Sadhana?

Consider the following questions.

Are you frustrated after a "bad surf"?

Do you have to have the very best and most expense equipment?

Would you happily beat someone who cuts you off into a bloody pulp?

Are you unhappy if the surf isn't good when you have a chance to go?

Does surfing still give you the same trill as when you were a beginner?

Surfing can be a mirror of your relationship with yourself, with others and with the world in general.

Look into the mirror.

#OccupyYourmind

Comments

Growling Gecko said…
Great post Prana. I believe that the practice of catching waves can be quite an appropriate template, in so many ways, for living a better quality life both for oneself and others. For instance, if I am getting a bit frustrated with the things not happening when I would like, I remember how one just has to wait patiently for the right wave and that it will come in it's own time rather than on the schedule I would like. I never feel bad after having been in the ocean. Mind you I also believe that dogs have a great template for life too. Eat, lounge around and sleep, play and look happy when people you know well arrive and look wary if it is someone you don't know!

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