I am the ocean.

How cheerful are you when your on your surfboard? Waiting for a set to roll in are you thinking about your next maneuver, whether your going to catch the wave, or look good when you pop up and find yourself worrying about what you need to do back on dry land? It is so easy to use your surfing as another opportunity to be burdened with over thinking, which will inevitably effect your performance. Through studying Pantajali's Yoga Sutras, The Bagavad Gita, Jivamukti Yoga and works by beloved Buddhists such as Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, Thich nhat Hanh and the Dalai Lama I'm starting to understand that the road to happiness is not found by avoiding unhappiness, but rather is a continuous and sustained effort. 

We are all in process and by accepting that happiness is something we don't possess (i.e. like water if we grab at it we'll never hold it, but rather let it flow through our hands we'll hold it for longer), we have to make the effort to think positively and work against negative emotions. 
Part of my yoga teacher training is sitting down and really studying ancient Hindu and Buddhist philosophy which has been both mind boggling and eye opening. Its amazing how much correlation there is between the two religions and how apt they are for modern day life. A consistent theme present in both is something called 'Ahimsa' which means 'to not cause pain.' It is most commonly interpreted as non violence, but goes beyond killing as sometimes you can cause more pain by words and thoughts rather than action. 

Just as I wish to be free from suffering and experience only happiness, so do all other beings. In this respect, I am no different from any other being; we are all equal.  
- Geshe Kelsang Gyatso.

As a surfer I feel it is a deep respect to the ocean to not eat fish. I hope in this statement I'm not sounding too self righteous or judgmental because I pride myself on being tolerant and not using my veganism as an excuse to heckle carnivores. That being said I honestly feel that as an ocean dweller with the capacity to avoid eating fish this is the greatest gift you can give back to the saltwater. The ocean is the biggest misunderstood ecosystem on the planet, it is voraciously pillaged for its resources, abused by contaminates derived from humans and at best is feared. We have so much as a race to apologize for. 

Thankfully there are people out there who realize our misdemeanors and are actively trying to rectify them. You know I love a strong female lead and that is exactly what you get in the oceanographer Sylvia Earle. I recently watched her documentary Mission Blue on Netflix and absolutely fell in love with her. She's this charismatic scientist who paved the way not only for female empowerment but ocean awareness during the seventies. She also has many books she's written The world is Blue, Sea Change: A Message from the Oceans, Blue Hope to name but a few on my Amazon wish list! 

I'm starting to think we can lead purposeful lives when we consider the welfare of others before our own, compassion acts as a mirror, the good we put out is reflected back in ourselves. I'm not sure how yet, but I wish to show my gratitude to the ocean and endeavor to try and be part of the change, surfboard in hand. 

Until next time 
Stay strong, surf well