The Steps and How to Embody Them
STEP ONE:
We admitted we were powerless over our various addictions and problems—that
our lives had become unmanageable.
A foundational principle of Kundalini Yoga is expressed in the mantra Sat Naam. Sat Naam means True Identity. Whenever we say or contemplate Sat Naam, often in sync with our breath, we are connecting to our true selves, to Truth, to reality, to what is. Truth is a great teacher. In the Kundalini tradition, one of the ways to name God is Sat Naam, reminding us that when we have connected to Truth, we are connected to something very powerful.
When we undertake Step One around a specific substance or behavior, we are consciously examining what is true about our relationship with that substance or behavior. How do we use it? What happens when we do? How have we harmed ourselves or others with our use or behavior? How are we powerless over the situation? We’ve tried to change or control our behavior or experience, but it hasn’t worked. How has life become unmanageable, impossible, or so difficult that we are at a loss as to what to do?
These can be difficult questions to consider. Perhaps we have been trying to control or change our use or behavior, and it hasn’t worked. Step One asks us to look at whether we need to admit our powerlessness over our use or behavior so that we might have the opportunity to connect with our Sat Naam, our True Self, a source of Power that we haven’t been able to access up until now. Life, our bodies, and our difficulties—what is—can often be our greatest teachers if we stop denying, ignoring, and trying by ourselves to change or control them.
In Step One, we ask ourselves: how can we listen to reality and see the Truth more deeply, not to beat ourselves up, but to learn, heal, evolve, and change? We take off the mask and stop pretending that everything is fine, and we stop believing the falsehood that we’ve got this under control. We look at what’s really going on. When we bring honesty to our situation, we open the door to accepting Truth and Reality. That is the first step towards finding healthy ways to change, ways that actually work.
Please note that acceptance does not mean we have to agree with or like an event, person, or experience; it simply means we acknowledge reality. When we can accept life as reality and then work on changing our behaviors and beliefs, based in reality, we can begin to recover.
In the first KY12 story below, Sarah D. shares how when she accepted the reality of her powerlessness over substances and situations, she could finally ask for help and access the tools she needed for recovery.
True Identity, Sat Naam, and the regular use of this mantra reminds me that I am in my true identity when I meditate, take care of myself, do yoga, and take the choice of using a substance off the table. I am not in my truth when I self-medicate. I am also not supportive of others when I self- medicate. The mantras and songs I have learned are becoming more of a first response when my thinking starts stinking, and the use of mantra stills the racing mind and brings me back into awareness. When I am in awareness, the use of substances is a no-brainer bad choice.
The power in admitting powerlessness shows up through people I meet in recovery. When I am in a space of acknowledging the reality of my powerlessness in a situation, I am in a position to ask for help, to do a practice, to trust the universe. When I admit powerlessness, I have access to tools. Powerlessness is now a signal to pause, to recite a mantra, to look for something beautiful in the moment.
As horrible as that moment was when I realized I could not stop the cycle of drinking and drugging on my own, the admission opened doors for me, for which I am grateful.
Today, when I realize my powerlessness, it is a reminder for me to use the tools I have accumulated through sober living to deal with the habits and patterns accumulated through alcoholic behavior.
● I am powerless over other people, yet I can adjust my attitude to promote a better outcome.
● I am powerless over my habits, yet my increased awareness of triggers can help me respond differently.
● I am powerless over my own ignorance, yet my awareness of other people, and my willingness to listen to others and observe reactions, can give me information about who they are and how I can get along.
Admitting powerlessness is the doorway to a power greater than myself. It comes through other people, prayer, and meditation. Sat Naam.
Questions to Contemplate:
1. Is there a substance, behavior, situation, or relationship that may be causing your life to be especially difficult? When did this first appear in your life, and how has it shown up at different times in your life?
2. In what ways do you feel you have less power than your addiction or difficult situation? Give some examples of your powerlessness—when you try to control it but can’t. Consider what happens when you start drinking, gambling, drugging, controlling, or any other addictive behavior.
3. What are some of the consequences of this substance, behavior, or situation? Include external or obvious ones (I lost a relationship), as well as subtler, or internal consequences (I didn’t make the most of my life opportunities). How is life difficult or unmanageable because of this situation?
4. What might happen if you continue to engage in this situation for the next year? Five years? Twenty years?
5. How can you bring the quality of Sat Naam into your understanding of yourself and this substance, behavior, or situation? Can you remember that the reality you are uncovering with this Step can serve as a Teacher? What are some of the lessons of Truth that you are learning about yourself and the world?
Suggested Kriyas, Meditations, Mantras and Pranayama:
Kriyas:
● Basic Spinal Series (gentle): Increases circulation of spinal fluid and supports mental clarity so you can see more clearly the truth of your situation. The entire spine, each vertebra, and all the chakras are stimulated and receive energy.
● Detox Kriya (moderate): This yoga set helps to detoxify the body of substances, emotions, and stress so that you can feel lighter and more energized.
● Let the Liver Live (strenuous): In the Doctor’s Opinion in the Big Book, it states that the physical body is sick. We must take care of the physical body as well as the spiritual body. The liver is responsible for removing toxins from the body. Stress and the addictive use of substances harm the liver, and this set gently stimulates the liver to heal.
Meditations:
● Meditation for a Calm Heart (beginner): This practice helps you experience stillness as the breath is held in or out, and connect with the Truth in your heart. It is like taking a pledge to your True Self to be honest and see clearly.
● Seven Wave Sat Naam Meditation (intermediate): As you chant Sat Naam through each of your chakras, it instills the vibration of Truth into each aspect of your being.
● Shabd Kriya (intermediate): Early in recovery, sleep can be difficult. This meditation can help. Practice this meditation each night before bed to soothe the nervous system.
● Meditation for Habituation (advanced): This meditation can help to break mental and physical addictions. It uses the mantra Sa Ta Na Ma, the seed syllables of Sat Naam, to instill a healthier pattern into the nervous system.
Mantra:
● Sat Naam (beginner): Our addictions and problems take us away from our True Identity. Learning to chant Sat Naam can help restore us to our truest self.
Pranayama:
● Sitali Pranayam: This soothing, cooling detoxifying breathing practice is good when you are feeling upset, irritated, or anxious. Practice 26 repetitions every morning and evening.
● Breath of Fire: This energizing breathing practice is used in many different kriyas and meditations. It helps purify the blood, expand lung capacity, and increases your ability to handle stress.
Other Useful Tools:
● Cow Pose Pumps: Detoxifies the brain stem. In Cow Pose, pump the navel several times. Link not available, see Healing Addictive Behavior, page 58.
● Sat Kriya: This exercise uses the mantra Sat Naam and helps resolve issues in the lower chakras around security, sexuality, and anger.
Ten Light Bodies:
The First Body is the Soul Body. When we remember that we are a spark of the Divine, we remember our True Identity, and our Soul guides us on our path to recovery.
The THIRTY-THIRD PAUR destroys your ego and brings forth your divinity. It removes negativity and neutralizes your destructive nature.
