Someone asked me yesterday on Periscope if I like Muslims.

My response: why do you ask? I like good people. I don’t care what color your skin is, what your faith is, how much or how little is in your bank account, what sexual orientation you feel most comfortable with, whether you’re liberal or conservative or whatever.

If I disagree that doesn’t mean you’re wrong, I will try to understand where you’re coming from and respect our differences. I will do my best to meet you on common ground. I will do this because I believe in love.

Yogis are held to a higher standard of accountability. And I think that’s fair enough. To sit at the helm of an ancient spiritual tradition built on the promise of lasting peace isn’t something to be taken lightly.

It means something to practice yoga and to live the yogi’s life. I appreciate every time someone called me out when I momentarily lost my integrity because I’ve learned from it.

We aren’t perfect and we need the mirror of a loving community strong enough to offer constructive criticism in the effort of expansion and evolution. We need the support of one another to venture into new territories and create a more peaceful world.

The yogi’s path is laid with the bricks of forgiveness, patience and tolerance. If we devolve into name-calling tirades aimed at convincing people to be peaceful then we betray the spiritual heart of the practice.

The least effective way to change someone’s mind is by yelling at them. Win their trust rather by your example, by the steadfast faith expressed in your actions, by your calm even temper, and by your tenacious spirit. Rant and rave and it gets us nowhere. History has shown us that to stand up to the biggest bullies we need the power of peace, not more war.

I believe in love. Love is enlightened action. Love is reaching across hard lines to understand where we are coming from. Love is a sense of community and togetherness. Love is healing, teaching and kindness.

Love is patient, hopeful and eternal.

~

Author: Kino MacGregor

Editor: Katarina Tavčar

Photo: Agathe Padovani/Instagram & web page