Easing into the New Year.

It’s the new year. That time of year when so many of us make resolutions. We resolve to change something about ourselves or our lives only to feel defeated by our goals, hopes and aspirations deflated by the end of the month. Why is it that our new year's resolutions are so hard to keep?

According to āyurveda we are still in the season of vata (fall through early winter, or roughly October through the end of January). Vata is composed of the elements of ether and air and exhibits light, mobile, and irregular qualities. The unstable nature of ether and air, combined with it’s inherently mobile and erratic qualities make January a particularly difficult time to implement and stick to something new. By the time we’ve reached this final month of the vata season it’s likely that the qualities of vata have accumulated in each of us, leaving us excited and eager for something new, but lacking the inherent stability needed to see it through.

From an āyurvedic perspective, we are part of nature, and we must work with her ebbs and flows. To have a better chance at success, we must work with the predominant qualities of the season. Kapha season (roughly February through April) brings with it the more stabile qualities of the water and earth elements. Along with stability, growth is a quality associated with kapha dosha, and when kapha is present things tend to stick. Therefore, waiting for kapha season to make big changes would support more lasting change. Better yet, waiting for summer (roughly May through September) when the fiery, determined nature of pitta is dominant, to set those intentions and work with making major changes in our lives will lead to more lasting results. For this reason, I like to honor the summer solstice as a time to set goals and make changes.

The wisdom of āyurveda, living in tune with nature, affords us more ease. As we learn to work with the energy of nature, the energy that we are in fact part of, and stop fighting and struggling against her wisdom we begin to feel more and more at home in our lives.

My hope for the new year is that you begin to explore your connection to the energy of nature, that you have faith in her wisdom and that you enter into this new year with ease.