Like most people, I have spent much of my adult life working. Coming to the Ashram in July 2025 as part of the 2-month Karma Yoga Program was a brilliant opportunity to make space for witnessing my habitual ways at work.
Having spent 20 years working in an office environment, Karma Yoga became a space to engage with a different kind of work: tending to the garden, preserving fruit and vegetables, making salsas and jams, caring for common spaces. Through the practice of Karma Yoga, I tried to cultivate a sense of offering from the heart rather than focusing on productivity.
I noticed the way I related to responsibility in the corporate world was sneaking into my offerings. But the more I worked with my hands, connected to breath and body, the more I found a state of flow in my work. And as soon as I started offering Karma Yoga in the office, I noticed an old tendency of being in my head a lot.
Learning from the state of flow I experienced in the garden, focusing on my breath or taking a short walk now becomes an intentional practice of returning to my body, and a more balanced way of being.
“Work Can Set Me Free”
Upon completing the Yoga Development Course (YDC), I was offered a seasonal job at the Welcome Center. Initially, I felt so much resistance to the concept of working. I wanted to keep offering Karma Yoga and wasn’t ready to embody a sense of responsibility again. As if the chains I broke out of were being put back on.
In The Inner Life of Asanas, Swami Lalitananda writes:
“The Work is always there. Where there’s life, there’s action. The Bhagavad Gita says that how we do the action ties us down or sets us free. Do it with love, devotion and without attachment and we are involved in yoga… Knowing that work can set me free can change my attitude.”
Reflecting on these words and seeing the suffering I bring on myself when I perceive work in opposition to my personal or spiritual life, I now try to integrate rather than separate work and play, work and rest, work and reflection, office work and inner work.
Work as a Teacher
Looking back at my life, I see how work has been a prominent teacher for me. I’ve been giving so much of myself to my work and my professional development, and it paid off when the goal was to build a successful career.
Going through a significant life transition now, I’m spending more time exploring parts of myself that were abandoned in the process. I want to show up for myself, my friends and family, my community, my clients, from a different place. Rather than asking myself “Am I doing the right work?” I’m asking myself “How can I BE with the work in front of me in a way that is aligned with my ideals?”
Yogic Principles at Work
As I make my way through a list of post-YDC book reports, I reflect on the book Yamas and Niyamas by Deborah Adele. I ponder how I can live out ethical practices through work and broader life. I notice that the way I relate to responsibility takes me out of my center. I see an opportunity to ground. As I make space for my inner life, I become aware of my tendencies, e.g., a tendency to self-sacrifice.
I try to find ways to practice non-violence (ahimsa), which is often as simple as taking a short break. And when I’m feeling brave enough, I look deeper at what’s driving my high-achieving perfectionistic behaviour. I tend to much younger parts that still operate in survival mode, help them heal, update their beliefs.
As I practice truthfulness (satya), I approach myself with kindness and compassion. I know I can ask for help when things get rough, but can I accept support, practice non-stealing (asteya) by allowing others to step in, before I’m in a crisis?
“Helping, Fixing or Serving?”
I’m also exploring the attitude I bring to work. I really like the article “Helping, Fixing or Serving?” by Rachel Naomi Remen. When I first read it, I was thinking of my coaching clients but I can also see this affecting all areas of my life.
The author writes that “Helping, fixing and serving represent three different ways of seeing life. When you help, you see life as weak. When you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole.”
She discusses how the ways of fixing and helping can be draining, and potentially leading to burnout. Serving, however, is regarded as a renewing force that can help cultivate a deep sense of devotion and gratitude. This understanding of service connects to the spirit of Karma Yoga, the practice of selfless service here at the Ashram. The way we approach work allows it to become an offering from the heart and an ongoing spiritual practice.
I recognize that my corporate career started with wanting to help and fix problems. When I started transitioning to coaching, I became more open to serving. To see people as whole, to walk with them, to facilitate exploration of their challenges and trusting they can overcome those challenges and move towards realizing their potential.
Perhaps today when I carry too much responsibility, I’m still trying to fix. I end up pushing myself beyond my limits. Living and working at the Ashram, I am reminded of my higher purpose, of our shared responsibility, of compassion towards self and others.
Coming into a state of balance and integration with work seems to be a continuous practice for me; I hope that my newly developing relationship with myself and my work can set me free. Strengthening mind-body connection. Practicing discernment – knowing where to surrender and where to persevere.
Every day brings an opportunity to be set free by work. Whether I embrace it or not, the choice is mine.
Reflection Practice
Take an intentional break during your work day, whether it’s a job, work around the house or any other type of work. Sit in silence and follow the rhythm of your breath.
Ask yourself: What atmosphere do I want to create around myself and my work?
Write in your journal, including examples of how you can manifest your ideals through work.
By Yana