The Law of Giving and Receiving
The most important thing is the intention behind your giving and receiving. The intention should always be to create happiness for the giver and the receiver, because happiness is life-supporting and life-sustaining. The return is proportional to the giving when it is unconditional and from the heart. This is why the act of giving has to be joyful- the frame of mind has to be one in which you feel joy in the very act of giving. Then the energy behind the giving increases many times over.
During your yoga practice, the Law of Giving and Receiving is lively in every breath you take. With each inhalation and exhalation, you are exchanging ten billion trillion atoms with your environment. Right now, take as deep a breath as you possibly can and hold it. Hold it as long as you can, and notice how uncomfortable you begin to feel when you are holding on to something that is meant to be released. Now, exhale as fully as you can and hold your breath with your lungs fully emptied. Again, feel the discomfort that arises when you are resisting taking something that you need. Whenever you resist the Law of Giving and Receiving, your mind becomes anxious and your body becomes uncomfortable.
With every pose you assume, complementary pairs of muscles are contracting and relaxing, holding and releasing in accordance with the Law of Giving and Receiving. When the life force is flowing freely through your body/mind, you are in natural alignment with the generosity and receptivity of the universe. -Deepak Chopra
