A Joyful Practice

A Quick Note & EXCERPT: “Purpose Driven” (a Tuesday post, that’s also for Wednesday and Thursday!) December 30, 2025

“Kwanzaa, yenu iwe na heri!” – “May your Kwanzaa be happy!” to everyone who is celebrating!

“My research over the last decade has helped understand why rituals in particular (and not any other behaviors like habits, for instance) are effective at battling negative emotions. Be it anxiety, stress, fear, doubt, sadness, grief – you name it. Rituals are there to save the day. The dread we feel after experiencing a loss happens because it feels like the situation is outside our control (and it usually is). Rituals reinstate that control.”

— quoted from “The emerging science of ritual – a new look on an ancient behavior: And how you can use it to live life to the fullest” by Dr. Nick Hobson (contributing to the ThriveGlobal.com, Dec. 7, 2017)

There is something to be said for a good ritual. I don’t just mean a habit, something you do repeatedly — even if it’s something you are in the habit of doing at a particular time. Neither am I just referring to a tradition — which could be a group habit and/or a ritual that has been passed down through generations, but has lost some of it’s deeper meaning. No, I am referring to something that is more like a ceremony; something infused with purpose and meaning.

Consider your exercise routine. You may be in the habit of doing a certain kind of physical activity at a certain time on certain day(s). Changes in your routine (and the resulting cancellations during the holidays) may leave you feeling off kilter. However, you know you will return to that routine (or something similar) because it serves a purpose and you value the experience. It may even connect you to a community.

No matter what you do, if you have that regular routine, you probably experience something more than physical well-being. You may notice mental and emotional benefits that serve you on multiple levels of your life. You may even do the thing you do for those specific benefits. In this way, what you do could be considered abhyasa (“[continuous and deliberate] practice, [engaged with sincere devotion]”) (YS. 1.12-1.14) However, those extra benefits are just that — lagniappe  (“a little (something) extra”). They are gifts that are not intentionally part of the exercise.

Now, consider the physical practice of yoga, which you could consider a ritual within a ritual. It is part of a larger practice, and that larger practice intentional includes benefits beyond the physical. If you go to a different class; use one of my videos or recordings; and/or practice on your own, the ritual of the practice — i.e., the order in which we do the practice and the meaning behind the order and what we do within the sequences — still includes the deeper meaning and serves a deeper purpose, one that is beyond the physical-mental. One of my teachers once argued that this is true even if/when the meaning and purpose are not explicitly stated.

The meaning and purpose are baked in; they were part of the creation process.

Click on the excerpt title below for more about these holidays and our New Year’s Day tradition that is also a ritual!

Updated & Revised! Purpose Driven (a Friday post, that’s also for Saturday and Sunday!)

“Nia (purpose) — To make our collective vocation the building and development of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.”

— The fifth of the Nguzo Saba (or “Seven Essential Pillars”) of Kwanzaa

For people celebrating Kwanzaa, “Nia (Purpose)” is the focus for the fifth day (today, Tuesday); “Kuumba (creativity)” is the focus for the sixth day; and “Imani (faith)” is the focus for the sixth day. These final three days of Kwanzaa coincide with the fifth, sixth, seventh (or eighth) days of the “12 Days of Christmas” (depending on when you start counting).

If you are following along with the symbolic meaning of the gifts in the song, you will notice that the 5^th,  6^th, and 7^th gifts are infused with purpose, meaning, creativity, and (of course) faith: “five gold rings” are the first Five Books of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament (which provide the back story for the three Abrahamic religions); “six geese a-laying” for the six days of creation; and “seven swans a-swimming”, the consistently most expensive gift, stand for the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, fortitude, piety, and fear of the Lord) or the seven sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Six, Marriage, and Ordination). As for the eighth day, those could be considered extra (spiritual) gifts: “eight maids a-milking” for the eight beatitudes (or blessings).

“Kuumba (creativity) — To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

Imani (faith) — To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.”

— The sixth and seventh of the Nguzo Saba (or “Seven Essential Pillars”) of Kwanzaa

Online (Zoom) classes are cancelled today through Wednesday, December 31^st.

People on the recording email list(s) receive backup recordings. There are also some practice videos on my YouTube channel. You can check the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes. You can also request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at myra     (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

The playlist for the fifth day of Kwanzaa is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “12302020 Purpose Driven”]

“Consider, for instance, in moments of grief, rituals help ease our pain and suffering. But, again I ask, how do they do this, and why rituals in particular? As my collaborators Mike Norton and Francesca Gino have shown, rituals alleviate feeling of grief and loss by increasing a feelings of control.”

— quoted from “The emerging science of ritual – a new look on an ancient behavior: And how you can use it to live life to the fullest” by Dr. Nick Hobson (contributing to the ThriveGlobal.com, Dec. 7, 2017)

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is an app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.
Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

“You can perform japa, repetition of a mantra or Sacred Word, in the midst of your day-to-day work. Then, when it becomes a habit, even when you are working intensely a portion of the mind will keep repeating the mantra always. That means you have locked one end of your chain to a holy place, while the rest of the chain remains still in the outside world.”

— a note written by Swami Satchidananda, quoted in Sri Swami Satchidananda: Apostle of Peace by Sita (Joan Weiner) Bordow

I am offering in-person classes during January 2026. Click here for more details and to reserve your spots now. Let’s start the 2026 together!

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