Maitrī Meditation: mātā bhūmiḥ putro’ham pṛthivyāḥ

Mātā: Mother
Bhūmiḥ: Earth
Putra: son (child)
Ahaṃ: I, the one single being
Pṛthivīvyāhā: of the earth

Pṛthivī-Sūkta, Atharva-Veda (12.1.12)

What the world provides freely, people take for granted. Greedy industrialists exploit the Earth’s natural resources on a grand scale, often producing much needless waste and harm. Somehow with the growing concern that the tax on the world is unsustainable, people seek to conquer the far frontiers of space, as if finding a new Earth would solve everything. Why do we look outwardly for the answers, rather than looking within? In the same vein, why do we push ourselves to the limit, without taking some time to relax?

By practicing Yoga, we observe our relationship to the Earth, the room we inhabit, the air we breathe and share with others, Gravity that makes us strong. Without the relationship/attachment to the Earth, there can be no Yoga, which is the yoking of You and Mother Earth. As we recite the verse, mātā bhūmiḥ putro’ham pṛthivyā, we express gratitude and delight for receiving the gift that is Yoga.