Ayurveda is the best writing teacher I’ve ever had.
The world of mung dhal, dinacharya, and five elements seems like an odd place to study my craft, but the moment I began to study Ayurveda I began to write daily – in my morning journaling practice, my public journal (where you’re reading this), and on The Nest (the link works for members).
It can work for you, too.
Harness the Wind
The truth is we are all creative and we create all the time. Some people write or make music. Some raise children, cook, or choose the right shoes.
And while some people who tap into this vast, free flowing creative wind create masterpieces, others lose their minds in the endless search for inspiration.
Chasing creativity is the opposite of flow. It breeds a type of dissatisfaction that eats its babies alive. Come look over any of my half-eaten novels if you want to see what that’s like.
The better choice: set sail with the wisdom of containers and build a very different relationship with creativity.
How to Deal with Vata Dosha
This is where Ayurveda is a teacher to creatives.
Creative energy aligns with prana, the subtle form of vata dosha. When vata’s wind energy is left uncontained, it blows this way and that with no regard for anything in its path. We know that wind can gain enough force to knock over a building, just imagine what it can do to our ideas.
But when given a protective container – held inside walls that are not too tight, not too loose, but flexible and fun – the wind becomes an energy source.
Contain Yourself
In practice, this looks like the protection of categories. As a writer, I protect the flow of my creativity by working within monthly and weekly themes, identifying types of creative work, paying attention to my energy levels, outlining optimal times of day to work, and staying attuned to the phases of the moon (ask me how I align my writing to my menstrual cycle). All of these tools allow me to direct my creative work rather than trying to chase it.
So if you want to be more creative, stop worrying so much about collecting the right pens and brushes and direct your focus instead on discovering how your creativity wants to be held.
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