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I run study groups now on Patanjali because I think he, more than anyone else I know, articulates so well the difference between psychical and spiritual. The intense first priority is to get ourselves free from psychical enmeshment then we begin to get an idea of how it actually binds us and how we can become freer. Good psychotherapy! It seems to me this is the best way to deal with the various demons hanging on to our toes so we may get a glimpse of what the spiritual is…we do so love to take short cuts!

These two examples speak to the promise of true healing (but perhaps not always curing) through profound spiritual transformation, a promise that yoga therapy holds for our clients. Perhaps because of the intensity and duration of our program we witness many profound spiritual shifts in our clients after every retreat. Typically the attitudes are changed and the spark in the eye and spring in the step are back.

But not everyone goes through such profound transformations. Not everyone is ready or even sometimes willing to let go and risk exploring the territory outside their psychological and mental comfort zones. We, as yoga therapists, do not really know the deeper layers of our clients and their readiness for spiritual transformation. I found out how deeply Nick was transformed only after receiving his letter.