Leaning Into the Season of Stillness – Tending the Inner Flame of Balance

As the days grow shorter and the air turns cool, we are gently guided inward. The brilliance of summer’s light softens, and nature invites us to rest, reflect, and recalibrate. The trees release their leaves without resistance, the earth exhales, and life turns toward stillness.

This shift is not just happening around us — it’s happening within us.

We, too, are part of nature’s rhythm. Our bodies, breath, and energy respond to these seasonal changes, reminding us that everything moves in cycles — the inhale and the exhale, the rise and the return, the light and the dark.

I personally love this time of year. I feel like this autumnal change comes like a slow exhale asking me to slow down. It soothes my nervous system and shifts my focus. Each season holds its teachings, its natural rhythms inviting us to listen within. In yogic philosophy, these rhythms are described through the three gunas — tamas, rajas, and sattva — the fundamental forces or qualities that shape all of existence. The teachings of the gunas can be found in ancient texts such as the Bhagavad Gita, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and the Samkhya Karika, where they are described as the threads woven into the very fabric of nature (Prakriti).

They move through everything — the weather, our thoughts, our food, our emotions — constantly shifting and influencing our state of being.

💫 The Dance of the Gunas

🕯️ Tamas represents stillness, grounding, and rest — the night, the soil, the time of renewal. It allows for integration and pause, but when tamas becomes dominant, it can pull us into inertia, resistance, or heaviness.

🔥 Rajas is the spark of movement and transformation — the energy of the sun, of action, creation, and drive. When balanced, it keeps us alive and inspired; when excessive, it can manifest as restlessness, overactivity, or burnout.

🌸 Sattva is the quality of harmony, clarity, and light. It is the essence of balance — when tamas and rajas dance in equilibrium, sattva arises as peace, understanding, and inner radiance.

The goal of yoga — in its truest sense — is not to eliminate these qualities, but to cultivate awareness of them. Through our practice, we learn to recognize their presence, and consciously guide ourselves toward sattva — the luminous state of harmony that brings us closer to our true nature.

🍂 Entering the Season of Tamas

Now, as autumn deepens and winter begins to whisper, we move into a tamas season.

The outer world slows down. The energy naturally turns inward, inviting rest and reflection. This is not a time to push, strive, or rush ahead — it is a time to listen.

Yet within this stillness, there remains a subtle fire that must be tended. Just as we might place another log on the hearth to keep the flame softly glowing, we must tend the inner fire — agni — with mindful care.

If we let tamas take over completely, the flame may fade into darkness. But if we feed it too fiercely, allowing the rajasic energy to blaze unchecked, we lose the balance and peace that the season offers.

The art lies in finding the middle path — nurturing just enough fire to stay warm, awake, and connected, while allowing space for rest and renewal.

🔥 The Gentle Fire of Practice

Your yoga practice can mirror this balance.

This is not the time for intense heat or forceful effort, but rather a slower, more meditative rhythm. Flow like the falling leaves — soft, deliberate, graceful.

Choose grounding postures that root you into the earth — forward folds, gentle twists, supported backbends, and long savasanas that invite surrender.

Let the breath guide you inward.

Let each inhale be a gentle spark — rajasic energy lifting the heart.

Let each exhale be a release — tamasic energy grounding you back to stillness.

Through this dance, sattva arises — the quiet light of balance that illuminates the heart.

You might visualize your inner flame — the sacred fire of your heart — burning steadily, neither fierce nor faint. Feed it with loving attention, with gratitude, with presence. This flame becomes your teacher, your guide, your reminder of the light of yoga that never truly fades.

🌺 Honouring the Seasons of Your Life

Just as the earth has its cycles, so do we.

There are seasons of expansion, creation, and activity — and there are seasons of stillness, reflection, and renewal. To live yoga is to honour these rhythms, both in nature and within your own life.

Perhaps this moment calls for letting go — like the trees, releasing what no longer serves you. Perhaps it’s a time for tending what is tender, healing what has been wounded, or simply allowing yourself to rest.

The wisdom of yoga teaches us that balance is not a fixed state; it is a continuous practice of returning — again and again — to the middle ground, where heart, breath, and spirit align.

When we embrace this awareness, yoga becomes the medicine it truly is — restoring harmony not only in body and mind, but in the way we live and love.

🧘 An Invitation

As we move through this quieter season, I invite you to let your practice be an act of love — for yourself, for the earth, and for the sacred balance that holds it all.

Move slowly.

Listen deeply.

Tend your inner fire with care.

May you find peace in the pause, wisdom in the letting go, and light in your own steady heart.

With love and warmth,
Wenche 💚

Living Yoga – A Journey Home to Your Heart