The Obstacle is the Way

There’s a Zen proverb that says, “The obstacle is the path.” One of the best ways to understand this teaching is by observing a river. When you look at a powerful river with rapids you notice that what creates the rapid is the current of water colliding with a boulder. The boulder is what unlocks the ferocity of the river. No boulder, no rapid.

In yoga, we say “No mud, no lotus.” You can’t have the beauty of the lotus without the grittiness of the mud. In life, obstacles are a ‘part of life,’ and how you deal with them is the ‘art of life.’

This might be a bitter pill to swallow, but the universe isn’t here to make you happy — it’s here to awaken you — and in order to awaken to your potential you must face and persevere through obstacles, challenges and resistance.