Tapas, Ahimsa & the Discipline of Rest
The beauty of naps amidst the sound of the crashing surf.
One of my favorite napping rituals includes nature sounds… especially the rhythmic pulse of ocean waves playing low in the background. The surf, steady and timeless, wraps around me like a lullaby. It lulls me to sleep in a way few other things can.
This ease into softness was not always easy for me.
Afternoon naps were a personal challenge, an act of rest that once felt indulgent, even unearned. For years, I practiced a more visible form of tapas… the daily discipline of showing up for work, tending to others, keeping commitments. I was reliable. Devoted.
In my yoga practice, I was steady, asana, meditation, breath work was a kind of inner fire tended through consistency and weekly effort.
This was how I understood self-care… through showing up, through doing and powering through.
But in recent weeks chemotherapy has changed the rhythm. Has changed my rhythm.
The vibrating, destabilizing energy of treatment, the cellular fatigue, the fray of my nervous system, called for something different. Something quieter. More inward. More kind. More chill.
At first, I resisted. I missed the clear fire of effort, of doing. The structure of deadlines, the encouragement of my yoga mat, the goal to reach for more.
With each wave of exhaustion, I began to see…
This too is tapas.
The willingness to be still.
To lie down in the middle of the day.
To let the body lead instead of override it and push through.
To surrender, not from weakness…but from wisdom. To trust my body to know what to do, to heal in breath, and in the stillness of naps.
And it is also ahimsa ~ non-harm.
To speak gently to myself when the energy is gone.
To stop performing for the sake of productivity.
To embody care instead.
To nap, not as an escape, but as nourishment. A pause along this camino of recovery. To take stock of my inner landscape at rest.
These days, I let the waves carry me. I lie down in the late afternoon, open the windows to fresh air, the sound of rain or the songs of the birds. I press play on the ocean’s breath. I place one hand on my belly, the other on my heart. And I let myself drift out to the sea of deep rest.
Rest has become the altar.
Sleep, a sacred offering.
Waking… softer, slower, less urgent, feels like a blessing I now know how to receive.
~ Leora
An Invitation to the Practice
There is a quiet kind of courage in choosing rest, especially when the world has taught us to equate stillness with weakness or to earn our pauses, our naps only after exhaustion.
But in the space between breath and effort, there is another kind of strength… the strength to soften. To listen. To allow. This invitation was created as a sanctuary for that kind of strength, a space to reflect, to remember, and to return to the wisdom of your body.
You are invited to explore not just how you rest, but how you relate to rest.
This is a conversation between discipline and tenderness, between tapas and ahimsa. Between all that you’ve done, and all that is still healing within you.
May these prompts and rituals serve as quiet companions… welcoming you into the sacred practice of doing less, and loving more.
You don’t have to feel brave to be brave.
You don’t have to do more to be enough.
You can begin here.
Softly. Steadily. In your own time.
~ Welcome back to the healing medicine of afternoon naps
🪷
Reflection ~ The Discipline of Rest
Rest is not retreat. It is devotion. It is medicine, It is listening. It is love.
Writing Prompts –
- What is your current relationship with rest?
- Are there moments where stillness feels difficult to allow? Why?
- What does tapas, or “ardent effort” look like in your healing journey right now?
- Where in your life are you practicing effort without gentleness?
- What would it look like to trust your body to know what to do?
Weekly Intention:
This week, I will offer myself…
Sacred Words to Return To:
“To trust my body to know what to do… to heal in breath, and in the stillness of naps.”
🌊
~ Ritual for Afternoon Rest
- Set the Space
Open a window or light a candle. Create a small pocket of quiet in your day. - Choose Your Soundtrack
Play gentle ocean waves or nature sounds. Let the sound wrap around you like a lullaby. - Position the Body
Lie down comfortably. Let your body be supported with the comfort of your pillows and blankets – (optional)- Lay on your back, place one hand on your heart, the other on your belly.
- Lay on your left side, with a pillow between your knees
- Set an Intention (optional)
Whisper inwardly:
“I trust my body to heal in stillness.” - Rest Without Guilt
Nap for 20–40 minutes if possible. If sleep doesn’t come, simply be and soften into the space of your. bed, of comfort. - Upon Waking
Inhale gently. Exhale slowly. Notice how you feel. When ready, transition and move slowly.
Closing Prompt:
What did rest feel like today? What surprised you?
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All visual images for this written series were inspired by my imagination, paintings, writings, and Rumi’s Guest House. Collaborated with and designed by AI – ChatGPT.
All rights reserved by the author.
Thru soulful eyes 