Rainbow Mind Meditation for Pride (and Every Day)
"It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognise, accept, and celebrate those differences." —Audre Lorde
When I came out of the closet in 1984, I had no idea there was such a welcoming and beautiful community waiting to embrace me. I remember marching in Pride parades in the late 80s and 90s, when our voices were still unusual and unique. These days it’s amazing to see queer and trans people everywhere, out and proud in untold numbers. (It's important to continue speaking out for trans rights since they are under attack.)
Then, when I started practicing yoga in earnest in 1990, I remember being so happy that yoga philosophy echoed the essential theme of pride—that we’re all equal and truly loved in our uniqueness.
I remember reading the Yoga Sutras and being amazed that an ancient tradition held such revolutionary wisdom. Yoga’s message of finding unity in diversity captured my heart, and I never looked back.
Photo: Jivana marching with Queer Nation in the 1990 NYC Pride Parade
The Heart of Yoga
Yoga offers personal healing and transformation, and that’s what most of us practice for. But what’s really amazing is that when we practice we shift from identifying with the mind to identifying with the heart—and that changes everything.
This shift changes the way we perceive the world. We gain the ability to see the world not only through the eyes, but through the heart. We gain compassion and begin to embrace the diversity of humanity. This is what I lovingly call "rainbow mind," which is a perception of the world based on love.
Let’s allow the energy of pride to expand from our hearts into our minds so that we can see how we are all unique and simultaneously all the same. Let’s let that love flow into our actions to we can be a voice for equity and compassion.
Rainbow Mind Meditation
In celebration of Pride Month, I wanted to share a three-minute Rainbow Mind Meditation from my book, Yoga Revolution.
Patanjali explains that we are experiencing the natural world through the colored lens of our attachments. We are constantly interpreting and deciphering the messages we get through our senses.
But samadhi is a neutral state, where our mind's influence disappears; it is perfectly clear vision. This is what I like to call “rainbow mind”—pure clarity and neutrality, accepting all and loving all without prejudice.
This is a mind that is so expansive it’s as wide as a rainbow, and also willing to accept and celebrate differences.
P.S. Interested in exploring meditation with me and guest teachers Ann Swanson, Tracee Stanley, Dr. Rashmi Bismark, Shawn J. Moore, Aarti Inamdar and Oneika Mays?
You can still register for our online course, Making Meditation Accessible, and receive instant access to the replays of the first two sessions.
