Resistance is a powerful teacher

What does it want you to know?

I have a fraught relationship with resistance.

Every time I want to do something important, something that really matters, resistance rolls in like a boulder — hard, heavy, blocking my path.

So I do what any rational person would: I try to move the boulder. I push against it. I strain and shove and rail, and when that inevitably fails, I resort to angry words.

“Why are you still here? Stop blocking me! Go away! Leave me alone!”

The boulder doesn’t budge, of course. That’s what happens when you meet resistance with even more resistance.

An ancient sculpture, disguised as a boulder, hiding a secret waterfall — Goa Gajah, Bali

So lately I’ve been taking a different tack. I actually listen to the resistance. I ask it questions like:

• Where are you showing up in my body?

• What do you want me to know?

• What are you protecting?

• What are you afraid of?

The resistance doesn’t magically disappear when I do this, but it usually softens. It teaches me something new — or something very, very old — about my fears, insecurities, and values.

And sometimes, if I’m very gentle and a little bit lucky, the resistance shrinks just enough to create a small path through.

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