While we tend to place a negative connotation on ‘habits’, in fact, habits are an important part of the action of the being, particularly of the physical being. We see times and seasons in Nature that repeat themselves, and we see animal life surviving through patterns and habits that they have developed over time. Human beings have sleep and waking cycles as well as general times for taking food that represent physical habits deeply ingrained in human activity. We can measure changes in the energy cycles and hormone release cycles to identify that these patterns are generally operative.
Repetition has a power that can help turn an idea into a reality. We find that training the body, the vital being and the mind to use patterns, habits of action constructively, can yield tremendous results. Physical training is one such aspect where development of ‘muscle memory’ and other trained habitual responses can save one’s life as well as help an individual accomplish great feats of athletic prowess or endurance.
It is possible to tap into the power of the subconscient through systematic programming of the subconscient. There are numerous techniques which have come to the forefront in recent times to accomplish this, including the power of positive affirmations, training regimens, meditation, mantra and breathing practices, etc.
These practices can aid in removal of unwanted or unneeded obsolete habits and build in new habits that are aligned with the current needs of the being.
Sri Aurobindo writes: “The subconscient is the support of habitual action — it can support good habits as well as bad.”
Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, Living Within: The Yoga Approach to Psychological Health and Growth, Disturbances of the Subconscient, Subconscient Habits, pp. 110-111
Santosh has been studying Sri Aurobindo's writings since 1971 and has a daily blog at http://sriaurobindostudies.wordpress.com and podcast at https://anchor.fm/santosh-krinsky He is author of 16 books and is editor-in-chief at Lotus Press. He is president of Institute for Wholistic Education, a non-profit focused on integrating spirituality into daily life.