Living The Practice: An Interview With Bill Dorigan. {Interview}

Many yogis have read, or at least glanced over, the beautiful ancient texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, as every passage lays out the framework of Yoga. Though eloquently written, many like myself find it a challenge to translate the teachings into a daily practice.

How can one interpret the texts in a way that can be applied in our own lives?

Bill Dorigan, a former high-profile trial attorney and certified Anusara Yoga teacher, has recognized this challenge in understanding and applying the teachings of Yoga philosophy, and has dedicated many years to not only seeking his own understanding of these texts, but how to transform the wisdom into reality.

He discusses the philosophy of Yoga through his lectures and book, Finding the Midline, in a way that is understandable and applicable by providing powerful tools that extend the practice of yoga beyond movement on the mat.

I am pleased to share with you my conversation with Bill about his experience, perspective and the insight he shares through his own writing and daily practices.

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Hope: Your perspective is quite unique — a former trial attorney turned yogi. Tell us a bit about your journey from boardroom to the mat.

Bill: In the course of my journey, I’ve seemed to constantly choose roads with potholes everywhere. In hindsight, I have figured out that I dug many of those potholes myself, although life certainly puts some of them in our path no matter what choices we make.

Hope: I think we can all agree with that!

Bill: These potholes appeared in all aspects of my life, particularly in my relationships with family, friends, and co-workers. I describe many of these encounters in my book, Finding the Midline.

Sometimes I saw potholes ahead of time and avoided them, but often I ran into them head-on, either never seeing them or naively thinking — until it was too late — that they wouldn’t be a problem.

Fortunately, many were small and I kept right on going, barely giving them a second thought. But a few were deep, and the encounter was not without damage, at times significant, both to others and myself. Still, I was young, strong, smart, and doing well overall, so even in these cases I didn’t pay much attention.

Hope: When did Yoga come into play?

Bill: Somewhere around my 50th birthday, I started taking Yoga classes at a local athletic club in Denver. My buddy Jim suggested I might enjoy it, telling me Yoga would be good for my martial arts practice and that I would meet some fun people.

While he didn’t say anything at the time, I think he also thought that Yoga might calm me down a bit, giving me an opportunity to be a bit more thoughtful about life and relationships.

Jim was right. Not too long after, I realized my path was becoming smoother; my encounters with potholes were less and not as severe. I associated that with the Yoga classes I was regularly attending. When I made that association, I decided to intensify my practice. As these changes in my life continued, I decided to become a Yoga teacher.

I was so excited and grateful at this pleasant turn of events that I wanted to share the experience. Eventually, I began to study and write about Yoga philosophy and practices, and I even pursued and received a Master’s in Human Development, focusing on the relationship between behavioral psychology and the practice and philosophy of Yoga.

Hope: It seems like you found an almost instant passion for Yoga. Why did you start teaching?

Bill: One reason for teaching Yoga and philosophy, as well as writing Finding the Midline, was a desire to help others avoid as many of life’s potholes as possible, or at least learn how to climb out a bit easier if they do fall in.

However, by far the bigger reason for taking this path of the mat, as you described it in your question, is the satisfaction and joy I feel in helping others see their own potential and the possibilities life presents, while at the same time reminding myself in the process.

Hope: How did your life shift when you started to weave in the practice of Yoga?

Bill: Through this process, I found I was slowing down and, as a result, better able to see what was going on around me. This allowed me to better appreciate people and life in general. The old phrase stop and smell the roses is a time-honored cliché for a reason: life really does offer invitations for rich experiences on a regular basis.

This is what I refer to as a Midline.

These Midlines include, by way of example, an invitation to form a possible new friendship, a chance to deepen a relationship with somebody you already know, an opportunity to witness something inspiring and wondrous, an opening to do something meaningful for others, or the option of exploring your emotional response to a situation, even if painful, and in doing so, become a more alive, attuned person.

Opening to life’s Midlines has been a big shift I attribute to Yoga, and it has greatly enriched my life.

Here is an example. When I met my son’s future wife, they were both in college. After graduation and their marriage, I found that I spent whatever time she and I had together looking for openings to give her advice. I can’t even imagine how she was able to endure those conversations without exploding!

One day, after I had begun my Yoga practice, we were sitting there and I realized she was actually talking and I was actually listening. I found myself thinking: “Ah, my son is so lucky to be married to such an interesting woman.” Not long after, I began to get long-distance phone calls with my granddaughter on the other end of the line.

Her mom had thought to call so I could hear my granddaughter’s voice. Other times I get texts with photos of both grandkids. What goes around comes around is another useful cliché to keep in mind.

Hope: When did your interest in the philosophy of Yoga begin to blossom?

Bill: I began to study with Dr. Douglas Brooks, a Yoga scholar and professor at the University of Rochester. After attending a workshop he gave in Los Angeles, I was so hungry for more that I decided to pursue Anusara Yoga because it was premised on the non-dualist Yoga philosophy Dr. Brooks had discussed at the workshop.

I knew that through the study of Anusara Yoga, I would learn more of this philosophy from its teachers and would be better able to follow and study with Dr. Brooks.

I’m not going to turn this interview into a lengthy discussion of this philosophy (that is what I do in Finding the Midline) but, by way of example, I was inspired by a philosophy that teaches us to not only be curious about the world, but to actually celebrate its diversity because we are each, ultimately, a mirror of each other’s potential.

Our view of what we might choose to become expands through our interaction and observation of others. As an example, I never saw myself as a lawyer until a friend of mine suggested to me one night that he thought I would be a good lawyer and ought to consider law school. I began to think about it and ended up following his advice.

I’ve greatly enjoyed my life as a lawyer and likely would not have gone to law school but for this friend serving as a mirror for my potential, showing me something about myself I didn’t see.

Hope: Many, myself included, tend to be intimidated by the vast texts and teachings in philosophy. How does your book, Finding the Midline, make the concepts understandable to everyone?

Bill: I use stories to show how Yoga philosophy and practice can operate in our daily lives.

While Yoga philosophy and practice can serve as a pathway in connecting to God, should we seek such a connection, another tremendous value is learning how to use our knowledge of this philosophy and practice to create a richer life, a life filled with meaning and relationships.

Hope: That is beautifully put, Bill. How do you structure your writing to piece in the value of Yoga philosophy within our lives?

Bill: In each chapter, I use a real-world story to introduce each point of philosophy and practice. I tried to use the story to evoke a visceral experience of the particular point of the chapter, and then followed up with a brief discussion of the point.

By way of example, in Chapter 76, I introduce Patanjali’s second Sutra, which has been translated as something like: Yoga is the slowing or even stopping of the fluctuations of the mind. This is an amazing Sutra, but what does it mean to us as we go about our day?

I decided to introduce this point by telling a story about how I met a woman in an elevator one night after work. Even though I was lonely and wanting to meet somebody, I got lost in my own mind’s chatter while she was talking to me.

While she was talking to me, I was busy thinking thoughts such as: She’d never be interested in me… wow, I’d like to get to know her… what witty thing can I say to impress her?… too bad I have to get to the gym, otherwise I’d like to have a drink with her.

In the course of all these fluctuations of the mind, I missed her telling me she wanted to have a drink with me and we went our separate ways. Only after driving off onto the freeway did I process what she had said.

I use this story to help explain an everyday value of what I get from this Sutra: Yoga is about finding connections in life, and if we don’t learn to slow down and pay attention to each moment, we miss the invitation to connection that might be offered.

We need to learn to calm ourselves, specifically our mind’s chatter, if we want to be attuned to life’s offerings.

Hope: You incorporate Midline practices after every chapter in your book. Can you share one or two that you use daily?

Bill: The Midline practice at the end of Chapter 1 asks: “Think of somebody in your life who has helped you in some way, perhaps a parent, a teacher, or even a stranger. Take a moment and allow yourself to find gratitude for this person.” I use this practice constantly to remind me to be grateful. I use it to exercise my gratitude muscle so it won’t atrophy.

As long as I am feeling grateful about something, I find it hard to concurrently feel other emotions that don’t serve me. Also, the more often I practice being grateful, the greater array of gratitude memories I have at my disposal when needed and the faster my brain can find them.

Another practice I use all the time is found at the end of Chapter 99, a chapter that discusses Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 2.54, withdrawal of the senses: “Close your eyes and spend the next minute noticing whatever thoughts and images arise.”

This is a meditation we can do throughout the day to bring us back to a state of calm, to re-center ourselves. We can shorten it to 10 or 15 seconds in the middle of a stressful meeting or discussion. It is a version of the advice: Count to 10.

Hope: Oh, haven’t we all used that needed 10 seconds to de-stress!

Bill: I asked a friend of mine, a fellow lawyer, to do a version of this to help control his anger after he returned to work following recovery from a heart attack. He has a photo of his beloved son on his desk, and I told him, when he felt his anger or irritation rising to a boiling point, to look at the photo for 30 seconds.

I knew he wouldn’t do the one-minute Midline exercise at the end of the chapter, but I knew he would look at his son’s picture for 30 seconds. It seems to work. We interrupt the chattering of the mind that is taking us off into a potentially dangerous direction and, in doing so, re-center and reconnect with ourselves.

This Midline practice is no substitute for a meditation practice, but I find it to be an invaluable tool.

Hope: Aside from ‘Finding the Midline’, you have established a working series of outlines. How are these of resource to yoga practitioners and those seeking knowledge in philosophy?

Bill: In Finding the Midline, I wrote about the concept of positive psychology and the five indicators of a life of well-being identified by Dr. Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania in his 2011 book Flourish. The five indicators are: positive emotions, engagement, meaning, accomplishment, and healthy relationships.

I’ve been asked to give talks or workshops about these indicators, particularly about how Yoga and its philosophy and practice are a great way to attain a life of well-being.

Typically, the request is for me to give a one hour or so overview of the indicators. Other times I am asked to elaborate, talking about how yoga philosophy and practices are an excellent path for attaining such a life.

I made outlines of these subjects to use in the talks, including footnoted references to books discussing the indicators, including of course, Flourish.

I was asked to teach a weekly one-hour philosophy class at a Yoga studio in Denver, in which I elaborated in detail each week on different aspects of Yoga philosophy and practice as they can operate to help achieve a life well-lived.

The students asked me to post the outlines online for their own reference and, in some cases, their use in teaching their own classes. I was happy to do so and the outlines, as far as completed, are located at the MidlineTalks link on my website.

As I say on my website, the outlines are intended to be downloaded and used by teachers and others for use in classes or workshops.

I taught my weekly class until shortly before moving to Vermont this past December 2014. I am now in the process of picking up where I left off and completing my discussion of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras as they serve as guidance for attaining the indicators of a life well-lived.

Hope: I can imagine, Bill, that you have read more texts on philosophy than most could dream of. Do you have a favorite author whose work resonates with you?

Bill: I can’t name a single favorite author in the world of philosophy. I am inspired by a number of different authors, each in their own way. From my perspective of viewing Yoga as a path to a life well-lived, I am influenced by authors such as B.K.S. Iyengar and Viktor Frankl.

Dr. Rollo May has also been a long-time favorite, and other authors who come to mind are Sally Kempton and Sharon Salzberg. I’ve also been influenced by books written by Father Thomas Keating.

I love to read translations and commentaries of various texts, including the Bhagavad Gita. I have a number of different commentaries on the Gita and consider it an all-time favorite, regardless of which commentary I have in front of me.

I try to always have Dr. Douglas’ Brooks’ Poised for Grace by my side as a guide when turn to the Gita. Again, I view these texts as tools for how to create a richer life.

Hope: Where is your writing and exploration taking you now? Can we look for another book in the near future?

Bill: I will be completing my outlines and publishing them in book form, both in print and electronically. At the same time, the outlines will be posted as I complete them so anybody can read and download them for their own use or for classes and workshops.

You an find Bill’s work and more insight at http://www.findingthemidline.com/.

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Bill Dorigan is a successful trial attorney, a certified Yoga teacher, lecturer, and published author in the legal field. Following a career as an equity partner in one of the nation’s leading law firms, Bill completed a Master’s Degree studying the correlation of Yoga philosophy with Western behavioral psychology. Bill has combined his extensive experience litigating high profile lawsuits with his deep understanding of Yoga philosophy to create a book, Finding the Midline — How Yoga Helps a Trial Lawyer Make Friends and Connect to Spirit. In his spare time, Bill has been awarded three black belts in martial arts and enjoys all that the mountains of Vermont, his home state, have to offer. Bill can be contacted through his website.