What is balance?

In tree pose, I've got it figured out.  Kick the opposite hip out a bit, center over the standing foot, press the lifted foot against the inside of the standing leg, press the standing leg back and down, press into the foot, press the tailbone back and down.  Lift the balancing leg, lift the arms, lift the head, lift the spine, lift the gaze, and...

So much pressing and lifting - words that are both generally opposites and indicative of movement, the transition of force against weight resulting in motion.  Yet here in tree, the whole point is stillness, rooted, grounded.  Tree.

How do we find solidity in the midst of so many opposing forces? Lifing and pressing, force and stillness.  

... and I could extend the metaphor to life, but I think you might've already figured out where I was going with that. 

When we find the balance, whether it's in Tree, Warrior III, Eagle, Dancer, or something a little crazier like Bound Half Lotus Tiptoe pose (google it, it's delightful), finding the balance comes not necessarily with finding the ease.  It's never easy.  There are always things straining or wobbling or not-quite-right or almost falling out.  The key is finding the center of the tension, the connection between forward/backward motion, active/passive stance, outward/inward reflection.  So the next time you feel yourself shifting too far into one of the forces revolving through you in your balance, follow it back, and find the center.  

The nexus is the balance, and we are the nexus.  

Namaste.