The word ‘yield’ used to mean payment or reward (originally from gieldan which meant ‘to pay for’ or geldan which meant ‘to be worth.’) We can also see the root for ‘gold’ in these words, which makes me think about its value. If we think of yielding as being an exchange rather than as giving up money or power, it becomes a lovely energy to meditate on. It’s a giving and receiving. It’s surrendering to beauty or being loved. It’s releasing old habits—giving them up. When we yield to traffic, we give others the right of way. When harvest yields us a cornucopia of bounty, it gives to us. Our constant, reciprocal, symbiotic relationships that we have with other people, with the world, and with ourselves is at the heart of yielding to stillness.
