We all have days when laziness overtakes us. These momentary lulls need be no cause for concern for they are a part of the rhythm of life. When, however, inertia becomes a way of life, then we should take a good look at what is causing us to become passive spectators in our own lives. Even if we are busy, this does not necessarily mean that our actions are purposeful and that we are using our energies wisely. We may be as intransigently stuck in compulsive busyness as in inactivity. We may use our best energy for inconsequential affairs—unnecessary shopping, trivial entertainment, and casual socializing—and leave the dregs for our marriage, our family and friendships, our life’s work, and the cultivation of our inner life. If we define a Yoga practice as an awareness of and investment in our most cherished values, we may be dismayed to discover how little real energy we designate to the central purpose of our life. So when I speak of a habitual disinclination toward effort, I am speaking specifically about purposeful effort. In what ways are we sabotaging ourselves, and how can we extricate ourselves from the mire of self-indulgence?

All spiritual traditions have one compelling suggestion to remedy inertia and ineffectual action. Consider in the harsh light of day that you are going to die. One day—and no one knows whether that day will be today, tomorrow, next year, or twenty years from now—the little you will cease to be. If you believe that life on Earth is meant to be a forlorn meal of dried toast and disappointment with the joy and caviar arriving postmortem, then you need not concern yourself with the issue of sloth. If you believe that on your deathbed you will be most concerned about whether you made the right choice of bedroom decor, then read no farther. But if you believe that there is something enduring within you and that the higher meaning and ...