Power of the Group

I went to the 6am practice this morning at DMY. I'm not a morning person, per say, and I still can't decide if that trait is genetic or an actual, conscious choice. However, I think the days of working 5am-9am at Borders cured me of my beef with waking up anytime before 6:30 in the morning. When it comes to practicing, more than half of the effort is just showing up on the mat. There were about 10-15 people @ the studio this morning, and it was a toasty 100 degrees in there :)

I've done many home practices over the years, some with one other person and others just by myself; but it isn't the same as being with a group of people. It's not really even about being at a studio to practice; it's the energy of being around others, being able to hear each other's breath. It helps me to become more present. I recently finished reading The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. In talking about the group and presence, he writes,

Group work can also be helpful for intensifying the light of your presence. A group of people coming together in a state of presence generates a collective energy field of great intensity. It not only raises the degree of presence of each member of the group but also helps to free the collective human consciousness from its current state of mind dominance. This will make the state of presence increasingly more accessible to individuals...

He goes on to explain that even though the group is powerful, one shouldn't become dependent upon the group or on a "master" teacher for this connection; for you are then identifying with form from without vs. true presence within. This makes perfect, intellectual sense to me. But I still prefer practicing with a group to going through a flow on my own because it's more enjoyable, energizing, juicy. It's harder (or I make it harder) for me to stay focused, be in my body instead of my mind, stay accountable, etc. when it's just me. Why is that? This is something worth exploring. Too often, I use the lack of power of the group as an excuse as to why I'm not doing something be it yoga or painting, to name a couple. I'm noticing where else this shows up in my life; while it's  okay to want to be around others during these activities, I don't want to use it as a crutch. Hmm...