The third niyama - tapas - is usually translated from Sanskrit to English as 'austerity'. Austerity is one of those words that comes with connotations of severity and withdrawal - along the lines of the yama, bramacharya, commonly translated as 'celibacy' (see previous post).
In the vernacular: quit, give up, diet, unplug.
Even the word 'practice' can make us twinge at the thought of hardship. I have endeavored to explore this reaction - the hankering that erupts when one supposes that full ind...
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The yamas are universal tenets, the first of yoga's eight limbs. When practiced mindfully, they weave a moral fabric that forms a base from which we live. These encompass principles that most of us learn right from the beginning - don't lie, cheat, steal, hurt ... but it goes much deeper than that.
My previous postings have focused on the yamas, exploring them in a brief manner. Volumes could be written about each one (and have been); my intention is to ignite a spirit of inquiry in myself, an...
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