The fourth niyama, Svadhyaya, is an aspect of yoga that has taken a hold of me in a way that feels truly holistic. I have begun to form a palpable link within between the body, mind, and spirit through daily study and development of a devotional routine - actions that lead to knowledge of the Self. And, strangely, these actions are not bound by goals or a narrow view of achievement.
Patanjali's Sutra 2.44 states: Svadhyayad ista-devata-samprayogah.
According to the interpretation of this sutra...
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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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This entry is about the second niyama, Santosha – contentment.
In my exploration of Santosha as an observance, my thoughts returned time and again to the words of my grandfather.
When Alejandro Andres was in the latter phase of his of his life of 96 years, he would often tell me (with his still-thick Spanish accent): "I have lived through many challenges in my life, but now, in my old age, I can finally say that I am contented."
Yes, he had survived considerable challenges. He emigrated from S...
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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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When the fourth yama, brahmacharya, was discussed in yoga teacher training it was presented as practicing "sexual celibacy". This, of course, brought up the following questions: "What's wrong with having sex with someone you love?" And, "Sex is a natural human function, like eating - why should it be repressed?"
Looking into the tenet in more depth, it seems it isn't that simple. While there are yogi saints who live and have lived in renouncement of sensual pleasures and physical possessions, ...
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The mist that settled in the lower field just before sundown yesterday is a softly dispersed silvery fog this morning. It lifts and clears as the day warms.
Also this morning, a cluster of pale coral flowers has opened on the amaryllis in my kitchen's south window - a welcome follow-up to the one that greeted us just over a month ago on winter solstice.
Discernibly longer daylight hours are encouraging, as is the ending of six months of study. Endings beget beginnings, beginnings beget change, ...
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The third yama (disciplines that guide us in our relationships with others) is 'asteya' – translated from Sanskrit it means 'non-stealing'.
Most of us don't intentionally steal. 'Thou shalt not steal' as a principle has been ingrained in us since early childhood. Pay for the goods and services we have used, try to find the owner of a wallet we have found ... these are things we do as a matter of course, without moral struggle.
But thinking more deeply, how can we explore non-stealing beyond t...
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Satya, truth.
The next Yama to consider, to bring into my consciousness as I begin my day, my practice, my interactions with myself and others.
How hard will that be? I think of myself as honest, aware, full of good intentions. Open to admitting when I'm wrong.
But as I consider these things I know that there are many layers, many shadowy areas deep beneath (and maybe not so far beneath) that are kept veiled – out of habit, out of fear, or merely for convenience.
Even so, truth has a way of mak...
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Yoga teacher training is moving right along. We have begun to design classes, to tutor each other one-on-one, and to practice, practice, practice. There's so much to learn.
Classes in the community have taken on a new meaning. I'm examining each asana in many new ways. What has been consideration primarily from the inside has now come to include consideration from the outside. How might I communicate the subtleties of alignment and mental awareness for this position? And how would I put togeth...
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In my first week of classes in the Yoga Teacher Training program at Langara College we discussed the concept and practice of ahimsaa - Sanskrit for harmlessness or non-violence.
During our exchange we quickly realized that the first course of harm we take is usually toward ourselves. And when we harm ourselves we harm others as well, and the entire world around us.
One of the ways that we do this most commonly is by comparing ourselves to depictions of what advertisers tell us is ideal beauty -...
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