Yamas in the 21st century

Fancy a tour down the Ashtanga path/the eight limbs of yoga, giving you a glimpse into yoga philosophy? By analysing each limb, we get a deeper understanding of what lies ahead in our path. The Yamas are the first step, they’re yoga principles that are followed by every yogi. Each principle lays the foundation for the next step, they’re all interconnected. Applying the Yamas is an essential part of our yoga journey - only then do we take yoga off the mat into our daily lives. Let’s explore what the Yamas are about and how we can apply them in our lives. Don’t forget to note down the journaling questions, or save them in your notes.

The Yamas consist of
1. Ahimsa - Non-violence

2. Asatya - Untruth

3. Asteya - Non-stealing

4. Bhramacharya - Non-excessive /celibacy

5. Aparigraha - Non-possessiveness

1. Ahimsa - Non-violence

The entire path is built on ahimsa. Ahimsa is physical, mental and emotional. We can hurt someone with our actions, words and thoughts. For many years I stored grudges and anger in my heart. Holding onto these emotions began to have a negative impact on me, I would release it in the form of toxic wordplay on the people that were closest me. I was inflicting ‘hinsa’ on those who cared for me, ultimately hurting myself. So I started journaling my thoughts. I read them out loud, sleep on it and if I still haven’t resolved my doubts, I try and approach the situation with patience and respect. Ahimsa is about self love and acceptance. Only if we love ourselves can we spread positivity to those that surround us.

Have you analysed the content that you surround yourself with? Bad news should be balanced with positive content. Watch the news, but also fill your life with feel good movies and cookies. Here’s a few questions to get you introspecting.

• Can you list 3 selfless actions that you can incorporate in your home?

• Any causes that you support? Help any one of them today - it could even mean sharing a post in your stories.

  Ahimsa is a concept that I’m always battling with, do you have any techniques that you’d like to share? Comment in the section below.

2. Asatya - Untruth

Satya is built on Ahimsa - the truth shouldn’t hurt people’s feeling. Have you made a harsh comment about or to someone thinking that being ‘honest’ is cool? We’ve all been here, done this. Be mindful about your social interactions, comments on social media - if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

Here’s something else to get you thinking - does your social media content always reflect your true emotions? We’re often pretending to be in a completely different headspace for likes and validation. I’m going to be honest with you, I’m not always feeling inspired when I post a picture in hanumanasana with an motivational quote. I’ve made a conscious decision to choose my words carefully and if I don’t feel like posting, I just won’t. Let’s journal -

• Have you said something to hurt someone in the recent past? How can you approach this situation peacefully, in the future?

• Do we have unrealistic expectation of ourselves?

• Have you created a social media alter ego that you don’t connect with?

• Have you ever lied on social media for likes, comments and shares?

3. Asteya- Non-stealing

Give people space to grow and express themselves, allow them to choose their own path. Even when we offer advice we should refrain from imposing our opinions on others. By focusing on our own identity and self development we can continue on our path of self discovery without obstructing someone else’s journey.

• There’s a thin line between inspiration and stealing. Have you ever stolen someone’s ideas?

• Have you ever tried to steal the spotlight?

• Do you speak more than you listen?

4. Brahmacharya - Non-excessive/ celibacy

Practicing celibacy is a personal choice. But let’s be real, that’s going to be highly unrealistic in our metropolitan lifestyles. Brahmacharya is also about living a balanced life with healthy (sexual) practices. It is about protecting our energy and being mindful of who we share it with. Always respect, value and honour yourself, you must look out for you. These boundaries can be applied in our relationships too. By not cheating, being honest, respecting and valuing your partner we can maintain a healthy relationship.

I also perceive bhramacharya as a mastery of our senses, giving us the willpower to hold back even in the most tempting situations. Living excessively can disrupt our schedule leading to disastrous consequences. For example, if we binge watched a series late into the night, we’re sleep deprived the next day which may affect our ability to focus at work.

• Have you tracked your screen time lately? Give yourself a daily screen time buffer.

• Are you scrolling through your feed instead of sleeping? Listen to an audio book instead!

• Opt for organic sources of entertainment like a good book, cooking, journaling learning to play an instrument and observe if this has any changes on your mood.

5. Aparigraha- non possessiveness

Aparigraha is about detaching and decluttering ourselves from material, feelings, thoughts. emotions. At the start of this blog, I mentioned the grudges I would hold onto. My head and heart were clogged with unhappy memories and bad thoughts. Only after I began to practice vairagya, letting go, of all these negative feelings, could I make way for happiness and contentment. If our space is cluttered, new experiences can’t find a way into our lives. To receive, we must let go.

• Do we hold onto negative emotions and never seek to find a solution to it?

• When was the last time you cleaned your cupboard? Do it today!

• Make a to - do list and try to tick every errand off your list. Later, journal how you felt about an organised day. Does it give you more time to focus on you?
  

Applying yogic concepts can change our perception of people and situations which prepares us for change internally. Practicing yoga off the mat can seem daunting. Start small, apply a Yamas every week. Start journaling, observe if you approach situations differently. I leave you with a beautiful quote by the late B.K.S. Iyengar, “Yoga does not transform the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.”

This blog is dedicated to my teacher Natalie Croix , her book - Living life in light gave me a whole new perspective of yoga philosophy in the 21st century.