Hi. You may remember me talking of Ahimsa. This exert from Byron Yoga Centre explains it well. Swami Pujan (Byron Yoga Centres philosophy and meditation teacher) shines the light on the eight-limb path of yoga: ashtanga (ashta = eight; anga = limb). The first of the yamas: ahimsa. According to Swami Pujan, “The eight limbs of yoga is a guiding light, a moral compass for life. They help us do the best we can.” The eight limbs of yoga are made up of: yamas niyamas asana pranayama pratyahara dharana dhyana samadhi Let’s start at the yamas. The yamas are regarded as the basic universal laws of life. Practicing the five yamas in daily life help bring peace, love, compassion and kindness into ourselves and the world around us. The first of the yamas is the universal law of non-violence or non-harming of ourselves and others: ahimsa. This principle reaches far beyond the concept of physical violence. Swami Pujan explains that ahimsa applies to all aspects of life from the gross level – our physical actions – all the way to the subtle level – our spiritual practice. “Ahimsa is about gentleness in our actions, our thoughts and our spiritual pursuits,” he says. Practicing ahimsa on the mat sees us take care of our bodies in the postures, not pushing too far and causing pain and/or physical damage. Next time the competitive you arises on the mat and drives you to go further in a posture than your body would like, think of ahimsa. This yama also reminds us to be gentle with ourselves through the way we think when we are on the mat. Berating ourselves for not perfecting a posture, comparing ourselves to the person on the mat beside us or judging others in class are all ways of violating the principles of ahimsa. Off the mat, practicing ahimsa helps us in our relationships with others and with ourselves. Bringing this yama into our daily life will result in less self-judging, negative self-talk and judging others. In short, ahimsa makes life a whole lot nicer.
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 10:43:40 +0000
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