Living mindfully through the Yamas of yoga
Living mindfully doesn’t have to out of reach for anyone. If you follow— even loosely— the Yamas of yoga, you begin to notice an awareness in yourself that wasn’t there before. The mindfulness you felt you were missing will start to find its way back into your life. You will feel more connected to the world around you and whatever the “divine” power means to you.
It feels like there is constant pressure to live mindfully. We see it in social media, on the news or hear about it on a podcast. It’s usually a story about a couple or individual who have traded in the corporate life for an early retirement.
We hear or read about how they’re now on the beaches of an exotic coast never again sitting behind the cold, blue glow of a computer screen for eight hours a day so they can “live slow” and “embrace every waking moment.” Don’t get me wrong— I don’t want to give off the vibe of mockery. It’s more that the story invokes a sense of regret that causes the rest of us to feel bad about our life decisions. If you’re a highly empathetic person, stories like this can make you feel you’ve failed or made a bad decision somewhere in life.
Of course, many of us would trade the daily grind for this kind of life but for the majority of us, it’s unattainable— or at least it feels that way. Fortunately, it’s not unattainable if you choose to begin living mindfully through the Yamas of yoga.
What Are the Yamas of Yoga?
To understand the Yamas of yoga, we first have to understand the fundamentals of yoga.
Yoga is the practice of creating a union between mind, body and spirit. In yoga, our breathing— or pranayama— accesses our life force and connects it to our body. It’s this combination of breathing and body movement that allows us to reach a higher presence and self awareness so we can connect (or reconnect) to the entirety of creation. It’s about finding balance in life. The yin and the yang. For each action, there is an opposite action. Yoga helps us to attain a mindful way of living. This is the philosophy of yoga found in The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali a very long time ago. Patanjali was a Hindu philosopher and sage who was born around 200 BC.
In The Yoga Sutra, we are taught of a framework of yoga. This framework has 8 paths— or 8 limbs. There is no hierarchy in any of the 8 paths. Not one path is considered to be better or more important than the others. Instead, each path is meant to be the framework for a holistic life so we can connect to a higher power. All 8 paths are to be practiced together and when we have been able to achieve all at once, we are complete.
The 8 paths— or limbs— of yoga are:
Yama: Universal Morality
Niyama: Personal Observances
Asanas: Body Postures
Pranayama: Breathing/control of prana (life force)
Pratyahara: Control of the Senses
Dharana: Concentration and Inner Awareness
Dhyana: Devotion and Meditation
Samadhi: Union with the Divine
In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Patanjali tells us that the first two of the 8 paths — the first is the Yamas and the second is the Niyamas— are the social ethics or ethical rules and moral codes that we should live by to make the world a better place.
The Yamas are the way we feel or act with people and things outside of ourselves.
The Niyamas are the way we relate or feel about ourselves only.
While both Yamas and Niyamas work with each other (and the other 6 limbs) to help create the perfect whole self, it’s the Yamas that we draw from to begin to live mindfully from.
The Five Characteristics of the Yamas
When I first began yoga certification courses, I didn’t know the Yamas and Niyamas even existed. However, when I found yoga a few years before I decided to become a teacher, I knew I embraced the practice for a reason— something about yoga drew me into it. It felt like a missing piece of a puzzle.
I have always lived my life trying to take up as little space in the world as I could— to not make a negative impact on the world around me and to do right. Don’t get me wrong, I’m quite sure that no matter how mindful I try to live, I still live in suburbia, so I’m not much different than the masses. In other words, I am not saying I am above or better than anyone else. This is how I live my life.
I still use running water (just try to use less of it), I still shop at the grocery store (I just try to buy food that was made or grown organically or from a company who also does their part), I still encounter critters in my home (I just always capture them and release them outside— yes, even scorpions!), I still shop for clothing (I try to look for B-certified vendors), etc.
You get the idea. Realistically, this doesn’t happen all the time. I still take hot baths and showers. I still drive a car that uses gasoline. I still eat food from a factory (just not any that harm or exploit animals). It’s more that I try to be mindful of my impact. I do my best and sometimes doing my best means making my way of life a little more difficult but I’m ok with that.
So, back to yoga certification classes… When we learned about the Yamas of yoga, I was so excited to find out that I had already been living— or doing my best to live— these moral and ethical observances! I knew there was something about yoga that felt it was already a part of me! Maybe they are already a part of you.
I feel that if we pay attention to the Yamas, we begin to feel that we are living a more mindful life which, in turn, allows us to enjoy every moment.
The Yamas of Yoga (Universal Morality)
Ahimsa: Compassion for All Living Things
This is my favorite Yama of them all.
In translation from Sanskrit to English, Ahimsa means harmlessness— to not injure or display cruelty to any living creature in any way.
In yoga, we practice Ahimsa by being kind, friendly and to have consideration for other people, animals and objects (for objects, it would be to not destroy or damage).
To practice Ahimsa is to consider the world around you and do everything in your power to harm nothing.
Not eating animal-based foods because it causes pain and suffering
Holding the door open for someone
Not littering as it impacts the homes of even the tiniest of creatures
Taking a moment to pause before reacting to understand that you may need to consider what it’s like to walk in the other person’s shoes
My first memory of learning the word Ahimsa was through a story posted by an animal sanctuary. A small pig had fallen from a factory farm transport truck onto the side of the highway. A local found the pig and called an animal sanctuary to take the pig in. The little pig was named Ahimsa in representation of how she would now be living a beautiful, peaceful life as opposed to encountering the harm and death that waited for her at the end of the truck’s journey and to pointedly show how the lives of innocent animals are used for our pleasure at their expense.
As our lives go on, it’s easy to forget that other living creatures and people that we don’t have in our circles also have their lives happening at the same moment. A stranger to you wakes up and starts her day, flowers are blooming with the sunrise, trees are sinking their roots deep into the ground… every living thing is doing its best to live its life. It’s when we can pause to acknowledge and be considerate of our coexistence with other living beings— and to allow those beings to live their lives— it’s then that we begin to practice Ahimsa.
Satya: Commitment to Truthfulness
In this characteristic of the Yamas, practicing Satya means to always speak the truth. However, the truth might not always be appropriate given a certain situation. In theory, it is no different than what you may have learned as a little one— “If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all.”
Satya ties into Ahimsa where to not speak the truth is acceptable when you don’t want to harm someone. Satya should never conflict with Ahimsa.
Practicing Satya will open the pathway to honesty and living a life with a free conscience.
Asteya: Non-Stealing
The third Yama, Asteya, means to take nothing that doesn’t belong to you.
Asteya doesn’t refer to just stealing “things” but can also refer to non-tangibles such as time and space.
Borrowing an item and keeping it for longer than intended
Using someone’s time or energy for your own. You should be mindful of how you take up time and space in others’ lives and how you use that time and space for your own.
Interrupting someone’s meditation to ask a question or by not being aware and considerate of the noise you’re making in the adjoining room which causes them to be disrupted
The possibility of stealing from yourself is very real, too.
How?
Let’s say during your yoga practice, you begin to lose sight of being present in the moment on your mat by wanting to so badly achieve an asana. By shifting your focus to perfection rather than presence will cause you to steal that perfect moment in itself. You need to be at peace with yourself and know that each asana will come in its own time. That to practice yoga, mindfulness is part of it.
Be mindful of the time with yourself and embrace what the present moment brings instead of grasping for more. Know when to accept that you have enough— whether that’s time, space, people or things. By reaching for the next thing to fill a void, you are not practicing Asteya.
Brahmacharya: Sense Control / Right Use of Energy
This is a Yama that tends to be brushed off as it was used to move a person toward celibacy in order to channel their energy into practicing and achieving their highest selves through the limbs of yoga.
However, it is now more accepted as a way to choose how to spend our energy so we can be closer to the higher power. In yoga, Brahman means creator. Therefore, Brahmacharya has been translated into “energy which leads to Brahman” or “walking in God consciousness”.
Essentially, this Yama means to use your energy to achieve the closest you can be to the divine by living your life in moderation and commitment to yourself.
You eat to live, not eat to eat for gluttony
You wear clothing to keep you covered or warm, not to draw attention to yourself or show wealth
To be in a relationship exclusively by loving and honoring that person, not by having extramarital affairs
It’s another way to create a sense of mindfulness of how you live your life: simply and without want for too much; to find peace and happiness within yourself.
If you notice your energy is being sapped by a certain habit, event or person in particular, it may be time to reassess that energy vampire. Can you take a break for a reset? Can it be eliminated? Essentially, your energy is not being used mindfully— instead it is being used in an area of focus far more than in other spaces.
If we practice Brahmacharya, we can devote the appropriate amount of energy to all areas in our lives, we won’t feel the stress and pressure of doing too much or giving too much. Therefore, we will feel happier and share our positive energy with the world, making it a better place.
Aparigraha: Non-greed and Non-Attachment/Non-Posessiveness
In the fifth and final characteristic of the Yamas, we explore Aparigraha which means to take only what is necessary.
This characteristic of the Yamas applies to items as much as it does about taking advantage of a situation:
Do not exploit others by taking more of what they have so it benefits you
Do not take advantage of someone by taking something you have not earned
Do not hoard items or attach yourself to objects
This shows a lack of faith in God or the divine.
To live mindfully through Aparigraha, it is to show that you have achieved the knowledge and acceptance that the only consistencies in life are uncertainty and fluctuations/changes.
By holding onto something (tangible or intangible), you have neglected the space and energy needed to live mindfully which prevents you from channeling your energy to the divine energy.
Moral Ethics and Mindfulness Go Hand in Hand
You have the power inside of you to find your ethically moral place in this world. You likely noticed a trend throughout these Yamas— most religions offer the same moral virtues in their practices. In Christianity, for example, we are taught the Ten Commandments. “Thou shall not steal,” has the same fundamentals that the Yama, Asteya, does.
To take on these virtues doesn’t mean you have to practice Buddhism or Jainism or any -ism for that matter.
If you purposefully begin living mindfully through the Yamas of yoga, by honoring each of the five characteristics— or moral rules of life— your life will be more purposeful and fulfilling and will contribute to a healthy and kinder society. The Yamas will help to free you from the restraints and feeling of captivity that the daily grind of life can often make us feel.
Namasté,
Jen
