The eight limbs: Yamas and Niyamas

-->  

 Mandala by Margot

Our yoga mat is the perfect place to uncover the mind, body and spirit connection. The physical postures or asanas build strength, suppleness and balance in the body, however, they also provide a space to observe up close our habitual tendencies towards ourselves and others. Yoga is much more than just twisting, balancing and striking a pose, in fact, it could be said Yoga is the art of living. The eight limbs of yoga written by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras (threads) are practical steps to help the average person reach self-realisation or enlightenment (a continuous and sustained bliss state). The eight step ladder allows us to deepen our yoga practice with the goal of reducing or even eliminating suffering.

To recap, the eight steps are yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi. In classes we have explored the yamas or restraints. These are codes of behaviour to assist in building or strengthening moral and ethical conduct towards others and the environment. The yamas: ahimsa, satya, asteya, bramhacharya and aparigrapha. See blogs below on my understanding or interpretation of the yamas, in particular, how they play out on the yoga mat. It is through observing, without judgement, our behaviour toward ourselves that we can begin to explore how that is reflected in our treatment of others and the environment. For example, if we treat ourselves harshly always looking for perfectionism and viewing ourselves without compassion then we will cast a similar eye over others behaviour and not be able to see them through kind eyes as a reflection of ourselves.

The act of integrating and practising the yamas into our daily lifes creates positive change and this can be strengthen further by looking at the five actions that make up the second limb of yoga, niyama. The five niyamas are tools by which we can refine ourselves and help us to lead a happier and more content life. The five niyamas are saucha, santosha, tapas, svadhyaya and ishvara pranidhana. 

Om shanti,

Margot

 

Thoughts on my daily practice

Thoughts on my daily practice.

As winter settles in and the juices between the joints, tissues, muscles and organs becomes a little less runny perhaps even sticky my body enjoys more gentle flow working up to some longer held poses. Some days when my energy is low and my body mind and spirit need a recharge I gravitate towards a restorative practice. 

What is restorative yoga?

Restorative Yoga is a practice dedicated to deeply nourishing the body through mindfully resting the body and mind. The practice focuses on 'being' rather than doing. An extensive range of yoga props (blocks, bolsters, blankets, straps, the wall, floor, eye pillows) are used to create a fully supported practice allowing the body to unwind passively and the mind to move toward stillness. The props help the practitioner to rest deeply without unnecessary strain or stress physical or mental. This makes the practice ideal for those with injury, low energy, pre and post natal or those simply wishing to nourish and heal the body. For example, legs up the wall (Viparti Karani) is a classic restorative pose using the wall as a prop to support the legs. 

 Restorative yoga: photo from 2012 Spring to life Yoga Retreat

 

My favourite book is Donna Farhi's Yoga for Women: Therapeutic practice sequences. You can go to her website to order the book Donna Farhi's website I have participated in several Donna Farhi workshops/intensives (and they are intense) and really enjoy her approach to yoga as an inquiry into your awareness of your body, organs, muscles, breath as well as witnessing habits and mind patterns that may be holding you back. With this information you learn to move towards your potential while respecting your limitations. Be happy with who you are and what you have done.

Meditation: A practice to move within

As the days get shorter,  winter offers itself up for reflective practices like seated meditation.  

Yoga means to 'yoke' or 'unite'. This implies that we are seeking to become whole making yoga a lifestyle or a way of being in the world. The main method to becoming whole is meditation: meditation is how you join with the universal consciousness and be one.  Meditation or another way to put this to is simply being, here, now, in the present moment. This being here can be practised anywhere anytime - on the mat (asana practice), on your cushion and in daily life (possibly the most challenging). It is possible to meditate anytime, anywhere. Check out the meditation page for some suggestions as there are many ways to meditate: Find a method that works for you and when it stops working find a new one.

Namaste, 

I honour and respect the good qualities in you.

Margot

Patanjali's eight limbs of yoga: Yamas - Aparigrapha

                                                                              Photo by Marc Perri
Aparigrapha
This yama or restraint means adopting an attitude of non-greed to simplify life by cultivating an attitude of generosity and non-hoarding. This suggests living a simple life without excess which naturally leads to appreciating the bounty the earth offers us and only taking what we absolutely need to live. An extension of this could be if we take too much then we are effectively stealing from another sentient being be that a butterfly, a person or the ocean and all that lives in it. It could be said that excess is a corrupting force in that it leads us towards desire of sensual and physical possessions and ultimately bondage to the ego: mine, my, me.
How does this play out on the mat, I think one way of looking at it is about not being attached or indeed having an aversion to the content or execution of our practice. We can easily convince ourselves that we need to achieve a more advanced pose, however, it is attitude towards the body and mind when in the pose that can turn a simple posture into a deeply meaningful one. Move in the stream of energy not against it.  Energy flows through a heart felt practice not one driven by achieving or comparing, thus, another way of moving towards non-coveting is the practice of dedicating your yoga/mediation practice to something or someone.

In gratitude for all that is, Om shanti,

Margot

Laughing meditation: the best way to start your day

                                         Photo of seated laughing meditation by Marc Perri

A great way to start your day from the Orange Book by Osho  
 www.oshorajneesh.com/download/osho-books/.../OrangeBook.pdf‎

"The first thing to be done is laughter, because that sets the trend for the whole day. If you wake up laughing, you will soon begin to feel how absurd life is. Nothing is  serious: even your disappointments are laughable, even your pain is laughable, even you are laughable."

"EVERY morning upon waking, before opening your eyes, stretch like a cat. Stretch every fibre of your body. After three or four minutes, with eyes still closed, begin to laugh. For five minutes just laugh. At first you will be doing it, but soon the sound of your attempt will cause genuine laughter. Lose yourself in laughter. It may take several days before it really happens, for we are so unaccustomed to the phenomenon. But before long it will be spontaneous and will change the whole nature of your day."

Patanjali's eight limbs of Yoga: Yamas - Asteya

                                                          Image and photo by Margot Porter

Yama: Asteya (non-stealing)

According to most teachings Asteya is the third yama, however, I posted Bramacharya last week making it appear to be the third yama. Partly because my understanding is that they are all so intertwined and connected that there is no order. By this I mean it is not like you achieve the first and then tick it off but rather you work on all concurrently. Further, I had to reflect upon asteya in terms of a yoga practice on the mat and how this plays out in daily life.

In daily life stealing in its most obvious form would be taking other belongings yet stealing can take other forms such as stealing someone's ideas without properly acknowledging them, stealing someone's thunder especially when it is their time to shine and stealing time. 

My reflections have led me to offer the following: In our formal practice perhaps it could be seen as stealing through thought: "I wish I could do the pose like the teacher or like the person next to me". In addition, I would like to add the idea of stealing from yourself - here and now - or your future health and well being. From personal experience, for example, pushing yourself too hard to achieve a pose whereby you impinge on, injury or over stress a part of your body is effectively taking away your sense of well being in the present moment - the only time we are truly alive. Furthermore, I believe it takes away the positive effects of a yoga practice done with joy, humility and love. I have come to know that being sore the next day is not a sign that you have had a 'good stretch' but rather that you over did it. Still, I do love the feel of length in my body in a posture I just need to ask is this enough: What is my body saying? Learn to trust the innate wisdom of the body and try to recognise when it is our ego directing the practice. 

Om shanti,

Margot