Yoga off the Mat

March 5th, 2014

Yamas and Niyamas, have you heard of them?

There are 10 total, 5 Yamas and 5 Niyamas. The Yamas are precepts that we can follow to help us relate and interact with the world, nature and all we share this planet with. The Niyamas help us to better know ourselves, care for ourselves and allow our “being nature” to be strong, balanced, and harmonious as we live in the world.

As difficult or easy as our practice can be on the mat, Yamas and Niyamas give us tools to fine tune who and how we are off the mat. Whether you have had a yoga practice for years or just beginning I encourage you to include the Yamas and Niyamas in your practice.

Begin by reading a bit about them. There are plenty of resources for studying starting with this article, googling, and books. Two of my favorites are The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (Sri Swami Satchidananda) and How Yoga Works (Michael Roach and Christie Mc Nally). The first one is a translation and commentary of the sutras, while the later is a story that depicts the sutras. More importantly I encourage you to explore them as a daily practice.

Starting with the Yamas, you can begin by exploring what it means to be in the world as a non-harming, truthful, non-stealing, moderate, non-possessive being. Seem a bit overwhelming? Pick one and begin to shine some light onto how you move through your day (life) with awareness of that Yama. Let’s say you choose non-possessive (aparigraha), you may begin by noticing how attached you feel to people, situations, beliefs, things in your life. What would it feel like to let go? Look around you and what are you holding onto that you no longer need? Time to set it free. You may just find some freedom in doing it for yourself.

As you turn to the Niyamas you begin to self reflect, study who you truly are, cleansing all that you are complete with, finding deep contentment, and feeling the bliss of being connected to all that is greater than the simplicity of just you. Gently, so very gently the practice of Niyamas helps us to shed the layers of the ego body identity- how we see ourselves related to who we think we should be, or how we make others happy with our image.

Again take some time to explore each of the Niyamas individually. Take a day to reach deeply to explore contentment in your life. In the moments when you start to struggle turn your attention to those things that bring forth joy in your life. Read, reflect, study and express yourself through the Niyamas. You can also ask for some help from your local yoga instructor(s).

Each moment you have a choice or decision to make, take a moment to pause and reflect on how you can make it rooted in the Yamas and Niyamas. Remember you can only be as clear as you are now, and moving towards more clarity. It is a far leap (and can be self defeating) if you try to bite off more than you can chew with these empowering tools on the yoga path. Happy trails!