Practicing Balance & The Yamas
As we move from January into February I hope 2023 has perhaps allowed you to find more “balance” in your daily life. For the last 5 weeks, our practice has centered around “balance”, on any of our yoga mats. Finding balance, space, stillness, and time for yourself can often be a challenge and I hope 2023 is the year where you do find any one of the above.
If you’re like me, who has always struggled with balance postures/shapes, I hope the last few weeks has allowed you to have some fun. Look for any kind of improvements in your practice over the last few weeks, however small you may think they are; they all add up to big changes over time. They really do!!! Trust the process of practice and repetition. Give yourself permission to fall out of a pose/shape because this is where the magic happens. You build confidence, compassion, resilience (mind, body, soul), and kindness for yourself as you get back up and try again. Yoga truly mirrors life.
Chatting about The Yamas, over the last 5 weeks, in small bite-size “knowledge bomb” chunks offered up some of the insight Yogic Philosophy has to offer and maybe even inspire you to try some of them, on and off your yoga mat.
To recap, the Yamas are all about how we show up in the external world. These universal moral codes, vows, or observances are a focus on how we interact with the world around us. If you’re looking for maybe a different approach to life or a different attitude or way of living, then the Yamas can be really useful
The Yamas – quick recap
- Ahimsa – the cornerstone of Yoga. Aiming to cause no harm or injure any creature by thought, word or deed(action). It’s all about love and compassion.
- Satya – Truthfulness. SAT translates as true essence, true nature, that which is unchangeable. It’s about seeing the truth or reality in any of our life situations, self-realisation of our unchangeable nature, which is peace and love. Satya is considered essential for a balanced and harmonious existence in the world. Guides us to think, speak and act with integrity, being true to yourself whatever that means to you.
- Asteya – Translates to “non-stealing”. Not just material objects but also others’ time, words, and thoughts. Asteya is about not just “taking” for ourselves, but providing for each other.
- Brahmacharya – translates to moderation or the right use of energy. It encourages us to feel our desires, what you truly want, by directing your attention inwards. It’s about feeling what these desires and wants are and learning to see if these are actually controlling you. Moderate where appropriate.
- Aparigraha – The final Yama, and the culmination of the other 4. Aparigraha is learning to let go of any kind of attachment. Noticing where our attachments are and being able to let them go. To let go of the sense of “mine” and “self” and look towards “oneness” where there is no separation and only unity.
Class readings over the last 5 weeks were:
- Life is a balance between holding on and letting go.
- Balance means doing enough, not doing it all.
- Balance is the key to everything. What we do, think, say, and feel. They all require awareness and through this awareness, we can grow.
- Balance isn’t fitting everything in. It’s starting with what’s important and letting the rest fall as it will.
- Balance is not something you find, it’s something you create.
Thanks so much for practicing with me over the last 5 weeks.
Love and light
KP xxx
