Just as with Ahimsa, Satya calls us to question and evolve. It reminds us that living in truth is a matter of integrity and a path towards inner peace and collective well-being.
Now let's delve into the second Yama, Satya, which translates to truthfulness. Much like Ahimsa, Satya plays a crucial role in guiding our actions both on and off the mat.
O N T H E M A T
While yoga involves physical postures, its profound influence lies in its ability to illuminate the subtler ways we may deceive ourselves or others, inadvertently causing harm. Here are a few examples:
Misaligned Efforts: Pushing ourselves excessively on the mat, and striving for poses beyond our current abilities, can lead to self-deception and potential harm.
Dishonesty with Ourselves: Ignoring our body's signals, such as pain or fatigue, and pushing through regardless can lead to self-deception and harm.
Self-Comparison: Constantly comparing our practice to others without acknowledging our unique journey can hinder growth and self-awareness.
Falsely Elevated Expectations: Setting unrealistic goals or expectations for our practice can result in disappointment and self-deception.
Avoiding Authentic Challenges: Shying away from poses or practices that challenge us can hinder our progress and deceive us into thinking we're making more significant strides than we are.
O F F T H E M A T
If we can’t be honest with ourselves first, we cannot be honest in any other part of life. Often, we find ourselves fully wrapped up in our emotions and irrational thoughts, believing 'I am a bad person because of this...' or 'I'm not good enough because of that...'
These mental fluctuations, referred to as 'vrittis' in yoga philosophy, are precisely what a yoga practice aims to calm, as outlined in the sutras.
It's not surprising that we often identify solely with our emotions. After all, the emotional part of our brain evolved long before our 'thinking' capacities. However, when we allow our minds to spiral out, we end up defining ourselves solely by the fleeting emotions of the moment, losing sight of the bigger picture.
True self-honesty necessitates creating some mental space, stillness, or at the very least, slowing down the mind's incessant chatter.
Once we know we are not our thoughts, there’s a little sigh of relief as a bigger gap is created between who we think we are (ego), and who we really are (atman).
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