Key Concepts of Yoga: Ahimsa

Key concepts of Yoga, what are they? Why do they matter? When I sat down and started to work on the key concepts of yoga, I started with the idea of stuff and non-stuff, or what we call Prakrti and Purusa. I thought that this would be a great place to start, nice and easy… oh how foolish. As I started writing it hit me; Elvis, we can’t talk about the key concepts of yoga without starting at the beginning. I assumed that the basic concepts of what it meant to be a yogi was inherent to everyone who is already practicing yoga. This is not necessarily the case. So here we are back to square one, an all too familiar place. What is yoga… oh another question that I feel so unqualified to answer, but today yoga is connection and love. Oh Elvis, that’s so cliché, but hear me out. One of the first concepts of yoga that a new student or teachers learns are The Yamas, The Yamas is a Sanskrit word that roughly is translated into restraints, or thou shalt nots, as one of mentors of yoga puts it. The Yamas can be looked at as morals or basic beliefs in just about all spiritual traditions. I like to look at the Yamas as a road map on how to live in this world and how to interact with other souls around me.

There are 5 Yamas - Ahimsa; Nonviolence, compassion, kindness, or LOVE. The second of the Yamas is Satya; truth, truthfulness, and honesty. Then we move to Asteya, in Sanskrit when we add an “a” in front of a word it makes it “not that” so in this case Steya roughly means "practice of stealing" so Asteya is translated to non-stealing. The fourth of the Yamas is Brahmacharya, which classically translated to celibacy, but more commonly defined as moderation or a conservation of vital energy. Finally, we have Aparigraha which means non-greed or non-hoarding or non-grasping

I want to bring focus to Ahimsa; Nonviolence, compassion, kindness, or LOVE. 

Without sounding too much like a patchouli wearing hippy, Ahimsa or Love IS the answer. We must learn to see past our stories and the stories of others and just look at the soul and understand that we are all pure love and that the only thing that is keeping us from seeing that is ourselves.

 When I talk about love I’m talking about how we look at and treat ourselves. Not just our actions, but how we think of ourselves. I was recently at a pageant, The Apple Blossom Festival, which is a festival that my home town of Wenatchee has been having for 101 years. Although I personally am not a big fan of pageants, I am fan of what it does to the community of Wenatchee and how it supports the contestants. After the students gave their speeches they had an impromptu question section where the question asked was, “What is the greatest gift you can give someone?” And most all of them had a version of Ahimsa as their answer (kindness, love… or what seems to be just another basic answer). Of course they are right and I think deep down inside we have always known that radical love is the answer ever since we have been kids, in fact ask any kid and they will tell you the same. BUT when do we cross that line into thinking that love is so basic or makes us feel naïve? I can’t answer that question but what I can say is that we need to wake up and see through all of the bullshit that is out there and look at the human spirit. WE all want to be seen and loved. 

So, what would happen if we watched our thoughts and moved them more towards those of love and kindness? This is certainly not easy because I feel like we are raised to pass judgment on everything (which is a different conversation for another day).

I think we first have to acknowledge that we do have negative thoughts and actions and then we have to process the thought or action and ask ourselves how we could have made that thought more in line with that of Love. Whenever I hear someone, a friend or family member put themselves down (“Ugh… I’m ugly…”) I quickly respond with a “No, you’re not!” It’s easy for us to help others and appreciate them but how about when we look in the mirror? Even myself, I see how my body has changed and it’s not getting tighter but it’s looking it’s age. It’s easy to think so negatively about ourselves, why not change that? Why not start your day looking in the mirror and telling yourself how beautiful you are and compliment yourself? Our acts of kindness and love start with our own thoughts, because when we harm others we only harm ourselves. We all have the potential to be kind, not just to ourselves but to others, so why choose otherwise?

How does Ahimsa look on the mat?

Again, I think we already know…deep down inside we have always known. Have you ever felt a little extra happy on your mat and you decide to go in, let’s say a little too deep. I know I have, a lot actually to the point that it feels like an everyday kind of thing. I’m not saying don’t push yourselves but what if we treated our practice like a savings account or even better a retirement plan. Were we are not investing for the NOW but instead investing for the future of our body. So if a pose hurts, why do it? Back out and move slowly, I also think this moves into the way that we are raised by society. In the way that we have to have something to show for all the time that put into something in this case Yoga. So next time you practice move from a place of nonviolence to your body.

 If Yoga has taught me one thing, it is to shine a light on how I was being an asshole and how unconscious I was about it…at least now I know and actively choose to be better.

Here is a great exercise from “The Path of the Yoga Sutras” by Nicolai Bachman:

Have another person say something that normally causes you to react in a negative manner. Try and take a deep breath, then respond in a positive, constructive way.