These past five weeks in class we’ve been focusing on the yamas, the first limb of yoga on Patanjali’s Eight-Limbed Path, as set out in his ancient philosophical text, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

Most of us discover yoga through the third limb, asana, yet stay for something deeper. It’s so important to recognise that our yoga doesn’t just take place on our mat. There is no point being able to handstand or get our legs behind our head if we’re cruel, hurtful or passive off of it. 

There are five yamas in total (ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha), and we can think of them as offering us a moral code for living, inviting us to consider our relationship with the world around us and how we interact with it, so that ultimately our decisions and actions come from a more conscious place.

There is a mantra: Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu (may all beings everywhere be happy and free). How can our yoga practice guide us towards creating a world in which this is possible, to stand up for what is right and for those that do not have a voice? The yamas (and the Sutras) can help illuminate this path.

Let’s explore the five yamas in more detail…

1: Ahimsa (non-violence or non-harming)

Ahimsa means non-violence or non-harming, on and off the mat. 

In terms of our physical practice, we can interpret this by accepting ourselves completely, by listening to our body and its edges. We can learn to enjoy and challenge our physicality but not push ourselves to the point of harm. Through this listening, our practice can become sustainable, nourishing and respectful. 

We can also notice ahimsa in our thoughts: are you talking kindly to yourself? Do you give yourself compassion and grace when you’re tired, or feeling weak or wobbly? Often the hardest person to be kind to is ourselves.

Off the mat, notice how you talk to, and think about, others. Are you kind in your words, actions and thoughts? Could you perhaps make more ethical and sustainable choices when it comes to food or clothing? Even little actions can have big impact.

2: Satya (truthfulness)

Next we have Satya, or truthfulness. Sat means true nature, unchangeable and pure. 

As humans, we have a tendency to be completely bound up in our thoughts, emotions and moods. They are extremely changeable and cloud our experience, preventing us from seeing the reality or truth of situations.

If we identify ourselves with our thoughts and emotions (ie I’m a terrible person… ; I always do this etc…) then we never see things as they really are. Instead we are defining ourselves by how we are feeling in that moment. 

Honesty, or truthfulness, begins with ourselves; creating space and stillness to witness rather than become tangled in the stories we tell ourselves. Through our yoga practice we create space and distance around our thoughts and emotions; through this space we can then begin to still the fluctuations of the mind, or chitta vritti nirodha.

Creating space between our thoughts and our reactions/actions means we start to act from a place of truth rather than fear and conditioning. By constantly reminding ourselves that we are not our thoughts, we create a gap between who we think we are (ego) and who we really are (atman). 

Satya is also closely linked to the first yama, ahimsa. Our yoga practice is here to serve, not to harm, so be truthful with where you’re at physically and don’t force shapes that aren’t right for your body. Practice, with acceptance, for the body you are in today.

3: Asteya (non-stealing)

The third yama is asteya, or non-stealing. Now, I’m not suggesting we’re all going around committing petty crime, so how do we interpret this yama in real life.

Well, we can think about what drives the need to steal, literally or metaphorically: a sense of lack; that you don’t have enough or aren’t enough. We crave, desire and want to fill a perceived void. 

The most pertinent place I - and am sure most - witness this arising is when scrolling through social media, then finding yourself wishing that you had someone else’s perceived professional success, lifestyle, wardrobe, or even asana practice.

Yet through consistent and steady practice we begin to awaken to the realisation that we already have all that we need; that we are where we need to be and we are enough, as we are, here in this moment. We can recognise our wholeness and accept ourselves as we are.

Try this next time on your mat: notice if you catch yourself thinking you ‘should’ do or be able to do a certain pose. Pushing unhealthy boundaries and contorting ourselves into shapes that don’t match where we’re at physically or energetically robs us of the present. Can you allow yourself to be open and accepting to the practice as it is right now. Ultimately, our physical practice is never about the poses we do but the awareness we can bring to them.

4: Brahmacharya (right use of energy) 

The fourth yama is brahmacharya: celibacy, or behaviour that leads us towards the divine.

How can we apply this in modern life, I hear you ask? One way we can interpret brahmacharya is as the ‘right use of energy’, and consider how we use and direct our energy. 

Instead of chasing quick fixes, fleeting yet transient pleasures such as alcohol, drugs, shopping etc, yoga encourages us to invest our energy in finding peace and happiness from within. 

As humans, a huge amount of our time and energy is spent worrying about things we can’t control or don’t matter in the long run; or trying to please others rather than stay true to ourselves.

Yoga is anything but a quick fix, and never a linear route; often in our practice we’re forced to sit with thoughts and emotions that are challenging and uncomfortable, yet liberating once we allow ourselves to witness them. 

Through our practice we can start to learn how to invest our energy in the right way. We can cultivate a more tender and honest attitude towards ourselves and our needs, listening to what our bodies really need and noticing places, people or situations that drain our energy. 

Personally, when I think about how brahmacharya applies to my life and practice right now, I notice how much my practice has shifted since having children. 

Most days I simply don’t have the inner resources to do the long and vigorous practices of my twenties and early thirties; instead I need something more sustainable, nourishing and above all that fits in with family life. Short, sweet and simple is often the order of the day. 

Does your practice reflect your energy levels? It’s so important to have a practice that nourishes and sustains us, rather than depletes us. 

5: Aparigraha (non-greed or non-attachment) 

Last but not least we have the fifth and final yama aparigraha, or non-attachment.

This yama teaches us to take only what we need, to keep only what serves us, and to let go when the time is right. 

One of the central teachings of Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says: ‘Let your concern be with actions alone and never with the fruits of action. Do not let the results of action be your motive, and do not be attached to inaction.’

So how can we interpret aparigraha on the mat? 

Often when we’re practising, we get caught up chasing postures, competing with ourselves or those around us, giving into internal monologues and desires; fixating on the outcome rather than the present moment and action. 

Instead, aim to show up consistently without attachment. Practice because you love practising, but also practise on the days when you’re met with resistance. Have goals, but acknowledge that our practise, like life, has seasons, and our physical capability will change. Think about what really keeps you coming back to your mat, time and time again: because it brings you home to yourself and reminds you of your innate wholeness; that you are enough as you are, in this moment.

Ultimately, aparigraha teaches us that we can’t only seek positive experiences: that we need to experience and accept life in its totality. We can’t control life, and it is always in flux. Just when we think we have everything sorted out, something will come along to change things up. When we recognise and accept this, we are able to live more peacefully and freely.