Yoga Philosophy for the 21st Century
An Introduction to Yoga Philosophy
Yoga can be thought of as a two-step process:
Step 1: Focus the mind, and
Step 2: is automatic: the energy that gives us life emerges, we’re healthier and happier.
So, it can even be thought of as a one-step process: Focus your mind, and you’ll feel better.
The second and third Yoga Sutras of Patanjali present this process:
1.2) Yogah cittavrtti nirodhah
Yoga is the control of the mind’s fluctuations
Focus the mind – follow the one stream so that awareness of the others diminishes -
1.3) Tada drastuh svarupe avasthanam
Then the inner being emerges in all its splendor
The energy that gives us life emerges in our lives –
The fourth explains what an unfocused mind experiences:
1.4)Vritti sarupyam itaratara
The seer identifies with the fluctuating consciousness
And the mind and our lives spin like a dog chasing its tail!
And if you like, you can close the book there!
The Eight Limbs of Yoga (Astanga):
1) Yama: (Restrictions) Ethics – How we deal with the World
1. Ahimsa (non-violence)
2. Satya (truth-telling, no gossip or unkind words)
3. Asteya (not stealing)
4. Bramacharya (moderation)
5. Aparigraha (not being greedy or covetous)
2) Niyama: Personal conduct – How we deal with ourselves
1. Saucha (purity of body)
2. Santosa (contentment)
3. Tapas (desire for more)
4. Svadhyaya (study of the self/scriptures)
5. Isvara Pranidhana (let the universe work through you)
At first, this may sound like a set of rules. A “ten commandments”, that, if followed, will mean we are practicing Yoga. As it turns out, that can’t work. For instance, if you practice non-violence, but you’d really like to clock somebody, and you practice not being covetous, but you desire that bright, shiny object, you can fall into the trap of following the mind’s fluctuations. Practicing moderation while you’d like to gorge yourself on cake produces nothing but inner turmoil.
But if we go back to the first step – “focus the mind” - and let the energy that is our life (our “inner being” – drashtuh) emerge, then we start with the last of the ten – Isvara Pranidhana, letting the universe flow through us, and the rest of the Yama and Niyama flow naturally, and there is no turmoil (and it is easy).
So, our inner being is pure, positive energy, and understands its connection with all things. It practices the Yama naturally. It knows that to do violence to anything is to do violence to the self. It lives its truth (satya), understanding that we feel better when we’re praising, rather than criticizing others. It knows it is the heir to the abundance of the universe: we have all we need, so stealing and greediness is never present. If we even imagine stealing something, it means we’re not allowing it to do what it will do naturally: that is, to enter our lives spontaneously, without force. Greediness reinforces feelings of lack, when abundance is what is natural. Pure energy doesn’t need an excess of any material, so moderation is natural. There is no battle here, no need for hard “discipline”.
As we love ourselves as our inner beings love us, we are able to forgive ourselves for anything we feel to be a shortcoming. For instance, it’s not a violation of Satya to tell the white lies that our society may continually demand of us, to keep our jobs, or to keep from hurting peoples’ feelings (ahimsa!). And as we continue to live our Truth through Yoga we find we’re presented with these compromises less and less.
The Niyama, as well, become the next logical step for us. The body is understood to be our fine vehicle of expression and experience here on earth, so it is cared for lovingly (Saucha). When we are clean, fresh focus is easier, and we feel content: Santosa and Tapas describes our inner energy being perfectly: content with where it is, and vibrant, always eager for more! As we grow more content and energetic (you know, “happier”), we watch and monitor our lives and become our own vehicle for learning (Svadhyaya).
Savadhaya (study of the self, self-education) is often translated as “study of scriptures”, or sacred writings. But we should be diligently aware of the effect of the passage of time on these writings and their relevance to modern life. We can’t always trust what was written – hundreds or thousands of years ago – to be an appropriate guide for us here and now. And why do we need a book? To bash over the heads of non-believers?
My favorite story about trusting what we know and feel over what we read is one a friend of mine told me some years ago. She stopped at a hotel after a day-long drive and wanted nothing more than a hot bath. When she got to the tub, she saw that the faucets were reversed from the normal configuration: Cold was on the left, and Hot was on the right. Her experience told her that hot is almost always on the left, and cold on the right. So she tested the water with her hand, and sure enough, her knowledge and experience guided her more surely than what she had read. She said “Luckily I was wise enough to get a hot bath!” How often do we trust the words that were written by someone else, for someone else, long, long ago, and end up in cold water?
Isvara Pranidhana has been traditionally translated as “surrender to God”, but if that sounds a bit like holy war to you, “surrender to the universe”, or – think about it – “relax, and let the universe work and flow through you,” may convey the spirit of what happens as you focus your mind and feel the JOY of the universe, better than older, harder dogma does. So, we begin with the last Niyama, and the rest fall into place.
3)Asana - the third limb – allowing a free flow of energy through the posture of the body.
4)Pranayama - allowing a free flow of energy through the body through relaxed control of the breath.
5)Pratyahara - “withdrawal of the senses” through Asana and Pranayama, releasing the distraction of turmoil and discomfort in the body and breath, so that:
6)Dharana – or concentration, can be achieved due the release of distractions from the body and breath, so that
7)Dhyana – or meditation, can be practiced through concentration, and at its peak:
8)Samadhi – Fully conscious and alert, the goal of Yoga practice, the mind fully focused – we’ve come full circle.
