Yamas and Niyamas

The Yamas and Niyamas are listed in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali as follows:

Yamas

• Ahimsa: non-violence, kindness, no harm in your actions
• Satya: Truthfulness of thoughts, words and deeds
• Asteya: Non-Stealing, non-coveting, non-jealousy
• Brahmacharya: Moderation, self-containment
• Aparigraha: Non-Possessiveness, non-greed, simplicity

Niyamas

• Saucha: Purity/Clarity
• Santosha: Contentment
• Tapas: Austerity
• Swadhyaya: Self-Education, Study
• Ishwara-Pranidhana: Surrender to God/Light/Energy of the Universe

People in the Western society often complain of living in a ‘nanny state’ where people are herded like lemmings through infinite rules for our own ‘health and safety’. At the same time, crime rates increase as people seek to rebel against these enforcements. Perhaps in some way they wish to express their own freedom of choice and individuality, though sometimes in negative ways.

These rules are entrenched into our culture and have their roots in our predominant religion, Christianity. The Ten Commandments reinforce this ‘power-over’ ethos which gives a few authority over many. Even the word ‘commandments’ shows how low freedom of choice is within our culture’s priorities, much safer to force people to do as they are told.

In contrast however, the Yamas and Niyamas are a list of guidelines and observerances recommended by Patanjali as a means of living a healthier and happier life. There is no threat of going to hell if you don’t comply, although the concept of karma – the law of cause and effect does deter some people from negative actions.

The Yamas and Niyamas encourage us to bring spiritual awareness into a social context in everyday life for our own progression and that of the world around us. Yet they are not about being ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, ‘good’ or ‘bad’ but more about questioning for oneself the most effective way of living as a connected part of society.

In my opinion, when people are dictated to and treated like idiots, they act like idiots. If you prescribe people’s behavior down the minutest details, they will forget how to think for themselves, so creating the very problems the laws sought to prevent.

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali encourage each individual to recognize themselves as part of a greater whole. If we remember ourselves as ‘human beings’ then we recognize that the ‘beings’ within each of us are all connected and therefore each ‘being’ affects each other. With this oneness or inter-connectedness in mind, it would become more difficult to harm anyone or anything around us.

It would take a massive leap of faith from the ‘powers-that-be’ to change from a dictatorial law enforcement system to one based on personal responsibility. Yet, the faith that it would take could be just the affirmation that individuals needed to feel like responsible members of society acting for the good of all. However, the current system of fining people for everything from cycling on pavements to dropping litter contribute massively to the governments income and are probably more of a motivating factor than the desire to reduce crime.

Yamas and Niyamas are very relevant in today’s society and each individual on the path of yoga is able to choose these practical ways of improving their lives and therefore, the lives of those around them. These guidelines fit within societal laws yet offer practitioners the opportunity to understand, accept and overcome the frustrations that our contemporary laws sometimes create.

Bibliography

Satchidananda, S., (2005), The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Integral Yoga

Tolle, E., (2005), A New Earth, Penguin Books

Easwaran, E., (1987), The Upanishads, Blue Mountain Centre of Meditation

Hawley, J. (2001), The Bhagavad Gita: A Walkthrough for Westerners, New World Library

BWY Class Handouts

www.wikipedia.com