Greetings Yogis and
Yoginis,
This week in class we will be exploring Satya, the second Yama.
This week in class we will be exploring Satya, the second Yama.
The second yama Satya is found in verse II.36 of Patanjali’s
Yoga Sutras.
Satya, usually translated as truth or honesty, is the
practice of maintaining truthfulness and honesty in thought, action and deed. When we commit to practicing Satya, we commit
to developing integrity or internal honesty and truthfulness.
B.K.S. Iyengar writes that we do not need to observe truth –
we are truth. What the practice of asana
teaches us is how to uncover or connect with the truth. When the right and the left side of our bodies
are integrated there is truth in the body.
This truth, once realized in asana, can then be “taken off of the mat”
and further developed in our relationships.
The acts of someone who really
respects the truth will be powerfully and perfectly effective. When the yogini is grounded in the practice
of Satya (and Ahimsa), the things she needs come to her when they are really
needed and she will get the fruits of her action without apparently doing
anything.
Quote from Living Your
Yoga. For Patanjali, truth has three levels. The first is a basic communication that we
seek in our daily lives, that is, telling the truth about what we see, what we
feel, and what we need. What we see,
feel, and need is neither clear to us nor always feels safe for us to express. At these times we may resort to telling
“little white lies,” or lies of convenience.
Some feel that these lies are benign and do not hurt anyone: I disagree. I suffer just knowing that I have told a lie,
and all lies separate me from myself and from others. The second level of satya is integrity. Integrity is internal honesty. It is telling the truth when no one would
ever know. Integrity is refusing to tell
a lie for self or for others. The third
level of truth has to do with the meaning of satya itself. Sat refers to the bedrock of truth that from
which the universe springs. It is the
truth of God. Ya is an activating verb in
Sanskrit. Thus satya means “actively
becoming the truth of the universe.”
Quote from Light On
Yoga. Reality in its fundamental
nature is love and truth and expresses itself through these two aspects. The yogi’s life must conform strictly to
these two facets of Reality. That is why
Ahimsa, which is essentially love, is enjoined.
Satya presupposes perfect truthfulness in thought, word and deed. Untruthfulness in any form puts the sadhaka
out of harmony with the fundamental law of truth.
Truth cannot be practiced without ahimsa. Before speaking or taking some other action
ask yourself these questions:
Is it necessary? Is
it true? Is it non-harming?
If you can answer yes to all these questions, it may be okay
to proceed. If not, you must weigh what
is the right action in the situation.
Homework: The
Mahabharata defines Satya as follows:
“Truth should be told when agreeable, should be said agreeably, and
truth should not be said that does harm; however, never lie to give
pleasure.” Consider when telling the
truth would not be practicing Ahimsa. In
what kind of situation would this come up?
How should it be handled?
References:
Light on Yoga, Light on the Yoga Sutras, and The Tree of Yoga all by BKS Iyengar
and “Living your Yoga, Finding the
Spiritual in Everyday Life”, by Judith Lasater.
Blessings,
paul cheek
Rushing Water Yoga
paul cheek
Rushing Water Yoga
Serving Yoga to Camas, Washougal,
and Vancouver Washington
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