Yoga Changed My Life

The stereotypical yoga image is a tall, slender woman, wearing revealing clothing while balancing in some outrageously impossible pose, or some old guru sitting in a cross-legged position in deep meditation. Luckily this isn't the case, for I will be the first to admit that I have practiced yoga in my pajamas and I'm still working on those ridiculously hard poses.

Yoga is something that came into my life right when I needed it the most. It was at a time when I had overused my body in excessive exercise, a time when "the blues" were heading towards deep depression. Yoga was a gift from God that helped me dig deep to find my inner beauty. Yoga was a gift that led me to a place where I could connect with a Greater strength than my own. Yoga was a gift that gave me the opportunity to keep moving and strengthening my body when I had to stop all other forms of exercise. Yoga was a gift that has truly altered and shaped my life for the better. 

Two years ago I thought the most important part of yoga was the poses and that the philosophy wasn't crucial. Now, after nearing completion of my 200-hour yoga teacher training, I've realized it was the philosophy has helped me dig deep and connect more with myself and my Heavenly Father above. There must have been a reason the early gurus put the poses as the third limb of yoga, with the first two being Social and Personal Discipline.


Here is a list of the first Two limbs of yoga and how they translate into English and into my life:

(Sanskrit translation in italics) 

Social Discipline or the "thou shalt not" list (Yama): 

1. Non-violence (Ahimsa): As a figure skater and runner in my late teens and early twenties, I was not easy on my body and I pushed myself too far for too long. Learning how to be non-violent with myself in my yoga practice and in how I treat myself emotionally has been CRUCIAL in my healing process. 

2. Truthfulness (Satya):  I've learned this past year how to be honest with myself regarding when it is time to rest, eat, or play in the sunshine. Honesty with others about my life and my limits has been important so that I do not run faster than I can and so that everyone involved understands where I am coming from. 

3. Non-stealing or non-coveting (Asteya): I'm still working on this one...comparing myself and my body to others was a big factor in why I exercised so hard and lost so much weight in 2006. Now I am learning to love how STRONG my body is. 

4. Chastity (Brahmacarya): For me, there is nothing so calming and empowering than a husband who is faithful to me, and I to him. I can tell him ANYTHING and he will listen and usually whip me back into shape, albeit lovingly. :)

5. Non-possessiveness (Aparigraha):  I have donated all the clothes that I grew out of this past year, making room for the NEW ME. No more holding onto the past. My husband and I have also been amazing at being extremely frugal recently as our paychecks have been lean. It is so freeing to not rely on loans or credit cards and to live within our means. 

Personal Discipline (Niyama)

1. Cleanliness (Sauca): There isn't much that makes me sleep more deeply than going to bed with a tidy home. For me, just taking the extra effort to make sure the kitchen floor is swept, dishes are put away,  and the day's clutter put away really makes waking up a whole lot easier.  Let the new day be a new start.  

2. Contentment (Santosa): Be happy with all that I've accomplished and how far I have come. A great redwood tree doesn't grow in one day. It grows with daily, persistent determination to be better than it was yesterday. 

3. Purification through Discipline (Tapas): Most days all I need to lift my mood is to be outside.  It is the discipline to actually get up and go on the walk or get on my mat to practice that ignites my inner fire and gets rid of any negativity. It's the discipline to keep breathing through hard days and looking for the sunshine, even when the wind keeps trying to push my down. 

4. Self-Study (Svadhyaya): I've spoken before about how my spiritual study has improved other aspects of my life. We are here on Earth to gain as much knowledge as we can, for this will be of use to us in the next life. I love studying secular subjects such as international cooking and prenatal health, as well as the holy scriptures--the Bible and the Book of Mormon. All study helps me learn more about who I really am as a person and how I can improve. 

5. Devotion to a Higher Power (Isvarapranidhana): I love it when things go my way. Don't we all? Most days my way does not go as planned however, but I marvel at how everything was still okay. I know that when I do all I can and then trust in God, I will be blessed. Thy will, not mine, be done.

I love how similar these first two limbs of yoga line up with what I was taught spiritually growing up. Some say that Christians should not practice yoga because the philosophy is contrary to what God teaches. I beg to differ. 

In my eyes, God is the one who should get all the credit, not yoga, for changing my life. God is the one who led me to yoga so that I could have more tools to change my life.