- Cleanse our Astral Channels (the paths by which energy moves throughout our light-body; more on those here),
- Focus our energies (which are scattered from a crazy lifestyle),
- Direct our energies for our own health and happiness and sanity — and that of those around us — as well as for our own spiritual practice.
Now, let’s be honest, if you’re a householder, our intention to be in alignment to our Yama is more important than 100% strict adherence. To strive for perfection would be ridiculous.
Unattainable.
Stressful.
To strive for perfection would scatter and distract our energy, leading to emotionality, impulsiveness, and over-rationalization of otherwise unfavorable behaviors.
(If you’re not living in a cave or a temple, you’re a householder).
We practice Yamas at three levels:
- Intellectually or Mentally / Baudhika in yogi-speak,
- Verbally / Vachika,
- Physically / Sharirik.
The sane way to approach this is beginning from the more obvious level, working towards the most subtle.
Today, we begin with Sharirik Ahimsa, refraining from killing, hitting, striking, bruising, and physically harming others.
More importantly, and much more challenging, we refrain from causing physical harm to ourselves.
This is especially difficult as we unknowingly do this through our own lifestyles:
- Prioritizing work over sleep,
- Work over happiness,
- Cheap and quick foods over responsibly raised, real food.
These things cause physical harm to our bodies.
Going a bit deeper, we practice Ahimsa by being mindful of:
- the violence which we commit to others (a co-worker, spouse, friend, stranger in traffic, a dog, a bug, a tree, a wall),
- violence which we commit to ourselves,
- violence which we allow others to do,
- and violence which we knowingly or unknowingly encourage others to do.
Lastly, we must be conscious of time, place, and circumstance when it comes to our Yamas.
What is violent in one circumstance may not be so in another:
- Killing an animal for fun.
- Killing an animal for food when you have plenty.
- Killing an animal for food when it is scarce.
- Killing an animal to save the life of a small child.
Every circumstance is different.
As you go about your life from this point onward, we must remember that there is always a choice, and we must ask ourselves:
“What is the least violent path to take in situation?”
“What path will cause the least amount of harm?”
When I say, “here we go”, you must recognize that we’re getting into the “cheese-factor,” the stuff that might embarrass you or make you feel silly.
In my experience in training and coaching and meditation, it’s these cheesy things that tend to be delicious…err, I mean the most beneficial.
Mmmmm…cheese.
So, Here we go (which means, read this aloud):
“With every breath that I breathe, I am becoming more and more non-violent towards myself and others.”
“With every breath that I breathe, I am becoming more and more non-violent towards myself and others.”
“With every breath that I breathe, I am becoming more and more non-violent towards myself and others.”
Your path toward becoming a Panoptic Human, one who takes into account the whole at one view, who permits everything to be seen, has begun.
In sanskrit, AUMM / OM is said to vibrate at the same frequency as the Universe and the spark of the big-bang,
Shanti means Peace.
So, I say Om Shanti to you.
The light of that divine-spark, the light of the big bang within me sees, and celebrates the light of that spark within you.
Namaste.
Robert Bill Jr 