Right-Living; Guidance on making good choices; Ethical, intuitive decisions for life:

Most religions will have a code of ethical principles; foundations for right-living; in the Bible, it is The Ten Commandments, in Buddhism, it is The Ten Virtues, in Reiki Healing, The Five Precepts.

In Yogic philosophy, it is Yama and Niyama; of which there are five of each, again making ten.

The Yama and Niyama are the first two limbs of Yoga; Patanjali divides it into eight stages or limbs.

In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, from sutra 2.29 onward, the sutras are also called Astanga Yoga, or the eight-limbed Yoga.

In sutra 2.28 Patanjali teaches; By the practice of the limbs of Yoga, the impurities dwindle away and there dawns the light of wisdom, leading to discriminative discernment.

We will focus more in-depth into the Yogic philosophy of Yama and Niyama; and in a more practical way to make these ancient teachings relevant for living in the world today.

Beginning with Yama - The first limb of Astanga Yoga; which translates to Abstinence - Regulation.

And refers to our actions and behaviour towards others; relating to our external world.

The Five Yama:

1. Ahimsa - Non - violence; active kindness.

2. Satya - Truthfulness.

3. Asteya - Non-stealing.

4. Brahmacarya - Continence; moderation of any sense drive.

5. Aparigraha - Non-greed; Non-grasping.

A little more detail:

Ahimsa; is not causing pain. Causing pain can be even more harmful than killing.

Even by your thoughts, you can cause pain.

When the vow of ahimsa is establishedin someone, all enmity ceases in his or her presence because that person emits harmonious vibrations.

When practiced continously, in thought, word and deed, the entire personality emanates those vibrations.

Practice of ahimsa will elevate you to a higher state.

Satya; is truthfulness - not lying. By the practice of satya, the words become so powerful and clean, that honesty observes you.

All nature loves an honest person.

Establishment in honesty; comes the state of fearlessness; and the ability to lead an open life.

When the mind becomes serene and clear, the true Self reflects only Truth.

There may be times when our good judgement guides us to keep quiet.

Asteya; to one established in non-stealing, all wealth comes.

These things seem so elementary, but should not be taken for granted; they are not easy to perfect.

Knowingly and unknowingly, we steal things from nature - the air we breathe; we should receive with reverence, and use it to serve others - this is the Yogic way.

To practice non-stealing and be free from greed, to be contented with what we have, to keep our minds, serene; all wealth comes to us.

Richness has nothing to do withmonetary wealth. The richest person is the one with a cool mind, free of tension and anxiety. (Sri Swami Satchidananda)

We have the ability to find joy and peace right here and now.

Sometimes we steal someones time; for example, by being late to an agreed time, or an appointment. Or, as a student, we might be selfishly taking the teachers time, oblivious to the needs of other students.

It is good practice to live with an awareness of these qualities.

Brahmacarya; to be established in continence; vigour, strength,vital power and energy are gained.

This is the practice of brahmacarya; continence, moderation,keeping the sense strong and calm, and aligned with the creative energy. It is about saving energy.

Losing energy, we become mentally and ohysically depleted. To gain spiritual wealth, we must be strong, both mentally and physically.

In Yogic philosophy, the seminal fluid gives strength and stamina to the brain and nerves. Nervous debility is caused by a lack of stamina because it has all been drained away. When this energy is absorbed into the system, it is transformed into prana; vital life force.

There are many ways to love.

In observing brahmacarya, we build up this energy - liken it to a battery.

We preserve not just the physical energy, but also; mental, moral, intellectual and ultimately spiritual energy.

Aparigraha; this final Yama is translated in two ways; firstly is non-hoarding, not accumulating beyond our capacity to use things in the proper way; not being greedy. Renouncing possession of all but necessary things.

Secondly, it means not accepting gifts.

So aparigraha is abstention from greed or hoarding - not accepting gifts.

Accepting gifts can bind us and make us lose our neutrality. If we are strong, however, and can remain free from obligation, we can accept gifts.

Now the Niyama - The second limb of Astanga Yoga; which translates to observances, training. And refers to our actions and behaviour, more towards ourself; the discipline of how we take care of ourself; relating to our internal world.

The Five Niyama:

1. Sauca - Purity.

2. Samtosa - Contentment.

3. Tapah - Accepting pain (heat) and not causing pain; to be purified by austerities, heat.

4. Svadhyaya - Study of spiritual book for Self understanding.

5. Isvara - God - worship, self-surrender.

A little more detail:

Sauca; by purification of one's body, may arise, disgust for one's own body and for contact with other bodies.

When Sauca or purity is observed, you may feel impure; if we think about the science of our anatomy and physiology - for example; our bodies are constantly secreting, eliminating impurities - the breath exhales carbon dioxide, the skin discharges perspiration. (However, it is important to note that this sutra speaks to the spiritual aspirant at a particular stage, working towards the higher goal, and therefore develops a natural disinterest in the physical body.)

Understanding the purification and cleasing on a deeper level, through Yogic practices, we develop an indifference toward the body - we want to direct our time and energy, much less on the physical body, and more on our sadhana (disciplined spiritual practice), and goal of life; Self-realisation.

Yogis 'know' we are not the body. We are working towards purity of mind.

'When the disciple is ready, the guru comes', a well-known Hindu saying. A guru is a spiritual guide, more than a teacher; the actual translation is; remover of darkness.

The preparation, and developing virtues like Yama and Niyama is very important.

By following this first niyama, purity, other benefits naturally occur - being pure in thought, word and action.

Once there is an understanding of the body, the heart is purified - with a pure heart, you are always happy - concentration of the mind comes, only an impure mind runs here and there, forcing us to bring it back again and again.

The senses are controlled - Atman; the soul is revealed.

One gains purity of sattva - a balanced state - cheerfulness of mind, one-pointedness, mastery over the senses and fitness for Self-realisation.

Samtosa; by contentment, supreme joy is gained. As a result of contentment, one gains supreme joy or sukha.

There is an understanding of the difference between contentment and satisfaction; contentment means neither to like or dislike - we accept what comes, what doesn't come, doesn't matter.

It means, being content, just as we are, without going outside of ourself for happiness.

Tapah; by austerity, impurities of body and senses are destroyed and powers gained.

Tapas in Yoga means to burn. Examples of tapas; by the physical tapas of fasting, we burn excess fat and toxins our bodies have accumulated. By mental tapas, we burn all our old impressions, by verbal tapas, observing silence, we control speech.

During this process, we feel heat and some pain.

Tapas also means suffering, and the practice is to accept suffering; the art of suffering well, keeping a calm equanimous mind is part of the Yoga practice.

By suffering, some impurities are purged out. We must accept levels of suffering, pain and poverty, to make our minds clean and steady. Part of this philosophy is to learn to accept pain, and at the same time, bring happiness to others (as a saint would.)

There is truth in, no pain, no gain!

The point is, we should never run from it.

If flowery words make us happy, but insults upset us, this means our minds are not yet strong.

The power to control the body and senses, so the mind, comes by tapasya. At this level of acceptance, nothing can affect us. This takes real strength and courage.

If someone reacts violently in a confrontational situation, they may be physically strong, but mentally weak.

By accepting pain, comes mental strength.

When we realise the benefit of pain, pain is no longer pain, but is joy.

One of the best examples of trying to understand this sutra, is childbirth - the mother knows she cannot avoid the pain, which is soon transformed into joy.

In the physical Yoga practice, there are many asana to build heat in the body, to force and twist and squeeze and ring out toxins and impurities, to cleanse and purify, for meditation and higher practices. Hatha Yoga is a strong practice of opposing forces; Ha means sun; tha is moon. It refers to the positive and negative forces within each individual and the masculine and feminine aspects. We experience and understand this through our Hatha Yoga practice.

Svadhyaya; by study of spiritual books comes communion with one's chosen deity and Self understanding.

Svadhyaya, or spiritual study, is study of scriptures and sacred text.

Also our personal sadhana and what we have been initiated into - our regular practice becomes study.

Yoga - means union; union of the individual with Spirit; the Absolute. And by our constant effort, our daily sadhana practice, we are in communion with God.

Isvara; by total surrender to God, Samadhi is attained. This fifth niyama is about devotion to God; it relates to a life of dedication - and if we understand that all beings are from Spirit and innately divine, then we are also benefitting humanity.

Being of service to all beings in the world, because we are all divine children, from the One True Father; we all have within us the spark of divinity.

We want to work for the greater good of humanity; for all mankind.

We have descended from Spirit, into our individualised ego-self, and we 'know', intuitively, we must, eventually ascend back to Spirit.

Visualise Spirit as the Great Ocean, and each of us are the wavelets; all connected, ready and waiting to become one with Spirit once more.

We are all born with free will, and we learn our lessons in the Great Scchool of Life, here on earth, over many incarnations, until we are ready to merge back with Spirit.

Knowing there is a Higher power at play - That which connects us all.

Yoga answers our greatest questions of life; and guides us within to where they reside.

By our attitude, we can transform all we do into worship; with the idea of serving the world.

Samadhi means tranquility of mind, which is only possible when we are free from all attachment and we dedicate everything.

In a constant state of wanting, of having possessions, peace is unobtainable.

Only a mind, free from desire, can have peace.

Yoga is not mere philosophy - it is to be practiced and experienced - then your faith grows.

Yoga is transformational, and as we experience this, we naturally practice more and more.

Through our effort, we experience the benefit to our spiritual evolution.

"The wave is the same as the ocean, though it is not the whole ocean. So each wave of creation is a part of the eternal Ocean of Spirit. The Ocean can exist without the waves, but the waves cannot exist without the Ocean."

"I am no longer the wave of consciousness thinking itself separated from the sea of Cosmic Consciousness. I am the Ocean of Spirit that has become the wave of human life."

Paramahansa Yogananda.