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This is the Most Important Thing about Yoga
Yoga is more than poses because it’s a way of life rooted in non-violence towards oneself, others, and nature.
Most people think yoga is practising the poses (asanas) and often get intimidated when they see people contorting their bodies in challenging and impressive shapes. This can put people off practising yoga in the first place. Some people also think they are “good” at yoga when they can do handstands or become very flexible. These are all great achievements, but that is not necessarily the main purpose of yoga.
According to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, yoga is a way of life and a multifaceted practice with eight limbs. Asanas are just one limb, or part, of yoga. It is said that the purpose of practising asanas is to stay still for a longer period of time during meditation to reach samadhi (enlightenment), the eighth limb.
The first limb is “yamas,” which are ethical codes for living. The first yama is “ahimsa,” which means non-violence. Many sages believe that without ahimsa, there is no yoga, so it is the most important thing about yoga. You can be excellent at asanas, but if you aren’t practising ahimsa, you are missing the root of yoga.
Ahimsa is living a life of non-violence, and most people will think of violence…
