MOST Magazine Fitness JUN'15 ISSUE NO.2 | Page 151

are “good” or “bad” if we do or do not follow these
guidelines. Rather, the teaching is that we will
suffer more if we choose to act in those ways,
and we will not be able to end our own suffering
if we are creating it around us. Now why is this
important to know and understand as a yogi?
And how can these guidelines help us through
our practice?
Our asana practice is a reflection of our lives,
and each yama & niyama can be a lesson to us as
they show up in our practice. Keeping awareness
of any feelings, thoughts, and just how we are
physically moving through our postures, allows
us to check in and see where it may be showing
up in our lives. Let’s first understand what
some of these guidelines look like, and then see
examples of how they may show up in our practice.
Nonviolence means simply to do no harm to any
of God’s creation, including ourselves. The way
we treat ourselves is in reality, the way we treat
others around us. So noticing in your practice
when you may be pushing yourself too much or
not having compassion for yourself. It may also
show up as you having fear in your practice, and
therefore, you w