Sauca – Purity

by Yogilaney: 2/22/11

The first Niyama is Sauca, Purity.  As we begin our lives developing our Root Chakra, so we must begin our path to enlightenment with Purity.  Many people think of purity within the constrains of the Western definition.

Purity is not simply simply a lack of contamination.  It is a knowledge of the contents, the origin and the karma of the item, or being you are dealing with.  A simple Tomato can be said to be “pure”, however, in today’s word we can not know that for sure.  Perhaps it was sprayed with pesticide?  Carried to market in a dirty truck?   Thich Nhat Hanh asks us to consider our food in full before each meal, not just the how, but also the where, and the when and by whom it was raised.  Perhaps that tomato was picked in a field by a child unable to go to school because of abject poverty.  In order to know if that tomato is pure we must know where it comes from, how it was grown, who raised it, and how it was transported.

Purity is difficult in our world today.  Food is more complicated.  Work is more complicated.  Our family structure is more complicated.  We must continue to work to simplify and moderate what we take in, so that we may detoxify our bodies and our minds.

Seasonal Cleaning

Reflection by Scribe

Sauca is the 1st niyama and I am thinking about it on a wider scale of paying attention to the seasons of our lives in which we are called to cleanse in distinct ways. I love to think of fall as a season to take stock of how to prepare for winter’s cocooning.  I believe our spirits need seasons of cleaning shop as much as our bodies and minds do. One way I think about this is to reflect on any spiritual practices or disciplines (like prayer, or solitude or celebration) have struggled with recently or feel called to engage more deeply. It is sort of like taking spiritual stock and some seasons lend themselves to certain disciplines over others. Winter always seems to be an appropriate season to reflect on what Richard Foster calls the ‘outer disciplines’ of simplicity, solitude, submission, and service (Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, Harper Collins, 1998.) Thinking about these spiritual disciplines can assist in how I think about sauca of mind and spirit…which hopefully will also lead to deeper practices of ahimsa.

Purity

In class we said that everyone deserves beauty– cleanliness. Well, my desk has ben crying for that– I reflected why I keep everything and stack it high. I think it comes from wanted to be prepared, wanting to have it on hand. Since septemeber when we studied this Niyama I have been midfully recycling lots of these piles. I ask myself will I really use this? do I need it? how else could I retreive this data? (maybe even faster than the pile hunt) , what will happen if I do not have it? It has been nice to see the evidence of a cleaner desk and I think therapeutically it is helping me process why I had this need to be independent and have all the answers on hand.

The First Niyama – Sauca

The first niyama – purity – states that we should keep ourselves as clean and healthy as we can. Interestingly, it also mentions that we need to cleanse our mind of disturbing emotions such as hatred, anger, greed, and pride. I used to consider myself as relatively good at staying healthy and clean. I always try to eat well and exercise; however, I’d never considered the fact that I need to keep my mind clean from disturbing emotions as well.

Now that I’ve been considering such a concept, I think that this may help me more than any other cleansing that my body may need. If I am happy and free from disturbing emotions then I will be better prepared and equipped to take care of the rest of my body. Perhaps this is where it all begins. Think of depression – the symptoms of it include fatigue, sleeping too little or too much, losing your appetite, etc. After looking at this, I’ve come to the understanding that our mental emotions have a direct effect on the health of our physical body. Every symptom listed above talks about an effect on the physical body. So from now on, I plan on trying to cleanse my mind as much as possible so I may be better able to take care of myself as a whole.

Niyama# 1 is Sauca. It is the yogi practice of adopting both an inner and outer attitude of purity and cleanliness towards oneself.

STUDENT REFLECTIONS

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Oct. 4. 2010 by YogiLaney

As I have been studying Yoga more intensively these few weeks I find myself more conscious of everything in the world around me.  It amazes me now how closed my eyes were.

I am finding so many people around me full of stress and toxic thinking that I never noticed before.  My family has started to jokingly call it my “yoga granoloa” stuff.  However, I look to Sauca the Niyama of Purity and I see how we are damaging our own bodies, minds and souls.  I watch people demean themselves with words and thoughts.  “I can’t do it”  I want to reach out to them and readjust their thinking.  Teach them to say “I can not do it yet” or establish a new goal.

I am devastated when I hear people speaking and acting out in anger, but more so, I am devastated each time I hear myself do it.  I have started to encourage myself, and those around me to reach for other tools when angry, upset or discouraged than our voices.

The other night, my daughter developed an awful mood.  We had a twenty minute car trip together.  Rather than enter into a discussion with her that I knew would evoke more negativity I told her I was going to embrace Noble Silence.  That I would not be speaking until we reached our destination.  I let her know I was not angry, or frustrated and that if she felt the need to speak with me I would gladly speak back.  For 15 minutes she was silent, and then she spoke in a more positive manner.  She needed time to be one with herself to resolve her issues, or decide what they were so that she could understand how to verbalize them.

I felt like a better parent for not polluting the air around us with negative and meaningless words.  It also gave me time to think on myself.  I felt like I was gifting myself with time and space that would have been very stressful for me before.

Bringing the Niyama of Sauca into my life has changed how I relate to people.  I think now before I act.  I pause before I speak.  I am learning the rhythm of life.