How practicing yoga is beneficial to the environment
As with any spiritual discipline, practicing yoga brings a deep appreciation of what nurtures and sustains us. The more time we can spend touching upon our spirituality, the more we care about the stuff in our lives, whether it be our bodies, our relationships or our environment.
The first of the 5 major observances, or self control, required for yoga practitioners is to follow Ahimsa. Non-violence is usually how Ahimsa is translated. The second is Satya, or truthfulness. Following that are non-stealing (Asteya), abstinence from what does not serve our highest nature (Bramachariya) and non-greed or non-hoarding (Aparigraha). You can see how applying these 5 observances (Yamas in sanskrit) to our lives benefits all of our relationships, the environment most certainly included.
The Yamas ask us to look truthfully at how we cause violence, in all areas of our life. Violence can be done subtly through words and thoughts, or more overtly thru littering, polluting and vandalism. Ahimsa is the reason many yoga practitioners are vegetarians. People may choose not to contribute to the inhumane and therefore violent way animals are treated in the meat industry, or may not want to cause the death of an animal at all, regardless of the method of slaughter. This has a ripple effect. A vegetarian diet requires less energy to produce and preserves our resources.
Asteya (non-stealing) teaches us to take only what is given freely. The Earth gives what is needed to sustain life at its basic level. Where do we demand more, and does that demand require us to steal from Mother Nature or others?
Bramachariya asks us to look for the Divine in everything. If we saw the Divine everywhere, there is no way we could hurt the earth knowingly through misuse and excess.
If practicing Aparigraha, or non-greed or hoarding, we are satisfied with what we have and allow the natural flow of the universe to be a part of our lives. We don’t hoard for fear we will not have enough if we believe the Earth and God will provide for our needs. We don’t try to acquire what it is we do not truly need. Satya and Ahimsa, the first two tenets, can be used here to evaluate what is actual need, and what is simply desire that could cause harm in the acquisition.
The above is about the philosophical aspect of yoga. However, even if we never read the texts that outline the Yamas, and even if we never heard them spoken about, as we continue to get more and more in touch with our bodies through the physical practices, the more these observances come to us, like an idea once heard and now remembered.
What created our bodies is the same force that created the earth. Keeping ourselves healthy means we will be able to honor and serve the Divine for a longer period of time. Also it is an acknowledgment that we respect all of the creations of the Divine and recognize the Divine inherent in everything.
Bonnie Pariser
Yoga Loka
