Rooted in Harmony

Cultivating inner and outer harmony is at the forefront of our yoga practice. Studying the web of the eight-limbed path, we see that all is rooted in the qualities of Ahimsa and Satya, non-violence and truthfulness, both towards our interior and exterior worlds.

When we find ourselves out of balance, physically or mentally, these two Yamas serve as markers in which we can find solace to pause and recalibrate.

We are always more drawn to the physical, and naturally so, but as we digest the teachings of yoga, we learn that everything we do is established and built here in these first two Yamas. We cannot create a harmonious practice without them. They call us to question how we show up in service of others as well as ourselves and our place in the world,

When we are out of alignment with ahimsa and satya, our actions and behaviours misrepresent who we are, as our vision becomes overcast with a haze of false perception. But even though our practice is rooted here, coming to asana becomes a gateway in which one can regain harmony, find space and release in mind and body through posture and breath.

Asana then serves as a breeding ground to study our nature in relation to our Yamas and Niyamas and learn to work with the more subtle components of practice and being. Advanced practice is not necessarily about a greater exertion of physical capabilities. However, the deeper we go, the more we must equally find a more arduous challenge to the body. Instead, the advanced practice is the cultivation of subtle awareness towards the nuanced movements in these layers and the work to bring them back into a harmonious ecosystem where each one supports and nourishes the other.

Many of the imbalances we experience in life come from allowing our systems to slip from their place. And then we can see that practice is not necessarily about what one can do with one's body but rather the intention behind it, the spaces one explores and finds within it, bringing oneself back to a space of inner and outer harmony. Then, we can find alignment with our higher purpose and recognise and fulfil our dharma.

It is then, over a period of time, a lifelong journey that we cultivate this. We slowly recognise more and more how to move from the gross to the subtle. We slowly re-establish connection to our physical layer, moving through the more nuanced into the more deep, subtle layers at our core. And with practice, we can see more of what shaped us and pulled our sheaths from their places and how to find release and action towards bringing them back into their natural state.

Over time, we experience more and more harmony, both seeing and feeling the gross and subtle layers of prana moving in and around us. We then see that the practice of yoga is a tree to be nurtured and nourished that demands diligence and perseverance so that it can bear its fruit and we may taste its flavours.

As we do, our practice becomes more rooted in our foundation of ahimsa and satya, becoming firm in structure. And even if the winds of life do sway it, we know our way back and can re-establish its base.

We then come to understand that the eight-limbed path is not a linear structure nor a list of goals to tick off but rather a rich web of practice and experience in which one can bring harmony, meaning, and creation into one's life.