by Marci Moberg
©Enid Johnstone
Everyone is
searching for peace --peace within themselves, with others, in their
environments, and in their homes. Still, somehow peace escapes out the
back door, and continues to elude people. The search for peace faces
multiple obstacles along the way that block the path and keep serenity at
bay. One supporting mechanism to finding peace now is through the
practice of ahimsa.
Ahimsa,
according to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, is one of the five yamas, or ethical
practices, that together form the first limb of the eight-limbed path of
yoga. While often translated as non-killing, the concept carries more
nuance and depth.
Sri Swami Satchidananda describes ahimsa as not causing
pain. What he means by that is not causing pain in thought, word, and
deed. While many think of this as an externally focused practice, it is
just as much an inside job, because neglecting the practice of ahimsa towards
one’s self can create harm to others.
Practicing
ahimsa in one’s every day life may seem simple at first. On the surface it
appears easy to not harm others and cause them pain. People easily
identify avoiding physical harm, using words unwisely like slandering another
person, and other deeds that appear to overtly create pain and harm to another
person.
This
makes the initial layer of the practice easy for many to adopt. But the
practice is deeper. First the practice should include beings other than
human beings. This includes not killing or harming insects, eating a
vegetarian or vegan diet, and even being mindful of the treatment of plants and
trees.
Second,
the practice should include the way our words and deeds affect others in subtle
ways to cause harm that may otherwise not be obvious to us. The effects
of our actions on others are subtle and easily missed if we are not mindful of
another person’s perspective and the potential ripples our actions may
create.
While
we may have the best of intentions, beautiful intentions do not always result
in beautiful action. It is this delicate balance that makes practicing
ahimsa a true art, rather than a hard science.
While
practicing ahimsa with word and deed can be challenging in subtle ways, even
more difficult is the practice of ahimsa in thought. The ego rarely comes
up with something nice to say about another person. It often moves us
into a place of survival, protection, and defensiveness automatically without
even taking pause.
One
of the beings it often most attacks is one’s self. I discovered that practicing
ahimsa with one’s self truly requires a careful look at one’s thoughts
throughout the day and the subtle messages we tell ourselves that perhaps are
not so helpful. Sometimes the thought is obviously harmful, like telling
ourselves that we are unintelligent for forgetting to do something. Other
times the language is subtler.
When
I started to watch my own thoughts I discovered that negative messages that
were harming me were sneakily sliding into what otherwise appeared to be
efforts to be productive. For example, when trying to get myself to focus
on something like my research for my dissertation, I would tell myself
internally that I was banned from checking e-mail or prohibited from calling a
friend back so I would finish the task.
This
harsh language with myself set me up for an uncomfortable reality where I felt
like doing my dissertation or any other task was punishment. It drained
all the enjoyment out of things I needed to spend my time on that I truly
loved. Sometimes it caused rebellious behavior in me as I rebelled
against my harsh instructions to focus and checked my e-mail anyway, like a
teenager rebelling against her parents. In the end, this harsh internal
language to myself was not helping me be productive, nor nurturing me.
And
the ripple effects it created were probably more harmful than I am even aware
of now, and a pattern I continue to watch and slowly undo.
It
is said that when the Buddha and other saints practiced ahimsa in the forest,
animals would only kill if they were hungry and would otherwise dwell
peacefully together. The practice and non-practice of ahimsa I believe
has more subtle energetic affects on the environment and relationships around
us than we realize, especially with ourselves.
SriDharma Mittra always emphasizes that what we focus our thought on is also where
we direct our prana energy. As a result, it is key that we are sensitive to
where we are directing prana. In the end, if someone wants to truly
experience peace with others, with his or her environment, and above all within
his or herself, ahimsa is an essential element in unlocking the serenity we
seek.
_________________________________________________
Marci Moberg came to yoga, meditation, and mindfulness through her
own spiritual and healing journey. First connecting to yoga in college as
a form of exercise, she later connected to its deeper roots as an avid student
and practitioner of many ancient contemplative traditions. Marci is grateful to
be a dedicated student of Felix Lopez, a former Buddhist monk and energy
healer. She is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) and is currently
completing the 500-Hour Life of a Yogi Teacher Training with Sri Dharma Mittra.
She teaches yoga, meditation, and mindfulness in the greater Washington
DC area. Off the mat and
cushion Marci works in international development, is an experienced conflict
resolution practitioner, and a doctoral candidate at George Mason University's
School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution. You can learn more about
Marci and find her reflections on the study and practice of different spiritual
traditions here: abhidhammayoga.com and seekreflectimplement.com
