The first of the Yamas sounds simple. It’s usually translated, “Do No Harm” or “Cause No Pain.” Easy, right? Don’t punch anybody in the face. Don’t be rude to waiters. Be “nice.”
But what does it really mean to do no harm?
This week, we explore what it means to truly do no harm. No harm to ourselves. None to other people. To animals. To nature. If you’re doing NO harm, then you’re also not hurting someone’s feelings. Or talking about them behind their back. You’re not eating out of plastic containers or burning fossil fuels.
I think that’s why so many yogis live in isolated communities where they can forage only for what they need and support each other because it’s nearly impossible to do no harm – directly or indirectly.
So let’s do our best and answer for ourselves: how can we do at least minimal harm?
Contemplation
After your morning meditation (10 minutes? 15?) pull out your journal and consider the ways you might cause harm or pain in your daily life. Those things “done and left undone,” that might cause another living being injury.
In what ways do you cause yourself harm?
I don’t mean necessarily overtly abusive things (please don’t do that, either!), but I’m talking about all the subtle ways we relate to ourselves negatively. I’m as guilty as anyone else of looking in the mirror and seeing only perceived flaws. Or of running myself into the ground until I am profoundly exhausted or sick. Or of beating myself up when I don’t perform to the level I’d expected.
In what ways do you cause others harm? Are you inclined to make jokes at someone else’s expense? To gossip? To roll your eyes? To be annoyed at another’s success?
To be clear: I am writing all of these things down because I do them! So maybe your list includes these things, or maybe it’s different. I certainly have more.
Meditation : Reflection
In this first Yama, Patanjali instructs us to Do No Harm. This isn’t merely an instruction but a state-of-being. We seek to achieve a state of Ahimsa and, he tells us later (in Sutra 35), when we are in that state, it is so powerful that no one can do harm in our presence. In this newest series, I will invite you to join me as we explore the eight limbs of yoga, as outlined in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The first of the eight limbs are a group of edicts called the “Yamas,” or what many called the “Dos” of yoga. (Followed by the five Niyamas… the do-not-dos.)
Practice : Vinyasa
If we are going to “Do No Harm” in the world beyond the mat, we must start by connecting with ourselves, treating ourselves with kindness and NOT HARMING our physical bodies. It’s difficult. After all, sometimes very strenuous activity feels great. I love HIIT classes and hardcore power yoga classes. I love lifting heavy weights. But it’s so crucial, even in those more intense activities, that we are able to connect with what’s really going on for us physically and that we learn the difference between pushing ourselves and hurting ourselves.
I often say, borrowed from one of my favorite online cycle instructors, “today’s legs are not yesterday’s legs.” Today’s Downward Facing Dog isn’t yesterday’s, either. Be present with what’s really going on, not with what you wish were … or not with what you “usually” do. Sometimes that will manifest as taking it a little easier, but sometimes you’ll surprise yourself by actually going deeper or “bigger” in a posture.
Nothing that appears in this blog or on this website is intended to treat or diagnose any disorder, physical or otherwise. Always consult a physician before beginning any exercise program.
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