Posts Tagged ‘ahimsa’

Um, excuse me, could you please move the &*^#% out of my way??!

Leahm on 2:49 pm May 19th, 2010 / Be the first to comment! »

I feel like, lately, my Ego has been making a strong show of itself in my life.  I mean, like it’s an “excuse me-pardon me-excuse me” kind-of-dance, as if you were trying to pass someone in the hallway, and they just kept stepping into your direct path, practically on your toes.

Not that this is harmful, per se, but it’s certainly not very YOGIC.  One of the nuggets I have picked up on this yoga journey is that we should strive to remove judgement about ourselves and others, good or bad, in our actions and thoughts. 

I think the place where this has become most noticeable is in the yoga space.  While I’m not totally comfortable putting all my thoughts and experiences concerning this out there in the blogosphere (see above:  EGO), I will say this–as I come closer to finishing the teacher training program, and actually begin to stand up in front of a group of students and share with them whatever knowledge I have of yoga asana (and maybe a smidgen of philosophy), it’s a sometimes wobbly struggle of pushing my ego out of the way to help students in the most “yogic” way I can.

Does this resonate?

Relationships and Satya: Why We Lie to Our Spouses

Have you ever noticed that wedding vows don’t include a promise to always tell the truth? A recent article in the Wall Street Journal explains why—it turns out that even the best relationships are littered with white lies. In fact, the article suggests that lies about small things are healthy for relationships.

My instinct is to say “BS!” I hate catching my spouse in white lies and do my best to practice satya (truth). But, truth be told, I’m not one to back down from bending the truth in order to avoid a pointless, nonproductive argument. My white lies typically involve rounding down instead of rounding up when asked about the cost of a new purchase…and if the new purchase isn’t noticed, why bother to disclose it at all?

When I lie it’s because I determine that the issue is something small that need not cause suffering for my spouse (does that qualify as ahimsa?). Reading through the confessions in the WSJ article is entertaining and a bit comforting, but also unsettling. Where is the line between white lie and deal breaker, and are we all just playing with fire?