~~~~~
Unwholesome thoughts can be neutralised by cultivating wholesome ones
– Yoga Sutras 2:33
If the Yamas are guidelines for living with, and our attitudes towards others then the Niyamas are guidelines for living with, and our attitudes towards ourselves. There is no point living an externally “yogic” life if, when we are with ourselves, we throw it all out of the window.
So what are these five Niyamas?
1. Shauca (Purity)
2. Samtosha (Contentment)
3. Tapas (Auserity)
4. Svadhyaya (Self Study)
5. Ishvara Pranidhara (Surrender to the Lord)
(I try my best not to mention “God/god/goddess/the Lord” etc on this blog or in my teaching. I know what I believe and that is very personal to me and I like to give other people that personal space when it comes to their spirituality as well. But when stripped down to it’s bare bones Ishvara Pranidhara is about trusting in the flow of life a little bit, surrendering some of our worries and trying not to obsess over minutae. I once read some wise words from the Dalai Lama that went a little bit like this (I’m paraphrasing I’m afraid). When worrying about a situation ask yourself if you can do anything to change it. If you can, do it. If you can’t why worry? That, to me, is Ishvara Pranidhara)
Apart from Ishvara Parnidhara I haven’t written about each individual Niyama this week because I want you, dear reader, to notice what springs to your mind about your life when you read each of the five words.
I think each of the five Niyamas are open to individual interpretation, just as the Yamas are. They are also works in progress for each of us. We can’t beat ourselves up every time we feel we’ve “broken” one of them; each time we eat “unpure” food, each time we think bad thoughts about others, every time we buy something we probably don’t need. In fact we can’t look on slip-ups as “breaking rules” or we’ll never get over the guilt.
What’s important is to watch the way we behave towards ourselves, observe whether these behaviours fit into the guidelines of the Niyamas, and if they don’t, just think about how we can change those patterns of behaviour the next time. Sometimes it can take a lifetime to change patterns of behaviour. And that’s OK too.
Living life in accordance with the Yamas and Niyamas isn’t going to suddenly bring spiritual nirvana. Instead an observance of these ten guidelines can give us a place in which to practice all 8 limbs of yoga together as best we can. The Yamas and Niyamas are a foundation, not an absolute.
Think nice things, be kind to yourselves and others, smile a lot and you’re well on your way! 
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Rachel Hawes, Rachel Hawes. Rachel Hawes said: the 8 limbs week 2: the niyamas http://goo.gl/fb/j5rZ2 [...]
Hey Rachel. Visiting your website for a while now has made me decide to go back to yoga- I have an Astanga course booked, starting this evening. Check my blog to see how I get on. I need some calm in my hectic life!
Thanks for the inspiration
Julia
http://www.britbride.com
Julia, I’ll check back tomorrow. Good luck
My teacher discussed Ishvarapranidhara as “devotion or surrender to spirit”. I had always struggled with this one before, being a non-religious person. But I am a spiritual person! For him, like you, IP is about letting go of what we can’t control.
It’s also about faith – but if you believe that we as individuals are expressions of the larger Universe, then to have faith in Spirit or have faith in the Universe is to have faith in ourselves. So IP then becomes about devoting yourself or surrendering yourself to your own spirit – living the spiritual life that your soul requires at any given time.
Lovely post especially reminding us all not to feel guilt (and that’s a mental modification if ever I did see one!) and reminding is that the Yamas and Niyamas are a foundation for the rest of yoga… So true.
Surrender has always been my struggle as well- I so often seem to face my own resentment. I do, however, use surrender in a very spiritual way. The universe’s omnipresence necessitates it- I have never been able to separate God and yoga, nor would I want to do so as that would be dysfunctional. I can see why, as a teacher, you would avoid mentioning it, because you do not want to cause anyone’s egos to flare up, but you might find that some people are very receptive. Patients, after all, who need healing, are always receptive to that which will heal them. So I suppose it’s a balancing act between giving patients what they need and being careful not to tear off a bandage too quickly.
Btw, have you read Aleister Crowley’s lectures on yoga? He uses astrology to explain niyama. Very interesting. Also, these lectures really demystify yoga for those of a scientific mindset, stressing that of course one’s purpose in life is yoga, union with the universe. That is all there is.