As part of their teacher training, Axis Yoga students experiment with the application of Yamas (restraints) and Niyamas (observances). This student writes about his experience practicing Ahimsa (non-violence) and Svadhyaya (self-study) in his volunteer work as a Park Patroller. These yogic principles worked to shape his behaviors and reveal greater understanding of his reactions.
This experiment is an exercise of Yoga components Yama and Niyama. I will specifically examine the behavior pattern Ahimsa toward others and myself and Svadhyaya for my self-explorations of my reactions. I will use circumstances in my volunteer work as a Park Patroller with Jefferson County Open Space parks to explore and practice these patterns. My duties include telling visitors to the parks about county law requiring their dogs to be on a leash while they visit the park. It is for the pets’ safety and for the safety of other visitors in the parks. This is a point of contention for me because of past experience with visitors ignoring the information I give them. This has both bruised my ego and also bruised my belief in rules and order in society. I will highlight experiences from 2 patrols I’ve done and how the practices of Ahimsa and Svadhyaya influenced my behavior.
The process I will be examining reminded me of a Zen fable that I can summarize: A man was training a rooster owned by his prince for cock fighting. After ten days, the prince asked if it was ready, “No sir, he is still vain and flushed with rage.” was the reply. Another ten days, “Not yet sir. He is on the alert whenever he hears another cock crowing.” Still another ten days, “Not quite yet sir. His sense of fighting is still smoldering within him.” Finally after another ten days, “He is almost ready. Even when he hears another crowing, he shows no excitement. He now resembles one made of wood. His qualities are integrated. No cocks are his match—they will at once run away from him.” Through the practice and awareness of Ahimsa and Svadhyaya I will measure my actions and reactions to encounters with dog-off-leash contacts and if they create reactive behavior in others and me.
My first event took place on March 21st at Matthews/Winters Park. I was at the end of my 4-hour shift and met a man getting ready for a jog at the trailhead and his dog was roaming around the area loose. I identified myself and asked if he had a leash for the dog noting it was Jefferson County law that all dogs must be leashed and under their owners control at all times in the park. There are also hazards in the parks from wild animals to other dogs to plant spores that would burrow into the skin if his dog brushes by them. He said he had one in his car. I was going to my car to put away my hiking equipment and leave and could not help but notice that the man had looked in his trunk with no leash in sight and was now standing beside his car eating a snack. He kept on looking my way as well. His dog was currently in the car. My assumption was that he was waiting for me to drive off so he could let the dog out to run loose. My job there was done. I could call a ranger if I wanted to aggravate the situation, but there was a forest fire going on in Golden so this would not be a high priority unless perhaps the dog was attacking people. So here was my challenge, loiter around to deliberately throw him off his schedule and me off of mine or leave and deal with my feelings later. I left the park. Practicing Ahimsa for the dog was easy. Pets count on their owners to keep them safe. I’ve had pets for most of my life. As for the owner, it was more difficult. Hearing about wild animal attacks on pets in their own backyard, or the annual winter news stories of loose dogs falling through thin ice at a lake or reservoir, it is easy for me to question a person’s love and loyalty to their pet while witnessing or hearing about this reckless behavior over and over again. Unless they live in a cave, they have no excuse not to know the risks involved.
The second event took place on March 29, 2011 at Mt. Falcon Park before I even got out of my car. I was driving into the parking lot when a loose dog darted in front of my car. I barely missed hitting it. I was seething. I managed a composed voice when I asked the people lingering in the parking lot whose dog it was. It turned out that none of them owned the dog. It apparently was a neighborhood dog that someone let run or it got out of a yard nearby. By the time I got a leash to try to corral the dog, it was gone. This provided a unique challenge since I had no actual person to attach my feelings to. Like my first example, this was similar to the emotions I feel when hearing about a pet injured or killed in an attack or the falling through thin ice scenario. So I sent Ahimsa toward the dog to make it home safe and practiced some yogic breath exercises to settle my mind. I also practiced Ahimsa toward myself not to let this event influence my mind for the next four hours of my volunteer shift. Ahimsa to the faceless owner was difficult again. Later in the shift, I encountered a gentleman with his grandchildren and a poodle sized dog off its leash. I identified myself and informed him of the county law. I also started to talk about the coyotes frequenting this park and he basically finished my speech for me saying he didn’t want his dog being someone’s lunch. I left the encounter in good spirits that I helped the visitor with information to make the right decision and saw them later on the trail with the dog still on its leash. So I think the Ahimsa toward myself helped me keep a level head and treat the second contact as a separate event and not pile on to the previous unpleasantness when I first came to the park. The Ahimsa practice is still a work in progress for me.
With the Svadhyaya component, I had quite an enlightening experience. Both recent and long-ranging personal history has led me to the core of my emotions regarding the dog-off-leash contacts I’ve made as a park patroller. In the spring of 2010, my mother-in-law was walking her Cairn terrier around the block. She doesn’t venture out very far because of Macular Degeneration in her eyes leaving her legally blind. Unfortunately, on this day, a neighbor’s dog got out of its yard and attacked my mother-in-law’s dog. In the commotion, she fell breaking her nose along with other scratches and scrapes. The neighbors responsible were gracious enough to pay the medical expenses and come to visit. But the memory of her injuries has made me more sensitive to the situation when I see people deliberately let their dogs run loose.
Some deep historical reflections led to the realization that my behavior explorations originated in childhood. I was ‘the good son’ in my family. I did what I was told and was relied upon to complete my chores to keep the house functioning. My younger brother got away with things including not doing his chores. The sibling rivalry was typical and it did have a lasting impression on me when I would see someone bending or breaking the rules. It was a point of self-righteousness for me that stroked my ego. I thought it made me a better person than the people who would cut corners or dodge the rules. The Svadhyaya experiment was valuable in helping me peel away the “ego structure” tied to these “unconscious configurations” that Richard Freeman talks about in The Mirror of Yoga. This observational skill is an integral part of the yoga practice.
Each Axis Yoga Teacher Training student writes a paper describing their personal experience with the yogic principles of Yamas (restraints) and Niyamas (observances). This student reflected on how the Yama, Brahmacharya (continence) and the Niyama, Santosa (contentment) are already present and working in his current lifestyle.
Yama/Brahmacharya: To consist of (not totally limited to): Life of celibacy, religious study & self restraint—continence, abstinence, self-containment & moderation.
Niyama/Santosa: Contentment has to be cultivated. A mind that is not content cannot concentrate. Contentment and tranquility are states of mind—these are present when the flame of the spirit does not waver in the wind of desire. Feeling of being content with what we have—“contentment counts for more than all sixteen heavens together.” (Sutra commentary).
Realization: I live my life with Brahmacharya and Santosa present. This experiment is very compelling on a number of different levels—self reflection being the cornerstone. This is akin to peeling back the layers of the onion for greater self examination.
Facts: These Yamas & Niyamas continue to occur and present themselves without any dramatic lifestyle modifications, changes or adjustments—the following observations and discussion points were not intentional lifestyle modifications, they are actually how I live my life on a daily basis. I had no knowledge of the concepts of Brahmacharya or Santosa prior to this Axis Yoga YTT course. With this newly acquired knowledge, it is evident that I have practiced the primary component of Brahmacharya (abstinence—Life of celibacy) since April 2008. This is a function of my personal situation, decisions and relationship with my life partner. I am comfortable with what is currently happening inside me. I continue to work with my life partner on our personal situation(s) and all components of the very complicated relationship equation (currently we are in relationship counseling through the Graduate School of Psychology at the University of Denver). Not to be overlooked, at the age 18 (as my memory best serves me) I made a conscious decision that I wanted no children—no desire to procreate. As a total aside, it is my humble opinion that age needs to be considered when evaluating and understanding Brahmacharaya –as we age (I am 55 and my life partner is 57) the sex drive diminishes and becomes less of a priority, generally speaking.
The religious study component presents some very interesting areas for self-reflection. I consider myself to be an Agnostic (one who holds the view that any ultimate reality-as God-is unknown and probably unknowable). I would probably be best served to have some real in-depth discussions concerning the agnostic and atheist (one who denies the existence of God) definitions. At any rate I have some very strong beliefs regarding the concept of God. Organized religion is a concept that I don’t believe in and do not support. I have no faith based system (belief and trust in and loyalty to God; belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion; firm belief in something for which there is no proof). I consider myself to have a belief system (a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing; conviction of the truth or some statement or the reality of some being or phenomenon, when based upon examination or evidence). Additionally, I consider myself to have a spiritual outlook (Spirit: akin to blow, breathe; an animating or vital principle held to give life to physical organisms; supernatural being or essence). With this said, areas for further discussion and evaluation are: religion, faith, belief & spirit. With respect to God, I look at the Sun as fulfilling this ‘category’. Without the Sun (God) there is nothing else on our planet, Earth. The Sun (God) makes everything possible—without the Sun (God) there is no Prana (lifeforce/breath). This relationship (faith, religion & spirit) and associated challenge(s) was recently discussed in the Denver Post-April 4, 2011, Fitness Section, shedding additional light on a very personal and emotionally charged topic. Question: Who/what keeps the Earth, Solar System, Universe functioning? With this said, we move to another area of the religious, faith, belief & spirit discussion—Evolution, Creation and Intelligent Design. I am a firm believer of evolution. Not to be over-looked and a topic for another paper is the big-bang theory—how was the universe and our solar system created? What additional forms of life exist “out there?”
The self restraint component of Brahmacharya continues to be a very interesting personal study: Primarily my diet and lifestyle (if I remember correctly, it has been said, ‘we are what we digest’). By choice, I have a very simple lifestyle and a clean diet. By simple definition I am a vegetarian (have been strict for the past four years & hypocritical-ate fish-since 2001–then a number of years ‘on and off’ since 1976). Other areas of self restraint/abstaining from as it relates to lifestyle, includes but not limited to: alcohol of any kind (Jan. 2000), gluten (Jan. 2009), sugar/high fructose corn syrup, soda, fast food, tobacco and most forms of strict western medicine. These are several of the very important components of my lifestyle/diet that I am of aware of on a daily basis. By my own admission I am very strict, rigid and focused with regards to my diet and ingestion of nutrition. I leave room for moderation and self-evaluation based upon each individual situation. Equally relevant, in my opinion, is the concept of moderation (vs. abstaining from)—I am continually striving for more moderation (balance) as it relates to my pursuit of a ‘quality’ life.
The Niyama discussion relates to the concept of Santosa (contentment). I am generally very content and satisfied with what I have (and/or don’t have). Recently this was brought to light in two separate situations both relative to my passion for bicycling. FACT: I was not accepted into the 2011 Leadville Trail 100 MTB race. This process involved a lottery. I have numerous ‘connections’ in the cycling community that I could have called upon to get me into the Leadville race, however, I decided not to lean on those connections. I have totally accepted this situation—I am content, able to concentrate and tranquil. FACT: Shortly after this event I had an opportunity to purchase a fully-loaded MTB—a dream bike, but way too much bike. The price was right, however, the timing was not due to personal financial circumstances. After a significant amount of self reflection I discovered I was content with my current MTB—an adequate MTB, that gets the job done and will continue to provide me with the ability to ride and race. I am content with my decision—I cultivated Santosa relative to this specific situation. As I grow older I am more content with my business (a pizza concept)—focused on what we have vs. continually looking for ‘what might be.’ With an appreciation of Santosa I challenged myself to start the re-invention process. Embarking on this YTT process along with my Aroma Touch therapy training I have fulfilled two components of the very challenging and dynamic re-invention process. This re-invention is a function of the overall economic environment, aging process and a general desire to introduce athletes and ‘agers’ to the wonderful benefits of yoga.
This was a very interesting exercise in self examination.
As part of Axis Yoga’s Denver-based teacher training program, students conduct personal experiments that bring yogic principles into their daily lives. Some students choose to explore the application of different yogic yamas such as non-violence and truthfulness, while others experiment with asana or pranayama in various aspects of their lives. This student chose to conduct an experiment with Ayurveda. She conducted her experiment over the course of two weeks to see how Ayurvedic modifications to her diet and lifestyle would affect her asthma.
When I initially started the Axis Yoga Teacher Training program I had very little knowledge of the world of yoga outside of the asana practice. Certainly I knew that there were other components that made up the practice of yoga, but I did not understand that all of these parts must be practiced in order to have a whole and well rounded experience. Of course some teachings resonated with me more so than others. No where did this hold more true than in the study of Ayurveda. My interest in Ayurveda was two fold. First I have always had a relatively unhealthy relationship with food. I think that this is partially related to my general lack of self control as well as the fact that I was brought up in a very Italian household where it is taught that food can ease or enhance any emotion. However, my second reason was the one that drove me to further explore the benefits of Ayurveda, my asthma.
Since childhood I have had asthma. Initially the doctors diagnosed it as exercise induced asthma. Very early on though I realized that this was a mis-diagnosis because it often times seemed that the more in shape I was the less my asthma bothered me. From the time I was diagnosed until now, I have never felt comfortable leaving the house without my medication in fear of having an attack. There have been times that I recall being a half an hour from home realizing that I do not have my medication and turning around to get it. Not only is this scary on many levels it also makes me feel a like I have a certain amount of dependence. When I learned that Ayurveda could very effectively lessen the symptoms of asthma I was hooked. I generally eat quite healthy, but I certainly have never consumed food, slept or lived a life that was specific to my dosha. I decided to embark on a two week experiment, and track my inhaler usage respectively. During the first week I would follow the pitta guidelines and live a dosha specific life. During the second week I would live a completely chaotic and uncontrolled life. For purposes of this experiment I am defining ‘asthmatic episodes,’ as any time I feel enough constriction in my breathing that I am forced to use my inhaler.
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