Redefining the Yamas & Niyamas: Santosha

We have been reframing the way we look at and study the Yamas and Niyamas or what could simply be defined as an instruction manual on how to live harmoniously with yourself and with life at large. A brief synopsis of our study reminds us that we began with the commitment to understand ourselves and our operating equipment (svadhyaya). This study is done through the lens of love, compassion, and non-violence (ahimsa). We accept that we are composed of divine goodness (satya). We may experience many untrue beliefs that cover up this divine goodness and so we ignite our internal fire and burn away these impurities (tapas). All of this work requires the cultivation and refinement of our energy and how we use it to walk our divine path (brahmacharya). Where we place or don’t place our energy is important (asteya). Our energy is meant to foster inner-dependence rather than co-dependence on people, places, and things (aparigraha). The energy we take in and expel must be filtered to remove impurities (saucha). Purified energy is experienced as contentment (santosha).

Santosha, defined as contentment is often feared, even condemned, like it will breed complacency or co-dependence. When in actuality contentment is: “the place to be” and what it breeds is inner-dependence. To depend upon our inner contents is how we are meant to be. Tragically we are told and sold daily that Cialis, Lyrica, Celebrex, and Abilify will fix our inner contents, but instead they cover it up and leave us with amnesia of our Sat, or our divine goodness. How we have been taught, trained, and manipulated to be, has short circuited our operating system and thus a re-wiring of our circuitry is necessary.

Ideally, we could solely focus on living from the inside out, but the reality of our world is literally and figuratively brimming with garbage. We must filter our exposure to poisonous personalities, toxic politics, and power hungry programming.

The consistent calibration of your consciousness and your energy or inner chi, results in the contents of your mind. The quality of your moment is determined by the environment of which your mind lives. To ensure your contentment then, is to insist upon quality content. Wether that content is the contents of your food, your friends, your playlists, your conversations, your book choices, your YouTube subscriptions, your rest, your rituals, and your relationship with nature. All of your daily content will accumulate to equal your ease or your dis-ease.

Consider contentment to feel something like the space in-between the inhalation and the exhalation. There is no dragging your feet, clinging to the exhalation, scared to take the next breath, worried it won’t be big enough to fill your lungs. There is no feeling sad and deflated because you just know this breath won’t compare to that awesome breath you had once last year, so why bother taking another inhalation?! It’s more like a simple trust that you, your body, your being, knows, innately, how to breathe. There is a surrendering to a greater wisdom.

If you are anything like me, contentment may feel as fleeting, elusive, and imperceivable as the space between the inhalation and the exhalation. Yet, we know it’s there and this knowing must be our inspiration to slow down, to fully occupy that space as many times a day as we can remember, and to do so with the inner smile of our full and open hearts.

Dearest Reader,

Your attention and consideration to this content is a gift. Thank you. May my understandings and interpretations invoke a deeper understanding within you, even if it is totally different. The conversation is a worthy one. May you feel the ease and contentment of your inner divinity.

Blessings,

Andrea Dawn