Yoga and the Art of Practicing Ahimsa, à la Gandhi

My husband Ed ever so gently stroking a shark at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium, Sarasota, FL that the shark just continued on its merry way. He's showing, like Gandhi said, that in a gentle way you can shake the world.

Quite serendipitously an “inspirational” email landed in my inbox at the beginning of October that mentioned Mahatma Gandhi was born on October 2nd, 1869 – 150 years ago this month. Particularly because of all the political and social turmoil happening both domestically and internationally at the moment, this is a good time to revisit some of Gandhi’s core teachings and see if they can serve as a reminder to us on how to conduct ourselves in today’s world in a way that can create positive change.

“Did you know?!” One of Gandhi’s guiding life principles was the practice of Ahimsa or “non-harming.” And dear yogi’s, if you don’t know by now, ahimsa is the first practice and foremost guiding principle of yoga, according to the sage Patanjali who wrote The Yoga Sutras. It is the first of the Yamas or “things we try not to do.” So dear yogis, please remember as you’re practicing asana (yoga postures) to do like the good doctor and “first and foremost, do no harm.”  

It’s also worth remembering when you’re on your mat Gandhi’s words: "Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will." Especially if you practice a lot of “power yoga” don’t think that makes you somehow stronger than the next person. Gandhi may have been slight in stature, but his indomitable will was so strong that he was able to create changes that most “muscle men/women” wouldn’t be able to.

“Did you also know?!” Gandhi’s efforts and teaching of non-violent protest eventually led to India being freed, gaining its independence from Britain in 1947. Consider the incredible amount of political and social change that one man – Mahatma Gandhi – created through his practice of ahimsa – non-violence, non-harming. Then, imagine what we can do for ourselves and others if we practice our yoga in such a way that we don’t cause harm. 

We’ve all been injured in various ways – physically, psychically. What’s great about growing older – this is my 60th year on this Earth, so I should know! – is that we learn better and better over time how not to cause harm to ourselves. From there, it ripples out to benefit all beings.

Here are some wise thoughts that Gandhi left for us to consider:

"As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world as in being able to remake ourselves."

“If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. ... We need not wait to see what others do.”

I know we often want things outside of ourselves to change before we change, but isn’t nice to consider that the source of our happiness can lie right within our own beings? Isn’t it comforting to know that as we change, the world around us can also change? And might we want to consider facing our greatest challenge, one that could ultimately benefit others – that is our challenge to remake our own selves, rather than spending unnecessary capital in trying to change others? Particularly, telling someone else they’re wrong never seems to work, but rather letting them figure it out for themselves just might! As the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy said: “Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing oneself.” Might this pattern sound familiar to you?

Gandhi also famously said:

There is no path to Peace. Peace is the Path.

As with most wise teachings, I know we already know this, it’s just that we often forget. I know in this current political environment it’s easy to “go low when they go low” but can’t we use our yoga breathing and meditation practices to maintain some sense of equanimity within ourselves in such situations? In this way, can we meet “their low” with “our high?” Surely isn’t this why – at least in part – we practice yoga and meditation? 

Gandhi also believed:

When I despair, I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants, and murderers, and for a time they can seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. Think of it - always.

In this current global environment, I for one believe Gandhi is right. Evil, violence and hatted may seem to be the stronger forces, but that’s just because they represent our lowest capacity for being and understanding, both individually and collectively. Whether or not you like Presidential candidate Cory Booker’s sunny optimism, I do believe as he does that love and kindness are ultimately the way to go and will lead to the highest form of victory. As Gandhi said:

In a gentle way, you can shake the world.

May you be gentle, …
May you do no harm, …
May you Be Peace, …
May Truth and Love win out within you, …
May you shake the word, … for the benefit of All Beings.

Aloha, with Metta,
Paul Keoni