I’ve been writing about the Yamas for the last few weeks. If you’ve been keeping up recently, skip ahead to the next paragraph. If you want a refresher read on. Yoga is an 8-limbed path that when taken in order, leads to ultimate bliss. (yes, please). The first two limbs of the path are yama and niyama. The first of the yamas is Ahimsa, meaning nonviolence. The second yama is Satya, truthfulness.
Last week we explored one aspect of Satya. Dishonesty comes from contorting ourselves to fit into the view of what we think others expect from us. We asked why we are saying yes, when we meant no and how that desire to be nice steamrolls over our authenticity. Choosing to be real over being nice feels scary, but in reality, it’s the only way to be.
When humans fall out of touch with their true selves, we tend to resort to self-indulgence. We overdrink, we overwork, and we overeat. We over over. All because something just isn’t right inside. This conflict between our unique nature and our desire to fit in causes us to act out. Look around, our culture is riddled with self-indulgent people trying to feel different. It’s in all of the reality TV shows. We see it with social media influencers constantly posing for likes. We see this same self-indulgence from students on college campuses protesting a war that they don’t even understand. Satya asks us to choose self-expression instead.
Sunday night after coming home from a spiritual meeting I was feeling afraid. My son will be going off to college soon and I’m terrified. It’s uncomfortable to sit in fear. So I indulged in ice cream and mindless television. What would have been different if I had rolled out my mat and expressed my fear through asana? Or pulled out the journal and put pen to paper? Or called a friend and shared my heart with her?
I didn’t choose self-expression, I chose self-indulgence. Adding the proverbial insult to injury, I was also sabotaging my wellness journey.
Think about it, the next time you catch yourself in an act of self-indulgence, pause and ask yourself what you aren’t expressing. It’s another way to practice Satya.
Heather Dellapi 