On a previous life track (before kids, and with full time professional employment) I would shop. a lot. For baubles and clothing and life embellishments... and more food than I needed. Wasteful to be certain.

With the current austerity program initiated with the birth of our son and my work taken to part time, and most recently the recent gentle belt tightening of hubby being between jobs, my cravings for "more" have greatly dissipated. Perhaps the yoga practice helped hone the skill and tune in to non-grasping, but admittedly the reality of avoiding debt and waste played a big part. Truthfully don't want an overstocked refrigerator (to clean or to organize). I don't want more clothes to put away or things to dust on shelves, or collectibles about which Ill just forget.

Having mindfully "not-shopped" for a bit, we found ourselves positioned to utilize funds (that would otherwise be squandered on a few dinners out and theater movies and maybe some more pricey meats at the market) to sending our son to the most amazing after school programs. He'll be participating in Spanish lessons, art lessons, Kung Fu classes and learning to write computer code. With these programs he'll make more friends get exercise and expand his learning day by the exact increment of time I needed between the end of my work day and picking him up. The drop in after-school program was $35 a day or required prepayment for 3 or 5 days a week of which we would have used an hour per day. These programs cost between $9 and $16 per class and are worth every penny. Thank you universe for manifesting this. I am deriving so much more pleasure (than a pair of earrings or bag of candy or random catalog item i didn't really need) this way. #lessismore #gratitude #afterschoolenrichments #asteya Learn more »

Yamas are the first of the eight limbs of Yoga; the first of the eight guiding principles for helping to lead a yogic lifestyle, or, more generally, to "calm the fluctuations of the mind" (for whatever purpose you choose).

The word "yama" comes from the verbal root [yam] which means to subdue or to control, which implies that these "yamas" are controls or acts of curbing or suppressing our behavior (towards others or the outer world) to help us become more "yogic."

There are five of these principles, or disciplines, in the yamas, as follows:

Ahimsa: non harming. Ahimsa is a term meaning 'not to injure' and 'compassion'. The word is derived from the Sanskrit root hiṃs – to strike; hiṃsā is injury or harm, a-hiṃsā is the opposite of this.

Satya: truth. Satya is the Sanskrit word for truth. It also refers to a virtue in Indian religions, referring to being truthful in one's thought, speech and action.

Asteya: non-stealing. Asteya is derived from the Sanskrit root word "steyn" which means ‘to steal’ to ‘to rob’. The word for a thief is "steynaH". "Steyam" is the word for theft. By adding the prefix "a" it becomes ‘asteya’ which means "to not steal or rob".

Aparigraha: non-covetousness. This word is derived from the root word ‘grah’ which means to hold or grab something. Adding the prefix ‘pari’ alters the meaning only slightly to mean ‘hold onto something’. Adding the second prefix ‘a’ negates the meaning of the word and thus ‘aparigraha’ is variously translated as ‘non-hoarding’ or ‘non-possessiveness’, non-indulgence’ or ‘non-greed’ etc.

Brahmacharya: virtue/vitality. This complicated concept is a merging of two Sanskrit roots: Brahma (shortened from Brahman) meaning "the one self-existent Spirit, the Absolute Reality, Universal Self, Personal God, the sacred knowledge;" and  charya which means "occupation with, engaging, proceeding, behaviour, conduct, to follow, going after." This yama can mean an overall lifestyle that helps the pursuit of sacred knowledge and spiritual liberation. It is a means, not an end, and usually includes cleanliness, ashimsa, simple living, studies, meditation, voluntary restraints on certain diet, intoxicants and behaviors (including sexual behavior).

Wanna talk about the yamas? Come visit me in a class this week... I definitely have yamas on my mind. http://byomyoga.blogspot.com/p/calendar.html

Coming soon: the Ni-yamas (restraints of the self)

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