Satya
“First follow truth and then truth will follow you”
Sutra 2.36 states that to one established in truthfulness, actions and their results become subservient. The sanskrit word satya means ‘true nature’ or ‘true essence.’ I searched the word ‘truth’ in the dictionary and read that it is ‘the quality or the state of being true’.
We all lie. Probably daily. Little white lies and larger lies. I believe that I lie because I don’t feel like I am enough just as I am or that I am scared of being vulnerable in front of others. A yoga practice in truthfulness would imply that all forms of non truth impacts your essence or your nature. An example of this is how we post on social media. We post our happiest seemingly perfect lives when the truth behind the screen is often different. Then on the other side some people express their truth so bluntly and unkindly on social media that they are causing pain to others. If expressing truth hurts another human being then potentially that is not practicing ahimsa (non violence/compassion). I posted on ahimsa last week https://www.yogaspace.ie/blog/ahimsa. However if there is a need to express the truth then that won’t please everyone and consequences or fallout are inevitable. Truth can therefore be a difficult concept to get right. There is no one rule for all and each moment requires reflection before expression.
What are your reasons for wanting to express your truth? In the book ‘Threads of Yoga’ by Pamela Seelig she recommends an honesty check and uses the example of sharing posts/photos on social media. She states ‘Be clear and honest about your intentions and take the appropriate truthful action.’
We are fed so much information now through media sometimes I don’t know what to believe. I am also very aware that my instagram feed and the reels I watch have now been tailored to suit me from what I have viewed and liked previously. I am being a fed a story daily via the algorithm but what other stories am I not seeing. Are there other truths or view points out there that I have yet to hear? Carl Jung believed that what is true for us in one stage of our life could turn out to be a lie in another stage of our life. So the truth then could be also seen as fluid and changeable as we change.
I filter through all of my confusion by journaling daily. Also about twice a week, on rising, the first thing I do is journal. I just keep writing without stopping so that I cant think about what I want to write. I got this technique from a book called ‘The Artists Way’ by Julie Cameron. When I write this way its like clearing the cobwebs. Generally what I really think comes out on the page and sometimes I’m shocked by what I think. Its not always kind or who I would like to be as a person. I have to remind my self that this is ego and not the true self. Sometimes things I want or need that have been hidden come to the surface. Being aware of all sides of ourselves, both the light and the dark, can help us to become fully integrated and really become closer to our authenticity. I hope to follow the truth and hope that it follows me and sticks!
Satya is the Yama I like the least because it is the one I struggle with the most. When I am discussing honesty with my children I use Rumi’s concept of the three gates. This helps me to simplify the concept of telling the truth in a way that they and I can grasp. It is probably the most useful reflection tool before expressing our truth with our thoughts, words and actions.
Rumi’s 3 gates:
1) Is it true?
2) Is it necessary?
3) Is it kind?
References and resources:
-The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali , Translation and commentary by Sri Swami Satchidananda, 2019
-The Heart of Yoga, Developing a Personal Practice, T.K.V Desikachar, 1995
-Threads of Yoga, Pamela Seelig, 2021
-The Artists Way - A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. Julia Cameron, 2000.
