Purity…what we eat, what we consume

by Daniel Aaron

Three key words in business are: location, location, location. We Yogis, in the business of enlightenment, can learn something here. Business wisdom advises that if the store is not well placed, success is doubtful no matter how saleable the goods.

Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra guides us to many useful steps on the path to Samadhi (peace, happiness). As a Yoga culture, we tend to know most about Asana (step three, posture). If we’ve spent some time on the yoga path we might have learned about Yama (step one, restraint) and Niyama (step two, observances). Perhaps we have some experience with Pranayama (step four, breath control).

For many of us, though, our experience with Patanjali’s 8 limbs ends just after the fourth step. Yet the subtler steps, the more internal ones that lead directly to the goal, the state of Yoga, begin with fifth, Pratyahara. The Yoga Sutra, like all scripture, reveals timeless wisdom that needs to be related to our present circumstances, to our modern lives.

The most common definition for Pratyahara is withdrawal of the senses. And frequently we think of that as meditation, with Yoga teachers explaining the essence of it as our attention away from the mundane concerns that are the crux of modern urban life – money, jobs, possessions – and instead taking our attention inside ourselves, toward the spiritual. We now live in a world infinitely more stimulating and distracting than the one in which Patanjali lived.

To apply the principle of Pratyahara to our modern lives, we can expand our definition to include control of the senses, or focusing the senses. In an Asana practice, for instance, Pratyahara might mean choosing to focus on the breath when we might tend to get distracted with vision (i.e. “what does his or her Asana look like) or smell (i.e. the aroma of the fresh croissants coming from the bakery next door).

Few would argue that living in a city makes it harder to be healthy. The pace, the stress, the pollution – all challenge our wellbeing. One famous yoga teacher recently said that enlightenment is very unlikely for one living in a city. The saying ‘when in Rome do as the Romans’ not only advises it might be helpful to blend in to our environment by doing what others are doing, it also indicates the truth that we do this automatically. So if the majority of people around us are primarily materially concerned, even at the expense of health and relationships, there is a momentum for us to do likewise.

With the number of yoga studios in cities still steadily growing, the question arises – are urban yogis wasting their money? Or is yoga’s growing popularity the result of city dwellers’ need to balance the stressful effects of city living?

On some level we know that whether enlightenment is more difficult in a city or not, it is possible. We’ve all experienced momentary shift in our thinking, which caused us to be enlightened (to feel lighter). We know it – letting go of stress is possible in the space of one breath, one thought – regardless of our surroundings.

Still, we also know that city living takes its toll. It’s harder to stay healthy, to stay positive. So what’s a Yogi to do? For the city dwelling Yogi, an expanded application of Pratyahara, including one related to geography, might be helpful.

The great Yogi Jesus counseled that our task is to “be in the world, yet not of it.” We’ve created this world we live in for some reason – it’s ours. So to conclude that our only hope for happiness is to escape to a cave in the Himalayas is not only pessimistic, it’s missing the point. It could be said, in fact, that we yogis, have a special responsibility (ability to respond) to be an uplifting presence where it is most needed, just like the Bodhisattva forgoes his own enlightenment until all beings are free.

How do we live in the city, yet not be sullied by it? One way of looking at Yoga practices is that they are all aimed at purifying us – that when we are sufficiently pure (mind, body, spirit) we live Yoga. Most of us are familiar with the concept we are what we eat; and this applies equally well to all our senses, to everything we take in. When constantly consuming negative messages, stress, consumerism – we become that.

With food, the answer is simple. We consciously choose what we eat, go for that which is most conducive to our health. We might even fast from time to time. The same is true for the other senses. By considering what sounds and smells we surround ourselves by, what information we ingest, we affect how our environment affects us.

Citified Pratyahara might include something as simple and cliché as burning incense to tune our sense of smell in a particular direction. It might mean a high degree of discernment over what media we expose ourselves to, choosing uplifting films rather than depressing news.  Or it could be simply taking a few minutes out of a busy workday to breathe, to disengage from the usual concerns and attune ourselves to spirit, to love.

When we want a quick and powerful way to change our health, fasting is one of our best tools. Similarly geographic Pratyahara might mean that we consciously take ourselves out of the city to renew, to rejuvenate. For urban Yogis, retreats often hold keys to their wellbeing. While under the constant barrage of stimulus that is inherent in cities, our senses become dulled, and so when we step out toward nature, they open. We open. There is a connection between nature, simplicity, oneness and Yoga.

Bali, where I live, a tropical island whose culture Yoga International said ‘lives yoga,’ has become a hotspot for international Yoga retreats and trainings. The fecundity of its nature, the warmth and gentleness of the air, the simplicity and kindness of the people – all certainly contribute to this growing popularity. Yet there is something more, something intangible.

What many of us who lead yoga events in Bali have found is that this land, especially Ubud, slightly elevated and inland, is especially conducive to Yoga and transformation. Ketut Arsana, local guru and therapist, in his opening speech at the recent 1st annual Bali Spirit Yoga Festival, spoke of Bali’s long tradition of Yoga, its history of drawing Yogis from afar. He explained that is the history, which has led to such an influx of Yoga teachers and students to this small island.

The Balinese people practice an animistic form of Hinduism, speak languages with connections to Sanskrit, and believe in the unseen world, the world of spirits, as well as the seen. Complex and elaborate rituals are performed several times daily with offerings woven together with palm fronds, flowers, fruits, and holy water. The people constantly seek to live in the ‘third position’ between light and dark. An awareness of the unseen world brings a great reverence for spirits.

Perhaps it is absence of this awareness of the spirit world in cities, where the majority of attention is placed on the material world that makes them more challenging for spiritual progress.

Ultimately the real question is what conditions are most suited for each of us individually to create the lives we wish? As Richard Baker Roshi said, “Enlightenment is an accident, but practice makes you accident prone.” What surroundings help? And for those who wish to live in cities, what creative applications of Pratyahara can help on a daily basis? And would withdrawing closer to nature for some time, help to return to ‘regular’ life refreshed and inspired - in the same way that meditation takes us away from the busyness of our minds – at least for a little while.

Bio:

Daniel Aaron, 500 hour E-RYT, founder of Radiantly Alive and Vibrant Living Yoga School & Teacher Training in Bali, guides students to accept themselves fully while challenging their limitations.  He has devoted his life to the art of vibrant living. Awareness of our incredible potential for happiness, and that we are naturally encoded with everything we need to realize it, has led him on amazing personal and professional explorations in the fields of health and consciousness. From yoga with the modern masters, to world travel with enlightened teachers, to radical nutrition and cleansing, this zest for life has resulted in a treasure-chest of gems.

Now, thriving in Ubud, Bali, he feels blessed to guide others to experience their maximum delight – through yoga, astrology, nutrition (raw food), writing, counseling, humor and whatever is holistically helpful. He leads a one-month Yoga intensive teacher training every year in Bali and retreats and workshops around the world. For more on Daniel, please see www.RadiantlyAlive.com.