During the last five weeks in our classes we have been looking at the Yamas, ethical guidelines for living with a focus on our outer world.  We now turn to the Niyamas – observances of, and contracts with, our inner self.

 The first Niyama is Saucha – cleanliness – of body and mind.  This can relate to anything from cleanliness of thoughts (not allowing ourselves to get angry, jealous etc)  and our bodies (eating well and bathing regularly) to working on our energies and keeping them pure, orderly  and separate.

 Incorporating Saucha into our yoga practice is a good place to start. As a teacher we put away our mats, props, and blankets in an orderly manner, with all the edges aligned, so that no one else will have to arrange them and we ask our students to do the same. This practice will help us cultivate an awareness of our surroundings. It is also good to be mindful of other students’ mats and to refrain from stepping on them as we move around the room. Not only is this a hygienic practice, it also teaches the importance of keeping the energy of our own practice distinct from the energy of others. In asana practice, the mat represents the world – the way we treat our mat reflects the way we treat our world. As we learn to treat our mats with care, we are beginning to learn the essence of respect for all things.

Arranging mats in an orderly way for a class allows the energy of the room to travel freely – if mats are disorganized and randomly positioned this means that one student’s energy interferes with another – When students are positioned neatly, a synergistic effect takes place – the effect of one student’s work and energy helps the rest of the class do the pose. Likewise, the energy of the collective group helps each individual do the pose.

Another way to seal energy into our yoga session is to start and end the class with a chant of the sound of Om …. I am going to introduce this new practice into our class on Tuesday ….