Getting Yoga Ready (2) - Sathya

Continuing with the Yamas or restraints, the next one on the list is Sathya or Truth. This works on so many levels and is very fascinating. The immediate thing that comes to  mind about this yama is speaking truth. And Truth is invariably associated with speech. It is said that if a person speaks nothing but the truth for 12 continuous years, he will develop "Vak Siddhi", or the power that makes whatever he utters come true.

It came as quite a revelation what I realized how easy and how often I end up speaking non truth -like giving excuses for covering up my short comings, for not having done the things that I didn't do or didn't want to do, covering up some truths lest others may feel bad and so on. The main culprit however, are the made up excuses and false reasons. They are given without even pausing for a moment to reflect that, what is being said is not actually true! Even for very simple instances like, not wanting to go somewhere and giving poor health as an excuse for it.

So the first step in an attempt to follow this restraint is to start becoming true to my own self. Only when I stop giving excuses to myself, only when I truly own up to my feeling, intentions and thoughts will I be able to take it to the next level of speaking the truth. Being true to myself is kind of scary, because it makes me confront so many ugly and not so desirable aspects of myself -those that I cloak behind so many layers of excuses and lies to myself. For instance, telling myself that I am too tired for my practice when I am actually just feeling lazy, telling myself that it is ok to be angry with someone because they are mean, when I am actually angry because they didn't fulfill my expectations. And it is easy to not face the truth. It is easy to be buried in the bliss of ignorance.

But, when a conscious effort to be true to myself begins, it automatically solves so many issues in my life. How? Because with truth, comes awareness and acceptance. I become aware of the root cause of my thoughts, feelings and intentions. And the root cause, sometimes ends up being ugly and selfish, rooted in insecurities and fear. It is kind of shocking to come face to face with the deepest and darkest corners of the mind. It is like shedding light to dark recesses of a room and coming face to face with all the cobwebs and dirt accumulated there.  But only when the light falls, can the cleaning happen.

Similarly, with the awareness of my own intentions, root cause, reason etc behind my thoughts, with a loving acceptance to all these things exposed by the light of truth, I start the process of cleaning them out. It is hard and tough, but it is harder and tougher to remain in ignorance.

With the conscious and continuous effort to be true to myself, it automatically starts seeping into my words and actions. It is far more harmonious to be truthful, than to feel that nagging discomfort that I feel when I know that I am at discord with the truth. At the core, our very essence, our very self is nothing but truth.

All great masters across all religions and regions and school of thought reiterate the importance of being truthful. Why?

For that, let us briefly understand the essence of truth. Truth is that which remains constant at all times, under all circumstances and at all places. It is changeless. If it is changeless, then truth is beyond time and space, as time is nothing but a measure of change and space is a function of time. By applying this deduction, this body of ours is not the truth -as it is subject to change. The mind again, is not the truth as it is nothing but a constant flow of thoughts that change every nanosecond. The world itself is not the truth as that is also subject to change. So what then, is the truth? The truth is the changeless witness to all these phenomena happening all around. The truth is the "I" or the "self", that is aware of the mind, that is aware of the body, that is aware of the world, but not affected by any of this. This "self" is truth  or "sat". We are all this truth when we shed this association of the self with the body and mind.

Hence, it is only logical that we try and practice truth to come closer to our true self. Truth helps us see things as they are, accept things as they are. It helps us transcend our own prejudices and preconceived notions. Yes, it takes a lot of courage to follow the path of truth. But, follow we must! Truth paves the way for acceptance and understanding. And with understanding comes love. With love, comes peace.

Om....Peace!! Peace! Peace...