yamas and niyamas — Blog — brooke does yoga

Satya Week 3: Doing It Right the First Time

In this week’s exploration of Satya, Deborah Adele introduces complexity and ambiguity to the conversation by drawing the tension we experience in our daily lives between the desire to belong and the desire to grow. She connects this to a concept she describes as “doing things right the first time.” She expands on this by detailing those moments of procrastination like putting off doing our finances, or little lies we tell ourselves like “Oh yes, I’ll definitely have enough time to do all 10 items on my to do list today.”

book club, philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellDecember 16, 2019satya, yamas and niyamas, philosophy, truth

Satya Week 2: Self-Expression

This week we’re looking at the second aspect of Satya truthfulness: Self-Expression. In Deborah Adele’s The Yamas and Niyamas she contrasts self-expression with self-indulgence. Its an interesting addition to last week’s focus on “being nice” instead of being true to oneself. Adele argues that when we are not true to ourselves, when our true expression is muted in some way, we look elsewhere for that expression or fulfillment.

yamas and niyamas, philosophy, book clubBrooke ShotwellDecember 8, 2019yamas and niyamas, satya, philosophy

Satya Week 1: Being Nice

Being nice is the cursory, “polite,” all-too-common exchange: Hi there; how are you? I’m good, you? I’m good. How often do we ask that question in earnest to really hear the answer? How often do we answer that question with honesty and trust? Adele draws a line between nice and real. As someone who considers herself to be a Nice Person, I found this section to be challenging.

book club, philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellDecember 1, 2019blog, philosophy, satya, yamas and niyamas

The Yamas and Niyamas: Satya

Is my “yes” coming
From a dark corner or from
The light in my heart?
~C.L.

yamas and niyamas, philosophy, book clubBrooke ShotwellNovember 25, 2019satya, yamas and niyamas, philosophy, truth

Ahimsa Week 4: Compassion

Last week we took a look at how we might run interference into the lives of others. This week we look at how all of that love and concern worrying about others might be a distraction from the real work: loving ourselves.

philosophy, book club, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellNovember 10, 2019ahimsa, compassion, yamas and niyamas

Ahimsa Week 3: Worrying

Hi, my name is Brooke, and I’m a worrier.

“Worry is fear that hasn’t grown up yet; it is a misuse of our imagination. We both devalue and insult others when we worry about them”

(P.S. The same goes for worrying about yourself or your own life.)

book club, philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellNovember 3, 2019yamas and niyamas, ahimsa, worry

Ahimsa Week 2: Balance

“If we are not on purpose with creating balance for ourselves, we can easily fall victim to false promises and fill every breathable space with appointments and activities and all the responsibilities that go with a full agenda. It is anti-cultural to claim any space that is simply space, or to move with any kind of lingering, or to take time for closure. We are bombarded and we bombard ourselves. And if we have any doubts, our calendars will reveal the truth of our craziness.”

yamas and niyamas, book club, philosophyBrooke ShotwellSeptember 22, 2019balance, blog, ahimsa, yamas and niyamas

The Yamas and Niyamas: Ahimsa

I’m going to be blogging my experiences working through/reading The Yamas and Niyamas by Deborah Adele. Join me! Month 1 is about Ahimsa, week 1 is about courage and fear.

philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellSeptember 15, 2019yamas and niyamas