Kundalini Yoga Glossary
Yamas
The five restraints of Patanjali's Eight Limbs, guiding moral conduct in our relationships with others.
Meaning
What Yamas Means
The Yamas are the first of Patanjali's Eight Limbs of yoga practice: principles of moral restraint directed at our relationships with others, though they don't exclude our relationship with ourselves. There are five: Ahimsa, Satya, Asteya, Brahmacharya and Aparigraha.
Ahimsa is non-violence, respect for all beings that rules out physical harm, verbal aggression and behavior that takes away another person's security. Satya is truth, respect for honesty in words, gestures and writing, said in a way that is appropriate and causes no harm. Asteya is honesty, respect for what belongs to others, whether material or intellectual. Brahmacharya is moderation, finding the right balance in our actions, desires, thoughts and feelings. Aparigraha is freedom from attachment, an attitude that lets go of the unnecessary accumulation of material goods.
In Practice
How It’s Used
In the manual's framing of the Eight Limbs, the Yamas are linked to the element of earth and to our habits, the outward facing counterpart to the Niyamas, which are linked to water and to emotional impulse.
Because they concern conduct toward others, the Yamas are introduced as the starting point of the Eight Limbs: before working with the body through Asana or the breath through Pranayama, a student is asked to consider how they treat the people around them.
