Ahimsa

During Chair Yoga we began a conversation about Ahimsa.
Patanjali wrote the Yoga Sutras some 200 years after Jesus.  These Sutras are guidelines to living and words of wisdom.  It reads much like the book of Proverbs of the Bible.  The Sutras contain the Yamas which are a list of ways of being that help us live well with others. The first Yama is Ahimsa.  Ahimsa literally means "non-harming" or "non-violence".  Ahimsa is about living with  compassion in all that we do.  It covers our physical actions, our conversation and our thoughts ." To practice ahimsa is to be constantly vigilant, to observe ourselves in interaction with others and to notice our thoughts and intentions." (from Beginning the Journey an article by Judith Lasater about yoga sutras.)
During, I challenged everyone to compare Ahimsa with the Y's core values:  caring, honesty, respect and responsibility and their faith values.  What are the similarities? 
The other questions to ask is....where does ahimsa touch our lives?
We will continue this conversation!!!
Click on the button below to read the article by Judith Lasater.  The beginning is a nice introduction to the Sutras.  The articles continues with a few good paragraphs on Ahimsa.

Article