A Lesson in Non-Attachment

I have gotten several messages recently about how difficult is is to practice non-attachment, as well as how important it is to do so.

People in my life and on its outskirts made mistakes and felt the repercussions. I did the same. I mean, duh, I'm human - so are those people I referred to, obviously - so mistakes come with the territory. What one does after those mistakes is a choice to either attach to the mistake and get caught up in the cycle of replaying the mistake over and over again in the mind. It is a cycle of negative self-talk that doesn't often lead to forgiveness.

I believe that non-attachment, or Aparigraha, can help us release our mistakes and more easily forgive ourselves when our human side shows up.

Aparigraha is one of the Yamas (there are five). The five Yamas deal with one's own ethics and and integrity. They are: Ahimsa - non-harming, Satya - truthfulness, Asteya - non-stealing, Brahmacharya - sexual impeccability [also loosely applied to the idea of not wasting energy] and Aparigraha - non-hoarding.

Located on the first limb of the eight-limbed path of yoga - they are critical on one's yoga journey. I find this highly appropriate given that we begin our path by examining our own mindset and how we conduct ourselves and our actions first. Very "be the change" no?

It is common to have multiple translations applied to words in sanskrit and this is one that has many. You'll see Aparigraha translated to mean non-hoarding, non-covetousness, non-possessiveness, or non-attachment in various texts.

Mastering Aparigraha does more than keep us from buying yet another pair of leggings - although the move towards simplistic living, rejection of consumerism and de-cluttering can have lasting positive impact on one's life. I mean to say that it goes beyond avoiding the acquiring and holding on to material things if we examine this yama's deep roots in the essence of my favorite mantra: Everything is Temporary.

In this brief period since becoming a yoga teacher, I have come to understand the importance of practicing Aparigraha, personally. Non-attachment to the number of students who show up to my classes - whether it is my own class or one I'm subbing - has been immensely difficult for me. I have had to practice non-attachment to me or a class no longer being on a studio schedule because of the aforementioned lack of students. If I apply "Everything is Temporary" to both of those situations, I realize that the low attendance is not specifically linked to me. I can remove myself from the equation and not take it personally that the class ended. I may also now have space to consider that the class was in a poor time slot for the community or the studio and I were not a good fit. 

I try to encourage my students to practice Aparigraha in the sense that they not attach to a specific asana - it is more effective to be in a specific pose and notice how one feels while in it. No one stays in any one asana forever. "Everything is Temporary" here too. We assume an asana, we hold it or flow to the next within a few breaths and there you have it. Feel what the asana triggers in you. Experience the moment of being a human being, instead of a human "doing".

Being present in this moment, right now, is the ultimate non-attachment.