The things we do in our lives make a difference, just take a look around! Think about how people who are kind to you make you feel. Pretty good, right? Now consider how it might make you feel to treat others that way?
Yoga is about becoming more aware of ourselves in space, in the world, but it also about our actions, or karma, as it is called in Sanskrit. Actions start with our intentions, and play out through our words and deeds. The thing is, sometimes we don’t realize just how many people we really affect. Our vision can be limited to those we can see and hear.
If your goal is to be happy, it is simple! Start with the intention to make others happy…and that means don’t harm anyone. This includes animals, insects, trees, humans, fish…anyone. The goal is not to make yourself feel bad about what you may have done before now, but rather, to start making a difference by feeling good about what you do starting now. This includes what you consume, how you consume it, and what you excrete and where it goes…including what comes out of your mouth as words! Need some help? Here you go:
5 Questions worth asking (to create more joy): you might ask yourself after each question, is it true? is it kind? is it necessary? what could I do to create positive change?
1. What are you putting into your body? Where does it come from? How was it prepared? Who benefits? Who suffers?
2. What are you putting on your body? What is is made of? Where was it made? By whom? Who benefits? Who suffers?
3. How do you travel? How often? Any greener way to go?
4. What do you do with your waste? Where does it go after your disposal? What could you do to help minimize the size of your landfill?
5. How do you treat your friends? Your enemies? Your neighbors? Strangers? What if you treated everyone the same way, like a friend? Any chance your enemies would just become people you know?
At the end of the day, we are all doing the best we can. The thing is, ‘the best we can’ changes with knowledge and intention. Don’t worry about what you did yesterday. Start simply, and maybe consider changing one thing that you can feel good about. It’s what you do today that makes all the difference.