The next step within the first limb of Yoga is Satya, or truthfulness.

“Satya brings whatever is willed: For one who increasingly practices honesty or truthfulness in actions, speech, and thoughts, his or her will is naturally fulfilled.” Swami Jnaneshvara

I consider myself to be an extremely, often bluntly, honest person which can come across as being tactless or even at times arrogant. The simple fact of the matter is I don’t want to waste time being anything other than completely upfront about how I feel in any given situation. But there must be a balance within the practice of honesty, as we all know sometimes it is better to leave things unsaid, for otherwise we will move away from what we discussed last week, Ahimsa, and risk harming others through our words.

The practice of Satya cannot be taken on unless you are willing to be completely honest with yourself first. Why are you here? What are your intentions in this life? Why do you do what you do? As the above quotation alludes to, we will not get to where we want to go, unless first we know which direction we want to take, and why. We must get to the source, the truth, of who we are, before we can move forward in a way that will fulfil our every need and have us living wholeheartedly. This is no easy task. Many obstacles get in the way of seeing clearly our own truth, everything from our jobs, to social media, to our drive for money and material excesses. It is the old adage of getting what you want, then wanting more. Always keeping up with the Joneses. Thinking that money will buy happiness. While it is essential to move towards truth, there are also so many reasons people are not living honest lives. This is not an easy process, and can be uncomfortable as we turn up the why’s behind our untruthful living. However this is the process, the real Yoga.

So how do we find out what it is we want? We stop, be still, begin to go beyond the constant chatter of our minds and observe what is underneath. Really think about what makes you happy, is it living in a big house with lots of stuff? Or is it spending time with your partner? Does it make you happy to sleep in, or are you happier when you get up and move your body? We will come up with all sorts of excuses to get away from our own truth…I needed rest more than I needed to practice Yoga….I deserve this extra beer because I work hard….It’s Friday so I’m going to eat a whole block of chocolate because I’ve eaten well all week. What if we just told ourselves the truth?…I want to rest, I don’t feel like going to Yoga…I want a beer, I know it’s not good for me but in this moment I just don’t care…I’m going to eat this block of chocolate, probably feel shit afterwards, but it’s what I feel like doing in this moment. How refreshing! What if you began being really honest with yourself, and it felt so good, that more truth appeared? We practice being truthful with ourselves, and our fellow human beings, and this brings us together as souls all on similar journeys. Life is then lead from the heart, rather than the head and ego, and people open up to us in ways they never would have before because they can sense our commonality.

To live through the Yoga sutras, and lead a Yogic life, we must first discover our own truth. Then we may share this truth with others, help them in discovering their own truth, and in the process make the world a little more authentic, real and peaceful.

Yoga Sutra 2.36 ~ satya pratisthayam kriya phala ashrayatvam

As truthfulness (satya) is achieved, the fruits of actions naturally result according to the will of the Yogi.