Punk Rock Yoga

Punk Rock Yoga Melbourne presents…

Every Tuesday night at 5.45 to 6.30pm

The Hub, Batesford Road, Chadstone

Melbourne, Australia

Starting Tues 24th January!

email punkrockyoga_melbourne@hotmail.com

or see www.sonicshakti.com.au for details

Non-greed (aparigraha)

Aparigraha (ah-pah-ree-GRAH-hah)

Definition: “When non-greed is confirmed, a thorough illumination of the how and the why of one’s birth comes.”—Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, translation and commentary by Sri Swami Satchidananda

Aparigraha teaches us to take only what we need, and release what we do not need. Let’s examine it through the lens of money. “Executive Excess 2001,” a joint report by the Institute for Policy Studies and United for a Fair Economy, included a survey of 365 top United States companies. The survey showed that for companies where 1,000 or more employees lost their jobs, the Chief Executive Officers earned 80 percent more than their counterparts at other companies. I often wonder what causes someone who already has more than enough money to live comfortably to knowingly deprive others of the ability to shelter and feed their families—just to increase his own wealth. I suspect that these executives have yet to learn anything about our true nature and that they identify too closely with their powerboats and mansions. Also, based on crime statistics and quality of life studies, I have observed that capitalism breeds greed and selfishness, but more equitable economic models such as socialism breed cooperation and compassion.

Many in the punk community advocate anarchy as a societal model. While I believe it can work on a small scale, I don’t think it can work on a large scale. For an anarchist society to truly be just, it would require a high degree of evolution from everyone involved—all it takes is one person who preys upon others for the system to fail. Personally, I would choose a more structured yet equitable society rather than one with more autonomy because, given the choice, I value compassion over freedom. I support the ideal of a utopian society where everyone follows their conscience and treats all others with compassion, but I believe the human race has much more evolution to accomplish before this is possible. Until that time, I believe in structured distribution of resources so that everyone can thrive.

However, no matter what societal structure people inhabit, even those of us without vast monetary wealth can still succumb to the trap of greed. No matter how much stuff we accumulate, our bodies will all meet the same final fate. We will all return into the earth and we cannot take our stuff with us. Some people view having lots of stuff as the key to immortality, which is why they buy buildings and put their names on them. But any superficial happiness that the pride of acquisition may bring lasts for only an instant, and then a new acquisition cycle must begin. This is not true happiness. However, we can all find true happiness once we stop mistakenly identifying ourselves with our stuff.

You can practice non-greed by simplifying your life. This doesn’t mean selling all your furniture and eating only bread and water, but it does mean stopping to think for a moment and realize, “I have five pairs of black boots in my closet, I really do not need any more.” You can certainly see a cool pair of boots and think, “Wow those are cool,” and you can even buy them, provided you make room in your closet, maybe by selling other boots to a second-hand store, donating them to a charity, or giving them to a friend. But the minute you start attaching your happiness to the pair of boots—even 20-eyelet boots—you have strayed from the truth. De-cluttering takes a ton of work, but the less stuff you have, the less stuff you have to dust, so reducing your stuff gives you more free time. When you define yourself by your stuff, what happens when a fire engulfs your house? Are you destroyed? No, you are not your stuff. You are not designer clothes, sports cars, or any of that nonsense.

Certainly you can own clothing, etc., but the minute you identify yourself with a commodity, just stop and really listen to what you are saying. Even some punks, who claim to reject materialism, can fall victim to the same trap by equating their hair color, piercings, leather, and tattoos with their true identities. The minute you select your friends exclusively by what they wear, you too have fallen into this trap. Of course, this is very easy for me to say, as I have distant memories of my teenage years when identity groups were a critical part of my natural development, but I wished I had learned some of these lessons much earlier in life.

We can also examine this principle as a call to share. There’s a Wiccan saying, “Whatever you send out into the world, you get back three-fold.” I have experienced this three-fold concept myself. At a yoga conference I once attended, I had brought some delicious snacks and shared that food with others. A few moments later, a very gracious attendee who had rented a car for the conference offered to drive me to the airport. So, the cost of sharing my food was maybe a few dollars, but I saved a lot more by not having to take a cab. However, when we share we should do so without expecting to receive anything in return.

I will provide another example: during a bicycling trip through Washington state wine country, my husband and I both got a flat tires several miles from where we were staying and had forgotten to pack spares. A farmer tending his apple orchard offered his truck to us. He told us to “thank a Mexican kid” because the week before the only person who stopped to help him change a flat tire on a 100-degree day was a Mexican teenager. We were so grateful that we filled his gas tank and left him $50 for the trouble because it would have cost us twice that amount to get a taxi service where we were. He was not home when we returned the truck, so we left him a note instead. Later on that day, we told the story of this generous man to a winery owner—in fact we told just about anyone who would listen that day. The farmer turned out to be the winery owner’s best friend. She called the farmer on the phone and we spoke—we were grateful for the opportunity to thank him by voice. Several moments later, we wrapped up at the winery and the owner told us the farmer said not to let us leave without $50 worth of wine. We protested that he was being too generous, but she said we were simply not going to win this argument with the farmer. This taught us a valuable lesson in that we need to be more like the farmer, willing to help others just because they need it, not because we want something in return. Genuine giving and sharing enlightens us and assists others, and is the best manifestation of aparigraha.

Sharing also means helping out and showing compassion. So, what do you do when you encounter someone asking you for money? What do you do when you suspect they will use the money to buy alcohol? Do you have to share? If you believe that money will go directly towards alcohol and you think it would cause greater harm for that person, then a better solution may be sharing some food or offering to buy a bus ticket. Or, you may give money wishing that an act of kindness could inspire someone struggling with addiction to seek help.

Personally, I prefer to donate to shelters or other programs. There is a wonderful group called Street Yoga that teaches yoga to young people who are homeless, in the foster care system, or in other crises. There are plenty of ways to share. While it seems daunting to tackle the poverty crisis in your own neighborhood, let alone around the world, you can find a way to help.

I interpret the concept of non-greed to also mean becoming a conservationist. When we look at the earth’s resources as a limited quantity that we all have to share, we consider our actions differently. I challenge you to examine and improve upon your current conservation efforts. You can take some very simple steps towards reducing the amount of resources you use by riding your bike to run errands, grouping your car errands together in one trip, packing your lunch in reusable containers, cooking from scratch, eating leftovers, carpooling, taking public transportation, reducing water consumption, etc. By reducing the amount of resources you consume, you make more available for others. This also helps you practice non-violence towards the earth.

The final concept of non-greed involves emotions. Too often, we waste so much time creating our image and showing everyone around us a misrepresentation of who we really are. We attach ourselves to labels—such as goth, punk, non-smoker, vegetarian, Christian, Jew, Muslim, feminist, conservative, liberal, golfer—and not only reject everyone who does not match our narrow definition but also restrain ourselves from branching out beyond our narrow boundaries. We like our comfort zones so much that we deny other groups of people the opportunity to know us and be enriched by our presence. Try stepping outside your circle once in a while. It’s truly challenging.

Even within our circles, we build walls. We say what we think others want to hear. We fear speaking our minds. We fear being ourselves because we fear rejection. This takes a lot of work, but just consider what would happen if you let your true self come through with your friends, with your family, with everyone you care about. You may find that sharing your heart with others takes less effort than hiding it.

From: Punk Rock Yoga Manifesto