“Study thyself, discover the divine” - Patanjali, Yoga Sutra 2.44

During this time of isolation and social and physical distancing as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, many of us have very limited contact, if any, with others, and are therefore compelled to spend time alone with ourselves. For some, this may be new, and many of us may be unsure how to handle this as we may usually spend time running from ourselves and have never really got to know ourselves. “Perhaps a crisis is necessary for us to be oriented to the deeper aspects of ourselves. Otherwise, we are self-occupied, engaged in the usual activities and struggles of earning and spending, winning or losing; deciding this or that according to the choices of our ego” (Ravindra, 2017, p. 25). This time can be an opportunity to get to know ourselves, to observe our thoughts, reactions, self-speech, emotions, habits, beliefs, and behaviours. A time, in other words, for self-study, or svādhyāya.

Svādhyāya  is one of the Niyamas, the second limb of Patanjali’s eightfold path of yoga. The Niyamas are positive duties or inner observances which help us to create harmony in our daily lives. Svādhyāya is a compound Sanskrit word composed of svā meaning one’s own or self, and adhyāya meaning lesson or reading. Dhyāya, another part of the word, is derived from the root verb dhyai which means to contemplate or to meditate. The term svādhyāya can therefore be translated as the study of the self. It is also referred to as self-inquiry, self-knowledge, self-observation and self-realization (2017). Our desires, needs, fears, ambitions, and attitudes to ourselves or to others are just some of the subjects for self-observation and self-reflection that can reveal more and more of ourselves, and help to clarify our patterns of behaviour, our deeper tensions and our motivations (2017). Recognising our habits and thought processes, and reflecting on our actions and emotions can help us to gain an understanding of the true nature of our soul.

Judith Lasater refers to svādhyāya  as an awareness of our inner dialogue; the words we speak to ourselves and the thoughts we have about ourselves (Lasater, 2014). We can spend a lot of time in our heads where negative thoughts and beliefs reside. This can cause mental clutter and mind chatter, or chitta vritti. Our ego, or the self (small s), is the part of us which judges, criticises, fears and doubts and is responsible for this chitta vritti. Svādhyāya asks us to examine where these words and thoughts initiate from and how they are formed. Negative thoughts and beliefs, or samskara, often grow from our social and emotional conditioning and can prevent us from seeing reality as it is, lead to misperceptions of ourselves and can lead us to make decisions that don’t always align with our true beliefs.

Discovering our true selves is discovering who we are when our minds are not dominated by the ego and distracted by desire, greed, attraction or aversions. These common human tendencies of the ego are responsible for the battle within us all. As The Bhagavad Gita outlines, we all have an internal battlefield in the form of our psyche where the struggle is between opposing forces and tendencies within ourselves. The inner conflict in the human psyche is between two poles of the self; the dark and the light, the self/the ego (ahamkara) and the true Self/the soul (atman). Only when we begin to examine the chitta vritti and identify ourselves less and less with these tendencies, do we realise they do not represent our real identity and we can become more and more free of them (2017). This in turn makes way for clarity of mind or sattva and allows self-awareness to permeate our minds. By studying the self we become aware of the parts of us that cause us harm and the parts which serve us.  As Krishna says in The Bhagavad Gita: “Knowledge is clouded over by ignorance in creatures and because of this they are bewildered. But for those in whom this ignorance is destroyed by knowledge of the Self, that sacred knowledge causes the Supreme to shine like the Sun […] When the self has been conquered, the Self is a friend, but when the self has not been conquered, the Self is an enemy and acts like an enemy” (2017, p.109).

The Self can be discovered in stillness. Meditation, which is a commitment to stilling the mind, helps us to become self-aware. When we focus in meditation, the hustle and bustle of the outside world drops away and this allows us to meet our true Self.  Repetition of a mantra is another practice where our attention is focused, helping us to stay in the present moment and allowing all other thoughts to fall away. It is believed that the sounds of sacred Sanskrit mantras bring us into harmony with the cosmos and help us to experience pure consciousness within ourselves. Study of texts such as The Bhagavad Gita, The Yoga Sutras, or indeed any writing which encourages us to investigate ourselves or reflect back to ourselves, also puts svādhyāya into practice.

Our asana practice is a perfect opportunity to explore svādhyāya. Time on our yoga mat involves studying our habits. How do we react to discomfort, to a difficult pose, a challenge? Do we avoid it? Do we enjoy it? Do we push ourselves? Do we criticize ourselves?  Do we compare ourselves to others? Is our mind a million miles away?  How is our breath? Where are we holding tension? Are emotions coming up for us? How is our mind reacting? Our habits and responses on the mat often reflect our habits and responses off the mat. Nischala Joy Devi urges us not to take this journey of introspection as an opportunity to see all our shortcomings or flaws, but to really take time to acknowledge and remind ourselves that we are “a Divine Being, nothing more, nothing less and nothing else!”(Devi, 2007, p.110). Through svādhyāya we not only gain a deeper understanding of ourselves, but we nourish the relationship we have with ourselves and cultivate an inner strength which is valuable in the face of adversity. By embracing svādhyāya we can connect to our deeper selves in our hearts and realize our own true nature, as Patanjali outlines in Yoga Sutra 2.44; “Study thyself, discover the divine”.

References:

Devi, N.J. (2007) The Secret Power of Yoga: A woman’s guide to the heart and soirit of the Yoga Sutras. New York: Three Rivers Press.

Lasater, J. (2014) The ten most important sutras  [Online]. Available at: https://www.judithhansonlasater.com/writing/2014/11/20/tb7p1jhvohw7l9s03w3e6wxxtooy4p (Accessed 3 May 2020).

Ravindra, R. (2017) The Bhagavad Gita: A guide to navigating the battle of life: A new translation and commentary. Colarado: Shambala.