Our Personal Environment
Having created our sacred space we should not leave the rest of our environment to chance. We must realise that everything which surrounds us will also affect us in one way or another. It is up to us to make sure that as far as possible those influences are for the good. On a personal level we choose what clothes we wear, the yoga mat we use, and the decor of our own space, even if the choice of household furnishing and decoration has to be a compromise with anyone else in the home.
Clothing may be a necessity at times, but not for much of the time that we wear it. Clothing may have to be worn for social convention, safety, for protection against cold, and also just for fun. That still leaves a lot of leeway as to where, when and how much. For all sorts of reasons nudity has much to recommend it. How much simpler life would be if we didn`t have to think about what we had to wear. When we wear clothes we should remember that artificial fibres surround the body with a field of static electricity. The flow of prana in and around the body is impeded. Natural fibres allow the skin to breath naturally.
The naga (naked) yogis believe that clothes are a barrier between them and God. Not a physical one, but a psycho-spiritual barrier. Having the need to cover our nakedness, to them implies that we are ashamed of, and very conscious of, our naked state. Traditionally the cloth they do wear is always unstitched, again implying lack of restriction. We could follow their example by practising our own yoga naked whenever possible. .
In our culture we constantly wear shoes, even indoors. The results are seen in deformed feet, bunions, corns, fallen arches, Athletes Foot and other diseases. Compare our feet with those of people who never wear shoes. Their feet may be larger, apparently flatter (although not with fallen arches) and thickly skinned underneath, but they are strong and healthy. Walking barefoot strengthens your feet, makes your toes work and do their proper job, helping in balance and grip.
Yogis can teach us something here too traditionally believing that shoes should never be worn in sacred places, removing them before entering temples, and similar places. Some yogis go barefoot at all times recognising that if god is everywhere then even the ground we walk on is sacred. For thousands of years we have `walked in the steps` of our leaders and those we revere. Bathing and annointing the feet of honoured guests is at the heart of the Bible story of Mary and Martha. In India, and among Hindus world wide, it is the practice to touch the feet of those we feel to be spiritually advanced. Foot reflexology is based on the concept of pressure on significant energy points. It is suggested that by walking barefoot we are constantly giving the soles of our feet the reflexology massage they need. Feet are designed to be able to walk over all sorts of surface, so give them the chance.
Mats and furnishings can have the same criteria applied to them. Keep things simple, natural and unbinding as much as possible. Rubber yoga mats are very convenient and safe for class visiting and posture work, but they are artificial. Some people cover them with a cotton throw or similar, or keep a natural fibre mat for meditation periods at home. One of the attractions of yoga should be its very simplicity. Travel lightly in your yoga life.
With a little thought and application we can become more and more aware of our actions and their effects on our Self and our relationship with the planet.
A priest at Ramanashraman, Tiruvanamallai, south India, 2016. Two simple pieces of unstitched fabric, a lower lungi and the shawl (Chadar). Simple, comfortable and practical.