Yoga and the Practice of Saucha, Cleaning

This Emu has something to teach us.

Ready for some spring cleaning, the yoga way? Saucha literally means purity, cleanliness and clearness. It is one of the five ‘niyamas’ or observances according to the Yoga Sutras. Practicing it, along with the other stepping-stornes of yoga, will help us reach the ultimate yoga goal of Self-realization.

According to the Chopra Center, 

… The Niyamas are personal practices, rituals and daily activities for wellbeing and spiritual growth. … 

… Soucha, … the practice of cleanliness … not only refers to the cleanliness in personal hygiene, but it also addresses the cleanliness of our internal environment (our bodies) and our living environment.

For example, one way to practice Soucha is by committing to the wellbeing of our environment and taking active measures to care for the Earth. 

Actively engaging in the internal practice of Soucha includes eating nourishing meals that keep the body running efficiently, and replacing toxic thoughts with those that are more positive, creative and productive. We can also keep our bodies and minds clean by avoiding drugs and alcohol, which only prompt us to lose control of our actions and the choices we make when we live drug and alcohol-free lives. 

During this past month, I took some of this advice to heart and implemented what I reasonably could. (My advice – change can be hard, so we should only do what we can.) For e.g., usually I like to have a glass or two of wine at dinner time. I decided to give this up for the month, and I’ve noticed a qualitative difference in my thinking, that my mind is clearer and I am waking up in the mornings feeling more rested than before. I can’t commit to never drinking wine again, but I do like the feelings of mental clarity the practice has led me to experience. It’s a nice feeling. 

Here during this month when we celebrate Earth Day, each of us has to do our part in keeping the planet clean. For me, I recycle as much as I can (perhaps too fanatically at times) and I make sure to dispose of my trash when I am out and about in the city. I feel so dispirited seeing the people discard their trash on our streets, so I try to make sure I do my part by not engaging in that kind of behavior. 

From a yoga perspective, why would we want to practice Saucha? Well, T.K.V. Desikachar, a noted yoga teacher and son of the 20th Century master Krishnamacharya, commented on Yoga Sutra II.40 this way:

When cleanliness is developed, it reveals what needs to be constantly maintained, and what is eternally clean. What decays is the external. What does not is deep within us.

So practicing Saucha helps us to remember that this body of ours and all the things we put on it, will one day decay. Kind of scary to think in those terms for sure, but keeping that awareness fresh in our minds helps us to move towards full Self-realization. We become more fully aware more often of the part of ourselves that will never die. That can be liberating.

Practicing Saucha can also help us experience more joy. As George Bernard Shaw said:

Better keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world.

When we can see the external world through a clean lens, a clean window, we’ll have more capacity for seeing goodness all around us that we might have otherwise missed if our perspective were clouded over by mental trash and debris. According to Yoga Sutra 2:41, if you practice saucha, you will experience: pleasantness, goodness, gladness, high-mindedness, cheerfulness. And, as Thomas Merton, an American monk, writer and activist, said: 

The greatest need of our time is to clean out the enormous mass of mental and emotional rubbish that clutters our minds.

The various purification processes of yoga, including the physical postures, the breath work, meditation, and the observance we should practice in our daily lives, can truly help us to clean out our minds and lead to clearer thinking. With clearer thinking, you will experience more joy.

The Earth needs people with clear visions and awareness of the destruction we’re doing to it. Will you help it out by clearing out the rubbish both in your immediate surroundings as well as in your body and mind? If you practice Saucha, believe me, not only will you benefit by experiencing more joy and cheerfulness, but you will also help the planet in subtle, yet powerful and profound ways. And you will experience the satisfaction of knowing that you are doing your part.

Oh ye, you Yoga Warrior you, know that I salute your courage!

May you be happy, …
May you be healthy, …
May your thoughts be positive, productive, and creative, … 
May you clean out the clutter in your mind so that your window to the outer world can be clear, … 
May you know the eternal part of yourself, … 
May you do your part to help clean up the Earth, … 
For the benefit of ALL beings everywhere.

Aloha, with Metta,
Paul Keoni Chun

View of Earth as Michael Collins, 3rd astronaut on Apollo 11's mission to the moon, saw it. His message to all of us likely would have been: we only have one Earth to save, so please do your part in keeping it clean and healthy.