Does yoga teach kindness?

I lost it the other day. My older daughter was terribly mean to her younger sister. When I went down to see what had happened she taunted and teased her. The trauma of this interaction was clearly written on her four-year-old sister’s face.I realize this is relatively common among children, but I was watching the news earlier and felt overwhelmed by the inhumanity and intolerance that seems to be bubbling everywhere, so the sight of my offspring enjoying another person’s pain was… was just too much to bear. .

I held back tears and shouted, “Stop! Stop treating your sister like that!Don’t you understand how you feel about him? Why do you want to do this to him?”

At that moment I really started to cry…

“I don’t want him in this house.There are too many bad people in the world who shame others and make them feel small. That won’t happen here. You understand? We will be friendly in this house. I demand it!We have to be kind to each other. Please! We must.”

They were both obviously confused. I have warned them several times to stop fighting, but usually not with so much emotion and fervor.While I may have overreacted, I stand by my statement and intend to stick with it. The world needs kindness. I like to think that I can contribute to all of this through my work as a yoga teacher.

The question is…does yoga really teach kindness? Or am I just projecting on it because I want and need it?When I try to figure out where I got the idea that yoga means cultivating kindness, I can’t point to a specific textual source. One can certainly argue that the yamas of ahimsa and satya can be a call to kindness. But it requires a small step. The absence of violence does not necessarily mean benevolence. Not even the truth, depending on how it is spread.There is no specific yama or niyama that directly confirmskindness.

So if I hadn’t derived the concept of kindness from the text, the logicalconclusion would be that I derived it from the professor’s interpretation, right? Not necessarily. Of course I met nice teachers. They gave me a role model to follow and learn from.However, I don’t recall anyone specifically teaching that yoga is about kindness. I’ve heard yoga is about realization, liberation, enlightenment, samadhi, leadership, relational intimacy, etc., but it’s never specifically about kindness.

Will it be okay if he just comes to me? Can I still say that this is what yoga teaches?

Given ongoing debates about the validity and origins of what we call yoga, as well as new research and discussions about what we actually know about the history and philosophical foundations of yoga, many of us are re-evaluating and questioning our opinions. teach. Is it necessary to checkthis aspect? The guru authors who have always been cited as sources have failed in their own teachings and in deep disappointment we are left with no choice but to turn inward. There is a huge gap between the knowledge we can gain from external sources and the unspoken facts of our own experience.When I discover or benefit from my yoga practice and want to share it with others, I can confidently say that I am sharing what I havelearned through my practice. I can point out where I learned the techniques and ideas I use. I respect the historical context and other cultures that developed my knowledge of yoga, and I can pay homage to the teachers who came before me and influenced me. But I can’t say that yoga teaches that. All I can say is that this is what my yoga practice has taught me,

No matter what you think about yoga and why, it’s hard to deny kindness.Perhaps my youngest daughter will benefit from the torment her older sister inflicts on her. Strengthening your emotional skin will help you overcome challenges and remain resilient in the face of the world’s horrors. At the same time, this type of conditioning is likely why so many of us face a pit of self-hatred and doubt that can easily escalate into hatred and mistreatment of others. I can only hope that
shares enough beauty and love to counteract the deep-rooted dehumanization and dysfunction.

There are few things that I have discovered in life that allow me to experience myself in its totality and fullness.Whether my concept and yoga practice can be correctly derived from ancient texts or not is ultimately irrelevant if it really helps me in this regard. Having experienced many different approaches and ideas about what yoga is, I see kindness as a commandment. Whatever eloquent explanations we may find or invent, only with true kindness can we confront the dark traumas that we all embody. If your yoga can cover this, say whatever you want.