July: Brahmacharya

We commonly reference the eight limbs of yoga and many of us focus solely on asana, or the physical practice of yoga. The richness of this practice extends far beyond what we experience in our physical body. Two of the limbs, called the wamas and niyamas are commonly paired together. The yamas are the five practices and the niyamas the five restraints.

This month the focus is on the yama, Brahmacharya. This is one of the more divisive yamas as it is commonly translated and described as "purity". Most contemporary religious beliefs include some beliefs and practices around sexual purity - so its understandable why this can carry a negative connotation! Instead of focusing on how you can practice Brahmacharya in that very narrow translation, we want to encourage you instead to consider the also accepted translation of "discipline" or "moderating the senses". There are many ways that this can be practiced, but how we include Brahmacharya is by being mindful of what we consume digitally (social media, movies, tv, etc) and focus on giving space for the things that support us emotionally and spiritually!