Today we begin our segment on “Satya” or non-falsehood.
Satya is one of the 5 Yamas or restraints of a yoga student. Whereas our previous two topics were Niyamas or inner duties. Yamas relate to how we engage with others, while Niyamas relate to how we engage with ourselves. Similarly to the 10 Commandments, there are things to do - and things not to do. Yamas are the things not to do, but you can also understand that opposites - are things to do.
Satya, means non-falsehood - on the other side, it also means truthfulness.
Today, our focus will be on truthfulness of speech. There is a common quote which holds so much wisdom that it is commonly attributed to three wise men: Socrates, Rumi and Buddha. Even though the origins of this quote remain obscure, the wisdom is clear. Before speaking, ask yourself, “Is it true? Is it kind? Is it the right time?”
If you ask yourself this before speaking any sentence, I bet the results will be surprising! We can often tend to smooth minor discomforts over with white lies. Rather than tell a friend that we actually don’t like a certain dish they cooked, we might say it was delicious. Rather than tell a date that we’re not interested, we might fade away and stop responding to their messages. Rather than give someone direct feedback, we might leave an anonymous negative review.
The tendency toward white lies doesn’t meant that we’re bad people, rather that we are human - and we have a sense that sharing our feelings might hurt the other person, and out of kindness - or not wanting to deal with the impact - we find a way to avoid. But is there a cost to even small lies?
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