Exploring Ahimsa

At the 1993 teachers’ conference Justin spoke about “two requisites for Enlightenment: Ahimsa and Vairagya in Sanskrit. Ahimsa is easy to understand: it means ‘non-violence’. Envy, jealousy and cutthroat competition are forms of violence. If we do not have a reverence for all life and a regard for all people we can only spread ill will. There is no such thing as being prejudiced in one direction and open in others. If we love, we spread good will. That is Ahimsa.”

If you have been reading my monthly newsletters for the past several months you have followed the various topics of discussion I have been presenting in my T’ai Chi Chih classes. Some topics elicit more discussion than others but there have always been some students who speak up with a thought or questions or points of view. When I read the above quote to my first class of the week, the stillness in the room was palpable. No one had a comment. When I read it to my second class there were several comments about politicians with regards to Justin’s words that you can’t be “prejudiced in one direction and open in others.”

I found it interesting that not much discussion ensued throughout the week with this topic. Maybe students found it as unsettling as I did to think about a more encompassing concept of non-violence. On first examination of the word, what usually comes to mind is physical or verbal violence. But Justin gives just a few examples of other ways violence might manifest – envy, jealousy, cutthroat competition, being prejudiced. These four examples are enough to lubricate thoughts spinning in many directions of how violence may be expressed in our own thoughts or actions, ways we may never have considered before as acts of violence.

Students were quick to talk about politicians need for non-violence (in the area of prejudice specifically) but few had personal comments. Most of us do not like to uncover the darker part of ourselves we feel is imperfect, at least not to others. Closely examining our actions, words, thoughts and intent of ill will toward others can lead us down the rabbit hole to astonishing revelations.

Stuck in a long, slow, traffic-clogged drive home the other day my patience was running on empty. I growled and cursed other drivers in my way or not driving as I thought they should have been. More than likely everyone to whom I was directing my anger/violence was oblivious to it. So who was on the receiving end? Where did all that anger go? Mostly at me, unfortunately to my passengers and unfortunately out into the cosmos. That was my “rabbit hole astonishing revelation.” The anger was inside me, and just because it was directed at someone else didn’t make it go away. I didn’t hand it off to someone and now it was theirs. Whether the anger sits inside of me and rumbles around or I express it outwardly, I am the one feeling it, I am the one receiving it. How interesting to think I am giving myself anger. I have heard the concept before that when you get angry you only hurt yourself. And I understood that on some level but hadn’t really given it deep contemplation until discussing Justin’s thoughts on Ahimsa with students.

Justin’s words are mirrored by Mahatma Gandhi, a great model of non-violence: “Ahimsa means not to injure any creature by thought, word or deed. True Ahimsa should mean a complete freedom from ill will and anger and hate and an overflowing love for all. Ahimsa is the attribute of the soul and therefore to be practiced by everybody in all the affairs of life.”

The first Yama, a principle of ethical conduct in Hinduism, is Ahimsa, which Patanjali wrote about in the Yoga Sutras 2.34, “Negative thoughts give rise to violence… they are caused by greed, anger, or delusion… Through introspection comes the end of pain and ignorance.”

How do we, as imperfect human beings, live up to this code of conduct? There are many turns to take down in the rabbit hole and many doors to open but one of the keys for me is “through introspection comes the end of pain and ignorance.”

It is similar to first learning T’ai Chi Chih – after a year or so we feel we have it. After two years we are rather confident that we know how to do the practice. But if we continue to study we are often surprised at what we didn’t know. There are layers to our learning if we continue to apply ourselves. There are layers to understanding ourselves if we take time for introspection.

Doing the practice of T’ai Chi Chih provides the stillness of mind and emotions to deeply reflect on the wisdom of great teachers.