The Tongue

The tongue, containing eight muscles to anchor and change forms, is used to manipulate food for chewing, secretes saliva to help digest food, it is the main organ of taste, and as a secondary function is used for speech.
So, functionally speaking the tongue, along with the lips, throat, teeth and jaw helps to nourish the body.  But, as Prashant Iyengar writes, "The tongue is so fickle and greedy".  Sometimes our sense of taste causes us to overeat when stimulated by many tasty foods.

It is the secondary use of the tongue though that can have many emotional affects. Prashant says, "this tongue is an incessant gymnast.  It is never tired or pained or sprained like other muscles.  The teeth are like watchmen for the tongue but it still has its freedom."  In the Taitreya Upanishad it says that fire entered out mouth in the form of speech and it can burn somebody.  We can think of the wetness of the mouth as a way to cool this fire.

There are many figures of speech relating to the tongue:
tip-of-the-tongue, tongue in cheek, tongue twister, tongue-tied, bite one's tongue, cat got your tongue, slip of the tongue, forked tongue, silver tongue.

In Prashant's article, "Functionality and Emotionality of the Senses", he writes, the tongue "is a dangerous weapon of fire, but it can also release compassion."  "A person's talent is revealed through his tongue.  It has the source and expression of knowledge.  It can flatter and enchant, it can cheat and be a traitor."

For a yoga sadhana, the daily and continuous practice of the five yamas is the way to cool the tongue.

Yamas – are the external disciplines of yoga, universal codes of conduct or the basic rules of living, teachings that help to lessen the suffering that is to come.

The yamas include:

Ahimsa: not harming, non violence, letting go of hostility in our words, thoughts and actions

Satya: honesty or truthfulness in every thought, word and action

Asteya: not stealing or not having any desire to have something that is not yours by untruthful ways of obtaining it

Brahmacharya: celibacy or self restraint over things that are not needed or take away from ones vital energy

Aparigraha: not hoarding or not holding onto things not needed by you so that someone else can’t have it, not wanting more, also letting go of negative thoughts and not holding onto them. It means to be happy with what you have.

 

So, although it is good to speak up for yourself, speak your mind - it should be done with mindfulness and thoughtfulness to especially practice ahimsa and satya.

 

Namaste.

Pamela Nelson

www.plnyoga.vpweb.com