Book Review - The Yamas & Niyamas: Exploring Yoga's Ethical Practice

I take part in a Yoga Sutra Study with some of my yoga teacher friends and this book is one that was picked to read and discuss.
I am happy it was chosen because it really opens up discussion about the first two limbs of Pantanjali's Astanga yoga, which then leads into the other limbs. In the west we tend to focus the most on the Asana, or postures and a bit on Pranayama, the breathwork. More is needed on the other limbs to really weave the true meaning of yoga into one's life.

First the word Astanga means eight, so Pantanji's Astanga Yoga is the eight limbs of yoga with Yama and Niyama being the first two, then Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi.

As Deborah Adele writes, "The Yamas and Niyamas are foundational to all yogic thought."
They are the ethical guidelines of how one should live  life personally and in a community.
Yama is often referred to personal code of conduct and Niyama as the universal code of conduct.
There is five Yamas and five Niyamas.

Yamas - ahimsa (non-violence), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (non-excess), aparigraha (non-possessiveness)

Niyamas - saucha (purity), santosha (contentment), tapas (self-discipline), svadhyaya (self-study), Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender)

Deborah gives each yama and niyama a chapter and explores in a way that is meaningful in today's world. 
At the end of each chapter you are given a chance to explore yourself in more depth with a weekly goal to think about and work towards to bring this centuries old writings into your daily life.

I highly recommend this book to anyone just getting started on their yogic journey as it really explains what the yama and niyamas are and why they are so important even in today's world.

For those who have read many other books, this book is just as awesome to have and read as it puts things in a different perspective and complements many other readings out there.

Website for the book:  http://www.theyamasandniyamas.com/index.html
Website for Deborah Adele: http://deborahadele.com/

I hope you get a chance to read this book. Let me know your thoughts on it once you have.

Namaste.
Pamela Nelson
www.plnyoga.blogspot.com
plnyogastudio@gmail.com