Join Jennifer Dixon ERYT 500 and Authorized Ashtanga Yoga Teacher and Merritt Maloof Plumb Reiki Master and Energy Healer from The Energy Center for a deep dive into the 4th Yama, Brahmacharya. This is week 4 in our discussions on the Yamas (this is an affiliate link.)
Sacred Spaces is the new weekly episode release between Jennifer Dixon and Merritt Maloof Plumb talking about the philosophy, mythology and more behind the yoga practice. You can watch all these videos on the Thrive Yoga and Wellness Youtube Channel
Brahmacharya, or translated as Brama’s Cave means non-excess. In some ways, it’s all about simplification. Eliminating anything extra and making space-both physically and mentally. Meditating on non-excess helps us to identify the areas in your life where you overdo things, after all, it also means not wasting energy. Once you identify these, whether it’s spending too much time and energy practicing, drinking, “binging,” and work on moderating them.
Taking care to not practice Bramacharya (non Excess) to extremes
However, in today’s society, and if you are a typical householder, then the concept of Brahmacharya takes a slightly different meaning.
For us householders, it means practicing awareness of the excess in our lives and how we could come to terms with it (1) and then effectively manage ways to eliminate that excess (2).
In today’s conversation, Jennifer confessed to having an excess of clothes and shoes and how even after this idea came to light, how she was still struggling with letting go of the excess clothes. Clothes are easy items to accumulate, which adds weight, not just to your closet racks, but also into your life. Excess in any area, isn’t healthy.
Merrit talked about releasing excess items in her most recent move and cited an old Indian expression,
“if it doesn’t grow corn or make your life beautiful, get rid of it.”
Merritt’s Medicine Man
How many things do you, us, so many folks in the world, have that neither grow corn or make the world beautiful?
Brahmacharya asks us to examine these areas of excess and start to eliminate them.
The yoga practice itself has a great way of eliminating excess with regular practice, but that is the key: Regular Practice.
Today, we invite you to meditate on Brahmacharya and practice what non-excess means to you. We talked about this book: (these are affiliate links) The Yamas and Niyamas by Deborah Adele