Asteya is another principle found in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras (foundational yoga philosophy text), the eight-fold path to living a meaningful/purposeful life. Asteya is translated as non-stealing. It is probably easy for most of us to take this principle for granted. Just don’t take someone’s stuff, right?

Let’s take the idea of non-stealing a little further and think about it in terms of gift reciprocity, and the responsibility that comes with that gift as discussed in Robin Wall Kimmerer’s AMAZING book “Braiding Sweetgrass.” She talks about reciprocity as the essential, ethical, and “alchemical” relationship with the living world. The Earth gives to us, we give back to the Earth. Kimmerer presents the Haudenosaunee (Iriquois) Thanksgiving address where each element of nature (from sun to fish) is given gratitude. It’s a beautiful poem - go read it!

We can also apply this reciprocity in our studio. 

This space is a gift in that it is a safe (and warm!) place to move, breath, and connect. The space and non-judgement you hold for those around you is a gift. The yoga itself is a gift to all of us. How can we receive and reciprocate those gifts responsibly?