International Day of Non-Violence

Hello everyone! Today is International Day of Non-Violence in honor of Mahatma Gandhi, who was born on October 2nd 1869. Ahimsa—non-violence—is such a key part of any yoga practice, and it encompasses non-violence on all levels, from the base to the subtle. Perhaps today would be a good day to be super-kind to yourself? Or just notice your mind when it goes into judging mode, particularly of the self (as mine often does). I'd like to share an excerpt here from a talk my teacher Amma gave 12 years ago, when she was presented the Gandhi-King Award for Nonviolence at the United Nations in Geneva by Dr. Jane Goodall and the late UN Human Rights Commissioner Sergio Vieira de Mello. Amma said: "It is easy to awaken someone who is asleep. You just shake the person once or twice. But you can shake a person who is pretending to be asleep a hundred times and it won’t have any effect." I think today is a good day to be awake and be kind! Love to all.

"Mahatma Gandhi didn’t just preach. He put his words into action. He dedicated his whole life to peace and non-violence. Even though he could have become the prime minister or president of India, Gandhi declined because he had no desire whatsoever for fame or power. In fact, at the stroke of midnight, when India was declared independent, Gandhi was found consoling the victims of a riot-affected area. Likewise, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was courageous like a lion, yet in his heart he was as soft as a flower. He risked his life for the sake of love, equality, and the other noble ideals he upheld. He had to struggle with great perseverance against the people of his own country.

"It is easy to awaken someone who is asleep. You just shake the person once or twice. But you can shake a person who is pretending to be asleep a hundred times and it won’t have any effect. The majority of people belong to the latter category. It is high time that we all truly wake up. Unless the baser animal tendencies in people are subdued, our vision for the future of humanity will not come true, and peace will remain only a distant dream. Let us have the courage and perseverance, born out of spiritual practice, to realize this dream. For this to happen, each one of us needs to discover and bring to light our innate qualities of faith, love, patience, and self-sacrifice for the good of all."

—Amma, on the occasion of being presented the 2002 Gandhi-King Award for Nonviolence at the United Nations in Geneva by UN Messenger of Peace Dr. Jane Goodall and the late UN Human Rights Commissioner Sergio Vieira de Mello