The Yogic Niyama of Shauca and our concepts of Cleanliness or Purity.
Among the Niyamas, "Shauca" - purity or cleanliness - seems pretty straightforward.
My house looks like a disaster because I’m cleaning out closets and junk drawers and I’m freecycling or donating every last bit. I want this stuff out of here! I can’t continue to struggle to keep my small space clean around so much extra STUFF. To me, this is one way of practicing both Aparigraha (non-hoarding) and Shauca at the same time.
Another way that I practice Shauca each month is to menstruate. I don't say that with any intention of being gross or shocking, though in most cultures I've crossed a line. Even using the verb form of "to menstruate" in an active sense, rather than in a passive, disassociated manner sounds odd to most people who refer to menstruation as if healthy women are afflicted by a curse or abducted by an alien power.
In order to do my small part in counteracting the negative press menstruation gets I've decided to write:
Why I Love my Period
- A regular cycle serves as an accurate barometer of my overall health
- I clean out my body naturally each month (it never fails to inspire me to do more housekeeping)
- Not to sound too “woo-woo”, but I feel more connected with my femininity, the cycles of the tides and the phases of the moon when I'm menstruating
- Connecting with this "taboo" part of myself opens me up to my whole body as a yogi, and I understand how all of my systems work together in harmony
- (Not to mention the relief it provides with a birth control scare!)
