A reference within the eight-limb meditation overview. Reading this alongside the Ethics course? Return to lesson three.
Practice reference · Ethical foundations
Yama and Niyama: ethics in ordinary life
Ethical practice concerns what we do when a choice appears. Yama names restraints; niyama names observances, or qualities and practices to cultivate. This reference introduces the first two limbs of Raja Yoga through Glorian’s modern Gnostic teaching.
Use it if these terms are new, or return to a particular principle while studying. No meditation experience is needed. Begin with the example, browse the meanings when useful, then carry one question into the prepared Ethics lesson.
What you will learn: Distinguish restraint from cultivation, recognise how one principle could inform an ordinary action, and find the source or practical lesson you need next.
What you refrain from, and what you cultivate
A restraint sets a boundary on an action: not repeating an unverified rumour. An observance gives attention to something constructive: studying carefully before claiming to understand. Together, they connect ethical intention with the way we live.
Knowing the words is a beginning. Recognising a reaction is another step. Neither automatically changes what happens next. The practical question is: when the impulse appears, what action will serve the principle?
The ten principles below are a reference, not ten tasks to complete today. Reading them does not certify mastery, and difficulty with one does not make you unworthy of study.
An example: the reply you are about to send
An original fictional example
Maya is interrupted in a group conversation. Later she drafts a message with a pointed insult. She notices her anger, but the insult is still in the draft. Awareness has made the choice visible; she has not yet changed the action.
She wants the other person to know how much the interruption annoyed her. That wish does not have to disappear before she can act. She removes the insult and keeps a clear request: “Please let me finish my point next time.” This illustrates non-harm without requiring silence or agreement.
She could also pause before replying. If she has already sent something hurtful, she can stop adding to it and consider an appropriate correction. The example is one possible application, not a rule to stay in an unsafe conversation or contact someone who does not want contact.
Returning to the source to examine what non-harm means illustrates the observance of study. Studying, planning a reply and actually changing a reply are different experiences. This story explains that difference; it does not establish what a reader will do in their own circumstances.
Pause and reflect
Our editorial reflection · Think it through or keep a private note. Nothing is submitted or scored.
- Where does Maya notice the reaction, and where does she change an action?
- How does her revised message preserve a boundary without the insult?
See one way to think it through
Noticing anger is observation. Removing the insult changes the draft; choosing whether and how to send a suitable message carries that decision further. Merely imagining either action remains rehearsal.
The request still names what Maya needs. A calmer wording need not mean agreement, reconciliation or giving up a boundary.
Take with you: Awareness makes a choice visible. Ethical practice includes what you do with that choice.
An unanswered question is a useful result. You can revisit this topic; you do not need a perfect answer to continue.
Put one principle into a workable plan
Our Ethics lesson pairs one action to refrain from with one constructive action. It provides preparation, a fictional example, an alternative and reflection. Use that single activity; you do not need another journal sequence here.
New to the course? Its preparation begins with Non-harm, truth and consent. Students returning from lesson three can go straight back to the activity below.
Next: prepare one ethical action
Already working through the lesson? Return to its reflection. For context, view the eight-limb overview.
The five yamas: restraints
The names and short meanings follow Glorian’s Yama glossary, Yoga entry (opens in a new tab) . Each everyday example is ours. Browse the principle relevant to your question; no additional writing is required.
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Ahimsa — Non-harm
Glorian lists non-violence. In our everyday example, the question is how to respond without deliberately injuring or humiliating someone. Setting a boundary can serve that purpose.
In ordinary life. Someone interrupts you. You can say, ‘I would like to finish,’ without adding an insult. Leaving an unsafe conversation can also be appropriate; non-harm does not require staying available to mistreatment.
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Satya / Satyam — Truthfulness
Glorian names truth. Accuracy matters both in what we tell others and in how we describe our own actions. A truthful answer can acknowledge uncertainty and protect privacy.
In ordinary life. You are asked whether you have finished a task. ‘I have started it, but it is not ready’ is more accurate than ‘Nearly done’ when substantial work remains. You can also decline to share someone else’s private information without inventing a story.
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Asteya — Non-stealing
Glorian lists non-stealing. Our examples concern respecting ownership, permission and credit; they do not turn every use of time or attention into a moral offence.
In ordinary life. A colleague’s idea helps your project. Credit their contribution. Before borrowing a shared item, ask and agree when to return it. These are observable actions, rather than a judgment about whether you are a good person.
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Brahmacharya — Chastity in this teaching
Glorian gives a specific interpretation of sexual continence that includes abstaining from orgasm and lust. That is its spiritual teaching; interpretations differ among yoga traditions.
In ordinary life. An adult who has freely chosen this commitment can stop deliberately seeking erotic material when they notice that choice beginning. An unwanted thought or involuntary bodily response is different from a chosen action. The adult chastity guide explains our school’s commitment and practical support.
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Aparigraha — Non-grasping
Glorian names non-avariciousness. A useful everyday distinction is between meeting a real need and repeatedly pursuing more than the situation calls for.
In ordinary life. You already have a suitable book for your current study. You can return to its unfinished passage before buying another. This does not make necessary purchases or improving difficult living conditions a failure of practice.
For practical support with a particular difficulty, see responding to anger or stopping pornography (adults). The adult chastity guide explains our school’s voluntary commitment. Spiritual teaching is distinct from health advice; these guides include relevant care boundaries.
The five niyamas: observances
These meanings follow Glorian’s Niyama glossary (opens in a new tab) . The examples show possible everyday applications rather than the whole meaning of each observance.
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Saucha — Purity and cleanliness
Glorian’s account of purity includes work with desire. Our example concerns making ordinary conditions more suitable for study; tidiness alone does not fulfil the source’s spiritual meaning.
In ordinary life. Clear enough space to use your chair or open your book. The action has a practical endpoint. It need not become repeated checking, a perfectly arranged room or a judgment about your body.
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Santosha — Contentment
Glorian connects contentment with what one has. Our application is to recognise usable conditions without needing them to match someone else’s life.
In ordinary life. A simple chair and a borrowed book may be enough for today’s study. You can appreciate that opportunity while still working to change unfair or harmful circumstances.
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Tapas — Spiritual discipline
Glorian associates tapas with austerities and spiritual practices. Our beginner application is a modest chosen commitment, with adjustment when circumstances require it. We do not prescribe austerities here.
In ordinary life. You planned a short reading and now feel the pull to scroll. Put the optional feed aside and begin the passage. If a care responsibility or exhaustion makes the plan unsuitable, choose another opportunity without adding punishment.
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Svadhyaya — Study of scripture
Glorian’s glossary names scriptural study. Careful reading includes checking what a passage says, noticing our interpretation and allowing an unanswered question.
In ordinary life. Return to a sentence you found difficult and distinguish its actual words from the meaning you first assumed. Understanding it more accurately is useful; applying it in life is a further step, not something the reading alone proves.
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Ishvara-pranidhana — Remembrance of the Divine
Glorian’s Niyama glossary describes remembrance of God; its Raja Yoga glossary uses surrender to God. Keep that devotional meaning visible rather than equating the term with ordinary attention alone.
In ordinary life. For a student who shares this devotional commitment, a moment of remembrance might inform a considerate response to another person. A student still exploring the teaching can understand its meaning without pretending to hold a belief or have a spiritual experience.
A question in its source context
“Am I being true?” appears in Karma is Negotiable — chapter 14, How to Stop Suffering (opens in a new tab) . The chapter quotes this question within a passage attributed to Questions of the Naga Kings of the Ocean. Its discussion concerns ethical discernment and conduct within a Gnostic account of karma. The page does not identify the Buddhist passage’s translator; this is a quotation as presented by Glorian, not an independently verified translation of the scripture.
Our practical connection is specific: compare an intention with an action, as in Maya’s draft and revised reply. The question need not become a judgment about your entire character or a demand to check yourself throughout the day.
Returning to a principle
Use the ten entries above as reference while you follow one chosen activity. The prepared Ethics activity keeps the practical instructions in one place.
When you revisit a principle, an ordinary event can give it a fresh purpose: what choice became visible, what you actually did, and what remains unclear. There is no need to review all ten principles every evening. You can use the lesson’s fictional case whenever personal reflection is unhelpful.
Ethics and meditation develop together
In the concluding ethical-preparation passage of Raja Yoga (glossary) (opens in a new tab) , Sivananda discusses developing yama and niyama alongside meditation:
The two must go hand in hand.
The connection is practical: how we treat others matters alongside the attention we bring to study or a sitting. Ethical perfection is not an entrance requirement. Equally, a quiet sitting does not by itself settle an unresolved responsibility.
If you want structured meditation preparation, the Meditation course overview explains its readiness guidance and lessons. The eight-limb reference provides the wider framework. Reading either does not make later methods your next assignment.
Credited sources and optional study
Consult the source that answers your question. None of these is an extra required assignment for the prepared Ethics activity.
Yama (glossary)
The Yoga entry lists the five restraints. This reference uses that list and distinguishes our everyday examples from the publisher’s wording.
Niyama (glossary)
A short list of the five observances, including scriptural study and remembrance of God.
Raja Yoga (glossary)
The eight-limb framework and the passage on ethical preparation alongside meditation. Later-practice instructions are further study, not assignments on this page.
Steps One and Two of Meditation; the Foundation That Ensures Success in Meditation
Optional full lecture for steps one and two. Existing chapter links are retained for returning students; the local example and prepared Ethics activity do not require video playback.
Karma is Negotiable — chapter 14, How to Stop Suffering
Context for the short question on this page: ethical discernment in a Gnostic discussion of karma. Read the theological claims in that context.
Open Karma is Negotiable — chapter 14, How to Stop Suffering (opens in a new tab)
If a publisher page or recording is unavailable, the distinction and original example above remain readable. The prepared lesson also has a complete local example and alternative; you do not need to substitute an unverified teaching.