FREEDOM MONTH: DAY 15: “Freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility. For the person who is unwilling to grow up, the person who does not want to carry his own weight, this is a frightening prospect.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt
Today I was reading some literature I have about spiritual principles of yoga…the Yamas and Niyamas. I have studied these for over 40 years and find them to be in line with those things we work on in 12 step recovery rooms, as are most spiritual traditions.
This is not new practice, except for most of us, because we must stop drinking and drugging to be in the space where our spirit can breathe. I am mindful of the practices as they apply to my life. Recently I have been mindfully meditating on the practice of Asteya, the Yama which speaks of not stealing. While we can be certain when we are stealing from others those material things that are easy to identify, this principle speaks even more deeply to the ways in which we steal from each other all the time and do not consider it an offense.
In a culture where we find more and more the spirit of entitlement and greed, Asteya speaks to being mindful of how we steal from others with our lack of thoughtful consideration of who we are and who they are. For instance, insisting on being first in a line of traffic or “beating” someone to get somewhere is a lack of allowing them to have the space…in other words, stealing.
The way I see this most often is that we steal time and air from others with our insistence on being heard, no matter what the cost to those around us. The selfish and self-centered ways we demand attention from others and steal their space and time. Most of the time, these intrusions are only to divert us from what we should be doing anyway.
We all know what some forms of stealing look like, but seldom think about how practicing a spiritual tradition such as Asteya might create a kinder, more thoughtful and less selfish way of being in this world. What if we all considered others before we impulsively put our thoughts, ideas, feelings and concerns out into the world? That “pause” spoken of in the BB.
This looks like those who are constantly on their phones, texting and diverting attention to themselves that is designed for the other person to remain focused on their life, their work, their driving, their families, or whatever they are doing in that moment. Phone calls and texts are quite often going to be an interruption of the other persons’ time and space. It is necessary to be mindful of both.
When we practice this deeply, we will find ourselves to be made more welcome in the company of our peers and friends. What if we waited to let our opinions, as well as all our words wait until we had written them down and done a personal process with them? Like the one that asks:
Is it true?
Is it helpful?
Is it inspiring?
Is it necessary?
Is it kind?
I bet we could eliminate a lot of our Step 9 amends if we were to learn to practice mindfully Asteya. I find that I am often guilty of stealing time from others when I am not mindful of their needs before my own. This is good stuff!
Dolphin Hug 