“It is the preoccupation with possessions, more than anything else, that prevents us from living freely and nobly.” -Bertrand Russell
Nonattachment (Aparigraha) is one of the ethical constraints (yamas) from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. It means abstaining from greed and taking only what is necessary. Our society has an enormous problem with this!
The yogi feels that the collection of things implies a lack of faith. The more we have, the more we want and the more we worry about losing.
“Attachment comes from a perception of lack – all comes from fear.” -Yvette Soler
Aparigraha implies being nonpossessive with people as well. Too many relationships fail because of possessiveness over one another.
Letting go of our attachment to certain beliefs can benefit us as well. Throughout our lives, social conditioning overloads us and we believe shit that we may not even resonate with. Don’t possess your thoughts! Sounds crazy but those frequencies need to flow so truth can enter.
Buying material objects may bring happiness, but it’s only temporary. How can we neutralize our desire for more stuff?
“We all need new ideas, images, and experiences far more than we need new stoves or cars or computers.” -Bill Holm
Acknowledge abundance. You already have everything you need. The more grateful you are for what you have, the more you’ll have to be grateful for!
“Suffering enters in when we fear losing what we think is ours.”
During the holiday season we tend to consume out of hand. Most of what we buy doesn’t last. It’s just non-biodegradable, unnecessary crap! Once it’s tossed, it produces a gross amount of pollution into our sweet Mother earth. Nature has a lot of trouble using this trash to fuel the cycle of life! Garbage (esp. plastics) affects groundwater by releasing toxins into the environment. Poor, little animals choke on plastic bags!
Is consuming stuff really worth throwing off earth’s ecological balance?
“How pointless life could be, what a foolish business of inventing things to love, just so you could dread losing them.” -Barbara Kingsolver, ‘Prodigal Summer’-awesome book by the way!
Some of the happiest people I’ve seen, have little or no material goods. Their smiles have outweighed those of mass consumers.
“Where people are really attached, poverty itself is wealth.” -Jane Austen
In the Tree of Yoga, Iyengar calls it “freedom from hoarding or collecting, absence of greed, and of possessions beyond one’s need.”
In buddhism, attachment is the root, and cause of suffering. We hoard stuff. We also hoard friendships, and/or people. Just thinking that a resource is limited initiates fear, thereby lessening the joy in the present moment.”
There are loads of physiological benefits of random acts of kindness and giving to those less fortunate. Giving to others not only helps people in need, it also increases our own immunity and energy, decreases stress hormones, lowers blood pressure, lowers heart rate and improves cognitive performance.
Donate to your favorite charity, volunteer, give things away that you don’t need, avoid big-box stores and spread the love.
Just an idea– http://www.heifer.org/