Saucha

The first niyama introduced in Patanjali’s yoga sutras is saucha, which can be translated as cleanliness, purity, or clarity. In a culture that is obsessed with body image, this principle could easily be manipulated and used for harm- bullying folks into feeling the need to purge, detox, or otherwise remove “impurities” from the physical body.

Instead, I think of saucha as a sort of emotional Windex. We have have that drop of divine within us. Saucha is the ability to wipe away the dirt, grime, and smudges that dull our sparkle- allowing our inner light to shine through. It’s the peeling back of layers of self-limiting beliefs, negative talk, and actions that just don’t feel aligned. Saucha is living with intention and clarity.