Yama

Yama derives from the verbal root yam, 'to restrain, rein in, or hold.' A yama is thus a restraint — a way of reining in impulse. The word carries the sense of a discipline one voluntarily takes on, an orientation of conduct rather than a rule imposed from outside.

As the first limb of yoga, the yamas are five ethical restraints governing how you relate to others and the world: ahiṃsā (non-harming), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacarya (right use of vital energy) and aparigraha (non-possessiveness). They form the ethical ground on which the rest of practice stands.

Patañjali lists the five yamas in the second chapter of the Yoga Sūtras, at sūtra 2.30. He adds that, when practised universally without exception of birth, place, time or circumstance, they become a 'great vow' (mahāvrata) — binding in every situation rather than only when convenient.

In daily life, the yamas are less a checklist than an orientation. They show up in whether you speak truthfully, whether you take what is not offered, how you use your energy and appetites, and how lightly you hold possessions — in relationships, work and speech, not only on the mat.

The yamas are sometimes read as mere prohibitions, but each has a positive dimension: ahiṃsā is active kindness, not only the absence of violence. They are also not commandments issued for reward or punishment; they describe conduct that steadies the mind and makes the subtler limbs of yoga possible.