Santosha: Happiness and Longevity

by Ram

In the Sadhana Pada of the Yoga Sutras by Patanjali we are introduced to the eight rungs/limbs/steps of yoga whose practice helps us to develop attention as a tool to discriminate between ignorance and awareness and truth from illusion which is the means for liberation or enlightenment. The first two of these rungs or limbs are the yamas and niyamas that can be looked at as universal morality and personal observances. The practices of yamas and niyamas lay the foundation from which to develop all the other subtle practices. The second limb contains the five niyamas or observances/practices of self-training, and deals with how we relate to ourselves inwardly. One of the five niyamas is santosha, which means contentment or true happiness.

Santosha Anuttamah Sukha Labhah
From an attitude of contentment/true happiness (santosha), mental comfort, joy, and satisfaction (anuttamah sukha) are obtained. —Swami Jnaneshvara  

To be contented and happy, even while experiencing life’s difficulties, becomes a process of growth through all kinds of circumstances (see Yoga and the Pursuit of Happiness). We should accept that there is a purpose for everything and we cultivate contentment to accept what happens. It means being happy with what we have rather than being unhappy about what we don't have. Humans seem to always be seeking satisfaction in the materialistic world and our internal fantasies. However, if we are contented with our wants, wishes and needs and truly happy with our lifestyle and what we currently have, it will help us in the journey to absolute truth and the highest realization. Discontentment and unhappiness arises when we get caught up in this materialistic world. Our desires and needs for material possessions, if left unfulfilled, create frustration, anger and loss of mental peace, leading to a disharmonious life (see Anger Management: Philosophy, Science and Yoga).

Chicken on Hawaii Beach by Brad Gibson

People are looking for ways to bring that peace and santosha in their lives, and so not surprisingly santosha seems to be the most sought after "principle" in the world today. Your own test for santosha would be about whether you respond through the five senses and react to the changes in all the circumstances of life or whether you listen to your inner voice and are not swayed by the material instincts.

In my previous post  I emphasized the principle of karmayoga or selfless service (see Selfless Service for Harmonious Longevity). Karmayogis are known to constantly live in a world of true happiness. What could you possibly achieve by experiencing true happiness? Among several other benefits, true happiness is now known to extend longevity. Happy people have an advantage over unhappy ones—they are not only healthier but they may also live longer. This is the conclusion drawn from a review published in Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being thus confirming the need to be happy for a healthy living as advocated in the yoga sutras. The research study compared 160 studies that examined several types of emotions defined as subjective well being (SWB). These included life satisfaction, optimism, hopefulness, sense of humor and other positive emotions. The summary of the findings include:

1. Happy people exhibited a high SWB as compared to less happy individuals.
2. Happy people with a high SWB had better health and longevity.
3. A high SWB (exhibited by happy people) was related to lower mortality rate in both healthy and diseased populations.
4. Unhappy and stressed people (having a low SWB) had higher blood pressure levels and low immune response as compared to happy people with high SWB.

The above together with other findings suggest that happiness measured as subjective well being causally influences health and longevity. So how about bringing that santosha in your own lives as well? It’s no wonder that Bobby McFerrin gyrated and swooned to the tunes of “Don't Worry, Be Happy.”

Yoga Philosophy: Contentment

by Nina

“He who finds happiness only within, rest only within, light only within—that yogi having become one with nature attains oneness with Brahman.” —The Bhagavad Gita, trans. by Mohandas K. Ghandi

When I first started teaching, I was determined to find the right language to help my students come slowly out of Savasana (a bigger challenge than you might imagine!). Eventually I learned that repeating the word “slowly” three times (as in “slowly, slowly, slowly bend your knees and place the soles of your feet on the floor”) did the trick. My point? It’s simply that the language that you use can sometimes make all the difference.

I’m bringing this up today because I’ve been thinking about contentment, one of the qualities the Yoga Sutras encourages us to cultivate.

“2.42 From contentment and benevolence of consciousness come supreme happiness.” –Yoga Sutras, trans. by TKV Desikachar

“Contentment or the ability to be comfortable with what we have and what we do not have.” —TKV Desikachar

To me, this means that here are many unpleasant situations in your life that you cannot change, some minor (traffic jams, not being able to find something you need) and some major (death, divorce, loss of a job). And in these circumstances when you normally would react with anger, anxiety, envy, frustration, sorrow, you might be able to choose to react instead with contentment.

But another thing I’ve learned from teaching is that the words “happiness” and even “contentment” can be a confusing to people. How, students will say, can I be “content” when something bad happens? Or how, a person with depression, will ask, can just tell myself to be “happy?”

Through the Mist by Brad Gibson

For myself, the answer was using different language: “I can be okay with this.” During the last four years, I’ve experienced a lot of loss: both my parents died and both my children moved thousands of miles away. But telling myself that, even while I was sad, I could be also okay with those circumstances did, in fact, help lead me toward contentment.

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you’ll know that I’m a big fan of yoga’s stress reduction tools, including poses, breath techniques and meditation, for cultivating equanimity. But yoga philosophy has also been extremely helpful to me.

In our materialistic and success-oriented culture, we are bombarded with messages telling us we need to do more and buy more. So we become caught up in an endless cycle of desire and dissatisfaction, which benefits the economy but not necessarily our happiness. For me, yoga philosophy is the antidote. Although yoga promises freedom from the bondage of the unending cycle of desire and dissatisfaction, I can’t say I’m there yet. But at the very least, when I notice dissatisfaction taking over, I’ve learned to step back and remind myself there is a different point of view.

“2.42 From contentment, the highest happiness is attained.” —Yoga Sutras, trans. Edwin Bryant

“This sattvic happiness does not depend on external objects, which are vulnerable and fleeting, but is inherent in the mind when it is tranquil and content.” —Bryant’s commentary

You're Too Late

by Nina

“From contentment, the highest happiness is attained.” Yoga Sutra II.42 (Edwin Bryant)

“This sattvic happiness does not depend on external objects, which are vulnerable and fleeting, but is inherent in the mind when it is tranquil and content.” Edwin Bryant

Too Late by Brad Gibson

We started out with an agenda. The plan was to go to the Japanese Garden in the Seattle Arboretum to see the Japanese maples in their brilliant fall glory. But we we arrived, the garden was closed until February. We peeked in through gate—what we could see through the bars looked gorgeous. The arboretum itself was open and we could see from the road that mixed in with the evergreens there were still trees in brilliant scarlet, orange, and yellow, so I asked the gardener just outside the gate of the Japanese Garden where we should go to see the best fall color. But he just waved his hand dismissively and said, “You’re too late. It’s over.” I said, “Not to us. And what I can see of the Japanese Garden through the fence still looks beautiful.” He shrugged and said, “You should have been here last week.”

  

On our late fall walk along the Azalea Path, we not only saw beautiful fall leaves, but also mushrooms and berries and moss and even a few late flowers. Look!

Moss and Berries by Brad Gibson