“Satya” is a part of Yama, the first anga or limb of Astāngayoga. It is the second [ the first being Ahimsa ] of the five Yama-s that are prescribed. The focus of Yama is to improve our relationship with friends, relatives and fellow living beings. Its aim is to establish harmony in our life, harmony with our surroundings. Satya should be understood in this spirit.
Yogasūtra written in sūtra form does not offer much of an explanation. Sage Patanjali just mentions satya without elaboration. This gives rise to a lot of lively discussion and interpretations from different learned authors and practicing yogis. These varied opinions on satya can be classified into three major categories. We will now look at the first of these.
Satya is to speak the truth - nothing but the truth. In this context, what one speaks is in perfect conformity with what one 'understands' as correct, the pramāna. Pramāna is acquired through senses, logical interpretation, words of an authority and/or a combination of these. When such knowledge is acquired or conclusions reached, to communicate this 'as it is' through speech is called 'satya'.
No shades, no tricks, no delusion, no ambiguity or deceit and free from all such defects. - this is glorious speech glowing with satya. Speaking this truth is the prime goal and all consequences that follow must be accepted with equanimity. Situations, compulsions or any other consideration should not be allowed to impact this conviction.
When one is known to speak the truth at all times, with conviction, his words carry weight and receive respect. In an international cricket match involving India and Australia a dispute arose between two players. The Australian complained about the derogatory comments made by an Indian player who denied the charges. Various players on the scene deposed but finally the Indian was cleared of any wrongdoing. This was because Tendulkar who was on the scene, said that no such derogatory comments had been made. Tendulkar, playing international cricket for the past two decades, has such an impeccable record of honesty and 'truth speaking' that his deposition become the deciding factor. Such is the glory of satya.
In a scene from Ramayana, an Indian epic, Sita is informed that Ravana, the aggressor king, had captured Hanuman, a messenger from her husband Rama. She is horrified to learn that a cloth has been strung around his tail, dipped in oil and is about to be set on fire. Sita in her anxiety said “the fire will not hurt him or burn him”. Agni, the fire god, duly conformed to her words. Only the cloth got burnt and Hanuman was unharmed. This was because Sita always spoke the truth and therefore Agni was obliged to have her words come true. So when one speaks the truth at all times all the utterrances of such a person come true.
Let us look at one more situation. This is about a man who was completely committed to satya. One day as he was sitting outside his house, which was in a lonely area, he saw a girl running for her life. She ran past his house, turned at the end of the road and disappeared. A few minutes later a group of drunken looking thugs, obviously in pursuit of the girl arrived near his house and seeing him there asked if he had seen which way the girl had gone. The man had many choices to answer, but stuck to his principles and said, “I saw the girl, I know which way she went, but I will not tell you”. He received a sound thrashing from the men and was badly injured. A friend who visited him lamented his foolishness and said, “see what has come of sticking to your principles”. Our friend said, “ By acting as I did, I gave the girl a little more time to make her getaway, and maybe saved her. The beating I received I take as a 'karmic' cleansing. I may be in some pain, but I am the happier for it”.
Such is the glory of satya. Whether we look at it from a philosophical, mythological or practical view point, truth always triumphs. So let us speak the truth and nothing but the truth.
Does this view appear very extreme? We will look at other interpretations of satya in future posts.
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3 comments:
I am very happy that this blog has started again. At times I need encouragement and some prodding to ensure that I maintain my practice with discipline and enthusiasm.
I have always had some difficulty with fully accepting the literal meaning of the rule of satya. Although I see the great value in it, I also see exceptions to the rule. In fact there are many situations in life where satya may conflict with the first of the Yamas, which is ahimsa. Ahimsa referring to non-violence and non-injury to others.
To give an example. Suppose a woman (perhaps your girlfriend) has a large and ugly nose and she asks you. ‘Do you think I have an ugly nose?’ If you were to say the truth and reply: ‘‘Yes, I must agree that it is rather large and quite unattractive’’, then you have obeyed the rule of satya while breaking the rule of ahimsa.
Imagine the situation of the jews in nazi Germany. There would have been many situations where a jew would have denied this when questioned by the Gestapo. But should one sacrifice oneself to a racist criminal. What for? What would have been gained by it?
For me one of the key aspects of satya is that ones behaviour should follow ones words. One should not say one thing and then do the exact opposite. For a priest to talk about compassion and moral standards and then secretly abuse children is an extreme example.
I find it very rewarding to think about the meaning and all of the implications of these concepts, which are always so brief, concise and cryptic…and since coming from Sanskrit, not always easy to translate. I feel that the great value lies in this thought process. And thank you Sridhar for giving me the opportunity to think about this matter again. Graeme
Certainly, Satya, like Ahimsa seems to be a concept that would take an enormous effort to live up to. But, I don't think that thats the issue. In our lives, we rarely encounter extreme situations, like that which the Jews in nazi Germany faced.
So I see Satya as a concept that takes us to a deeper understanding of ourselves and our motives. Why do we lie and what is our perceived gain by doing so? Can we at least give up 'unnecessary' lies?
And by putting Ahimsa first, I feel we are given a better framework to practice Satya. For example, when i truly try to stop telling 'white lies' in the name of sparing another's feelings, and by keeping Ahimsa in mind, i make the effort to express myself in a more tactful and neutral manner. More difficult than telling a lie, and i am sure it will not work all the time, but i guess thats what practice is all about!
Sometimes it is unavoidable to tell a lie in medical situations when a person's condition will worsen if he/she knows the truth about the demise of a dear one in the family.
Or....How do you tell the truth to a family member whose leg is going to be amputated?
These are ofcourse extreme situations but does telling the truth in such situations help the persons' concerned?
Kamla
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