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In The Yoga Sutras, which amounts to the premier manual of yoga, Patajali observes that "[c]ontentment means to just be as we are without going to outside things for happiness."
What does this have to do with saving the planet? Well, the practice of contentment holds that individuals don't need material things to live. Instead, the text suggests that all we really need to be happy we already have. A materialistic culture, in which the best new car, outfit, or McMansion is prized, will never fulfill us but will, rather, leave us filling empty in the end.
My yoga teacher is big on protecting the planet because it's as much a living thing as are we. When yogis become disconnected they like to reconnect by heading outside. It's a lot easier to work to protect the planet when you're well connected with what you're protecting.
Consumerism=Environmental Destruction
This comes at a time when it will take a lot more than recycling and buying organic to reverse our destructive path toward global climate change. We need to make a cultural shift away from consumerism and toward the simple joys of life, like enjoying a walk on a beach, biking through a park, or hiking in a national forest.
A study recently released by Worldwatch, which I saw on Grist, makes this clear. According to the study,
"More than 6.8 billion human beings are now demanding ever greater quantities of material resources, decimating the world's richest ecosystems, and dumping billions of tons of heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere each year."
The study continues by concluding that the problem will just get worse and worse as more and more developing nations undergo industrialization .
A Cultural Shift is Needed
Patajali might have lived in the second or third century CE, but his words still bode true today. Patajali was right, and he didn't need a pricey yoga mat, yoga bag, or name brand yoga pants to achieve enlightenment.
Significant change requires a fundamental shift in the ways in which we do business.
If yogis, educators, and government officials come together, we can shift our focus back to what's really important. Steps like switching from Black Friday to Buy Nothing Day are moves in the right direction. But you don't need a national holiday to practice this key environmental philosophy. If you don't need it for survival, skip it.
