Compassion in Action: Practicing the Yoga Principle of Seva

More than just the physical poses, yoga is a dynamic system of healing that includes ethical considerations. These ethics of practice guide our intentions to come from our heart and not just our ego in both yoga practice as well as in the world. Yoga practice is, in part, about establishing and maintaining healthy, loving relationship with ourselves, with our families, with our communities, and with all living beings. One of the ethical principles of yoga is called “Seva” or “Service-Mindedness”.

Seva means to live in a way that supports the wellbeing of others. To incorporate Seva into your yoga practice is to harvest the sense of wellbeing that you cultivate on your mat and to share it with others through compassionate and selfless actions. You approach your practice as a way to ease suffering in yourself as well as to ease suffering in the world around you.

Seva is a yoga pose that we hold not with our bodies but with our hearts. Serving the wellbeing of others is a practice that, like all yoga practice, can awaken and enlighten us on our journey of self-discovery and self-healing. Service-mindedness as a living principle is more than setting aside a few hours a month to volunteer, it is viewing every moment of your life as an opportunity for service-mindedness. Seva is a pose of the heart that we would do well to practice daily to maintain healthy balance in relationship with others, with the world, and with our highest truths.