Contentment

The final niyama is santosha. It is contentment. We've gone over the niyamas in no particular order, but it occurs to me that practice of all the niyamas could lead to contentment. Svadyaya (self study) leads to personal understanding. As you understand your motivations better you become more content. You realize you don't have to continue doing things that make you emotionally extreme. As you practice tapas (effort; discipline) you become more driven. You achieve what you want out of life and that certainly leads to contentment. Practicing surrender (ishvara pranidana) can lead to contentment. I like the serenity prayer as an example of this idea: god grant me the strength to change the things I can, to accept the things I can't, and the wisdom to know the difference. Practicing saucha (purity) can help you eliminate those influences that keep you stuck in negative thought patterns. It can lead you to choose healthy. When you're healthier and have less pain, you can be content.

The direct practice of contentment (santosha) has more to do with how you feel about what you have or don't have. This is related to acceptance but isn't exactly the same. Acceptance implies a passivity. Contentment implies some action. One can choose to be content. This could involve acceptance of a situation you know you can't change or it could mean working for something you know you will achieve and being patient with the process.

Contentment also lies in the cessation of comparison. Our society is fraught with comparisons. Comparisons lead to judgement. Judgement leads to negative feelings, either of yourself or someone else. This meaning of judgement should not be confused with the idea of discernment. In order to live in the world we must take in information, digest it and come to a decision. Looking at the information with a discerning mind will lead you to a decision that works best for you. Looking at the information with a judgmental mind will lead to feelings of separateness. They are doing A. I am doing B. Judgement implies one of us is wrong. Discernment allows us to notice the differing information and see that B is right for me, just as A is right for them. Neither party is wrong. This leads to a peaceful mind. Which leads to contentment.

Pratyahara (withdrawl of the senses) helps to shatter the illusion of our boundaries. As we go inside we discover that which is inside is also all around us. Contentment is knowing we are all made of the same stuff. Contentment is all about perspective. Contentment is living your life without fear.