Best Practices For Self-Discovery | The Wisdom Podcast S3E88

By study of the scriptures and one's self,

One is united with that loved aspect of divinity.

The fourth Niyama,

Svadhyaya,

Is the teaching of self-study.

Sva means self or one's own,

And adhyaya means study,

So you've got this literal translation.

Svadhyaya can also mean the study of scriptural texts,

And the silent reciting of mantras to one's self.

That might be inherently why I love mantras so much.

You can use mantras for a meditation practice,

And certainly as a tool to focus the mind.

I will leave some links in the description here for some of the mantras I believe will help you best.

The basis for self-study is concentrated within all the Yamas and Niyamas.

Please embrace our involvement with all of life around us,

And then slowly center in a study of our inner self.

The practice of Svadhyaya encourages spiritual awakening in us,

So that we can realize our true nature as divine,

As the God Source,

As whatever word or groupings of words you feel the most resonance with that describes the reality of God and the divine within you.

At the deepest level of our inner being,

We are pure consciousness,

Made in the image and likeness of God.

If we do not know this,

It's certainly because of our earlier teachings,

And the beliefs we've adopted through our cultural and religious affinities.

It's also because of the essence of forgetfulness.

At the core teaching of many of the world religions,

We are reminded that the Kingdom of God is within us.

The Kingdom of God is infinite intelligence,

Wisdom,

Love,

Joy,

And inner peace that lives within each one of us.

These qualities are within us because they are in the divine,

And we are made in the image and likeness of God.

Each one of us is an expression of the God Source,

The infinite consciousness of the universe.

However,

Until we awaken to this fact,

And begin to experience the divine that lives within us,

That we embody,

That we have the opportunity to live and breathe and be,

And that we have the free will to choose and direct our mind,

Control our emotions,

Senses,

And actions,

We continue to live unaware,

What we call sleepwalking through life,

This conditioned state of sleep.

In this state of somnolence,

Or what is called ignorance,

We cannot express our true self in all of our light and glory.

The soul's potential is in effect thwarted.

Therefore the practice of svadhyaya is so important at this stage,

The fourth niyama of five,

Because when you awaken to your true nature,

You will embody the light that you are.

And this removes what we refer to as darkness and unknowing from your mind and your consciousness.

This is part of why self-study is so important,

As well as the notion of going inward for your answers and your wisdom,

Because within us lives the greatest source of wisdom we could ever know.

With soul awareness in God or the divine,

You will be able to control your own destiny,

Living a life guided by your inner wisdom and governed by truth.

And while there's many ways to practice svadhyaya in your practical,

Physical life,

For example,

Working with me in a session of therapy and life coaching is really a lot about self-study,

Self-discovery,

Self-analysis,

Self-understanding,

Self-awareness,

In an intellectual sense,

Of course,

But also if we choose to go into the spiritual realm,

We can explore all of who you are,

Embracing the spiritual aspects as well.

Self-study as defined by this niyama begins with an awareness and an understanding of the mind,

The study of the nature of thought and the thinking processes,

Its functions and limitations.

And yet self-study is not simply an intellectual process.

It is a perceptual awareness of the movements of the mind which arise through our distraction from moment to moment.

And when we recognize our distraction or lack of awareness,

We can then adjust this,

We can correct this,

If you will,

To discover our true nature and reality as it is.

Let me bring this into the practical again.

And so in our work together,

I am constantly reminding clients to look at and live the truth,

Live your truth,

To know what is true.

These are all aspects of how we can bypass the ego's nature to create a distorted view of reality and live in what is true and real.

And the honesty that self-study brings to knowing yourself is simply remarkable.

As we dive into this episode,

Think about how you can apply self-study into all of the moments of your life,

Whether breathing,

Meditating,

Cooking,

Eating,

Working,

Play.

If you do any of these with attentive awareness and being awake and alert,

Each moment becomes a freeing experience in which you see and understand and appreciate something new.

Life does require us to be constantly in clear awareness,

With a quiet meditative mind which is full of energy,

Love,

Compassion,

A mind that's free from past conditioning,

Reactive behavioral patterns,

Subconscious motivations,

Habitual ego-centered behavior,

And the sense urges and negative emotions and attitudes that keep us locked in a certain way of being.

In the quiet,

Aware,

And alert mind,

There is true freedom from tension,

Conflict,

And suffering.

Instead,

There is a direct perception of life without distortion.

And right here is a perfect place to introduce one book that I love so much that I'm interpreting from and also directly quoting for this episode.

The book is called The Yoga Book,

A Practical and Spiritual Guide to Self-Realization,

Author Stephen Sturgess,

And I will leave a link in the description for how you can find it.

It goes through a beautiful analysis of the yamas and the niyamas and all of the yoga sutras,

Plus much more.

It's really a delightful,

Well-written,

And beautiful guide into the spiritual wisdom of yoga and what yoga truly embodies.

So you can begin a practice of self-study,

Self-awareness,

And,

Of course,

Self-honesty right here and now in this moment,

And you can make it a personal challenge if you wish to practice self-awareness in every moment of your life.

I find that clients who begin the process of coaching and therapy self-aware,

They move through their journey with greater ease because they've already mastered one of the fundamental skills of this work,

Which is to be awake and aware and observant in your life and of yourself.

I also want to note that self-study and self-discovery can truly only exist in an environment in which you are wholly honest with yourself and your life,

Because this is what allows you to be willing to look at and see what aspects need your attention,

Your love,

And your care.

Self-honesty is critical to your success as a human being,

Because when you are truthful and honest and open and real,

And by the way,

Sometimes real is showing emotion,

Or needing to shut down everything in critical moments of self-care,

Being real is also knowing yourself well to be able to care for your needs.

When you feel the possibility of your life lived in the ease and certainty of who you are.

In this episode,

We're talking about game-changing practices for self-discovery and living the practice of svadhyaya.

What would you discover when you are completely honest and truthful with yourself?

You likely discover insecurities and hurts and uncomfortable emotions.

You may also discover what continues to anger you.

You uncover what has impacted you from your past.

And you also discover your resilience,

Your strength,

Your self-knowledge,

And knowing what is wanted.

For some people,

Self-study can be a Pandora's box of what do I unpack and examine first,

And how do I do this?

For some,

It can feel overwhelming,

And yes,

It can be a lot of work,

And so it may seem easier to choose to keep your true thoughts and emotions hidden or buried.

And yet,

These find a way to the surface in other moments,

And when you are experiencing something that may be unresolved or similar,

Or something deeply challenging or even traumatic.

Self-study is the ability to examine your life and how you are living it from a perspective of a critical review.

Not to be critical of yourself,

But rather to be self-disciplined,

Tapas,

The third niyama.

Disciplined in how you practice the art of knowing yourself best.

Because,

And here's the first game-changer for self-discovery,

The more that you know yourself,

The easier it is to make the right choices for your life.

Because with self-knowledge and self-honesty,

You are easily able to know what you want,

And then to go and seek this out.

And a reminder here,

Svadhyaya is about knowing your true identity as divine consciousness.

So what if we began to see ourselves as this beautiful pure state?

It's when you identify your needs.

That could be a need to feel loved,

A need to release anger,

A need to be more positive,

A need to feel better,

Or to release the actions of the past and make positive changes.

That you also learn and decide what steps you will take towards what is desired most.

And this brings me to the second game-changing practice for self-discovery.

One of the freedoms of practicing self-study is that you learn and grow and transform in ways that create more joy,

More abundance,

And more love in your life.

Self-study and self-discovery are two constants.

As we continue to give them our attention and practice daily,

And as a way of being,

We begin to observe ourselves as an unbiased witness as we go through life.

And this is how we gather the invaluable information which then becomes the knowledge we hold about ourself.

And so as you do that,

As you gain more insight and wisdom and knowledge of yourself,

You then become the director of change and growth and possibility.

And this creates greater confidence and self-esteem.

It definitely helps you appreciate and value yourself more.

It definitely makes you happier.

Because the more happier you are with who you are,

The more happier you walk through your life each and every day.

I see this so much in my work.

Those who choose to avoid looking at what needs their attention,

What needs change,

Find themselves stuck,

Find themselves on this downward cycle.

Because whether afraid to look at and do the work of change,

Or perhaps they don't know exactly where to begin,

This contributes to feeling less happy with themselves and their life,

And at times truly feeling and being stuck in where they are.

Self-awareness can be a deep dive.

For those of us who practice self-awareness,

We know that it becomes an ever-present lens with which to see ourselves as others do,

And certainly to be more observant,

Hopefully in a neutral stance,

Of what we see about how we are.

And I'm going to give you a hint,

And this is another game-changing practice of self-discovery,

Of course,

For how you can do this with greater ease.

Practice ongoing self-discovery and self-study as an opportunity to look at everything in your life with curiosity and interest,

And without judgment.

This helps you to experience and study and learn in the ways that are kind and gentle and supportive.

It's like you bring your childlike eyes of wonder to everything,

And you are gentle and patient and kind with what you see and notice,

And how you speak to yourself.

Self-knowledge and self-awareness is not a goal.

The self is knowledge.

Awareness cannot be divided from awareness,

Because self-knowledge is the awareness of the divine within us.

And this awareness sets us free from what the teaching of Svadhyaya refers to as the bondage of ignorance,

And the cause of our suffering.

So when you practice knowledge and awareness of the self,

Which is the self,

Here and now and always,

It's not a goal,

It's a way of being.

And as you walk through life aware,

Awake,

Attentive,

Every aspect of your life is richer,

Fuller,

More vibrant,

More beautiful,

More of everything you can imagine.

Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras instructs us how to remove ignorance effectively.

The practice,

Patanjali says,

Of uninterrupted awareness and discrimination between what is real and what is unreal removes obstacles.

If we are to remain in the light of self-knowledge,

We need to be vigilant,

Awake,

Alert.

The total approach to life reveals your commitment to awakening.

If you are unmotivated or uncommitted,

And practicing only half-heartedly,

You cannot,

Like anything,

Expect to achieve complete success and fulfillment.

You must sincerely want to awaken from this state of unawareness,

And become actively involved in your own spiritual growth.

That is a big reason why being on a spiritual path is so informative and enlightening.

As we prepare and practice for the fifth Niyama,

Ishvara Pratidhana,

Surrender,

Surrender to the divine that we are.

Self-study is a beautiful way to approach and live all of your life.

One final game-changer for self-discovery and self-exploration is this.

Use what I call the mirror effect.

I often use this with clients,

Because not only as a therapist and coach am I a mirror,

Observing what they show me and often sharing it back with them.

You can practice this mirror effect for yourself.

As you become better skilled at observing yourself,

As reflecting back what you see and what you are,

Without any narratives that lead interpretation,

Then you are able to see yourself with clarity and self-honesty.

It sometimes isn't always easy,

Nor does it always feel good to be this honest,

But whatever you discover then can become a catalyst for positive change,

And not avoidance for what you don't want to see or feel.

Because remember,

Living that way,

Ignoring,

Being ignorant of what is true,

Compounds the unhappiness,

The difficulty that you feel and experience in your life.

And with this beautiful notion of self-study and self-awareness,

We have to speak to the idea of trusting in your inner voice,

And how you do that is by first being attentive to it.

And meditation,

Self-reflection,

Journaling,

Contemplation,

All of these inner dwelling-focused practices lead us into the quiet,

And the stillness,

And the contemplative,

And being aware and witness to our inner voice.

And so the best way to experience this is to practice becoming quiet in our mind.

And we do that most easily by living more of the time in the present,

By observing without the narrative,

With practicing being versus doing.

And as we become quiet,

And certainly meditation helps with this,

We can simply begin to listen,

To connect with the inner voice that's there,

That can guide us,

That is the wisdom that we can live by.

And if you want,

I often suggest this with clients,

You can ask your inner wisdom if you need it to turn up the dial a little bit in the volume,

So that as you quiet the busy ego mind,

You can better hear the wisdom that lives within you.

You can try that,

Let me know how that works for you.

Once you begin to practice listening inward,

And then relying on your answers for right guidance,

You grow this beautiful confidence,

This inner confidence of you knowing what's right and best for you in any given moment.

And it's a skill like anything else,

You just need to practice going inward for your answers,

Your truth,

Your wisdom.

I'm going to leave you with two what I call homework questions for you to practice self-discovery,

Self-study,

And truly I would love to hear from you how your practice of svadhyaya,

Self-study,

Helps you grow,

Helps you feel the potential that you are.

So the first question,

Can you live more moments in the purity of self-study and self-discovery using the tool of self-honesty and the willingness to see what you find?

And the second question,

Can you allow your awareness to lead you into self-discovery of who you are and the world beyond what you know thus far?

I think that's a beautiful practice to behold and live by.

Sending you great love,

This is Dorothy Sanori Juna.

Namaste.

Thank you so much for joining me in this episode of the Wisdom Podcast.

To hear more,

Please check out the other episodes here,

As well as my guided meditations,

Including my signature prose meditations and I AM mantras,

And as well the meditations to guide you into a deep and restorative sleep.

Please also visit me on social media and say hello.

And a special thank you to Insight Timer for this beautiful space to share all of my love.

Allow yourself to go within,

To access your inner wisdom,

And to live this.

Awaken your authentic power,

Live your truth,

And be loved.

Namaste.