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Svādhyāya

स्वाध्याय


Svādhyāya means self-study, this can imply studying by the self or study of the self.

We will spend our entire life with ourselves; we are our only true, guaranteed companions for life but we never invest enough effort and time to find out why we do what we do, why we are who we are. We run after a future, more promising version of ourselves, trying to fix what we are told is wrong with us- without being acquainted with our own essence, our present tense. We read self-help books, we take self-improvement courses to fix ourselves- but hardly ever do we sit and try to know ourselves.

Let’s focus on ourselves for little while. Let us learn to introspect, let us get to know ourselves like we would attempt to know a new friend. What do we like? What do we value? What is non-negotiable for us? We are not doing this to criticize ourselves or to pat our own backs- we are simply doing this to gain more clarity about the unsaid rules by which we live our lives, to find out who we truly are.


Look around yourself, think about your daily life, your habits and write down the underlying philosophy of your life. It could be simple rules or beliefs that you hold, for example, about money or time or relationships.

  • This is different from a vision board- you are not planning to create a future or bring about change. You are only focusing on the present and what you already are instead of what you might want to become.

  • You can write them down as sentences or quotes or lyrics or put up photos of objects that define you. Put them up in your room or at your work-desk or on the front page of your journal- somewhere they are prominently visible to you on a daily basis. This might not happen in a couple of minutes- so take out sufficient time over the period of a week to make a note of your habits, likes, dislikes and thought-patterns.

  • These rules will evolve over time, as will you. This is also a natural outcome of this activity. Or you might gain new found awareness about yourself, which means that you can always add or update these rules. But try to not make frequent, temporary changes- once finalized, give it considerable time and thought before you makes changes. Remember, these are the rules of your life that you already, genuinely follow.

  • Remember you are studying your self, independent of external influences and expectations- you do not have to judge or feel guilty about any of these or live up to any externally imposed standards while making this list. There is no right or wrong. If money is important to you, that’s okay. If you don’t believe you need to have a strict daily routine, that’s okay too. If working out isn’t your priority or if you value taking multiple breaks, all of it is okay.

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