Niyama: The Practice of Knowing Yourself

If the yamas are concerned with how we relate to the world, the niyamas turn our attention inward.

Patañjali gives us five personal observances:

• Shaucha — cleanliness or purity

• Santosha — contentment

• Tapas — disciplined effort

• Svadhyaya — self-study

• Ishvara pranidhana — surrender to something greater than the individual self

Yama: How We Move Through the World

The first limb of The Eight Limbs of yoga is Yama, often translated as ethical restraints or principles for how we relate to other people and the world around us.

Patañjali identifies five Yamas:

• Ahimsa - non-harming

• Satya - truthfulness

• Asteya - non-stealing

• Brahmacharya - wise use of energy

• Aparigraha - non-grasping or non-possessiveness

When most people hear the word “yoga”, they usually picture a body moving through a series of postures: Warrior II, Downward Dog, a twist, perhaps a long, quiet Savasana at the end.

But the physical practice is only one part of yoga.

More than 2,000 years ago, the sage Patañjali described yoga as a much larger path of practice. In the Yoga Sutras, he outlined eight interconnected limbs, known in Sanskrit as Ashtanga - “ashta” meaning eight and “anga” meaning limb or part.

Patañjali writes:

“The eight limbs of yoga are: restraint, observance, posture, breath-regulation, withdrawal, concentration, meditation, and absorption.” - Yoga Sutra 2.29 (Satyori)

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Restorative Yoga invites you to Rest, Restore, and Reset Your Nervous System.

Restorative Yoga is a gentle, deeply restful practice designed to help you slow down, release unnecessary effort, and give your body and mind space to settle. Using supportive props such as bolsters, blankets, and blocks, each posture allows the body to rest comfortably for several minutes at a time, creating an environment where you don't have to push, perform, or accomplish anything.

At Breathing Room Collective in Hillsboro, Oregon, our Restorative Yoga class offers an opportunity to step out of the constant demands of everyday life and reconnect with a quieter part of yourself. This is a practice centered on nervous system regulation, deep rest, and creating the conditions for your body to move out of a state of ongoing stress and toward greater ease.

You don't need to be flexible, experienced, or particularly good at relaxing. You just need a little time and space to let yourself be supported.

What Is Restorative Yoga?

Restorative Yoga is a gentle style of yoga that uses carefully arranged props to support the body in comfortable, restful positions. Unlike more active yoga practices, which build strength through muscular engagement or link postures together through movement, Restorative Yoga minimizes physical effort. The goal isn't to stretch deeply or challenge your balance. It's to find a position where your body can feel supported enough to rest.

Breathing is something we rarely think about, unless we're out of breath. Being more intentional about our breathing, and even consciously controlling the breath, can profoundly impact mental, physical, and emotional health.

This practice, known as pranayama (also referred to as breathwork), is an ancient technique from the yogic tradition that helps us harness the power of the breath and all of the associated benefits.

What is Pranayama?

The term “pranayama” comes from the Sanskrit words “prana” (life force or vital energy) and “ayama” (control or extension). Essentially, pranayama is the practice of controlling the breath to regulate the flow of prana through the body. In yoga, prana is considered to be the life energy that sustains us.

At Breathing Room Collective in Hillsboro, Oregon, we offer both traditional Yin Yoga as well as Restorative Yin, a soothing blend of Yin and Restorative Yoga offering even more nervous system support. Both practices welcome all levels and offer a different kind of experience from more active styles of yoga. Rather than building heat through continuous movement, Yin invites you to become still, breathe, and explore the space between effort and ease.

Explore Yin Yoga and Restorative Yin Yoga in Hillsboro, Oregon. Slow down with gentle, floor-based postures, mindful breathing, and soothing classes for all levels. Restorative Yin is a soothing blend of Yin and Restorative Yoga offering even more nervous system support.

When You're Carrying Too Much Energy

Sometimes stress doesn't feel like exhaustion. It feels like restlessness. You may have been sitting literally all day, thinking all day, solving problems all day - and now your body feels like it needs somewhere to put all that energy. A more active yoga practice can be useful here.

Vinyasa, Hatha, and Ashtanga can all offer opportunities to move, breathe, strengthen, and focus your attention on something immediate and physical. You’ll bring heat into the body, deep breath into the lungs, and the active pace of these classes can help clear your mind, even if just for the hour you’re on the mat it’s a precious relief.

That shift in attention can be extremely valuable.

When You're Exhausted

Stress doesn't always leave you restless. Sometimes it leaves you completely depleted.

If your body feels tired and your mind feels full, a demanding class may not be what you need. This is where the slower practices can become especially appealing, and healing.

Restorative yoga uses props and supported positions to create a practice with very little physical effort. Instead of working harder, you are given permission to do less.

Yin yoga offers longer-held postures and a slower pace, creating space to be still and notice what is happening in your body.

Gentle yoga can offer a middle ground: movement without the intensity of a vigorous class.

When Your Mind Won't Turn Off

Sometimes the body isn't the biggest issue. Your body may be still, but your brain continues running through tomorrow's schedule, yesterday's conversation, your inbox, your grocery list, and everything else you forgot to do along the way.

This is where practices that emphasize breath and attention can be especially helpful.

Meditation doesn't require you to empty your mind. Yoga doesn't require you to stop thinking. Instead, these practices give you somewhere to place your attention.

You notice the breath. You notice the body. You notice the thoughts. And then you practice coming back, and This is a practice you can take with you long after class ends.

Breath also is one of the places where yoga can help us connect our physical practice with the attention of the mind.

Meditation is a mind-body practice that involves focusing your attention and eliminating distractions to achieve a state of mental clarity, calm, and emotional balance. It can take many forms, including mindfulness meditation, guided meditation, loving-kindness meditation, and breath-focused meditation.

At its core, meditation encourages you to live in the present moment, reducing mental chatter and promoting self-awareness. It helps cultivate a sense of inner peace, allowing you to respond to life’s challenges with a calmer, more grounded mindset.

As the pressures of daily life can often leave us feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and disconnected, mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, and emotional exhaustion are increasingly common.

What Is Ashtanga Yoga?

Ashtanga is a system of yoga associated with a set sequence of postures practiced in a particular order. The practice connects movement and breath and builds progressively through a series of postures.

Because the sequence has structure, students have the opportunity to become familiar with the practice over time rather than encountering a completely new sequence every class.