Asteya

Whoops!  I "stole" this image
but here's the credit

I don't mean to be so glib about my image credits to the left.  Asteya is some serious stuff.  It's making me think a lot about how I live my life.
No, I'm not one of those suburban shoplifters; I'm not a cat burgler.  I don't think up schemes to rob banks.  If only Asteya were so simple!  It's not just "Hey, don't steal stuff".  The more I read about it, the more I realize just how deep it goes.  And the deeper it goes, the more doo-doo I'm in.

Patanjali's sutra on Asteya says "To one established in Non-stealing, all wealth comes."  This is commonly interpreted as "Do not take that which has not been offered to you".   Common sense, right:  "Don't steal".  What is not immediately apparent is that Patanjali's not necessarily talking about worldly goods.  It turns out, you can "steal" lots of stuff.  You can steal time.  Think about that the next time you're waiting in the doctor's office.  You can steal safety - something to ponder the next time you drive recklessly.  You can steal space - haven't you ever taken up a bit too much room on the subway, or spaced out a bit in the movie theater?

These seem like rather "innocent" forms of stealing, but when I really consider them, it makes me think that I really do not have the right to steal the safety of others, I shouldn't keep people waiting, or take up more space than I need.  But THEN, when I talk about taking up "space" that I don't need...what about taking up "stuff" that I don't need?  This would include buying things that I don't need.  I might be am probably guilty of buying something that someone else has a better use for.  Sure, I paid for it, but there might be someone out there that needs it more than I do, and I therefore "stole" from them.  When I start thinking about that, it really throws me for a loop, and I start to feel guilty about a lot of stuff.  Guilt is harm, and just 2 weeks ago I was practicing Ahimsa (non-harming), and I'm right back to square one.  

Oh boy, this is going to be quite a journey.

"No one is ever really taught by another; each of us has to teach himself.  The external teacher offers only the suggestion, which arouses the internal teacher, who helps us to understand things." - Swami Vivekananda