February:  Ahimsa for Sustainability and Strength

It’s time to be kind.

February invites a practice of Ahimsa, compassionate non-harm, toward our bodies, hearts, and habit.  The dark nights linger and Spring stills feels a little way off.  It’s time to be kind.

The world can feel a fiery, uncertain place at times, and we often experience late winter as long and demanding.  As a  horse owner, it is not the icy weather and cold that  grinds me down, but the warmer, wetter weather and the seemingly endless ankle deep mud!

At this time, our energy is lower, our  nervous system can feel worn by darkness and waiting, and there is often a quiet pressure to push ourselves toward renewal before we are quite ready. 

This time of year asks for patience rather than acceleration.

Yoga offers us a way to live in this season with resilience and growth. We can nurture steady strength, emotional balance, and a sense of inner support, not by working harder, but by practising kindness as a discipline. At the heart of this approach lies Ahimsa.

In late winter, Ahimsa becomes especially relevant. When energy is low and emotional resilience is stretched, subtle forms of self-harm can creep in: pushing through fatigue, ignoring discomfort, judging ourselves for needing rest. Practising Ahimsa at this time is not about withdrawing from life, but about meeting ourselves honestly and responding with care. Rather than forcing growth, we create the conditions in which growth can arise naturally.

Ahimsa: kindness as a foundation

Ahimsa is often translated simply as non-violence, yet in yogic philosophy it is far more than the absence of harm. Ahimsa asks us to actively cultivate kindness in thought, word, and action — not only toward others, but toward ourselves. In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Ahimsa appears first among the Yamas, the ethical principles that underpin all yoga practice. Its placement is deliberate: without Ahimsa, even the most refined practices can become harsh and disconnected from their deeper purpose.

Patanjali suggests that when Ahimsa is firmly established, hostility dissolves. This is often read in an outward sense, that those around us feel calmer in our presence, but it can also be understood inwardly. When we stop fighting ourselves, our body softens, our breath deepens, and our mind steadies. This is the quiet strength yoga is designed to cultivate.

Late winter as a season of inward strength 

In the seasonal cycle, late winter is a time of conservation. The earth has not yet begun its visible renewal, things are happening deep underground.  If we force growth and transformation too early, it can lead to depletion.  All of us who garden know we don’t plant fragile new plants outside in February.   Right now, Ahimsa becomes a form of seasonal wisdom: knowing when to rest, when to act gently, and when to simply hold steady.

Yoga in late winter is less about expansion and more about support; supporting posture, supporting breath, supporting emotional equilibrium. An upright spine without rigidity, a heart that is open, and a nervous system that feels safe enough to settle. Strength that is sustainable.

This understanding of strength aligns with teachings from the Bhagavad Gita, where true steadiness is described not as aggression or force, but as patience, compassion, and inner containment. Strength that arises from care that allows us to remain present with what is, without collapsing or hardening.

Practising Ahimsa on the Mat

Ahimsa is not something we achieve once and for all; it is a journey rather than a destination. It is something we practise, imperfectly, repeatedly, and with curiosity. In yoga, this shows up less in the shapes we do and more in how we approach ourselves while doing them.

When we practice Ahimsa , we prioritise ease before intensity, finding alignment and breath over range or endurance.  We accept our boundaries, knowing that with a gentle, consistent practice, these can expand in time with our natural growth cycles.  

Our breath guides the way: when breathing is smooth and unforced, we are usually within a range that supports rather than depletes us. Small, consistent practices, a few conscious breaths, a brief pause, a moment of checking in, often have more impact than occasional heroic efforts.

We can approach our practice with curiosity, a place to explore ourselves and a place to listen to the messages that our bodies are sending us.

Practising Ahimsa off the Mat

Off the mat, Ahimsa becomes a way of relating — to our bodies, our energy, our emotions, and our relationships.

Perhaps notice how you talk to yourself.   Do you use the words and language you’d offer to your best friend, a family member, a colleague?  Or do you treat yourself more harshly, with more judgement?   Late winter amplifies inner criticism, especially when motivation and energy are low. Noticing the tone we use with ourselves, and gently softening it, can be profoundly regulating. Speaking kindly to ourselves creates steadiness  and resilience.

We are often encouraged to push through our lives, no matter how we feel.  I am so guilty of this!  Sore muscles from a long walk?  Let’s do an active yoga class.  Headache?  A couple of paracetamol should sort that.  Need the loo?  After I’ve finished this article, thank you.

Sometimes this is unavoidable.  We can’t just choose to stay in bed all day, if we have a toddler in the house, and no one else is at home.  But we can prompt ourselves that rest is not a failure of discipline but an intelligent response to circumstance. Allowing the day to move at a slower pace, doing fewer things with more presence, and building in small pauses between tasks are all expressions of self care, ahimsa.

Creating boundaries to support our personal space and wellbeing.   I’m a people pleaser at heart.  A so-called friendship that was taking over my life but always on the terms of the other.  Weekends where I felt that I was drowning under the needs of other people (and animals).  Always taking on that extra task at work, even when I was already overloaded.  I had to learn to say no, and it’s an ongoing practice.  I don’t find it easy.

Over-giving, even when well-intentioned, can make us feel resentful and exhausted. Sometimes kindness means saying no, shortening conversations, or stepping back.  After all, as the saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup.  And if we don’t recognise our own needs and choose an empowered response to them, then what messages are we sharing?

Supporting your physical body and mind.  Hunger, tension, cold, and tiredness are all messages that we need a little care. Dressing for warmth and comfort, choosing movement that supports circulation and posture without force, and responding early to discomfort all help prevent the need for recovery later.

Final thoughts

Ahimsa reminds us that consistency does not need to look the same every day, it is not the same exercise routine practised however you feel. Fluctuations in mood, energy, and motivation are part of being human; we are not broken, we don’t need fixing.  It can be tempting to push through and ignore our body and mind signals, especially at this time of year when our energies are naturally low.

Ahimsa can be as simple, and complicated, as listening without judgement, giving others and ourselves space to live our lives on our own terms and recognising that emotions, like thoughts, come and go.

This time of year asks for patience rather than acceleration.  It is a time of conservation, a time to see kindness and patience as acts of trust, trusting that growth will come when the conditions are right.

Journal Prompts

Where did I practice kindness toward myself today?  

Where did I notice subtle pressure or harmful self talk, and what might I do differently tomorrow?  

What would one small act of Ahimsa look like this evening?

Try my 10 minute Metta meditation a little loving kindness, a little ahimsa in your daily life.