Niyama

Niyama the 'fixedness of law' regarding all things; cf. tathatā. -

Pañca-niyāma is a commentarial term, signifying the 'fivefold lawfulness' or 'natural order' that governs:

    (1) temperature, seasons and other physical events (utu-niyāma);

    (2) the plant life (bīja-niyama.);

    (3) karma (kamma-niyama.);

    (4) the mind (citta-niyama.), e.g. the lawful sequence of the functions of consciousness (s. viññāna-kicca) in the process of cognition;

    (5) certain events connected with the Dhamma (dhamma-niyama.), e.g. the typical events occurring in the lives of the Buddhas. (App.).

Self-disciplines; Second step of the Ashtanga;

In Yoga philosophy, these are 5 disciplinary rules meant for self-development.

The five niyamas are:

    Purity
    Contentment
    Self-control
    Self-study
    Devotion

The five Niyama, or processes, which control the universe are:

    Kamma Niyama, order of act and result, e.g., desirable and undesirable acts produce corresponding good and bad results.
    Utu Niyama, physical (inorganic) order, e.g., seasonal phenomena of winds and rains.
    Bija Niyama, order of germs or seeds (physical organic order); e.g., rice produced from rice-seed, sugary taste from sugar cane or honey etc. The scientific theory of cells and genes may be ascribed to this order.
    Citta Niyama, order of mind or psychic law, e.g., processes of consciousness (Citta vithi), power of mind etc.
    Dhamma Niyama, order of the norm, e.g., the natural phenomena occurring at the advent of a Bodhisatta in his last birth, gravitation, etc.

Source

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