A method for operating a spinning device of a rotor spinning machine, and associated rotor spinning machine are provided in which a spinning rotor includes a rotor cup and a rotor shaft that is set into rotation with the aid of a drive situated in a drive housing. The drive is operatively connected to the rotor shaft, and the rotor shaft is supported in the drive housing by a bearing. The rotor cup is situated in a rotor housing to which vacuum is applied, and the rotor shaft extends between the drive housing and the rotor housing through a connection opening such that when a vacuum is drawn in the rotor housing during a spinning process, a vacuum is also drawn in the drive housing. Compressed air is feed into the drive housing via an air inlet at intervals to clean one or both of the drive housing and the bearing.