Melbourne, Australia is the host City for this year’s 63rd Annual United Nations Conference for Non-Governmental Organizations, on the theme “Advance Global Health: Achieve the MDGs.”
More than 1,600 participants and NGOs from 70 countries have gathered to collaborate, network and exchange best-practices, information and narratives on the challenges and progress made in the global quest for achieving the MDGs. There are 8 Millennium Development Goals declared in 2005 by world leaders as necessary to achieve by 2015. Although with just five years left to reach the goals set for child health, women’s health and the continuing fight against HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, it is clear that progress achieved so far, is not what everyone hoped it would be 10 years ago.
The conference roundtable presentations and workshop discussions are examining critical issues such as:
bridging the health gaps that still exist and encouraging equity of treatment and access
addressing failed maternal and child health strategies
promoting civic activism around health and wellness
and strengthening an integrated approach to achieving health for all.
The UN Department of Public Information hopes this three-day exchange of ideas and best practices will leave a lasting legacy, to inspire and also reinvigorate NGOs to advocate with governments, businesses, researchers and the wider public to galvanise the world at large, to better contribute towards the Millennium Goals and improving global health.
Yoga in Daily Life’s Hands-On Experience at the Conference:
“Yoga saved my life” said Sue, matter-of-factly, with no emotion, yet her words were filled with utter conviction. We met as we queued to enter this week’s United Nations conference for NGO’s on the theme ‘Advance Global Health’. Sue had flown in from America and while we waited in line, told me her story of being savagely attacked and left for dead. Prior to the attack she had been a regular yoga practitioner and knew the far-reaching health benefits. She diligently applied these techniques in her rehabilitation and gives yoga the credit for her physical and mental rehabilitation and thus her presence here today.
Yet another chalk mark up on the board in favour of yoga. How to get this message out to others?
In his opening speech at UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, said simple measures can make a huge difference. Yoga is simple. He also said, the wealth of nations is inextricably linked to the health of its citizens. The practice of yoga costs nothing. Mr. Moon further said studies show that by investing in health, poverty is reduced.
While manning our yoga exhibit today, dozens of people from all over the world approached us for information - many were medical professionals or people who had been recommended yoga by their health care advisor. One doctor stated her first preference is always to prescribe relaxation and meditation in response to stress and anxiety, rather than pills. Others said that yoga offered them sanity and relief from chronic back problems. Still others said how they had been sharing yoga techniques with disadvantaged communities elsewhere in the world and how it enhances life.
These stories reminded me of the words of H.H. Vishwaguru Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda, ‘Yoga makes you a better person, which makes a better family, which makes a better neighbourhood, which makes a better community, which makes a better nation…. in this way, yoga contributes to world peace.’
A journalist asked: “Do you feel there is a place for yoga in conversations about global health?” Most definitely, I replied. All the yoga and meditation practices serve to nurture physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. Give these practices consistent priority in your life and yoga will foster health on all levels, simultaneously benefitting others around you. Yes, Yoga has a place in discussions about global health. It’s already happening.
Yoga in Daily Life is scheduled to hold a 45 minute class at the conference in Room 103, this Tuesday night at 6.30pm
Thanks to Yoga in Daily Life members, Mahamandaleshwar Swami Jasrajpuri, Prabhupuri, Rod Morgan, Jyoti and Gita for their representation of Yoga in Daily Life at this major world event.
Bhakti Johnson, National Coordinator for the Australian Association of Yoga in Daily Life
Monday, August 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Our new Frount Garden (before)
A shot of our frount garden after the council put a border around it and before our volunteer gardeners get their hands dirty.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Doing Something -National Volunteer Week by Yogeshwari
National Volunteer Week - Talk to YIDL volunteers
Doing something
On Thursdays I am unavailable for work or family commitments. Thursday is my volunteer day. The description is inadequate for what I do, but it’s the language I use to describe my activities to the world at large.
I became a volunteer four years ago when I retired from an overwhelming career in TAFE. My last day at TAFE was a Friday. On Monday morning I went to a yoga class, then signed up to volunteer one day a week with Yoga in Daily Life. When asked if I was available for three or six months, my reply was, “Oh no. I’m in for the long haul.”
How did I know? What was it that brought me in through that door with such a strong sense of belonging? The building had beckoned for years before I was free to attend my first Saturday yoga class. Then the standard of teaching and quality of teachers left me, as an educationalist, intrigued as to the foundations on which such quality was built. Even so, when I signed up on that Monday morning I wasn’t consciously aware of what I was really doing. I was joining an ashram.
Yesterday, sitting at my desk at the back of the kitchen, I was working on developing a protocol for external usage of the yoga halls. And the introduction gently reminded users that this was no simple yoga centre. This was an ashram. Then followed a sentence defining ashram as: a place where all are welcome to come and do something for the benefit of body, mind and soul.
The editor in me baulked at the phrase ‘do something’. It sounded so lame – so non-specific. There must be a better way of saying it.
Now someone else happened to be in the room, ‘doing something’ at the kitchen sink. As all writers do when they are stuck, I consulted. The ‘someone’ was fortuitously my philosophy teacher, colleague and mentor Yogasiddhi. “Ah,” she said. “That is a direct translation from Sanskrit asramah. ‘A’ means near and ‘shram’, from the root ‘sramati’ means to practise or do something.”
“Ah, hah!” went a deeper section in my brain, recognising the profound value in so many non-specific Sanskrit expressions, allowing as they do countless interpretations suited to our current level of understanding. So the phrase remained.
Early this morning it was quiet. A thought arose about a task I needed to perform today. On the program for tonight’s satsang was an entry for 6.55pm: Yogeshwari’s inspiring talk. It was time to get inspired. And up came the words I had so nearly deleted the previous afternoon: an ashram is a place where all are welcome to come and do something for the benefit of body, mind and soul.
What is it that we volunteers actually do? We sweep floors and rake up leaves, we come up with creative ideas for fund raising and follow them through, we research solutions to anything from retreat venues to suppliers of high quality mulch, we smile and welcome newcomers to our centre, we plan and implement a complete reconfiguration of the garden, we forge relationships with local media in order to effectively promote our classes and courses, we manage special events, implement effective search engine marketing, cook, photocopy, fold, laminate, build, repair, clean and polish, systematise, enter data, answer phones, take bookings, edit, stand in for each other, write protocols and procedures, handle money, coordinate wwoofers, twitter, use google adwords and … I would sum it with, “work on constant quality maintenance and quality improvement.”
The most challenging task I have so far been asked to do was introduce Swamiji when he was giving a public talk at the centre after an absence of a couple of years. I was well briefed, knew the important stages of the introduction, knew, in fact, what to say … but what on earth was I supposed to do! Bhakti is wise. Seeing my anxiety she gently explained my role: to make Swamiji feel relaxed and comfortable, to orientate him to the centre and the topic for the evening, and to respond to any needs or directions he might express. Recognising the “something I had to do” allowed me to do it.
What is that word ‘recognition’? It means knowing again, or becoming aware that we in fact already know something. I feel it is recognition that brings all of us to volunteer here, in this ashram. And what we are recognising is the tremendous importance of being born human, carrying with it as it does both the opportunity and responsibility for self-enquiry and self-improvement.
There is a beautiful bhajan that we sing at satsang composed by the mystic saint Kabir. It points out the fragility of this human life, this delicate shawl that has been so carefully woven for us. And how easily we can neglect and damage the shawl, leaving it dirty, full of torn threads and gaping holes.
As Kabir says, When my shawl was ready
I gave it to a dyer for dyeing:
And he dyed it with the softest of reds.
Don’t be shy about wearing this shawl,
It is given to you for just a few days.
Not knowing its secret, foolish people
Allow it to become dirtier day by day.
Doing something
On Thursdays I am unavailable for work or family commitments. Thursday is my volunteer day. The description is inadequate for what I do, but it’s the language I use to describe my activities to the world at large.
I became a volunteer four years ago when I retired from an overwhelming career in TAFE. My last day at TAFE was a Friday. On Monday morning I went to a yoga class, then signed up to volunteer one day a week with Yoga in Daily Life. When asked if I was available for three or six months, my reply was, “Oh no. I’m in for the long haul.”
How did I know? What was it that brought me in through that door with such a strong sense of belonging? The building had beckoned for years before I was free to attend my first Saturday yoga class. Then the standard of teaching and quality of teachers left me, as an educationalist, intrigued as to the foundations on which such quality was built. Even so, when I signed up on that Monday morning I wasn’t consciously aware of what I was really doing. I was joining an ashram.
Yesterday, sitting at my desk at the back of the kitchen, I was working on developing a protocol for external usage of the yoga halls. And the introduction gently reminded users that this was no simple yoga centre. This was an ashram. Then followed a sentence defining ashram as: a place where all are welcome to come and do something for the benefit of body, mind and soul.
The editor in me baulked at the phrase ‘do something’. It sounded so lame – so non-specific. There must be a better way of saying it.
Now someone else happened to be in the room, ‘doing something’ at the kitchen sink. As all writers do when they are stuck, I consulted. The ‘someone’ was fortuitously my philosophy teacher, colleague and mentor Yogasiddhi. “Ah,” she said. “That is a direct translation from Sanskrit asramah. ‘A’ means near and ‘shram’, from the root ‘sramati’ means to practise or do something.”
“Ah, hah!” went a deeper section in my brain, recognising the profound value in so many non-specific Sanskrit expressions, allowing as they do countless interpretations suited to our current level of understanding. So the phrase remained.
Early this morning it was quiet. A thought arose about a task I needed to perform today. On the program for tonight’s satsang was an entry for 6.55pm: Yogeshwari’s inspiring talk. It was time to get inspired. And up came the words I had so nearly deleted the previous afternoon: an ashram is a place where all are welcome to come and do something for the benefit of body, mind and soul.
What is it that we volunteers actually do? We sweep floors and rake up leaves, we come up with creative ideas for fund raising and follow them through, we research solutions to anything from retreat venues to suppliers of high quality mulch, we smile and welcome newcomers to our centre, we plan and implement a complete reconfiguration of the garden, we forge relationships with local media in order to effectively promote our classes and courses, we manage special events, implement effective search engine marketing, cook, photocopy, fold, laminate, build, repair, clean and polish, systematise, enter data, answer phones, take bookings, edit, stand in for each other, write protocols and procedures, handle money, coordinate wwoofers, twitter, use google adwords and … I would sum it with, “work on constant quality maintenance and quality improvement.”
The most challenging task I have so far been asked to do was introduce Swamiji when he was giving a public talk at the centre after an absence of a couple of years. I was well briefed, knew the important stages of the introduction, knew, in fact, what to say … but what on earth was I supposed to do! Bhakti is wise. Seeing my anxiety she gently explained my role: to make Swamiji feel relaxed and comfortable, to orientate him to the centre and the topic for the evening, and to respond to any needs or directions he might express. Recognising the “something I had to do” allowed me to do it.
What is that word ‘recognition’? It means knowing again, or becoming aware that we in fact already know something. I feel it is recognition that brings all of us to volunteer here, in this ashram. And what we are recognising is the tremendous importance of being born human, carrying with it as it does both the opportunity and responsibility for self-enquiry and self-improvement.
There is a beautiful bhajan that we sing at satsang composed by the mystic saint Kabir. It points out the fragility of this human life, this delicate shawl that has been so carefully woven for us. And how easily we can neglect and damage the shawl, leaving it dirty, full of torn threads and gaping holes.
As Kabir says, When my shawl was ready
I gave it to a dyer for dyeing:
And he dyed it with the softest of reds.
Don’t be shy about wearing this shawl,
It is given to you for just a few days.
Not knowing its secret, foolish people
Allow it to become dirtier day by day.
National Volunteer Week is all about recognition. But I feel what we are actually recognising … is recognition. And we who are recognising, and we who are being recognised, as well as what we are being recognised for, is all exactly the same. That is unity – the unity of yoga.
By volunteering at the ashram we are joining a community of wisdom, and by so doing, working at preserving and protecting the fragile weave of our precious shawl. There is even the potential for value adding, of enhancing the soft red of the dye until the shawl begins to glow.
So next time we are invited somewhere and it clashes with our volunteering, what answer are we going to give? We might say, “Sorry. I’m volunteering,” or, “Thursday is my ashram day.” Or we might just say, “Not possible. I’m doing something.”
by Yogeshwari
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Guru-Disciple Relationship by Paremeshwari
This essay is by Paremeshwari who is a student of the Yoga in Daily Life Philosophy and Teacher Training Course. It was written as part of her groups presentation of the Bagavad Gita.
GURU – DISCIPLE RELATIONSHIP
The Bhagavad Gita is the most insightful and inspiring example of guru-disciple relationship. In fact, the scripture itself is the result of this very relationship. Arjuna is the spiritual seeker…the good man who, as yet, is not steady in his wisdom, alluded by the restless mind that attributes and divides life into pleasant and unpleasant.
Sri Krishna is regarded as the supreme manifestation of the Creator Himself (just as Rama, he is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu) and represents the very highest aspect of ourselves so the part we long to identify with.
According to Mahabharata Krishna and Arjuna have been the great friends all their lives. Approaching the battle on the field of Khurushetra, Arjuna the warrior asks Krishna to become his charioteer and place his chariot in the middle of the battlefield so he could see his enemies closely.
Symbolically already here Krishna becomes Arjuna’s guide (Guru) but it is only later that the true surrendering of the disciple Arjuna, which will prompt (inspire) the exhilarating stream of wisdom know as Bhagavad Gita, takes place.
At first, at the very beginning of the scripture, Arjuna still holds onto his reasoning, logic and intellect – the toy-dolls of the ego that try to measure things and come to the appropriate solution.
After Krishna, on Arjuna’s request, places his chariot in between two armies, Arjuna who a moment ago was ready and resolute to fight suddenly becomes overwhelmed with fear, doubt & confusion. This is where Arjuna’s restless mind becomes noticeable. At one moment he is ready to embark into the inner battle but soon when given a chance trembles & finds millions of logical excuses (that could be easily acepted by un-alert mind) why not to do so.
At this point, the disciple’s ego is still too proud to show his weakness. He expresses his thoughts to Krishna but without asking for advice. Krishna listens and smiles. He keeps quite observing his disciples confusion. But what can a Guru do before the disciple is ready, before the disciple asks for the help.
In his commentary Swami Venkatesananda writes, and this is message that we should meditate upon:
“The Guru waits not only for the disciple to ask, but to get into the proper attitude of receptivity, surrendering him self as he comes to the end of his own intellectual resources, abandoning the solutions to the problems, discarding his knowledge, or better to say ignorance.”
“If spiritual knowledge is treated as a commodity, the seller (Guru) goes on his knees pleading with the prospective buyer (disciple) which makes the latter feel he is superior. He might condescend to buy, but remodels it to suit his taste, affixes his own label to it and re markets it.”
This is why Krishna waits. And the twist happens in verse 7 of the second chapter. Arjuna turns to Krishna and says:
“My heart is overpowered by the taint of pity, My mind is confused as to duty. I ask thee, tell me decisively what is good for me. I am thy disciple. Instruct me who has taken refuge in thee.”
Arjuna drops his ego's proudness, honestly reveals his weakness admitting he is unable to distinguish right from wrong and what is even more important recognizes that Krishna knows this answer. He asks for help and advice. He knocks on to the door of wisdom and enters the universe of spiritual truths and guides.
We should note here that it is not Krishna who says I am your Guru, but Arjuna who says, “I am your disciple.”
Lord Krishna who, as we’ve heard has been patient, silent and receptive now recognizes that the disciple is ready for the teachings and enlightenment. Now, as the clouds of ignorance have been removed, the rays of sun reach the disciple.
This is where the Gita truly starts, as Lord Krishna readily takes his disciple on the road of the highest revelation, instructing Arjuna on how to reach the highest goal of the spiritual development.
From this point on, it is Krishna who speaks. The disciple Arjuna remains mainly quite through the next 16 chapters asking only a few more, additional questions absorbing his guru’s rays of wisdom, keeping silent and focused.
The verse that we have heard, changes the direction of the whole journey through the Gita.
The beautiful and uplifting Guru-Disciple relationship presented to us by the Gita serves as a revelation of the importance of the master who can help us curb the restless tendency of the mind, overcome our own spiritual weakness and support as in making the right decision.
The Bhagavad Gita is the greatest of all moments in the history of the world, the moment when the yoga was revealed. Arjuna was the chosen channel. But the Gita belongs to all!
Krishna's words to Arjuna are the words of every Realised spiritual master to his disciples and sum up the thrilling and immortal promise each guru makes.
In Chapter 4 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna, who is the incarnation of God Vishnu, the preserver, reassures us that we will be taken care of at all times. When the spiritual truths become shaken and values changed he will come to set the world on the right path. In Chapter 4 this is clearly stated when Krishna says that ‘God takes incarnation to establish righteousness in the world’.
He reveals that he has lived through many births, always teaching Yoga for the protection of the pious and the destruction of the impious and stresses the importance of accepting a guru.
“In each age the guru comes to make man aware of his divinity, to free man from his bondage and to lift him to a higher plane of being. The disciples effort in transcending and purifying his own nature is not confined to a passive and stoic endurance of challenges encountered with his guru, but extends actively into every area of his life - meditation, service, every aspect of his existence is his sadhana. He comes to welcome difficulties as a reflection of his own attachments and expectations, and learns not to cling, to let go of these parts of himself. He begins to realise that his life is really an extended workshop on God-Realisation, and that every hardship or problem simply presents him with another opportunity to achieve progress through surrender and desirelessness. His life becomes a meditation in action, increasingly centred in the consciousness that is growing within him.”
This is the karma yoga of the Bhagavad Gita.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
YOGA IN DAILY LIFE - A VISION FOR OUR GARDENS
With the help of our wonderful volunteers, we have developed our gardens outside Yoga in Daily Life. Before Christmas the watering system was installed and locally provenced plants planted in the side gardens. Once the hot weather is over we will start work on the front garden. Here are the reasons why we are why we are transforming the gardens outside Yoga in Daily Life, 102 Booth St, Annandale.....
With global warming becoming ever more a reality and drought the norm - even in Annandale - regular attendees to the Ashram will have noticed how very dry the soil in our gardens has become, despite watering, and that there are bare patches where greenery once was.
Over the last year or so, a few of us have been thinking about a vision for the Ashram garden. In essence, it is to turn it into a little gem of biodiversity - a small area of environmental cohesion and harmony that links biologically to native vegetation in surrounding areas and suburbs - eg White's Creek, Balmain High School grounds, Callan Park, and ultimately to areas along the Parramatta and Lane Cove River Catchments.
Within this vision, the aim is to replace most of the non-native plants and weeds, and re-plant with native plants (mostly) endemic to the greater area surrounding Leichhardt Municipal Council. It is hoped this will encourage not only larger native birds (eg wattle birds, butcher birds, lorikeets, and yes, noisy miners) but the smaller ones which have in recent years become harder to find - eg fairy wrens, honey eaters and silver eyes. It is also hoped this environment will encourage insects and smaller reptiles such as blue tongue lizards thus restoring some balance.
At present we're focusing on the main, west-facing garden - in Alfred Street and now it's underway, we'll work on the front (Booth Street) garden.
The plan is to:
· remove the remaining weeds and "introduced" (ie non-native) plants
· insert an irrigation (drip) system just beneath the surface of the ground to help keep the soil moist when needed and as cost-efficiently as possible
· move the compost bin nearer to the other bins (and possibly exchange the current one for a different style)
· mulch the garden to retain moisture and keep weeds down
· plant suitable native plants (flowering shrubs and ground covers for the birds and reptiles) over several weeks.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Tapas and the Woody Pear
Xylomelum pyriforme is commonly known as the woody pear tree. A member of the Protea family, it grows in a narrow strip of coastal New South Wales, northwards from the Sydney Basin.
The distinctive fruit of the Woody Pear Tree is an extremely hard, pear-shaped seed case about 9 cm long. Protected deep within lie two winged seeds, prized by Aboriginal people as a food source.
The plants are slow growing and take twenty years to flower from seed - and seeds are few and far between. For it takes the searing heat of a bushfire for the wooden fruit to split open. Then the seeds can fly free and fall to the ground. Slowly spinning their way down they find a patch of sandy soil and enough moisture to aid germination. Then new life begins.
A woody pear tree grew in the front garden of my childhood home in North Balgowlah. Several attempts were made by curious visitors and family friends to cut open the exotic wooden fruits, but the hardwood casing was extremely difficult to crack. We knew the tree to be rare and called it the hard pear tree.
Today I would call it the tapasya tree. Like the winged seeds of the woody pear, our inner seed, the atma, lies protected by layer upon layer of dense coverings. These are the kosas. Safe within we develop and grow – until the time when we outgrow the protective casings and need to leave them behind. This is not an easy process. Only by purification can the layers be cleared and their influence removed.
Swamiji teaches us that purifying the first layer, the annamaya kosa or covering of nourishment, is achieved by eating pure sattvic food. Next comes pranamaya kosa. Through regular practice of pranayama and living in a pure environment, our prana can be purified. The manomaya kosa is the covering of the mind. Use of mantra and attending satsang helps with purification of this layer. The fourth covering is vijnanamaya kosa, the covering of the intellect – that constant voice of doubt. Through svadhyaya and spiritual practice, doubt is removed. The last layer is anandamaya kosa, the covering of bliss. It is through renunciation that this layer can be purified and removed.
What is renunciation? It is the conscious, voluntary abandonment of something that we have a right to. It involves a sense of sacrifice, of surrendering what is prized or valued for the sake of something more pressing , or of a higher claim.
In order to reach the highest goal, reunion with the supreme consciousness, it is necessary to “renounce” the very real but fleeting pleasures that we feel give meaning to our daily existence. These pleasures can be found in states of bliss, in intellectual pursuits, in the mischief of the mind, in the connection we feel to the life force with our every breath, and in the responses of our finely tuned senses to warmth and touch, to food and essential oils, to music and art.
Of course our life will continue to offer us all of these – and we will continue to partake of them. But if one day we find ourselves cold instead of warm, so what? The realisation comes that our inner reality is in no way affected by this, for our core happiness does not depend upon ephemeral pleasures.
So how do we reduce our attachment to these pleasures? With simplicity and self-control, with strictness and determination to stay on the chosen path, using willpower to live up to the knowledge we hold of what truly is Reality.
This is tapas – a discipline, an attitude, a lifestyle.
The fundamental importance of tapas is evident by its appearing twice in Patanjali’s scientific investigation of Raja Yoga, The Yoga Sutras. Tapas constitutes one of the three kriya yoga practices (yoga in action) outlined by Patanjali in the sutra that introduces Chapter 2.
II.1 tapah svadhyaya ‘svara pranidhananam kriya yogah
The kindling of the inner psychic fire, the study both of spiritual texts and of one’s own reactions, moment to moment, and the meaningful, dynamic and devotional surrender to the indwelling omnipresence – these constitute active yoga or the practice of indivisible unity.
The purpose of undertaking these kriya practices is to remove obstacles - the psychological obstacles that impede our natural predisposition to Samadhi. And the greatest obstacle is the sense of ego.
Tapas is also one of the five observances classified by Patanjali as niyamas. It appears together with sauca (cleanliness), santosa (contentment), syadhyaya (study of spiritual texts) and Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender to God) as an essential observance to underlie all of our spiritual development and practice.
Tapas does not only imply austerity and renunciation. It also means burning. So tapas is any practice that burns up our samskaras, the memories and experiences that bind us strongly to ego and create a division between us and Reality.
Burning is a powerful means of purification. The kosas that enshroud the atma can be thought of as windows that are dirty or fogged up. The light of the atma always shines, but depending on the extent of the fog or dirt, little or no light may actually shine through. Layer upon layer of attachment to our mental conditioning is what “fogs up” the windows.
It takes the searing heat of a bushfire for the woody pear to split in two, revealing the seeds within. Likewise it takes the great heat of the practice of tapas to purify the colouring of the mindstuff and split apart the limitations imposed by our misperceptions of reality.
We assume we know what is truth. We take pride in our achievements. We value the beliefs and practices passed down to us by our family and culture. But if it is our time and privilege to learn, we encounter a situation that challenges over and again our sense of truth, that tears down our pride and pulls the rug from under the values and practices we have assumed to be unshakable. Layer upon layer is painfully stripped away leaving a vulnerable interior – yet an interior that is ripe for new growth.
It is not necessary to wait for the wildfire of life’s circumstances to lay bare the inner seed. There is also the choice of controlled burning – of consciously nurturing tapas. Each hurt, each injustice that makes us burn with indignation, is an opportunity for cultivating self-awareness. Under the spotlight of intelligence, intelligence concentrated through the practices of Raja Yoga, energy is harnessed to break through the judgements and evaluations that up until now have constituted our understanding of reality.
Sutra II.1 encourages kindling of the inner psychic fire. This lifetime may or may not deal out to us what we require for our spiritual growth. By kindling the fire we actively participate in the process and take one step closer towards our goal.
II.28 yoga ‘ngan anusthanad asuddhi ksaye jnana diptira viveka khyateh
When the inner psychic impurities that becloud the vision of truth
have been eliminated by the intelligent practice of yoga,
then awareness shines resplendent with the light of intelligence.
Yogeshwari
Raja Yoga Philosophy Module
July 09
The distinctive fruit of the Woody Pear Tree is an extremely hard, pear-shaped seed case about 9 cm long. Protected deep within lie two winged seeds, prized by Aboriginal people as a food source.
The plants are slow growing and take twenty years to flower from seed - and seeds are few and far between. For it takes the searing heat of a bushfire for the wooden fruit to split open. Then the seeds can fly free and fall to the ground. Slowly spinning their way down they find a patch of sandy soil and enough moisture to aid germination. Then new life begins.
A woody pear tree grew in the front garden of my childhood home in North Balgowlah. Several attempts were made by curious visitors and family friends to cut open the exotic wooden fruits, but the hardwood casing was extremely difficult to crack. We knew the tree to be rare and called it the hard pear tree.
Today I would call it the tapasya tree. Like the winged seeds of the woody pear, our inner seed, the atma, lies protected by layer upon layer of dense coverings. These are the kosas. Safe within we develop and grow – until the time when we outgrow the protective casings and need to leave them behind. This is not an easy process. Only by purification can the layers be cleared and their influence removed.
Swamiji teaches us that purifying the first layer, the annamaya kosa or covering of nourishment, is achieved by eating pure sattvic food. Next comes pranamaya kosa. Through regular practice of pranayama and living in a pure environment, our prana can be purified. The manomaya kosa is the covering of the mind. Use of mantra and attending satsang helps with purification of this layer. The fourth covering is vijnanamaya kosa, the covering of the intellect – that constant voice of doubt. Through svadhyaya and spiritual practice, doubt is removed. The last layer is anandamaya kosa, the covering of bliss. It is through renunciation that this layer can be purified and removed.
What is renunciation? It is the conscious, voluntary abandonment of something that we have a right to. It involves a sense of sacrifice, of surrendering what is prized or valued for the sake of something more pressing , or of a higher claim.
In order to reach the highest goal, reunion with the supreme consciousness, it is necessary to “renounce” the very real but fleeting pleasures that we feel give meaning to our daily existence. These pleasures can be found in states of bliss, in intellectual pursuits, in the mischief of the mind, in the connection we feel to the life force with our every breath, and in the responses of our finely tuned senses to warmth and touch, to food and essential oils, to music and art.
Of course our life will continue to offer us all of these – and we will continue to partake of them. But if one day we find ourselves cold instead of warm, so what? The realisation comes that our inner reality is in no way affected by this, for our core happiness does not depend upon ephemeral pleasures.
So how do we reduce our attachment to these pleasures? With simplicity and self-control, with strictness and determination to stay on the chosen path, using willpower to live up to the knowledge we hold of what truly is Reality.
This is tapas – a discipline, an attitude, a lifestyle.
The fundamental importance of tapas is evident by its appearing twice in Patanjali’s scientific investigation of Raja Yoga, The Yoga Sutras. Tapas constitutes one of the three kriya yoga practices (yoga in action) outlined by Patanjali in the sutra that introduces Chapter 2.
II.1 tapah svadhyaya ‘svara pranidhananam kriya yogah
The kindling of the inner psychic fire, the study both of spiritual texts and of one’s own reactions, moment to moment, and the meaningful, dynamic and devotional surrender to the indwelling omnipresence – these constitute active yoga or the practice of indivisible unity.
The purpose of undertaking these kriya practices is to remove obstacles - the psychological obstacles that impede our natural predisposition to Samadhi. And the greatest obstacle is the sense of ego.
Tapas is also one of the five observances classified by Patanjali as niyamas. It appears together with sauca (cleanliness), santosa (contentment), syadhyaya (study of spiritual texts) and Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender to God) as an essential observance to underlie all of our spiritual development and practice.
Tapas does not only imply austerity and renunciation. It also means burning. So tapas is any practice that burns up our samskaras, the memories and experiences that bind us strongly to ego and create a division between us and Reality.
Burning is a powerful means of purification. The kosas that enshroud the atma can be thought of as windows that are dirty or fogged up. The light of the atma always shines, but depending on the extent of the fog or dirt, little or no light may actually shine through. Layer upon layer of attachment to our mental conditioning is what “fogs up” the windows.
It takes the searing heat of a bushfire for the woody pear to split in two, revealing the seeds within. Likewise it takes the great heat of the practice of tapas to purify the colouring of the mindstuff and split apart the limitations imposed by our misperceptions of reality.
We assume we know what is truth. We take pride in our achievements. We value the beliefs and practices passed down to us by our family and culture. But if it is our time and privilege to learn, we encounter a situation that challenges over and again our sense of truth, that tears down our pride and pulls the rug from under the values and practices we have assumed to be unshakable. Layer upon layer is painfully stripped away leaving a vulnerable interior – yet an interior that is ripe for new growth.
It is not necessary to wait for the wildfire of life’s circumstances to lay bare the inner seed. There is also the choice of controlled burning – of consciously nurturing tapas. Each hurt, each injustice that makes us burn with indignation, is an opportunity for cultivating self-awareness. Under the spotlight of intelligence, intelligence concentrated through the practices of Raja Yoga, energy is harnessed to break through the judgements and evaluations that up until now have constituted our understanding of reality.
Sutra II.1 encourages kindling of the inner psychic fire. This lifetime may or may not deal out to us what we require for our spiritual growth. By kindling the fire we actively participate in the process and take one step closer towards our goal.
II.28 yoga ‘ngan anusthanad asuddhi ksaye jnana diptira viveka khyateh
When the inner psychic impurities that becloud the vision of truth
have been eliminated by the intelligent practice of yoga,
then awareness shines resplendent with the light of intelligence.
Yogeshwari
Raja Yoga Philosophy Module
July 09
Friday, June 19, 2009
Live now in the present
Live now in the present. Do not brood about the past. Yesterday is gone and never again comes back. Also, do not dream about a "better" future. The future is still not here and we will never reach it, for the future is only ever the present. Tomorrow remains tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow always remains the day after tomorrow. Always live only in the now. When we are conscious of this we will have overcome time and live in its midst as the observer and witness of all change.
Taken from a lecture by H.H. Vishwaguru Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda (founder of Yoga in Daily Life) - view the spiritual lectures given by Swamiji on swamiji.tv
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