This post is from an article i wrote in 2010- this week our theme was balance so I thought it would be appropriate to share again.
Asana and the Zero Point
In the Mongolian creation myth, the world was created when a wild, male dog mated with a female deer. The wild dog was fierce, powerful and aggressive and the doe was gentle, sensitive and intuitive.
Out of this marriage of opposites limitless love was created. The state of balance precedes the Genesis moment.
Recently, in my Yoga teacher training program, we considered the question What is the purpose of asana? Those things that normally come to mind like strength building, the cultivation of flexibility, weight loss, increasing stamina and endurance, etc. are true, yet these benefits are just a small part of the larger, more profound gifts of asana.
If we look at the name for the practice of asana, pranayama and conscious relaxation, Hatha Yoga, we see balance as the purpose of asana. Ha=Sun and Tha=Moon. Hatha Yoga is to balance the polarities of sun and moon physically, mentally and energetically. As we balance the polar opposites of strength and flexibility, thinking and feeling, doing and nondoing, in breath and out breath, left brain and right brain, sthiram and sukham, prana and apana, pingala and ida, Shiva and Shakti, we set the stage for the greatest goal of Yoga to be experienced, Enlightenment. Enlightenment is the realization of our greatest potential, the state of communion and grace. It is only by the balancing of these polarities that Kundalini Shakti, the great, dormant creative force, awakens and begins Her evolutionary ascent through the chakras.
The moon must be made steady in order for the sun to rise.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
The moon represents the mind, chitta, and the sun represents energy, prana. In order for Kundalini Shakti to rise, we must bring the mind to a state of harmony and tranquility. Swami Satchidananda tells us that the asanas make the body healthy enough and the mind peaceful enough so that we are able to sit in meditation. Meditation is perhaps the most efficient tool to create a tranquil mind.
The purpose of Hatha Yoga is to give you the knowledge of controlling these two energies: “ha” and “tha” (prana and apana). Without that knowledge it is very difficult to gain that control over the mind which is called Raja Yoga. Raja Yoga deals with the mind, Hatha Yoga works with the prana and apana. Many students make the mistake of considering Hatha Yoga to be mainly asanas, when actually asana is only one of the eight steps of Hatha Yoga. Furthermore, there is no real difference between Hatha Yoga and Raja Yoga. There is no possibility of attaining Raja Yoga without the practice of Hatha Yoga and vice versa.
Swami Vishnu Devananda
Seeking balance is the path of the Yogi. The state of balance is like the zero point on the number line. Zero is nestled peacefully between the positive integers and the negative integers that extend infinitely in both directions. It is a state which is both full and empty simultaneously- a state of infinite possibility and pure potential. There is a reason that the model of the 3 main nadis in the body- ida, pingala and sushumna- looks curiously like the double helix of DNA. It is through this apparatus that we create a new reality- a life of meaning and fulfillment. The Genesis act was not a one time, isolated event. Genesis happens all the time for Yogis.
The master Patanjali speaks of balance as the path and the goal of asana.
Asana is a steady, comfortable posture.
Sutra 2.46 translated by Swami Satchidananda
On the mat we seek to harmonize sthira, strength and steadiness in posture, with sukham, comfort and ease. We attempt to balance the world of form, structure and alignment with the world of formlessness, feeling and energy. We journey to the realm of form with external awareness- my foot goes here, my pelvis tilts this way or that- and with focus on structure and alignment in asana. We experience the world of formlessness with breath awareness and internal focus and sensitivity. Magic happens on the mat when the two worlds collide and our practice is illuminated with both form and freedom, structure and shakti.
The most successful yoga teachers I know are those who find balance in instructing asana as well. They are both strict and loving simultaneously.
By lessening the natural tendency for restlessness and by meditating on the infinite, posture is mastered.
Sutra 2.47 translated by Swami Satchidananda
Swami Satchidananda and Patanjali tell us that asana is mastered by meditation on the infinite. The word for infinite is ananta. Ananta is also the archetypal serpent deity on which Lord Vishnu rests. The stories of the deities are to teach us lessons. The story of Ananta is that when Lord Shiva was teaching Parvati yoga asanas they heard a rustling in the jungle. Ananta, the serpent, was discovered eavesdropping on Shiva and Parvati. Lord Shiva was angry with Ananta and told him that his punishment would be to go to the humans and teach them what he had overheard, but Shiva told Ananta that the humans would be frightened of him in his current form so he was also instructed to take human form to teach yoga to humanity. Ananta’s human incarnation was the master Patanjali. Ananta is depicted with the entire material universe balanced perfectly on his head and the divine in the form of Vishnu rests nestled in his lap. Ananta teaches us about balance in life. Yogis are master jugglers. We perform the ultimate balancing act. We move through life performing our material world obligations with the divine sitting in our laps, in the state of grace. Meditation on Ananta also teaches us that sometimes radical transformation is required in order to manifest our greatest potential.
Thereafter, one is undisturbed by dualities.
Sutra 2.48 translated by Swami Satchidananda
The pairs of opposites, the dvandvas, belong to the physical and mental realms. Physically the dvandvas represent hot and cold, hunger and thirst, pleasure and pain, and so on. Mentally, the pairs of opposites are the ever changing emotional states we experience. With mastery of asana, the Yogi finds herself steady in the midst of change. We experience ourselves as larger than the pairs of opposites and find a part of ourselves that is beyond suffering.
In the bigger picture, the pairs of opposites represent the state of duality that makes us believe that we are separate from our source. As we move toward balance, we move from darkness to the light of understanding that union with the divine is possible. In fact, it was there all along.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
Labor Day Schedule 2012
Labor Day Schedule: 9 am All Levels Flow with Shri on Monday (4 pm and 6 pm cancelled)
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Guru Purnima 2012
Tasmai sri guruveynamaha! I honor my teacher Guruji Divyananda Saraswati, who left his body in 2002.
Today is Guru Purnima- a day to celebrate the fullness of your teacher- the good and the bad- they are only human.
Here is an interview with my Guruji from years ago:
Hinduism Today: Swamiji, please tell us about life in the Himalayas.
Swami Divyananda: I dreamed of the Himalayas from my early years. Above Badrinath I found a valley, just three mountains on three sides with one big river flowing and some small streams. I said, "This place is meant for me. Lord Siva is there. He will take care of me."
HT: Do you get visitors?
Swamiji: Sometimes sadhus visit the cottage. It is our pleasure sometimes to prepare seventy glasses of tea in one day. But for weeks, when it is cold, nobody comes.
HT: What do you do for heat?
Swamiji: Nothing in particular. I live in a sort of refrigerator. My God, it gets very, very cold. Sometimes, I tell you, I slept at night with my knees joined to my neck.
HT: We've heard stories that there are sadhus in the Himalayas that are 100, 200 years old. Have you ever met such sadhus?
Swamiji: Yes, in my meditation I have met persons like that. Actually, they live in their astral body, not in the physical body. Under divine command they live to help other sadhakas who really deserve their help. Sometimes in my meditations I have met such sages, some very ancient sages.
HT: What do you meditate on?
Swamiji: Meditation can be on form, on name, on quality and on the Absolute Reality. So I do all the meditations according to my mood. When I do my own meditation, then I go very deep. We may call it root meditation. One hour I do pranayama, and other things.
HT: Were you ever married?
Swamiji: Yes, I was married. My wife and my husband is always with me, because I am married to God. There is no fear of divorce!
HT: Please tell us about your guru.
Swamiji: He was Sri Swami Abhinava Satchitanand Tirtha Swamiji Maharaj. the Shankaracharya of Dwarka Mutt. My guru had only two monk disciples. He was a very highly God-Realized soul. I had a vision of him in my dream before I met him. When I met him, I recognized him and he also recognized me. My guru used to run many institutions, colleges and children's schools. My Guruji wanted me to take up [the leadership of the Mutt]. He was my guru, I couldn't disobey him. I told my guru, "I will do whatever you want. I spent my whole life in society, and now I have gone to the Himalayas for solitude. You are my guru. I do not want to conceal my feelings from you. But I want to stay in solitude." He understood and gave his blessings.
HT: What is the Swami Divyananda Sharda Foundation?
Swamiji: I had some money from before my renunciation which I gave to make an institution and to give scholarships to willing, God-minded students. To receive a scholarship the student must be of a religious mind, single and have faith in our Hindu culture and religion. There are three things it does: educational service; social service, such as in calamities, floods and famine; and dispensing spiritual knowledge amongst the people.
HT: What sampradaya do you adhere to?
Swamiji: It is very difficult to answer this question. People often ask me, "Swami, to what do you belong?" I tell them, "Let me think for a while." I think that I belong to all sampradayas, because I accept the basic teachings of all. The basic teachings are not different. The aim of sampradayas is to reach God. I worship the Mother aspect of God. Now in my present level of, you can say, God consciousness, I don't see any difference anywhere. Wherever I go, I see the same deity. I go to all temples. I worship all Gods.
HT: How do you keep so young?
Swamiji: The first thing is brahmachariya, self-control. Second thing is a very pure diet, simple food. For the last 42 years I have been living on fresh fruits and vegetables. I eat only enough for my hunger to be satisfied. One thing more is my belief in God. I believe my primary responsibility is to do my duty to God. I should not worry about what comes in the end. I believe in His justice, in His fearlessness. With that attitude mentally I am very free, very easy in mind and heart.
HT: What are your observations on the West?
Swamiji: Internally I don't see any difference. For me the Divinity there is the same Divinity here. But externally there is a difference. God is the one truth, and yet God can express Himself in many ways. The Himalayas is the austerity aspect of God and North America is the luxury aspect of God. So it is all Divine.
HT: What is your insight into the relationship between Muslims and Hindus in India?
Swamiji: Just as love begets love, fanaticism begets fanaticism. If you find any fanaticism in Hindu religion, it is not because Hindus are fanatics. It is because fanaticism begets fanaticism. So fanaticism has to go from all sides. Certain mistakes were made by the [founding] political leaders of India, initial mistakes, great blunders, I would say. Indian society has had to reap the consequences. Secularism does not mean Godlessness. You have to believe in God. You have to respect your way, and you have to show respect to others. That is the meaning of secularism. You don't discard God, religion and all truth and philosophy in the name of secularism. This was a wrong meaning of secularism that they took, and this is the cause of all the present maladies. They forgot that all ethics is contained in religion. In the name of secularism they removed all religion and the good teachings of our ancient seers and sages from the students' books and courses. That was very unfortunate. It is not easy to set things right now. Cooperation and understanding have to be developed.
Today is Guru Purnima- a day to celebrate the fullness of your teacher- the good and the bad- they are only human.
Here is an interview with my Guruji from years ago:
Hinduism Today: Swamiji, please tell us about life in the Himalayas.
Swami Divyananda: I dreamed of the Himalayas from my early years. Above Badrinath I found a valley, just three mountains on three sides with one big river flowing and some small streams. I said, "This place is meant for me. Lord Siva is there. He will take care of me."
HT: Do you get visitors?
Swamiji: Sometimes sadhus visit the cottage. It is our pleasure sometimes to prepare seventy glasses of tea in one day. But for weeks, when it is cold, nobody comes.
HT: What do you do for heat?
Swamiji: Nothing in particular. I live in a sort of refrigerator. My God, it gets very, very cold. Sometimes, I tell you, I slept at night with my knees joined to my neck.
HT: We've heard stories that there are sadhus in the Himalayas that are 100, 200 years old. Have you ever met such sadhus?
Swamiji: Yes, in my meditation I have met persons like that. Actually, they live in their astral body, not in the physical body. Under divine command they live to help other sadhakas who really deserve their help. Sometimes in my meditations I have met such sages, some very ancient sages.
HT: What do you meditate on?
Swamiji: Meditation can be on form, on name, on quality and on the Absolute Reality. So I do all the meditations according to my mood. When I do my own meditation, then I go very deep. We may call it root meditation. One hour I do pranayama, and other things.
HT: Were you ever married?
Swamiji: Yes, I was married. My wife and my husband is always with me, because I am married to God. There is no fear of divorce!
HT: Please tell us about your guru.
Swamiji: He was Sri Swami Abhinava Satchitanand Tirtha Swamiji Maharaj. the Shankaracharya of Dwarka Mutt. My guru had only two monk disciples. He was a very highly God-Realized soul. I had a vision of him in my dream before I met him. When I met him, I recognized him and he also recognized me. My guru used to run many institutions, colleges and children's schools. My Guruji wanted me to take up [the leadership of the Mutt]. He was my guru, I couldn't disobey him. I told my guru, "I will do whatever you want. I spent my whole life in society, and now I have gone to the Himalayas for solitude. You are my guru. I do not want to conceal my feelings from you. But I want to stay in solitude." He understood and gave his blessings.
HT: What is the Swami Divyananda Sharda Foundation?
Swamiji: I had some money from before my renunciation which I gave to make an institution and to give scholarships to willing, God-minded students. To receive a scholarship the student must be of a religious mind, single and have faith in our Hindu culture and religion. There are three things it does: educational service; social service, such as in calamities, floods and famine; and dispensing spiritual knowledge amongst the people.
HT: What sampradaya do you adhere to?
Swamiji: It is very difficult to answer this question. People often ask me, "Swami, to what do you belong?" I tell them, "Let me think for a while." I think that I belong to all sampradayas, because I accept the basic teachings of all. The basic teachings are not different. The aim of sampradayas is to reach God. I worship the Mother aspect of God. Now in my present level of, you can say, God consciousness, I don't see any difference anywhere. Wherever I go, I see the same deity. I go to all temples. I worship all Gods.
HT: How do you keep so young?
Swamiji: The first thing is brahmachariya, self-control. Second thing is a very pure diet, simple food. For the last 42 years I have been living on fresh fruits and vegetables. I eat only enough for my hunger to be satisfied. One thing more is my belief in God. I believe my primary responsibility is to do my duty to God. I should not worry about what comes in the end. I believe in His justice, in His fearlessness. With that attitude mentally I am very free, very easy in mind and heart.
HT: What are your observations on the West?
Swamiji: Internally I don't see any difference. For me the Divinity there is the same Divinity here. But externally there is a difference. God is the one truth, and yet God can express Himself in many ways. The Himalayas is the austerity aspect of God and North America is the luxury aspect of God. So it is all Divine.
HT: What is your insight into the relationship between Muslims and Hindus in India?
Swamiji: Just as love begets love, fanaticism begets fanaticism. If you find any fanaticism in Hindu religion, it is not because Hindus are fanatics. It is because fanaticism begets fanaticism. So fanaticism has to go from all sides. Certain mistakes were made by the [founding] political leaders of India, initial mistakes, great blunders, I would say. Indian society has had to reap the consequences. Secularism does not mean Godlessness. You have to believe in God. You have to respect your way, and you have to show respect to others. That is the meaning of secularism. You don't discard God, religion and all truth and philosophy in the name of secularism. This was a wrong meaning of secularism that they took, and this is the cause of all the present maladies. They forgot that all ethics is contained in religion. In the name of secularism they removed all religion and the good teachings of our ancient seers and sages from the students' books and courses. That was very unfortunate. It is not easy to set things right now. Cooperation and understanding have to be developed.
Monday, July 2, 2012
4th of July Holiday Schedule
Happy Holiday!
21 Day 200 Hour Teacher Training Intensive with Shri
go to http://www.elcocolocoresort.com/ to register.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Wade in the Water
Kali is the archetypal deity who embodies the energy of the second chakra and water. She is considered one of the Dasa Maha Vidyas- the 10 great goddesses of Tantra. The word vidya means science. The 10 great goddesses are scientific concepts rather than religious concepts in that with Tantra we have equations where we perform A and B and then C is created. And the equations are able to be replicated consistently just like in any good scientific experiment.
When we use techniques like mantra we are able to align ourselves with the energy of Kali and therefore water. Kali is often depicted with her tongue out- she teaches us to taste all the flavors that life has to offer- sometimes what we first consider bad may turn out to be good.
Bob Marley said some people feel the rain and others just get wet. Kali urges us to stick our tongues out and taste, savor and feel the rain of life- all the ever changing weather patterns of emotions and life circumstance.
To quote my friend Sydney (who just became a big sister!)
Sometimes you get what you get and you don't pitch a fit.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
When is more really more?
If one down dog is good then 10 down dogs would be better, right? When is more really more in a Yoga practice?
Pranams to Candace Bushnell. (creator of Sex in the City) I was single and watching Sex in the City years ago- Carrie was a writer and would often start the show trying to write her column which often began with a question. This was one of the first tv shows that depicted powerful single women really as independant creatures and I identified strongly and cheered them on. But, I digress......
Back to down dog- I do not practice Yoga nor teach Yoga for physical fitness. Physical healing and physical fitness are certainly part of the process but in the bigger picture- Yoga is a means toward radical transformation and growth- at the individual level and the global level. The techniques on the Yoga mat which facilitate transformation most powerfully are those which quiet the mind and/ or raise energy (prana). Yoga asanas are introductory techniques in order to create a foundation for the practice of the more powerful techniques. The most powerful techniques on the mat are Pranayama -making different choices regarding breath, Bandha- the physical muscular engagements particularly in the core which raise energy, Sanskrit Chants- which harness the power of sound for healing and balance and Meditation- the observation of the workings of the mind which over time transforms the nature of mind. More really is more with these techniques.
Pranams to Candace Bushnell. (creator of Sex in the City) I was single and watching Sex in the City years ago- Carrie was a writer and would often start the show trying to write her column which often began with a question. This was one of the first tv shows that depicted powerful single women really as independant creatures and I identified strongly and cheered them on. But, I digress......
Back to down dog- I do not practice Yoga nor teach Yoga for physical fitness. Physical healing and physical fitness are certainly part of the process but in the bigger picture- Yoga is a means toward radical transformation and growth- at the individual level and the global level. The techniques on the Yoga mat which facilitate transformation most powerfully are those which quiet the mind and/ or raise energy (prana). Yoga asanas are introductory techniques in order to create a foundation for the practice of the more powerful techniques. The most powerful techniques on the mat are Pranayama -making different choices regarding breath, Bandha- the physical muscular engagements particularly in the core which raise energy, Sanskrit Chants- which harness the power of sound for healing and balance and Meditation- the observation of the workings of the mind which over time transforms the nature of mind. More really is more with these techniques.
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