Swami Satyananda Saraswati, my Guru and founder of the Bihar School of Yoga, spent twelve years in Swami Sivananda’s ashram. In that period, he found that many persons wrote to Swami Sivananda, asking for help and treatment for their health problems. He would suggest that they practice Yoga. Continue reading
We all have this image of Shiva meditating and we wish we could go into this wonderful state. However, the path to reach a meditative state is full of pebbles and sharp stones. Our conscious, subconscious and unconscious thoughts are the thorns, which are in the way. Continue reading
Swami Niranjananda explains the importance of performing sadhana in a classic meditative pose. There is a technique called Yantra pranayama, which is to be practiced in Kaya Sthairyam. I have written about it and there is a YouTube of mine on it. However, dear ones, I will refresh your memory. It is a guided meditation, where one learns to become still and comfortable. Its origin is in Yoga. Kaya Sthairyam is also a wonderful standalone practice. Continue reading
We are influenced by our senses. They are affected by what is happening on social media. New phrases are being used on social media, and they can change our life. Continue reading
When you peel a fruit, the inner flesh is beautiful. Take the watermelon, the mango, the dragon fruit and so many others.
Peel the layers of yourself and who emerges? Have you considered this, that when we remove the layers of our persona, who is there? Let us examine how we see ourselves? Continue reading
Shiva and Parvati had an equal relationship, so why is it that it cannot be emulated by the human and animal species. I am so cross about what happened this morning. Continue reading
When one is starting the practice of Yoga, one is thinking only about one’s physical well-being. There is so much more to the practice and when one starts one experiences the benefits and realizes the power behind it. The sadhana is better than a sugar rush. It is simple, one learns to be aware, centered and detached, without pressure. It sounds complex but it is easy as a pie. Continue reading
Your inner Guru is located in your heart, in the Hyrdaya. It is said that one’s consciousness resides there. How does one awaken consciousness? One’s consciousness is awakened with the blessings of the Guru. One’s Guru is always with one and he/she is like the guiding star. Continue reading
Ananthasayana is the lord of the creative energy. One glance from him grants material energy, the prana to give birth to all organic and inorganic matter. He is Vishnu, the sustainer and he is often portrayed as sleeping on the cosmic serpent that coils itself into a bed, positioning its many heads as a canopy. The Sesa Naga is identical to Vishnu, who is also known as Naga Sayana. Continue reading
In Satyananda Yoga Asana and Pranayama are the first and second steps. These steps give one an understanding of annamaya kosha, the experience of matter and pranayama kosha, the experience of energy. The balancing of matter and energy is enabled through the practice of asanas and pranayama the third and fourth step, the practice of pratyahara and dharana are taught, in order to make the mind one pointed. Continue reading
Basant means one who bestows wishes and season of spring. Spring is about new beginnings and transformations. Panchami means the fifth day of the Hindu lunar month in the Hindu calendar marking the beginning of winter’s end and the coming of spring. And in the western calendar it is January—February. Continue reading
Is it possible to become aware by the daily practice of Asanas and pranayama? When we have finished our sadhana, do we rush off into our daily life activities? Do we snap at our children, dogs, partner and our colleagues? Do we feel empathy for someone who is not able to perform a task properly? There are so many daily issues and how do we react to them? Continue reading
The lotus is the most powerful symbol of spirituality, beauty, fertility and prosperity. According to Hinduism within each of us is the spirit of the lotus. It is the Anahata chakra or Hrit Padma (heart-lotus), which is the gateway to our soul. The Anahata chakra is described as blue. Continue reading
According to my Guru, keep aside ten minutes for meditation every morning. Decide where you want to fix your mind. Do you want to fix it on a candle flame, or a Yantra? Be only aware of that and nothing else. When the mind is concentrated and one pointed even for a second, then one undergoes a wonderful experience. Continue reading
The sadhana in Satyananda Yoga is different to Patanjali’s eight-fold system. An explanation is given for the purification of the five sheaths which enclose our spirit. Asana and pranayama are the first and second steps which give us an understanding of Annamaya Kosha (sheath). Continue reading