I have written about the Samvrit Pranayama so many times. Yesterday I came across it in a Whodunit novel. It was called Combat breathing. It took me by surprise. The assassin was practicing combat breathing, inhale to the count of 4, pause to the count of four, exhale to the count of four and pause to the count of four. Continue reading
Space between the breaths, the Dvadashanta
Focus on the space within the breaths. It can be after the inhalation or after the exhalation. Breathe in and out and try to focus on that space. You may see it or you may feel it. Take a few minutes. What is that space like? Is it still? When you focus on the stillness, the stillness will get unstill; thoughts will come in. When you breathe again, you will get back to it. Inside or outside it is the same point. This space is 12 finger widths down one’s nose until one reaches the region of the heart. This is the inner Dvadashanta, where the in breath ends. Similarly, if one measures outer breath coming out of the nostrils, it will be 12 finger width again. The space where it ends is called the outer Dvadashanta. Continue reading
The mind is like the wind. You’re trying to stop the wind, dressed as a kite. How are you going to do it? – Mooji
If I can control my kite, I can control my thoughts through my Prana.
Close your eyes. Become aware of the breath, flowing in and out of the nostrils. Become aware of the Prana, the life force in your breath. Start counting backwards from 54 to 0. Make no mistakes. Be centered on the Prana, visualize it as a light going in and out of the nostrils.
Whisper your intentions into the Prana when you exhale, releasing them to the universe. You can also tie small pieces of paper with your wishes to a tree and let the wind carry them away. When your wish is fulfilled, you can open any paper.
Hanuman is the Lord of Prana and he is the son of the Pawan, the God of Wind. When our Prana is purified, our mind becomes steady and free from thoughts. We pray to Hanuman for steadfastness and dedication.
Aim Hrim Klim
A mind not to be changed by place or time
The mind is its own place, and in itself
Can make a heav’n of hell, a hell of heaven. – John Milton
Dear ones, how can we help ourselves? Our mind likes to be in charge and how is it in charge? It is in charge because it is full of thoughts, which are tugging at our feelings and emotions. It is compounding all our issues. We are beings led by our thoughts. Continue reading
There was nothing and no signs of life. No air and no heavens. What was the blanket, no earth, no ground. It was a void less umbra. There was no water and the depths were fathomless. There was neither breath nor death. No gleam of light. Continue reading
Who is a saint? He/She is an influencer. This word influencer has been coined by the internet and we allow the influencers to manipulate us. However, a saint is an individual, who does no such thing. He/She is not a crowd puller, only the actions and deeds speak for themselves. If we are guided by even one virtue and we can emulate even one quality of the Saint Influencer, we connect with the divinity within us. A saint is not an individual who is judged by his/her followers. Continue reading
Ajapa Japa Sadhana as explained by Swami Satyananda Saraswati.
When we chant, we are uttering from the mouth, when we chant from the heart, it is called Ajapa. Ajapa Japa is a complete sadhana and through it one can have direct experience of samadhi. Continue reading
Might is right. Who is mighty? Mighty is a person who is more powerful and stronger than us. They are people who can go unchallenged even if their action is in fact unjustified. Woe betides anyone who questioned them. I have observed this in the confrontations which happen in my balcony. I love cats; however, I stopped keeping cats as my cats became like dogs. Since we always had a dog, our cats came later, and they would follow us on our walks. Outcome was our cats were killed by strays. They became fearless. Now we have cats visiting us on our balcony and they are wild. Continue reading
How do I unblock my prana and enable it to flow and gift myself a life of wellbeing? There are five keys, I am going to give you a key in each blog. The magical part is that one key can open all the blocks. There is an impediment and I will come to it. Continue reading
Concentrate on the mooladhara chakra. Practice ujjayi pranayama. While inhaling visualize the breath rising from the mooladhara in the spinal passage and reaching ajna chakra, directly behind the eyebrow center. Contract throat, hold breath for five seconds. Exhaling, mentally chant a-u-u-m-m-m-m-m. Feel the vibrations going down your spine and piercing visshudhi, anahata, manipura, swadhisthana and mooladhara in the spinal passage. Concentrate on mooladhara for five seconds. Then inhale and ascend again with the breath. Practice for ten minutes daily.
Given by Swami Satyananda Saraswati in Satsang in 1979.
Aim Hrim Klim
Fear is everywhere. We are terrified of Covid; the wars all over the world are causing sadness and disturbance in our lives. Forest fires have caused terrible damage and there is flooding in different countries. The biodiversity is declining at an alarming rate. It is essential for us to face these fears. Continue reading
Let it fill with divine energy and boundless love. How do we do this? By helping others is the quickest method. Love is the healer and true love is if we can love someone even if they are critical of us. Continue reading
The world around is always on the move. Many of us do not look around us. We are staring at our phones continuously. I am surprised that many of us have so much to speak about. I see people going for a walk, going to work, driving, at the beauty parlor, at a restaurant and they all have one thing in common. They are on the phone. I seem to among the few, who is not gawping at the phone. If only we could take time off from our phone, shut off the visual and auditory stimulation coming from it, and appreciate what is happening around us. Continue reading
A quote by Sant Kabirdas
Kabirdas was a mystic poet and saint. His writings influenced the Hindu Bhakti movement in the fifteenth century. He believed in living life very simply. He makes us face up to the lies that we tell ourselves, that we are devout and are not afraid of death. He described the process of ajapa japa and the mantra So ham, as a continuous process. Continue reading
It is said that words stay in the ether, and they never vanish. We are always exchanging words and sometimes they are so cruel and hurtful. We regret afterwards, at least I hope we do and the other person will always remember them. What can we do about it? How is it possible to stop being abrasive and offensive? Continue reading