When we attempt our sadhana, what are we pursuing?
Excellent health! Exhaustion of our karmas! Relaxed state of mind! Closer to the divinity! Blessings! Our guru will elevate us because we are applying due diligence! Continue reading
When I close my eyes and try to silence my mind, negative thoughts set up a clamor. I get involved with them and I am entrapped. How many of us feel like this? Continue reading
Gayatri is the equal partner of the sun and the mantra for prana, with three forms. In the early morning, Gayatri is a little girl. At noon she is a young woman in her prime. In the evening she is a wise, old woman. The colors used for Gayatri are red in the morning, yellow at noon, and grey at night. Continue reading
Lal Ded was born in the fourteenth century, and she was a feminist saint and a mystic poet. She had an education as in Kashmir, girls were educated. She was married at the age of twelve. Her in-laws ill-treated her. They starved her and gave her only a handful of rice to eat. She left her husband and became a disciple of Sed Bayu, a Shaivite guru. She shed her clothes and became a digamber swami. She was unembarrassed about her body, she had a huge stomach. In a few years she had eclipsed her guru in wisdom and bhakti. She taught that one should connect with one’s soul and remove ritual from our meditation. She told a priest that a temple and an image were just like stone. She was venerated by both Muslims and Hindus. Continue reading
Many of us are searching for a Guru and the search is like looking for the most bahumulya vyakti (priceless person). It is not possible for us to find a Guru, s/he appears before us, when the time is right. There are many kinds of Guru, Gyana Guru, Yogic Guru, Tantric Guru, Brahmanishtha (one who lives in the light of the teaching, of one ness) Guru, Chela Guru. The title given before guru describes the method that a Guru utilizes to transmit his/her energy. Continue reading
We all have this question, is there a perfect pranayama which one can practice in front of people unobserved. There are numerous pranayamas mentioned and each one is better than the other. They energize our lungs, stimulate our digestive system, regulate our breath and calm our mind. However, they cannot be practiced without the sadhaka being noticed. Continue reading
How do we define boredom? Boredom is fatigue, ennui, monotony, tedium and indifference. There is a German proverb which says, boredom is the father of all sins. Continue reading
When you are far away from your home and you are on your own, you may feel alone and homesick. I remember when I came to Yoga Vidya for the first time, I was enchanted as it was like being in a wonderfully quiet and beautiful place. I had come alone and I was going to teach a new subject, Prana Healing. I was nervous though I had been teaching for many years and had worked in challenging situations. Continue reading
Who does not love the colours of the seasons? There is no misunderstanding and there are no clashes. In the Hindu tradition, we have different colours for different days of the week. There are numerous arguments on the subject. Continue reading
Thursday is the day of the Guru. I asked myself this question, as must so many of you, “Who was Swami Sivananda’s Guru?” Swami Sivananda received mantra diksha from Paramahamsa Viswanananda Saraswati, on the banks of the Ganga on 1st June,1924. Swami Sivananda was in quest of a Guru. Continue reading
Fear and pain go hand in hand. From pain, originates fear. Fear disturbs our peace and harmony. However fear is real. It is a part of all our lives. We have different ways of coping with it. Continue reading
I started teaching Yoga when I was 28 years old. Now I am 72, and am still working. I came to Yoga because I was discontented with my life and I was having severe pain in my left hand. It so happened that my husband was posted in Munger and the ashram was close by. I was involved with my sadness and pain. Continue reading
I have been writing about my Guru and all the other wonderful Gurus. However have we paused and considered who have been our earliest Gurus. The definition of a guru is a teacher, sage, pundit, master, counselor and leading light. I remember when I went to kindergarten and the nuns were so kind to me. I would kneel and kiss the cross. My memory of them was kindness and ever since then I associate kindness with nuns. Continue reading
Mantra is the psychic sound. In the science of mantra yoga, each person has a different psychic personality. The mantra is a specific sound of the spiritual system. In ancient times when the rishis were meditating, they overcame their sensory awareness, mind awareness and time stood still for them. And finally they came to ether awareness where they were able to hear all the different sounds of the vibrations in the cosmos. These sounds were called mantras. Continue reading
What is a secret? Our eyes light up if someone says that they will tell us a secret. Also if you share a secret then you expect to be told a secret by the person with whom you have shared it. Betraying the trust can also cause unpleasantness for all. Secrets are very hard to keep, and they become a burden for the trustee of the confidence. Continue reading