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Spirit News Blog - articles
This is a guest post by Manatita
In this essay, the writer will first show the essentials of Yama and Niyama and its relation to Yoga, and will conclude with the practical aspect of how these two ‘abstinences’, has affected his daily life and Yoga practice.
Yama and Niyama are the first steps in Yoga practice. They are considered the foundations of Yoga. They are the first two limbs of the eight-fold Path of Patanjali - the ancient sage - the rest being:-
- Asana - bodily postures. They combine a series of exhaustive exercises, widely known in the West as Hatha Yoga, for the health and discipline of the physical. They are also useful for the movement of the life-force and the attainment of the Higher Yoga.
- Pranayama - control of the life-force. It involves the inhaling, retention and exhaling of breath.
- Pratyahara - withdrawal of the senses from the external world
- Dharana - concentration - control of or steadying of the mind on a particular object to the exclusion of everything else.
- Dhyana - the gazing or fixing of the mind on a Higher Consciousness. Sri Chinmoy, in his book The Silent teaching, 1985, refers to it as conscious self-expansion….”silence, energizing and fulfilling…the eloquent expression of the inexpressible”
- Samadhi - profound contemplation or the tuning of the inner self with the Universal Self. This is a profound state and achieved by only a few. (Gibson, WB: The Key to Yoga, 1958)
The Great Pyramids - Egypt
Within man, there are two aspects. There is his real inner, divine self. There is also the body and intellect which, at his present stage of evolution, consider himself to be a separate egoist entity. However, there comes a time when man realises that he is not the body and intellect. His real existence is a state of being; a consciousness at one with the Universal consciousness.
The great pyramids of Egypt hold a real significance in this great spiritual quest.
Philosophy and spirituality share some common ideas, but also differ in their approach and practise of the truth. To some people there is a wide divergence between philosophy and spirituality. However, to some extent, they share some similarities and both have their role to play in the discovery of truth.
1. Mind and Heart.
Philosophy deals primarily with the mind. It tries to understand, solve and explain problems through mental clarity and written explanation. Philosophy can seek to prove the existence of God, but this proof is always through the medium of the human intellect. In philosophy, it is the mind that is predominant.
"Philosophy is in the thinking mind. Philosophy is of the searching mind. Philosophy is for the illumining mind."
[1] - Sri Chinmoy
Spirituality accepts the mind can have a role to play; but, at the same time it can never be satisfied solely with the reasoning of the mind. Spirituality wishes to experience the heart of reality, and not just examine life from the fringes. Spirituality is not so much concerned with proving God's existence; spirituality teaches us to make the God a living presence in our consciousness.
"Spirituality is in the aspiring heart. Spirituality is of the liberating soul. Spirituality is for the fulfilling and immortalising God."
[1] - Sri Chinmoy
"No price is too great to pay for inner peace. "
- Sri Chinmoy
Consciously or unconsciously we are all searching for inner peace. Inner peace is the foundation of lasting happiness, and satisfaction. Without inner peace, man can not know, either himself, or be at peace with the world.
1. Inner Peace is a Choice.
It is our own thoughts that will either bring us peace or restlessness. If our mind is clear of useless, undivine thoughts, we can experience inner peace in abundance. When we lose our inner peace it is because of our own thoughts. It is tempting to blame our problems on the world and other people. However, a man of inner peace will not allow the outer world to disturb his inner mind. If we maintain equanimity and detachment to events of the world, inner peace will remain a permanent feature of our mind.
- Sri Chinmoy [1]
By: Vidagdha Bennett
Complain— groan, grumble, mutter, fret and fume, air a grievance, gripe, grizzle, kvetch, beef, bellyache, whine, find fault.
Decidedly, it is difficult to imagine anyone who does not fall into this category on a fairly regular basis. The possibility that there might exist a Pollyanna, somewhere, who does not get up each morning and immediately launch into a rant against the weather, the surroundings, the morning news, the day ahead and so forth, bedazzles any normal individual.
Complaining is part of our everyday diet. It is not an activity we choose; it is ingrained. And yet, now a pastor in Missouri has stepped forth to rid us of this scourge. With all the best intentions in the world, Pastor Will Bowen, a 47-year-old clergyman based at Christ Church Unity in Kansas City, has come up with the bright idea of purple plastic bracelets. Those among his flock who have been "complaint-free" for 21 straight days are eligible to wear the bracelets on their right wrist. Those who sadly lapse must switch to the left wrist and start their three week countdown all over again.
The Secrets of Happiness by Jogyata Dallas
The quest for lasting happiness lies at the very heart of all human purpose and experience, though this much desired attainment is sought in many different ways. Among the ways that have proven successful a number of recurring themes are evident.
The perennial philosophies of our spiritual teachers urge self-perfecting, the inner way, while most of mankind is searching in the outer world – right person, right possessions, right place.
Here are a few pointers that work:
Start Within
A huge wealth of highly credible literature and teachings concur that happiness is first of all an inner accomplishment, not just a series of circumstances. Prayer, contemplation, quiet time, simply sitting with peaceful music, the practice of inner stillness, all help in developing understanding, balance, an inner harmony and poise. Happiness arises out of these practices like the fragrance of a flower.
Visualise Your Day
Take five minutes at the start of each day to visualize what you intend to accomplish – prepare the mind, your life energy, and burst into your day with vigour, intensity, calm resolve and joy. Every day we create our world with our mind – our moods, emotions, attitudes and consciousness. Train the mind and fill it with inspiration and positive energies, self-faith, the bright colours of your heart and soul.
The God of Wild Places By: Roger Chamberlain
Overlooking Lake Rydal
It seems to me that this is one of the great paradoxes of our time. As a race we have been struggling for millennia to tame the forces of nature and to make for ourselves a more comfortable life than our ancestors could have dreamed of, insulated and protected from the daily hardships they suffered just to get by. Yet, now that we can live divorced from those privations and wander at our leisure through a neat and controlled world of concrete, Plexiglas and carbon fibre, our urge to return to the wild and primal world of untamed nature in search of something indefinable, but at the same time powerfully attractive, is stronger than ever.
The mountaineer, the adventure racer, the desert explorer, the backpacker trekking in remote mountains or jungles- what is it they are seeking, and why are they seeking it in the extremes of nature and the elements? Undoubtedly there is some "vital urge" in us that thirsts for new and more intense sensations and experiences, even those potentially painful or arduous. But does this urge have its roots in something deeper, a spiritual longing or impulse from the soul?
Despite the continued presence of religious fanaticism and bigotry in the word, the twentieth century has witnessed a significant growth in religious tolerance. The idea that different religions and spiritual traditions have a valid approach is more widespread than at any time. To a large extent up until the 19th Century a defining feature of religion was the idea of the one true religion, and through its adherence you were either saved or damned. There was little if any ecumenical tradition and views of other religions were often clouded in myth, superstition or even contempt.
However the ideal of religious harmony is however increasingly shared by many. A crucial event in shaping a more pluralistic, tolerant view of religions was the inaugural World Parliament of Religions in 1893.
Many spiritual seekers in the past have felt that suffering and spiritual progress are inexorably linked. There are numerous examples of great saints who went through tremendous physical suffering during their life. For example St Teresa of Avila, St Francis of Assisi and many others suffered with painful illnesses throughout their life. In the Mahabharata we come across Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas. She used to pray to Lord Krishna that she would always suffer so that she would be inclined to always think of him. When she was happy she said she would forget about Sri Krishna.
It seems a paradox that a God who embodies infinite love, and inner ecstasy should require a seeker to suffer in order to realise him.