Kundalini yoga is known as one of the most powerful types of yoga. Sometimes it was called the mother of all the Styles of Yoga. This type of yoga awakens the energy at the base of our spine which is known as the Muladhara Chakra.
ajna, biological energy, creative energy, dormant energy, fundamental resource, higher self, kunda, manipura, muladhara chakra, power and energy, primal force, rajas, sadhana, sahasrara, sakti, source energy, three gunas, yoga kundalini Tratak has many potential uses, but the word may simply be translated as (intense) concentration. Actually it means an unbroken gaze or attention fixed on an object, a steady gazing at a particular point or object without winking - looking at or into it. Read more »
exercises, eye exercise, gaze, hatha yoga, intense concentration, psychic center, relaxation, tensions, tratak, unconscious movements The royal road or the knowledge of the mind.
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alchemy, ancient manuscript, concentration, concrete methods, human temperaments, meditation, mental barriers, patanjali, psychology, raja yoga There are four collections or Samhitas, namely rig-Veda, Sama-Veda, Yajur-Veda and Atharva-Veda. Of these the rig-Veda is probably the earliest. The Sama-Veda has practically no independent value, for it consists of stanzas taken (excepting only 75) entirely from the rig-Veda, which were meant to be sung to certain fixed melodies, and may thus be called the book of chants. Read more »
atharva veda, book of spells, demon world, fire god, god indra, history of sanskrit literature, religious sacrifices, rigveda, rig veda, sama veda, soma sacrifice, spells and incantations, yajur veda The Upanishads are also known by another name Vedanta, as they are believed to be the last portions of the Vedas (veda-anta, end); it is by this name that the philosophy of the Upanishads, the Vedanta philosophy, is so familiar to us. A modern student knows that in language the Upanishads approach the classical Sanskrit; the ideas preached also show that they are the culmination of the intellectual achievement of a great epoch. Read more »
atharva veda, brahmanas, brahmins, brihadaranyaka upanishad, classical sanskrit, isha upanishad, kena, philosophy of the upanishads, sama veda, shatapatha brahmana, vedanta philosophy, vedas There was practically no systematic theory of causation in the Upanishads. Shankara, the later exponent of Vedanta philosophy, always tried to show that the Upanishads looked upon the cause as mere ground of change which though unchanged in itself in reality had only an appearance of suffering change. Read more »
brahman, causation, chandogya upanishad, fire water, material cause, samkhya, systematic theory, upanishads The Hindus classify the systems of philosophy into two classes, namely, the nastika and the astika. The nastika (na asti “it is not”) views are those which neither regard the Vedas as infallible nor try to establish their own validity on their authority. These are principally three in number, the Buddhist, Jaina and the Carvaka. The astika-mata or orthodox schools are six in number, Samkhya, Yoga, Vedanta, Mimamsa, Nyaya and Vaisheshika, generally known as the six systems (shaddarshana (1)). Read more »
atman, carvaka, kapila, liberation, metaphysical position, mystical practices, orthodox schools, patanjali, philosophy, vedas, vedic texts, yoga practices, yoga sutras, yoga system, yoga vedanta It is, however, remarkable that with the exception of the Carvaka materialists all the other systems agree on some fundamental points of importance. The systems of philosophy in India were not stirred up merely by the speculative demands of the human mind which has a natural inclination for indulging in abstract thought, but by a deep craving after the realization of the religious purpose of life. Read more »
abstract thought, carvaka, cause and effect, karma and rebirth, mantras, natural inclination, purpose of life, realization, religious purpose, summum bonum, transcendent, vedic As might be expected the Indian systems are all agreed upon the general principles of ethical conduct which must be followed for the attainment of salvation. Read more »
attainment, bhakti, devotion, india, sadhana, unity, vaishnava, yoga system The examination of the two ancient Nastika schools of Buddhism and Jainism of two different types ought to convince us that serious philosophical speculations were indulged in, in circles other than those of the Upanishad sages (1). Read more »
attainment, brahmanas, magical power, philosophical speculations, sacrifices, sages, upanishads, vedas, vedic We have now to meet the vexed question of the probable date of this famous Yoga author Patanjali. Weber had tried to connect him with Kapya Patamchala of Shatapatha Brahmana; in Katyayana’s Varttika we get the name Patanjali which is explained by later commentators as patantah anjalayah yasmai (for whom the hands are folded as a mark of reverence), but it is indeed difficult to come to any conclusion merely from the similarity of names (1). Read more »
commentators, grammarian, panini, patanjali, western scholars, yoga sutra Samkhya and the Yoga, like the Buddhists, hold that all experience is sorrowful. Tamas, we know, represents the pain substance. As tamas must be present in some degree in all combinations, all intellectual operations are fraught with some degree of painful feeling (1). Read more »
buddhists, happiness, mukti, pleasures, sacrifice, sacrifices, samkhya philosophy, sorrow, tamas, vedic, worldly experience When we compare the Nyaya sutras with the Vaisheshika sutras we find that in the former two or three differentstreams of purposes have met, whereas the latter is much more homogeneous. Read more »
authorities, caraka samhita, chala, debates, hindus, jalpa, logical categories, practical art, refutation, sanskrit literature, sutras Mind according to Nyaya is regarded as a separate sense and can come in contact with pleasure, pain, desire, antipathy and will. The later Nyaya writers speak of three other kinds of contact of a transcendental nature called samanyalakshana, jnanalakshana and yogaja (miraculous). The contact samanyalakshana is that by virtue of which by coming in contact with a particular we are transcendentally (alaukika) in contact with all the particulars (in a general way) of which the corresponding universal may be predicated. Thus when I see smoke and through it my sense is in contact with the universal associated with smoke my visual sense is in transcendental contact with all smoke in general. Jnanalakshana contact is that by virtue of which we can associate the perceptions of other senses when perceiving by any one sense. Thus when we are looking at a piece of sandal wood our visual sense is in touch with its colour only, but still we perceive it to be fragrant without any direct contact of the object with the organ of smell. The sort of transcendental contact (alaukika sannikarsha) by virtue of which this is rendered possible is called jnanalakshana. But the knowledge acquired by these two contacts is not counted as perception (1). Read more »
desire, direct contact, jnana, perceptions, pleasures, pleasure pain, senses, virtue, visual sense Inference (anumana) is the second means of proof (pramana) and the most valuable contribution that Nyaya has made on this subject. It consists in making an assertion about a thing on the strength of the mark or linga which is associated with it, as when finding smoke rising from a hill we remember that since smoke cannot be without fire, there must also be fire in yonder hill. In an example like this smoke is technically called linga, or hetu. Read more »
asat, assertion, inference, linga, perception, satta, shastra, testimony The doctrine of the self-validity of knowledge (svatah-pramanya) forms the cornerstone on which the whole structure of the Mimamsa philosophy is based. Validity means the certitude of truth. The Mimamsa philosophy asserts that all knowledge excepting the action of remembering (smriti) or memory is valid in itself, for it itself certifies its own truth, and neither depends on any other extraneous condition nor on any other knowledge for its validity. Read more »
infer, objective truth, perception, philosophy, representation, revelation, validity, visual contact In addition to the above pramanas Kumarila admits a fifth kind of pramana, viz. anupalabdhi for the perception of the non-existence of a thing. Kumarila argues that the non-existence of a thing (e.g. there is no jug in this room) cannot be perceived by the senses, for there is nothing with which the senses could come into contact in order to perceive the non-existence. Read more »
empty space, existence, inference, negation, negative relation, perception, senses, visible object The main idea of the advaita (non-dualistic) Vedanta philosophy as taught by the Shankara school is this, that the ultimate and absolute truth is the self, which is one, though appearing as many in different individuals. The world also as apart from us the individuals has no reality and has no other truth to show than this self. All other events, mental or physical, are but passing appearances, while the only absolute and unchangeable truth underlying them all is the self. Read more »
absolute truth, advaita, akara, appearances, brahman, cognition, comprehension, duality, macrocosm, microcosm, objective truth, passions, preceptor, sensations, vedanta philosophy, world consciousness The world-appearance is not however so illusory as the perception of silver in the conch-shell, for the latter type of worldly illusions is called pratibhasika, as they are contradicted by other later experiences, whereas the illusion of world-appearance is never contradicted in this worldly stage and is thus called vyavaharika (from vyavahara, practice, i.e. that on which is based all our practical movements). Read more »
appearance, brahman, consciousness, illusions, perception, right knowledge, sattva, true reality, vedanta The inner experiences of pleasure and pain also are generated by a false identification of antahkarana transformations as pleasure or pain with the self, by virtue of which are generated the perceptions, “I am happy,” or “I am sorry.” Read more »
antahkarana, false identification, inference, inner experiences, manifestation, perception, pleasure and pain, vedanta We have already seen that the Mimamsists had asserted that all knowledge was true simply because it was knowledge (yatharthah sarve vivadaspadibhutah pratyayah pratyayatvat). Even illusions were explained by them as being non-perception of the distinction between the thing perceived (e.g. the conch-shell), and the thing remembered (e.g. silver). Read more »
illusions, perception, presence, vedanta Vedanta is distinctly antagonistic to Nyaya, and most of its powerful dialectic criticism is generally directed against it. Shankara himself had begun it by showing contradictions and inconsistencies in many of the Nyaya conceptions, such as the theory of causation, conception of the atom, the relation of samavaya, the conception of jati, etc (1). Read more »
maya, rajas, sattva, shankara, vedanta, vedas, yoga ‘Raja’ means king and thus Raja Yoga is the ‘Kingly Yoga’ or the ‘Royal Way’ of Yoga. Our mind is the ‘King’ in question, the master in our lives is the mind, and the control of mind is the primary concern of Raja Yoga.
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aphorisms of yoga, concentration, dhyana meditation, eight limbs yoga, hatha yoga, patanjali, raja yoga, states of ecstasy, yoga sutras Yoga in its definition of the structure of the world has many things in common with Sankhya, but it differs indeed from Sankhya in admitting the existence of God. Of course the God’s concept in Yoga, as happened in Nyaya, has passed through different stages: from the primitive one, indifferent presence, God has become, under the influence of theistic tides, an active assistant of liberation. The assimilation with Shiva of the popular religion confers him little by little all the ownerships of Ishvara, the Supreme almighty Being. Read more »
asceticism, existence of god, liberation, moral discipline, right knowledge, sacred texts, sankhya, yoga The yoga mat manufacturer usually gives instructions for the maintenance of your yoga mat. Follow yoga mat manufacturer’s directions if instructions are available. In yoga mat cleaning or washing is of primary importance the type of material your yoga mat is made of. Is it a normal yoga mat made of synthetic materials or one of the newer, all-natural rubber mats, or made of some eco material? Is your yoga mat a padded exercise mat with a foam core? Read more »
exercise mats, foam core, mat manufacturer, natural rubber, rubber mats, synthetic materials, yoga mat, yoga mats The book is intended as a practical manual, and the student who takes it seriously as such will derive most benefit from it if he treats it as a six months’ course rather than as a reading book. At the end of the course the earnest student will find that he knows exactly what to do next. All the same, others who wish to treat it only as a general help to their meditations will find benefit from reading it through, and picking out for their use whatever appeals especially to themselves.
Many hard-headed people may think that my convictions as to the possibilities which we may attain in the near or remote future by internal self-culture are excessively extravagant; but I can assure them that they are perfectly in accordance with the practical mysticism of both East and West, and are consistent with the actual experience and attainment of a number of experts whom I have had the honour to meet and know.
attainment, benefit, experts, internal self, meditations, practical mysticism, self culture We may now turn to the first exercise: Read more »
concentration, four roads, mental health, recall Then you must give up wishing, for you cannot both wish and will. The two things are utterly incompatible. I have already explained this by reference to the will to pick up or not pick up a pen. It should be understood that indulgence in wishing is not only a waste of time, but also an invitation to harmful emotions. It is like slouching along the road instead of walking erect. Read more »
general purpose, impressions, indulgence, judgment, misunderstanding, perfectly clear, poise, polarization, proper attitude, strong feeling, telepathy, waste of time When purpose and pleasure are brought together work becomes play. Every bit of work done in this spirit strengthens the man who does it. It is recreative as well as creative. Artist and carpenter — they make pictures and chairs, but even more they make men, themselves. Think on what you are doing more than on the result, or what you are going to do afterwards. You will not then miss the pleasure of little things. I pick up my pen; there is sheer and undiluted pleasure in this, if I allow myself to experience it. It is natural and pure, and mine when I stop fighting, it. In such little things thought, love and will can flow and grow. And then arise peace and strength and — in active life — the union of work and play. Read more »
active life, bitterness, creative artist, deadly fear, impatience, light on the path, long journey, peace and strength, pleasure, stop fighting, work and play WHEN the student is well practised in concentration, so that he can put on the mood of it like a garment, let him or her proceed to meditation and contemplation. Read more »
attentively, concentration, contemplation, great happiness, meditation, unite What have I here? A pebble from a beach in Cyprus, now used as a paperweight. Let me meditate on this. First I shall observe it very carefully, noting its size, shape, color, texture, heaviness, markings, etc. Next I shall close my eyes and concentrate upon it. Now I will use the Four Roads of Thought again, with a new motive — to realize as fully as possible the object in whole and parts, its qualities and its actions. Read more »
concentrate, concentration, consciousness, meditation, new realization Mind as we know it, as well as Matter and Energy, is held by the highest occult teachers to be but an appearance and a relativity of something far more fundamental and enduring, and we are compelled to fall back upon that old term which wise men have used in order to describe that Something Else that lies back of, and under, Matter, Energy and Mind–and that word is “Spirit.” Read more »
essence of life, matter and energy, personal god, relativity, spirit, universal life, wise men, word god Let us start with ourselves, and try to imagine a million million miles, and then multiply them by another million million miles, a million million times. What have we done? Simply extended our mental yard-stick a certain number of times to an imaginary point in the Nothingness that we call Space. So far so good, but the mind intuitively recognizes that beyond that imaginary point at the end of the last yard-stick, there is a capacity for an infinite extension of yard-sticks–an infinite capacity for such extension. Extension of what? Space? No! Yard-sticks! Objects! Things! Without material objects Space is unthinkable. Read more »
consciousness, existence, finite nature, imaginary point, infinite capacity, infinite extension, material objects, nothingness, unthinkable We can perhaps better form an idea of the Creative Will, by reference to its outward and visible forms of activity. We cannot see the Will itself–the Pressure and the Urge–but we can see its action through living forms. Just as we cannot see a man behind a curtain, and yet may practically see him by watching the movements of his form as he presses up against the curtain, so may we see the Will by watching it as it presses up against the living curtain of the forms of life. Read more »
Creative Will, forming of the crystals, plant life The Yogi teachings inform us that, in the Beginning, The Absolute formed a Mental Image, or Thought-Form, of an Universal Mind–that is, of an Universal Principle of Mind. And here the distinction is made between this Universal Mind Principle, or Universal Mind-Stuff, as some have called it, and the Infinite Mind itself. The Infinite Mind is something infinitely above this creation of the Universal Mind Principle, the latter being as much an “emanation” as is Matter. Let there be no mistake about this. The Infinite Mind is Spirit–the Universal Mind Principle is “Mind-Stuff” of which all Finite Mind is a part. This Universal Mind Principle was the first conception of The Absolute, in the process of the creation of the Universe. It was the “Stuff” from which all Finite Mind forms, and is formed. It is the Universal Mental Energy. Know it as such–but do not confound it with Spirit, which we have called Infinite Mind, because we had no other term. There is a subtle difference here, which is most important to a careful understanding of the subject. Read more »
Absolute, Finite Mind, mental image, Thought orm, universal mind, Universal Mind Principle In our last lesson we led you by successive steps from the beginnings of Life in living forms up to the creatures closely resembling the family of vertebrates–the highest family of living forms on this planet. In this present lesson we take up the story of the “Ascent of Man” from the lowly vertebrate forms. Read more »
evolving of wings, lower forms of life, placenta, skeleton, vertebrates In considering the Ascent of Man (physical) from the lowly forms of the Monera, etc., up to his present high position, the student is struck with the continuity of the ascent, development and unfoldment. While there are many “missing-links,” owing to the disappearance of the forms which formed the connection, still there is sufficient proof left in the existing forms to satisfy the fair-minded inquirer. The facts of embryology alone are sufficient proof of the ascent of Man from the lowly forms. Each and every man today has passed through all the forms of the ascent within a few months, from single cell to the new-born, fully formed infant. Read more »
ascent of man, continuity, embryology, high position, missing links This, then, is the brief outline of the Story of Man’s Physical Evolution, as stated by Western Science, and compared with the Yogi Teachings. The student should compare the two ideas, that he may harmonize and reconcile them. It must be remembered, however, that Darwin did not teach that Man descended from the monkeys, or apes, as we know them now. Read more »
ancestor, apes, brain structure, chimpanzee, civilized man, convolutions, darwin, domesticated animal, hindu, hottentot, human reason, physical evolution, savage, western science THERE are four different forms of worship corresponding with four states (bhava);(1) The realization that the jivatma and paramatma are one, that everything is Brahman, and that nothing but the Brahman exists, is the highest state or brahma-bhava. Constant meditation by the yoga process upon the Devata in the heart is the lower and middlemost (dhyana-bhava), japa and stava (hymns and prayer) is still lower, and the lowest of all mere external worship (puja). Read more »
advaita, brahman, brahmanas, caitanya, consciousness, daily puja, dhyana, japa, karma, nitya, panca, prana, pratima, sandhya, sudras, tantrik, worshipper, yoga The piercing of the six chakras is one of the most important subjects dealt with in the Tantra, and is part of the practical yoga process of which they treat. Details of practice (1) can only be learnt from a Guru, but generally it may be said that the particular is raised to the universal life, which as cit is realizable only in the sahasrara in the following manner: The jivatma in the subtle body, the receptacle of the five vital airs (panca-prana), mind in its three aspects of manas, ahamkara, and buddhi, and the five organs of perception (pancajnanendriyas) is united with the Kulakundalini. The Kandarpa or Kama Vayu in the muladhara, a form of the Apana-Vayu, is given a leftward revolution and the fire wich is around Kundalini is kindled. By the bija “Hum,” and the heat of the fire thus kindled, the coiled and sleeping Kundalini is awakened. She who lay asleep around svayambhu-linga, with her coils three circles and a half closing the entrance of the brahmadvara, will, on being roused, enter that door and move upwards, united with the jivatma. Read more »
apas, bija, chakras, dakini, deva, kundalini, lam, lotus, prana, sarasvati, savitri, vam, vayu THE “I.”
In India, the Candidates for Initiation into the science of “Raja Yoga,” when they apply to the Yogi Masters for instruction, are given a series of lessons designed to enlighten them regarding the nature of the Real Self, and to instruct them in the secret knowledge whereby they may develop the consciousness and realization of the real “I” within them. They are shown how they may cast aside the erroneous or imperfect knowledge regarding their real identity. Read more »
consciousness, conscious realization, initiation, raja yoga, secret knowledge, yogi The Yogi Philosophy teaches that instead of Mind being the “I” it is the thing through and by means of which the “I” thinks, at least so far as is concerned the knowledge concerning the phenomenal or outward Universe–that is the Universe of Name and Form. There is a higher Knowledge locked up in the innermost part of the “I,” that far transcends any information that it may receive about or from the outer world, but that is not before us for consideration at this time, and we must concern ourselves with the “thinking” about the world of things. Read more »
chitta, intellect, mental faculties, mind principle, sanscrit, spiritual mind, yogis
Discover how Yoga increases concentration, will power and relaxes the body
