Concentration may also be attained by fixing the mind upon the inner Light, which is beyond sorrow.|| 1.36 ||
Here Patanjali gives another method to calm the mind. By contemplating on pure inner light our depressed mind is illumined. We are what we think. By thinking about brilliant, positive, and suspicious things, the mind also becomes the same. The inner light is all pervasive and it illumines the whole universe. That pure light is also called Vasudeva.
The Yogacharya Bhagavan Shri Krishna in Bhagavad Geeta says this:
jyotisham api taj jyotis tamasah param uchyate jnanam jneyam jnana-gamyam hridi sarvasya vishthitam || 13.18 ||
He is the source of light in all luminaries and is entirely beyond the darkness of ignorance. He is knowledge, the object of knowledge, and the goal of knowledge. He dwells within the hearts of all living beings.
By fixing the mind on a single modification generated by the sensory objects, the mind is calmed || 1.35 || Here Patanjali gives another method to calm the mind. Outer objects are not responsible for our happiness or sorrows but the identification of sense organs with the objects makes us happy or sad in life. A bar of chocolate by itself cannot make us happy. A hot chilly by itself cannot make us sad. When our sense organs get attached to them, we experience happiness or sorrow. By a careful analysis of this one will be able to remain equipoise in all situations.
The Yogacharya Bhagavan Shri Krishna in Bhagavad Geeta says this:
O son of Kunti, the contact between the senses and the sense objects gives rise to fleeting perceptions of happiness and distress. These are non-permanent, and come and go like the winter and summer seasons. O descendent of Bharat, one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.
One will easily be able to disengage the mind from the sense organs when one develops taste for higher things in life.
Aspirants may restrain the senses from their objects of enjoyment, but the taste for the sense objects remains. However, even this taste ceases for those who realises the Supreme.
Om itetad aksharam idam sarvam. Om is not just a letter, but it is representing the Supreme Lord. At the beginning of our Vedic study, we start by saying, Harihi Om. This means Hari alone is Om. Hari means harati iti om – one who remains intact when everything has gone is Om. Narayana means the same – one who alone remains when everything has gone. This means Om is the foundation of everything and it is akshra– indestructible.
The message of Om says we must seek the permanent only and no point in trusting on others who are themselves are impermanent.
The three-letter Om AUM represents: A: ateeta: past- bhoota U: utpanna: present: bhavya M: meya: future: bhavat
That Supreme Lord – Purusha was there, is there, and will be there as changeless and complete. He is higher than Prakriti. Prakriti binds jiva -souls with sattvic (pure), rajasic (dynamic), and tamasic (dull) cords. But when the jiva – soul gets liberated, Prakriti has no longer can bind that soul. But the Supreme Lord is the goal and Lord of even the liberated souls as mentioned in the Purusha Sookta – utamritatvasyeshanaha and as mentioned in the Vishnu Saharanama – muktanam parmamgarim.
Everyone is bound and leading a helpless life whether a prime minister or an ordinary citizen like mounted on a machine and we are bound by a cord or time and helplessly made to act. The Lord Shri Krishna beautifully says in Bhagavad Geeta
The Supreme Lord dwells in the hearts of all living beings, O Arjun. According to their karmas, he directs the wanderings of the souls, who are seated on a machine made of material energy.
The message of the three-letter Om makes us shed our ego to discover the joy in life.
A: means not. It is not what you know or you “a” means you do not know that. U: means upari -up meaning The Lord is higher and beyond your comprehension M: means meya – prameya: according to your ability try to understand.
Nobody can comprehend that fully. You cannot bring the whole water from the ocean but can take water from the ocean according to the size of the vessel you are carrying.
In a wakeful state Lord in the form of Aniruddha gives the Viswa experience and binds us with a cord of time and makes us act based on our ignorance. The foundation of our action (karya) is ignorance (karana).
In a dream state Lord in the form of Pradyumna gives the inner experience through a special light called Taijasa experience and binds us with a cord of time and makes us see things in our ignorance. The foundation of our unimaginable dreams (karya) is ignorance (karana).
Lord in the form of Sankarshana binds the soul with a cord of time and gives the total experience of ignorance in deep sleep. The foundation of our deep sleep experience is ignorance (karana). In deep sleep, there is no ego and because of this deep sleep has a blissful experience.
Like we do memory backup in our computers, our experiences in wakeful and dream are backed up in our deep sleep. This is called a supta prajna. We may lead a life in denial in the wakeful and dream state but the black box within cannot be erased. The medical science and police departments do sleep hypnosis to cure diseases or to extract the truth. This black box has the seeds of our karmas and is waiting for an appropriate time to manifest.
How to wipe out the karmas in the black box? Om says the only way is to go to the fourth state called turiya. The Supreme Lord Vasudeva who revealed to us only as Aniruddha to give outside experience, Pradyumna to give dream experience, and Sankarshana to give deep sleep experience alone can delete the seed of Karma by taking us to the fourth state called a nada.
The Mandukopanishad describes the turiya state as
amātraś caturthoavyavahāryaḥ prapañcopaśamaḥ sivo’dvaita evam auṁkāra ātmaiva saṁviśaty ātmanā’tmānaṁ ya evaṁ veda ya evaṁ veda.
Amatra: nada – the sound which is beyond the measure Chaturtha: the fourth state Avyayaharya: beyond transaction Prapanchopashmana: No more wrong identification with the world Shivam: purest Advaita: Vasudeva reveals himself as Anniruddu, Pradyumna and Sankarshana and there is a difference between the form of the Lord Atmaiva samvishat atmana atmanam: the ultimate purpose of our journey and culmination of our journey.
In the turiya state, one experiences the pause which is unshackled from the cord of time and becomes kalateeta. In the wakeful, dream, and deep sleep we are bound by the cord of time and make us unsettled. Whereas in turiya state, atmaiva samvisha means one having reached the destination gets settled and does not want to move from there.
When the Lord Vasudeva reveals himself to give the turiya experience – one experience a flash of lighting for a very short time – not even a matra (amatra). After that experience, that person will start hearing the nada of Om continuously (amatra). Like lightning is followed by thunder, after experiencing this flash of light in the heart one hears nada continuously.
Music – Sangeeta is an attempt to express this inexpressible sound in various pitches – avyavaharyam. Om says if you want to be a genius in Sangeeta you must go beyond the audible sound AUM and you dive deep within to experience inner sound – antarnada. When you experience the stillness within whatever you talk is melodious to hear. In the world Parliament of religion in Chicago, many people spoke but when Swami Vivekananda uttered the words “my brothers and sisters of America” the entire audience got enraptured and stood up.
The sages have given a symbol to Om as . In this symbol 3 stands for three states of our existence, wakeful, dream, and deep sleep. A curve appended to 3 symbolise turiaya – nada (amatra). A dot above that represents a bindu. A crescent represents kala. Shanta represents the cosmic egg and beyond that is atishanta – the Supreme Lord.
Atishanta represents the changeless, the parament, complete and most pure – Narayana. Shanta represents Hiranyagarbha – cosmic egg– Prajapati – creator – Brahma. The crescent represents the destructive and liberating power of Lord Shiva.
The message of Om is for all of us to seek the grace of Lord Vasudeva so that may He reveal Himself to us to give us the turiya experience.
One who experiences this. sees the same Lord Vasudeva everywhere. The message of Om unites us irrespective of faith and religion. Knowledge units us and ignorance divide us.
To counteract the unsteadiness, the practice upon a single ideal||1.32 ||
As mentioned in sutras 1.30-1.31 twelve obstacles come in our way to prevent us from progressing in our inner journey. This can be prevented by having an ultimate goal in life, and firm faith in one’s sadhana. A seeker – sadhak needs inner stamina and without that, he or she cannot succeed in sadhana. The seeker gets the inner stamina only through the blessings of a Guru. Gu means darkness and Ru means light. In our inner journey, we are lone travelers and we come across many obstacles in the path such as sickness, depression, doubts, confusion, laziness, imagination, wrong information, arrogance, etc.
These obstacles are called darkness and to overcome these we need light. A Guru is a light. A Guru shows the way to the light. A Guru illumines the way to the inner light. A Guru gives focus to our life.
Imparting the knowledge of Yoga and paving a way for healthy disciplined life and well-being at a very young age is very important. To that end, Vasudeva Kriya Yoga is helping nurture the next generation by conducting regular Yoga Classes for Kids. The classes are conducted in a very unique way with a combination of energetic Yogasana with a particular focus on enhancing confidence and mental concentration in kids. Apart from this, we also teach Bhagavad Gita to kids and narrate historical stories from Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas.
We conduct Yoga Classes for Kids every Sunday from 5 pm to 6 pm in Glen Waverley. Please contact us to enrol your kids on the Yoga Class.
Viittala Kriya for the healthy reproductive system and a heart condition- by Manikandan
In the current term, we are practising Vittala kriya which I am impressed much about it as I find more beneficial in many ways and hence I would like to highlight its benefits here.
This kriya has the following benefits.
• Women having fibroid problems, uterus issues and conceiving problem • Men having low sperm count, prostate problem • People having a heart condition.
If anyone has any of the above-mentioned issues, please try this kriya as described below for a month and give feedback.
Mudra – Yoni mudra
Tip of thumb from both hands touching each other and pointing up, the tip of forefingers touching each other and pointing down and all other fingers wrapped each other. Place the hand in this mudra closer to the navel area. This mudra is beneficial specifically to women during the monthly cycle when women experience excess discharge and pain.
Mantra: Three syllables, namely, Vii-ttaa-laa
• Vi – Beejashkara mantra/resonance for the reproductive system for swadhistana chakra • La – Beejaskara mantra/resonance for the gonad region- mooladara chakra • Ta – Beejashkara mantra/resonance for moon centre – sahasrara chakra
This Kriya has an effect on the nerves. Scriptures say almost 100 nerves branch out from the heart and each nerve further bifurcates into 1000 and hence beneficial for a heart condition.
Process
As we say Vi inhale and expand abdomen muscles
As we say Tala, exhale and pull the abdomen muscles in.
Keep doing continually for more rounds close to 40, if comfortable
We can feel the warmth and heat in the stomach region whereby all internal organs are energised.
As you may notice, kriya, kabalabhati and mudra combined together here.
Saturday morning is synonymous with our Srimad Bhagavad Gita class. It’s a day to listen intently to Lord Krishna’s divine song and take a guided tour to the depths of the serene ocean of knowledge to pick up pearls of wisdom and emerge wiser and even more inspired for days to come.
Returning to the shore, it’s time to walk the talk as we get back to the material world, rejuvenated with a sense of equanimity and energy to take on the week’s battles.
If there’s one shloka that comes to the mind instantly from Chapter 2 or Sankhya Yoga, it is:
तमुवाच हृषीकेश: प्रहसन्निव भारत | सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वच: ||2.10||
The key expression being senayorubhayormadhye or coming to the centre. Lord Krishna deliberately positioned the chariot between the armies of the Kauravas and Pandavas at the battlefield in Kurukshetra so that Arjuna could take an objective view of the situation without getting attached.
Lord Krishna says that if we are attached to one side, we won’t see reality. If truth has to dawn, declutch/detach yourself and come to the centre. Then you will get a better vision. From the foot of a mountain, it is impossible to see the horizon. To climb up, detach yourself from the mundane. As one goes higher, the vision gets better. By associating with one side, we can’t get the real picture. Coming to the centre is similar to going up for a better vision.
We all have a different army/enemy to fight. Everyone’s situation is different. So, don’t get daunted. Assess the situation by coming to the centre and boldly fight the battle of life.
All parents wish to create a positive environment at home to help their kids achieve success. But how is that success defined? Getting good grades? Steering kids into the ‘right’ jobs and material success? While financial security is important, there are greater goals too. The world needs more leaders and doers who will drive the advancement and application of wisdom that uplifts people and the planet.It is not uncommon to see the child of a cultured family giving up their “parental” values and giving in to peer pressure or surrendering their self-identity to shallow or distorted media stereotypes. Many children have high IQs, rarer are those with high EQ. Growing up in privilege, the rarest are the ones with high AQ or adversity quotient – hence the focus on resiliency.
One type of parent completely cocoons their child from ‘negative’ outside influences. Can a fearful parent result in a fearless child?
Another type of parent is unwilling to protect, preserve, promote and practice what has given them strength. In the name of ‘freedom’ for their children, nothing is preserved, promoted or practised. Can a rudderless parent result in a child that has clarity and direction?
Despite their mutual ‘best’ efforts, children and their parents are often misaligned, which leads to misunderstandings that are unpleasant or destructive.
To bridge this gap, and have the conversation, we have started a ‘Yoga Dharma of Parenting’ Q&A session with our Yogacharya and Guru, Shri. RajendraJi.
We encourage parents and children to ask questions – by sending your question in writing to vasudevakriyayoga@gmail.com or (more preferably) recording your question on video and sending it to the above email address. We will be professionally recording the videos at the kids’ yoga class on Sundays from 5-6 pm in Glen Waverley.
You may find the first series of videos here, covering questions such as:
Episode 1: Yoga is to align and connect, dharma is to sustain. What does it mean for a parent and child to be aligned with and connected? How can they each understand each other better and have an enduringly positive relationship through the ups and downs of life?
Episode 1: Yoga of Parenting: A Q&A series with Rajendraji
Episode 2: How does this change situationally when the child is below 10, a “ten-ager”, “teenager”, young adult, and as they commence the path to grihastashram themselves?
Episode 2: Yoga of Parenting: A Q&A series with Rajendraji
Episode 3: How does a parent live up to and credibly embody the qualities that he/she wants for his/her child? What qualities should the parent and child focus on?
Episode 3: Yoga of Parenting: A Q&A series with Rajendraji
Episode 4: What is the fine line between stifling attachment (in the way Dhritarashtra was attached to Duryodhana) and inspirational detachment (in the way Krishna was a friendly father figure to Arjuna?)
Episode 4: Yoga of Parenting: A Q&A series with Rajendraji
Episode 5: Parents cannot be around forever to drive/regulate/sustain their children nor can they follow them everywhere. How does a parent create ‘svadhyaya’: self-drive/regulating/sustaining behaviours in their children, so the child can survive and thrive anywhere?
Health itself is Not everything, but without health everything becomes nothing.
My household members will not be safe if my house is in a coronavirus hot spot area. My country is not safe the surrounding countries are in a pandemic situation. I will be healthy only when my community is healthy. Similarly, the world is healthy only when its limbs in the form of all nations are healthy. If any country is not healthy, the body of this world is not at ease, and it is not healthy.
It is great news that the life expectancy of an Australian is steadily increasing, and it is currently at 83 years. Recent studies say that life expectancy of 150 years in the future is not impossible. To cater for this change, Governments across the world need to recalibrate their health budget to cater for an ageing population and this will put a strain on the nation’s budget.
There is a steady increase in the Australian health budget year on year and the current health budget is over $121 Billion with about 5% of the budget being spent on mental health. According to the productivity council, mental health is costing the nation at least $70 Billon annually and this is on an upward trend. The Government’s current strategy to address the strained health budget is a firefighting approach and may not be sustainable.
Prevention is better than cure: Yoga is an effective tool for Health: Message in the Aus Parliament
How can Yoga add value to the Nation?
Yoga will complement Government’s initiatives in addressing the health crisis through a proactive strategy of “Prevention is better than Cure”. Yoga is not only an investment in a healthy lifestyle but also enables one to bounce back to health quickly in case of illness. A healthy person is an asset to the nation as he or she contributes immensely to the wealth and wellness of the nation. Yoga plays a dominant role by making an individual physically healthy, mentally stable and spiritually connected. A healthy individual is vital for a healthy family, a healthy society and a healthy nation.
Yoga is the contribution of ancient sages of India to the whole of humanity. Though it is an ancient concept, its application is still relevant and will be relevant in the future also.
We generally associate wealth in terms of our bank balance, investments, shares etc. We work long hours in pursuit of this wealth. But we fail to realise that the wealth is not confined only to the money in the bank or our investment portfolio. As we age, we realise that the best wealth we can have is health.
The values we entertain – our mental health has a direct bearing on our physical health and our approach to life. The absence of disease alone is not health. The presence of enriched values in life is health. A tailor does not make us a gentleman, but the values we entertain make us a gentleman. Raising the height of the ceiling alone is not called prosperity. Cruising on a motorway or having 20 lane brides does not alone make a country a developed nation. A wealth without values is a burden on society. Emptying the mind of negative things alone is not enough. Shunting all criminals to prison alone will not make a country safe. Unless we enrich our lives with values, we will not find peace and prosperity in life. This can be achieved through a value-based education need to be introduced in the school system
We claim that we are busy in life and busy for what cause is the differentiators. We can make history by being engaged in life for a higher purpose. Otherwise, we will become a part of history. Only those who are dedicated to living for a higher purpose can inspire others. In the school system children must read about such great achievers of the past so that they will be inspired to excel. When you lead a life this you will not be abandoned in old age and the society will look after the person who is of value. Do not look up to the health minister or WHO for your health. Take responsibility for your health by investing time in yourself.
A healthy community is built on harmonious living amongst people from different races, religions, and cultures. For a healthy world, there must be a harmonious living between humans and animals and the environment.
The world is one family – vasudeiva kutumbakam. There cannot be sustainable peace and harmony by leading a selfish living. We must give more than we take for a healthy world. We must connect; we must join hands with others to enrich ourselves and others. This connection is called Yoga.
The application of Yoga is universal. It is not limited to one religion and one section of the community. The purpose of celebrating International Yoga is to bring the message of Yoga to the greater community.
The simultaneous experience along with the distractions are the pain, mental agitation, tremor of limbs and irregular breathing. ||1.31 ||
The nine obstacles to sadhana as mentioned in the previous sutra – distractions of the mind caused by the disease, dullness, doubt, negligence, sloth, over-indulgence, imaginary ideation, inability to reach the milestone and instability lead to four afflictions in the physical, mental and breath levels.
On the physical level, they trouble us with restless limbs, and one will not be at ease on the physical level. In the breath level, these impediments lead to erratic breathing which affects one physically and mentally. On the mental level, they bring in sorrow, anxiety, depression and other mental health issues.
Patanjali urges us to address the nine obstacles to sadhana so that we can be at ease in the physical, breath and mental levels.
