All posts by Rajendra Yenkannamoole

Santosha Sutra – Inner contemplation for outer blossoming

School dropouts start working at the age of 15 to earn money. While the rest continue their studies to acquire additional qualifications. The remunerations degree holders end up getting is far higher than school dropouts. Initially, a 15-year-old is happy to start earning early, but with limited skills, he or she will not see career progression. This leads to spending the later part of the years in regret for not acquiring additional skills.

Most people spend their free time and weekends socialising in the name of having fun and only to regret in the later part of their life for squandering their precious time. The seekers of the above type of happiness are of an unsteady type and for such people, the doors of yoga will not open. Bhagavan Shri Krishna says this in Bhagavad Geeta:


vishayendriya-sanyogad yat tad agre ’mritopamam |
pariname visham iva tat sukham rajasam smritam || 18.38 ||


Happiness is said to be in the mode of passion when it is derived from the contact of the senses with their objects. Such happiness is like nectar at first but poison at the end.

The Upanishad talks about a story, once kings from heaven, earth, and hell went to Lord Brahma for a mantra for happiness. Lord Brahma said da and asked them to contemplate on it. The word da was understood differently by all three of them. Kings from heaven were busy partying and they understood the mantra da as dama – meaning has niyama in life and have control over the senses.

Kings from the earth were generally selfish and stingy and they understood the mantra da as daana meaning becoming magnanimous in life through charity and selfless service. The kings from the hell were cruel by nature and they understood the mantra da as daya meaning be kind to others.

This santosha sutrada applies to all of us. We can have happiness in life by having dama, daana, and daya in life.

  • Dama can be implemented in life by following the foundation principles of yoga through the practice of yama and niyama.
  • Daana charity helps in purifying ourselves through purging out negativities and sins.
  • Daya helps in sustainable living through harmony in society. Following the above santosha sutra, we can have a sustained blossoming of happiness from within.

Initially following the principles of niyama seem to be difficult but the result is lasting happiness for oneself and others.


yat tad agre visham iva pariname ‘mritopamam |
tat sukham sattvikam proktam atma-buddhi-prasada-jam || 18.27 ||


That which seems like poison at first, but tastes like nectar in the end, is said to be happiness in the mode of goodness. It is generated by the pure intellect that is situated in self-knowledge.

After Yudhishthira became a king, others applauded him saying now you have everything at your disposal and now you can enjoy your life. For that king, Yudhishthira replied saying that though the palace is big, he required a small space for himself. Though the bed is big, he needed a small space to sleep. Though the kitchen is big, he could eat a few morsels to fill his stomach. Yudhishthira had realised that his outer comforts were not a source of his happiness in life.

Lord Shri Krishna says in Bhagavad Geeta that by going within and connecting with the changeless, the highest, the Light of all Lights, Lord Vasudeva who is the closest friend residing in every heart one realises unshakable happiness.


bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-maheshvaram |
suhridam sarva-bhutanam jnatva mam shantim richchhati || 5.29 ||


Having realized Me as the enjoyer of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all the worlds, and the selfless friend of all living beings, My devotee attains peace.

Yoga talks about inner peace and outer joy. The full manifestation of santosha happens through inner contemplation and its outer manifestation. Inner contemplation happens when we disengage from outer things and outer manifestation happens when we engage with outer things. The balance between inner contemplation and outer manifestation is yoga. The balance between sanyasa yoga and karma yoga is a key for santosha in life. Without an inward journey, we cannot be successful in our outward journey.

IDY 2022 Message: Yoga for physical, mental, and spiritual resilience

The main qualification you need to have for yoga to dawn is you must love yourself. When you love yourself, you will start investing time for yourself. When you love yourself, you will be mindful of what you eat, how you socialise, and how you utilise your time. When you start looking after yourself you will realise that unless the surroundings are conducive you cannot look after yourself. This pushes you to look after and enrich your surroundings as well. Soon you realise that your surroundings cannot be immune from the global influence. A sincere practitioner of yoga does not want to be influenced by global trends but wants to set a positive trend at a global level. When you love yourself you will love the whole world.

Connecting yourself from the micro level to the macro level is the purpose behind celebrating the International Day of Yoga. As individual humans, we are tiny insignificant puny. But when we expand ourselves by connecting with universal energy we get empowered with a boost of energy.

  • Yoga is not just inhaling and exhaling and moving your diaphragm like bellows.
  • Yoga is not just living for long as some trees do by living for centuries.
  • Yoga does not mean becoming busy in life till you retire as machines do.
  • Yoga is not a religion but is the basis for all religions.
  • Yoga is a unique contribution from the sages of India to the whole of humanity. Sages of yore developed the yoga system for the sustainability of this planet.
  • Yoga means balance. A balanced life is a must for sustainable living. A balanced life is a must for peace and harmony in the world.
  • Yoga enables us to express well physically, mentally, and spiritually.

To express ourselves well physically, we must understand our anatomy and physiology. Asana helps in connecting and strengthening all limbs in the body. Through the pranayama techniques, we oxygenate the blood, strengthen the nerves, and detoxify the body and mind. Through pranayama, the mind is calmed and the clarity in thinking improves. A still mind helps in diving deep within which enables us to connect to our spiritual roots.

The practice of yoga improves resilience at multiple levels of our personality. Body resilience minimises physical injuries. Mental resilience helps us to handle the challenges in life without buckling down in life. Spiritual resilience helps us to remain focused and move towards the goal of our life.

Last week one of my students who oversees a gurukul called me saying that there was a water shortage, and he was getting the borewell on the premises. According to the experts, the water table was about 300 feet deep. But when borewell drilling started at 300 feet he came across the rock. At that time, he remembered my words and did not get disheartened and continued with drilling till he found the bottom of the rock at 600 feet deep. There he stuck with sweet water enough to irrigate 4 acres of land.

International Day of Yoga is not a one-day affair. Yoga is a tapas and commitment to life. Many hurdles and distractions will come but with perseverance and patience continue your practice. With my yoga sadhana and by dedicating my life to tapas I am blessed to irrigate the hearts of many and quench the inner thirst of thousands across the world.

Make yoga your lifelong companion. Health is the best gift we can have. Mental health is a big challenge across the world. Yoga is the need of the day to make us physically healthy, mentally balanced, emotionally stable, and spiritually connected. Such an enriched person becomes an asset to the whole world and such a person alone can boost the morale of humanity.

The world is looking at you for a boost of energy. Come let us join hands to infuse positive energy so that this world becomes a better place to live.

Yoga Retreat at Hare Krishna Valley at the Dawn of the New Year

What a way to farewell 2016 and greet 2017!

Many of us went to the Yoga Retreat during this New year period. This retreat was aimed to “discover yourself.” It was at Sri Krishna’s Otway Retreat, about 90 minutes from Melbourne, set on a 200-acre land with lots of forest land and greenery all around.


We bid adieu to 2016 with 13-14 hrs of various Yoga activities. Sounds daunting, right? We can’t imagine that we participated actively in all the proceedings, didn’t need an afternoon rest or tea/coffee and felt energized all the way through.

In one day we did Asanas, Pranayama, Japa, Kriya, Yoga Nidra multiple times. We also participated in Dhyana, Meditation, chanting peaceful affirmations, Jal-neti, Sandhya Vandana and Kirtan.

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During the “Talk on Yoga,” session, Shri Rajendraji gave us practical insights and probing questions which provided clarity of perspective and impetus to establish a healthier routine, – one that positively affirms our lives through the joyfully serene discharge of service to our family, community, and nation.

There was also a communication session conducted by communication coach, Rajeev. The objective of this session was to help participants effectively communicate the enhanced inner clarity.


We started day 2, at 6:30 am, outdoors, with Surya Namaskara. Everyone found this an inspiring and enjoyable experience. We also did another round of Yoga Asana and Pranayama in the morning followed by most of the participants reflecting on the practice of Yoga and the Yoga Retreat experience.



During this extended Yoga period, participants learned about different limbs of Yoga in more details and in an immersed way. Away from all technologies and daily routines, everyone participated single-mindedly in Yoga.

During this period, everyone enjoyed saatvic vegetarian food, cooked in traditional and simple ways. It seems to bring out the natural flavours and tasted delicious. We also sat down on the floor to eat, the traditional Indian way of eating. Everyone washed their dishes after every meal, enjoying the co-operative way of living.


Many also went for Bush walks, visited Indian cows and Vege Gardens.


Considering the popularity and success of this Retreat, watch this space for many more of them to come!!

Badda Padmasana

Badda – locked.  Padmasana -Lotus posture.

Benefits:  This asana helps in strengthening the hands, strengthening and straightening the spine, opening up the chest muscles and in deepening the breathing. It energises the internal organs, stomach, reproductory organs, small and large intestines, reduces fat around the waist and releases tension from the shoulders, upper back and middle back regions.

Process: Sit in Padmasana with both heels touching the pelvic region.

Cross your hands behind your back and try to get hold of the right foot with left hand and the left foot with right hand.

Hold the chin up.

Feel the stretch in your shoulders, back, hands and spinal column.

Be aware of your breathing.

Remain in this position for as long as you are comfortable.

Release your hands from the toes and relax. Please refer to picture.

Caution: People with back, shoulder or knee injuries should do this asana with caution or under supervision.

 

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Badda Padmasana in Himalayas