Yogakshemam Vahamyaham
Yoga - the magic word that is working wonders around the world. Sri Aurobindo said, "All Life is Yoga." Having practised Pranayama and Hatha Yoga Asanas on and off for five years now, I am really sinking into what Yoga actually does. Though learning it is usually done for health benefits, actually Pranayama and Hatha Yoga has helped me to unite with the cosmic life force that is within and without.
It is not even helping me to unite, but make me experience the Union that already exists the oneness. A little deep breathing continuously, my breath becomes less deep and I realise that there is no going in and coming out of the breath, the air outside and the air within are one and the same.
In Dhyanam - meditation, the experience is the same. When the mind quietly settles down, I experience that the thoughts outside and the thoughts within are the same. In fact, there is nothing outside or within. The bodies float like boats in a common ocean of the mind.
Hatha Yoga - While practising Surya Namaskar, I realised that it is not to some Sun outside of me - but a Namaskar to the presence of the light within. Even after completing the Asanas, I just have to think of an Asana at anytime throughout the day and I find that my mind attains that total cosmic unity. This is the balance that allow me to go through my day, as if I was absent and everything happens....
29 comments:
Instead of thinking about the Asana , I guess thinking about "God" would bring everything that needs to be brought upon us.
"Those persons who think of nothing else and worship Me through meditation--the accession to and the maintenance of the welfare of such ever--devout persons, I look after (yogakshemam vahamyaham). -Bhagawad Gita.
yOgam samthvam uchyathE says Krishna rightly! :)
@Krishna: Yes, that's a way, this is a way. All ways lead to the same God!
@Agnibarathi: The experience of Samathwam is the most beautiful, when it is bestowed upon us.
swahilya-ur state reminded something about myself :)
YOGAKSHEMAM VAHAMYAHAM --actually
mean something more profound.
Sri Krishna says Where there is Yoga(union)there you can find me, where there is kshemam(wellness)there Im found. In other words
Sri krishna indicates that through yoga one attains Kshemam and the one who attained yogam and kshemam
have automatically attained me.
The later interpretation like 'Leave your yogam and kshemam to me, I will take care of them" is used by the more lethargic seekers (arjuna types). VAHAMYAM
literally means IM THERE(and not leave it to me). The lazier type of a seeker always want a proxy to perform the spiritual practices and hence this idea...No Krishna or Rama or Jesus will ever do your yoga or experience your kshemam.
But those who attained it by their self effort will eventually reach where krishna had established himself....
oops..
isnt constant remembrance of Krishna or any other favorite deity equivalent to meditation (which is not a childs play). Ramanuacharya says
"ur thoughts should be like the continuos and undisturbed flow of oil
"
This should be the culmination of all yogas.
The spiritual practises to be one/more of the nine ways to bhakthi (Hearing, chanting, remembrance, anointing, worshiping etc) (if thats wat u meant), are by no means for the lazy person.
The practises are like a catalyst to a true bhaktha steering his way to realization that God is everywhere.
Kshemam is a soul that can always be immersed in bhakthi.That is spiritual wellness, the best thing a person can ever get.
I strongly feel that Hatha Yoga isnt for the week minded . Hence such a kind of person has to put lots of efforts and time to do pranayama and other kinds of training. One has to realize here that very few conditioned minds in this Kali Yuga will permit such kinds of training and that too only in the presence of a true spiritual Guru and only a few are gifted enough to have such a Guru. If u take bhakthi on the other hand, it requires comparitively less effort ( btw,plz dont consider this as laziness)
It is lot easier to cultivate bhakthi by following the nine ways to bhathi as specified by Bhagawad Gita.
Watever be the method employed by the aspirant, the final state should be in the realization of the TRUE JNANA that "God is love " and hence "love anything that u see " since at least a bit of him is present everywhere(depending upon ur wat ur philosophical belief is, advaita or vishishtadvaita). Thus one will ever do the best of Karma.
The above highlighted views are encouraged to be subject to criticism.
If at all there is anything that made good sense , I attribute that to Krishna Vasudeva, the teacher and friend of the best of the concentrators, Arjuna.
Jai Sri Krishna
Jai Sita Rama
Right said Krishna..!!!!
Constant rememberance(smaranam)
of someone results in imbibing his/her qualities..like children watch too much of jackie chan or
harry potter and worship them and start to jump instead of walking. It is good that you remember sri krishna in La fayette than J Lo.
VAHAMYAHAM - is a conveniently distorted term. Krishna tells, you will reach where I am through Yogam
and as a result of that, the kshemam. He never told remember me
always so that you will ape me later. Because it will become a borrowed experience.
Since in the beginning the seeker does not have a clue about which path to choose and where to arrive finally, Masters like Sri krishna indicates that "hey look at me, you are supposed to reach where Iam and I tell you the ways to reach where I am". Just give them the clue. But when a seeker become a sucker and glued to the clue and proclaim that "watching all jackie chan movies is enough(and you never have to put yourself through the rigorous martial arts practices he underwent to reach where he is)".
You are a kind that find happiness
watching a jackie chan on a pirated DVD than try yourself any of the somersault he did in the movie. Its like watching sachin on TV and glorifying him as a cricketing god(thankfully no more)than lift that bat and play
yourself.
The authentic master only stands as a source of inspiration and tells that if it possible for me
then why not to you? But leaving that point, people hold on to the pointer and say this is enough.
Let krishna have the 'experience'
and i remain at his feet only.
Never willing to get out of the
garbage pile but admiring and fantacising people who have found garbage free lives.
You are better off no doubt fantacizing Lord krishna but by having his name or muggingup his verses does not qualify you to go where Sri krishna stands.
Even at somepoint you wish to reach where Sri krishna reached, by waking from the fantacy trip,
still you will end up aping krishna and might lose your unique way of experiencing and expressing the Truth.
Pitfalls man, you are sorrounded by pitfalls. Beautiful they are.
But save yourself before you get
trapped by any one of them for a lifetime...
When you see a bit of you everywhere, what should happen is NOT love but a sense of oneness.
It is a sense of awareness. The love is possible only when theres a divided vision. One to love and another one to be loved. But when the subject object diffrence disappear, along with other emotions love too will disappear.
But small minds will conclude that if love disappears then theres hatred? But the awarenss that happens as a reult of oneness is
beyond love and hatred. Beyond all
dualities. No more divisions but only Oneness.
Hi Swahilya,
That seems to be the ultimate goal of yoga and meditation.Fantastic. Would like to learn atleast some of that.
Thanks all ye folks for ur inputs.. Sure will contemplate on ur thots and use my discretion appropriately..
May krishna-vasudeva have his grace upon me..:)
-Oops-, luvyduvy:I have no words to express my gratitude for being here in this space with all your light, wisdom and compassion.
@Hari: Seeing you after quite some time.
@Krishna: The Grace is always present. If you take a small cup, you can fill that much, a barrel, that much more. You just have to look deeply on what's before you to see the manifestation of Grace, ever abound, ever around, ever within.
hey swahilya,
I am elated to be back and especially to read a comment from you on my blogsite expressing happiness on my being back. I feel honored to be addressed in such a manner. I am also so very happy that many people are frequenting your blogsite these days and that you are getting your due. I was not in a frame of mind the last two months to blog because of various reasons. I came back out of hibernation because I felt I could continue on with blogging. I am very happy to finally get back in touch with you. I hope that you have been keeping well. I am glad to hear that you will be in Chicago from the 1st of December, sadly I will be leaving the united states to India on the 14th of December after the annual meeting of the american society of cell biology in San Francisco and will be returning back only on the 8th of January. It is a pity that I will not be able to meet you then, I was hoping to meet you when I come down to India this december but I am sure that there will be surely many more opportunities in my life time to meet one of my favorite writers.
I am looking forward to your next post.
@Robbie: Thanks too. As you said, frame of mind is very important to blog. I guessed so. But still keep in touch. There's time till Dec. 14. We're bound to meet soon!.
Swaha.
Robbie: The Cosmic Intelligence you had asked me is there in the August posts - Akasha Gnanam.
Dear Swahilya,
I did read your post on Cosmic Intelligence. I am sorry that I did not leave a comment there but there were a lot of things I loved about that post and here is my review for your wonderful post.
Cosmic Intelligence was summed up so beautifully but just these sentences "There were times when I use to go into nerve racking experiences trying to clean up. But during the course of time, I realised that there is a natural phenomenon of upheavel and calmness that happens in the house. These days, I just sit quietly in meditation for a long period of time and from nowhere in a matter of an hour I become equipped to get my house back into shape." This is exactly what I feel in the laboratory. It always happens that the best planned experiments whose details have been worked over and over in the mind till every single angle has been covered work the best and with effortless ease. I feel the same energy that you felt after meditating whenever I go through the rigours of planning my day or my experiment. I guess well all tap into that cosmic intelligence to harness the energy required for execution of our daily activities.
I thoroughly loved your post and I hope I interpreted your post correctly.
So good to see you in a state of unity with the cosmic soul
Where are you practicing Hatha Yoga?
Who is your Guru?
Who is guiding you?
Throw some light to me Swahilya ;) inner light
@Robbie: Yes of course.
@Saravana Kumar: I learnt Hatha Yoga at several places, but I practice Surya Namaskar and some simple exercises at home. My Guru is Swami Akshara who conducts meditation programmes in major cities of India, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and Hong Kong...
Great Post! Interesting and thoughtprovoking too.
oops: That was beautiful. Lovely to read it again and again. Yoga to me seems the Eternal Union of the self with The One Divine. That union is Bliss.
luvyduvy: Right yet again! From two to One or None?.
Nice way to reach God Swahilyaji!
Parvathy: One equals None.
@Adi: No reaching. Always being.
Fiirstn time on your blog, well written about Yoga.
@JeevaN: Thanks do keep in touch. I've seen you often on Sumonk's site/
@Ravikumar: Surprising. Good to hear from you. May keep in touch with swahilya@yahoo.co.in
No reaching, always being. Hmmm. Profondity hits again!
*Adi: Yes. Just being.
Swahilya,
Your comments are very good. I am impressed by your experience in yoga. I hope you are continuing to have deeper experience.
hello friend....
yoga
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