Tantra is known to be the concept that arises out of this kind of commitment to oneself, which is the basis of Tantra. And the supporters of this side of belief are called tantrics. These people not only worship the physical state but also got to any degree to please the body to achieve occult powers.
As of this time, it is not widely practiced and used in India. And it survived only in some parts of India in the middle of the jungles and hills of the Himalayas.
However, there are many clashes about its origin and source. Some have researched and discovered that the Pre-Aryans are the originators and others transcribe it to the norms of the early people. It is known to have risen at the same time Buddhism was flourishing. And because of this, some Buddhists had incorporated and adopted some of the Tantric signs and symbols.
And later on, it has grown to form a faction or guild. Like the Vedas, Tantras are composed of collections of poems and verses that speak of the elaborate methods on the righteous and proper of worship and adoration.
Often, some people perceive them as obscure and mystical in sense that is usually addressed to the persons who perform or do tantric acts. These persons are usually, sadhakas. These Sadhakas live a very simple life. And the practice of Yoga is like a prayer for them. He usually meditates in the lone and secluded places in the countryside far, far away from the madding society. His robes and his begging bowl distinguish him. He also sells medicine, shells, charms and herbal pieces.
This may be his good side but the other half lingers in vicious outrages and he inflicts austerities upon himself. The various positions of love-making and sex itself outline a significant principle of tantrism.
According to some, there is a way of acquiring sidhi. This is through practicing Kundalini or serpent’s power. It says that in order to awaken the serpent, one must practice and perform a certain type of Yoga or mediation. Through this, the serpent is said to arise gradually. With constant practice, the serpent uncoils and awakens which in return, explodes a vast from of energy. As the process continues, the skin is becoming hot and sweating occurs until a stinging sensation is achieved or experienced. Once this is attained, it is said to be so prevailing that it may destroy the person if not controlled.
Soon, it rises and when it has come to its limit or peak, one feels absolute pleasure. And once this is attained, he therefore becomes a sage or Sadhu. Tantrism also involves the dissipated way of acquiring supernatural powers.
It is said that in order to gain deliverance, one must do everything that he wants to do even though it is immoral or prohibited.
It is also said that some tantric yoga exercises aids and improves the general and sexual health. With healthy reproductive organs, one can have improved well being and it is favorable for sexual activities. It is like the respiratory system, which needs air to function.
There are various exercises, both physical and spiritual which helps in integrating the body, mind and spirit into one. These different exercises are good to start each day with and favorable before going to bed.
Through this, the physiological functions of the body are stimulated and therefore revitalizes the whole well being of a person.
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Thursday, November 22, 2007
5 Common Myths About Yoga
Today there are common myths about Yoga. Here are some of them:
- Yoga means yoga postures
This is possibly the biggest myth about yoga. Postures, though important is
just one of the limbs of yoga. Other limbs are such as Yama, Niyama,
Pranayama and Meditation are in fact more important. Postures keep you
physically fit but yoga is much more than postures. Some yoga teachers are
to be blamed for this belief. To impress their students they demonstrate
“extreme” postures and tell that one should strive to achieve these
postures. In his Yoga Sutrats, there is only a couple of lines on postures. Patanjali says-“Any pose that keeps you steady and in comfortable condition is Asana”. The main aim of asana is to be able to sit in meditative condition for long hours and to keep body
healthy. - Yoga is to be practiced/related to a specific religion
It is a fact that origin of yoga is in Indian civilization. However, no
where in the yogic texts it is mentioned that they are to be practiced only
by Hindus. In the modern age where technology has broken the barriers of
country, religion and cast only narrow minded people can say that yoga is
for a specific religion. - Yoga practitioner must keep away from worldly duties
The ultimate goal of yoga is self-realization or union with god. However,
that doesn’t mean that only monks or renunciates can practice it. Everybody
has right of freedom , be it a renunciates or a householder. In fact it is
much difficult to remember God when doing day to day duties. Those who want
to achieve results quickly can devote themselves completely for “Sadhana”
but others can very well do it by following their daily routines. Your daily routines actually can be yoga practice, especially by not being attached to the "fruits of your actions" or outcomes, this is called Karma Yoga. - Yogic signs of progress can not be seen in modern age
We all claim to be modern and with scientific vision. However, we often
overlook the possibility that there can be ocean of knowledge we never
explored. Ancient Yoga texts speak about various Yoga powers and signs of
Yogic progress (seeing light, hearing mystic sounds, knowing future
incidences etc.). These things are considered obsolete and even some yoga
teachers tell that they are something not be believed or out of the reach.
However our faulty practice is to be blamed for this. If one practices with
honesty and sincerity then you also can experience these mystic looking
signs. There is a deeper level of intelligence that especially westerners are out of touch with. Yoga can help you cultivate this deeper intelligence. - One can practice yoga without changing one’s uncontrolled lifestyle
and attitude
Big wrong. Many so called modern teachers seem to be telling their students
that yoga will work like a miracle in their life and they can continue their
uncontrolled life style “As Is”. The real teacher will never promote un-controlled life
style; be it in terms of material pleasure, diet or sense enjoyments. Every
relationship is give and take relationship. If you want to get good results
you must give up un-controlled things of your life. Then and only then light
will come to you. In Bhagwat Gita it is said that one who practices
extremes (too high and too low) in work, sleep, eating etc. can not attain
Yoga. A yogi must follow moderate path in his practice.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Origins and History of Yoga
The popularization of yoga in the West by yoga schools influenced by the Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali (2nd century BC), have almost led to the origins of yoga being linked with Patanjali in the Western mind. In fact, the earliest illustration we have of yoga is from the Mohenjo-daro seals. Mohenjo-Daro is the remains of an ancient city located in Pakistan, part of the Indus Valley civilization which existed along the Indus river and Ghaggar-Hakra river in north-west India and what is now Pakistan. Mohenjo-Daro's parent city was Harrapa in India.
These civilizations have been dated from 3300 BC to 1300 BC. At one stage they were thought to have suddenly ended due to an Aryan invasion, though archaeologists now believe it was more likely due to climate change. Ultimately though, nothing is certain in the world of archaeology, at least until the next find, or developments in science.
The Mohenjo-daro seals show a figure standing on its head, and another sitting cross legged.
However, some see yoga's origins as being from the Vedic shastras, or vedic religious texts, which are the foundation of Indian Hinduism. The Vedic texts were created from 500 BC, and the Rigveda is believed to have been completed by 1500 BC. The Rigveda is one of several principle early vedic texts. The Rigveda, Samaveda, and Yajurveda were used by the Brahmins, a caste that were usually priests, or allowed to be priests, in the days when the caste system originated.
A lot of these texts were concerned with sacrificial rituals. There are sacrificial prayers, incantations, and elements related to magic, to name a few aspects of the subject matter. These are now viewed symbolically, or philosophically, although they were presumably intended more literally at the time. But the word "yoga" was discussed in the RigVeda. In it, there is mention of 'yoking' our mind and insight to the 'Sun Of Truth' (David Frawley, a Vedic scholar).
Yoga is also discussed in the Bhagavad Gita, where Krishna describes 4 types of yoga:
* selfless action - in following one's soul path, one's dharma, first and foremost, and without thinking of the outcome, the end result, or being motivated by self gain (Karma Yoga)
* self transcending knowledge (Jnana yoga)
* psycho-physical meditation (Raja yoga)
* devotion - loving service to the Divine Essence (Bhakti yoga) (Source - Wikipedia)
The Bhagavad Gita is believed to have been written between the 5th and 2nd century BC. In the Gita, the goal of yoga is the realization of Brahman, or the Divine Essence. Whilst the paths to achieve this for individuals may be different, the essence of coming to an unequivocable knowing of the Oneness of the Divine, and oneself within this fundamental reality, is the same.
"The Gita addresses the discord between the senses and the intuition of cosmic order. It speaks of the Yoga of equanimity, a detached outlook. The term Yoga covers a wide range of meanings, but in the context of the Bhagavad Gita, describes a unified outlook, serenity of mind, skill in action, and the ability to stay attuned to the glory of the Self (Atman), which is of the same essence as the basis of Being (Brahman)."
To learn more about the origin and gain a more complete picture of Yoga, check out the:
The Yoga Matrix: The body as a gateway to freedom
by Richard Freeman
These civilizations have been dated from 3300 BC to 1300 BC. At one stage they were thought to have suddenly ended due to an Aryan invasion, though archaeologists now believe it was more likely due to climate change. Ultimately though, nothing is certain in the world of archaeology, at least until the next find, or developments in science.
The Mohenjo-daro seals show a figure standing on its head, and another sitting cross legged.
However, some see yoga's origins as being from the Vedic shastras, or vedic religious texts, which are the foundation of Indian Hinduism. The Vedic texts were created from 500 BC, and the Rigveda is believed to have been completed by 1500 BC. The Rigveda is one of several principle early vedic texts. The Rigveda, Samaveda, and Yajurveda were used by the Brahmins, a caste that were usually priests, or allowed to be priests, in the days when the caste system originated.
A lot of these texts were concerned with sacrificial rituals. There are sacrificial prayers, incantations, and elements related to magic, to name a few aspects of the subject matter. These are now viewed symbolically, or philosophically, although they were presumably intended more literally at the time. But the word "yoga" was discussed in the RigVeda. In it, there is mention of 'yoking' our mind and insight to the 'Sun Of Truth' (David Frawley, a Vedic scholar).
Yoga is also discussed in the Bhagavad Gita, where Krishna describes 4 types of yoga:
* selfless action - in following one's soul path, one's dharma, first and foremost, and without thinking of the outcome, the end result, or being motivated by self gain (Karma Yoga)
* self transcending knowledge (Jnana yoga)
* psycho-physical meditation (Raja yoga)
* devotion - loving service to the Divine Essence (Bhakti yoga) (Source - Wikipedia)
The Bhagavad Gita is believed to have been written between the 5th and 2nd century BC. In the Gita, the goal of yoga is the realization of Brahman, or the Divine Essence. Whilst the paths to achieve this for individuals may be different, the essence of coming to an unequivocable knowing of the Oneness of the Divine, and oneself within this fundamental reality, is the same.
"The Gita addresses the discord between the senses and the intuition of cosmic order. It speaks of the Yoga of equanimity, a detached outlook. The term Yoga covers a wide range of meanings, but in the context of the Bhagavad Gita, describes a unified outlook, serenity of mind, skill in action, and the ability to stay attuned to the glory of the Self (Atman), which is of the same essence as the basis of Being (Brahman)."
To learn more about the origin and gain a more complete picture of Yoga, check out the:
The Yoga Matrix: The body as a gateway to freedom
by Richard Freeman
Introduction to Yoga
Yoga is literally to yoke or bring together as one. The practice of Yoga is the "way to bring together".
There are different schools of yoga. Some common ones today include Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Jnana Yoga, fundamentally preach different ways of attaining 'salvation or moksha' or the eternal freedom; freedom from deaths and lives; freedom from good and evil. Although there are deviations to all four main forms of yoga, there is a common thread binding them in an innocuous way. That it is the means of spiritual enlightenment. Taking a cue from here, another relatively later manifestation called as 'Hatha Yoga', preaches the same thing as the other four, considered by ordinary people as difficult to practice, but emphasizes more on physical health and postures.
Hinduism has a lot of literatures and treatises written on all four forms plus the Hatha Yoga. Patanjali, one prominent of them, is credited as being the proponent of yogasanas as yoga is known popularly today. The word yogasana is a conjugate word of yoga and asana. Yogasana combines the benefits of physical postures, in a scientific sequence, performed under extreme concentration on controlling the mind and breath, for physical benefits.
Yoga and Exercises
Yoga is a popular short word for yoga asana after it reached west. Yoga is practiced after proper coaching like any other exercising method. Each step in any posture is defined and regulated to precision. When yoga is practiced, practitioners chant mantras which help practitioners hold the postures' steps till the mantra ends. The steps can also be followed by chanting simple 'OM'.
OM is believed to be the first sound the human being heard from the Creator. To chant OM, one needs to relax the mind beforehand and slowly chant for a length of time, which is entirely decided by the chanter to his or her entire comfort, which does not strain the lungs. The longest effortless single breath chant is the naturally needed length of OM. Change your yoga asana step at the end of each OM and proceed further till end.
What we discussed is the simplest class of yoga. Breath control is equally important for yoga to benefit you in any way. Pranayama, which regulates the oxygen supplies to our blood, must be associated with yoga practice.
There are different schools of yoga. Some common ones today include Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Jnana Yoga, fundamentally preach different ways of attaining 'salvation or moksha' or the eternal freedom; freedom from deaths and lives; freedom from good and evil. Although there are deviations to all four main forms of yoga, there is a common thread binding them in an innocuous way. That it is the means of spiritual enlightenment. Taking a cue from here, another relatively later manifestation called as 'Hatha Yoga', preaches the same thing as the other four, considered by ordinary people as difficult to practice, but emphasizes more on physical health and postures.
Hinduism has a lot of literatures and treatises written on all four forms plus the Hatha Yoga. Patanjali, one prominent of them, is credited as being the proponent of yogasanas as yoga is known popularly today. The word yogasana is a conjugate word of yoga and asana. Yogasana combines the benefits of physical postures, in a scientific sequence, performed under extreme concentration on controlling the mind and breath, for physical benefits.
Yoga and Exercises
Yoga is a popular short word for yoga asana after it reached west. Yoga is practiced after proper coaching like any other exercising method. Each step in any posture is defined and regulated to precision. When yoga is practiced, practitioners chant mantras which help practitioners hold the postures' steps till the mantra ends. The steps can also be followed by chanting simple 'OM'.
OM is believed to be the first sound the human being heard from the Creator. To chant OM, one needs to relax the mind beforehand and slowly chant for a length of time, which is entirely decided by the chanter to his or her entire comfort, which does not strain the lungs. The longest effortless single breath chant is the naturally needed length of OM. Change your yoga asana step at the end of each OM and proceed further till end.
What we discussed is the simplest class of yoga. Breath control is equally important for yoga to benefit you in any way. Pranayama, which regulates the oxygen supplies to our blood, must be associated with yoga practice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
