Local activities, online meetings, retreats, other programs

Our community of meditation and contemplation is devoted to training and
nurturing those who deeply long for the direct experience of union with the
eternal, pure center of consciousness, the bliss of being that is one with the
absolute reality, as the wave who seeks to remember it is one with the ocean.
One word for that union is "Yoga." The word "Abhyasa" means "practices." Abhyasa
is purposefully choosing to do that which leads to "sthitau," which is a stable,
steady, undisturbed inner calmness or tranquility. Abhyasa is one of the twin
foundations of Yoga, along with Vairagya, the mental stance of non-attachment
(Yoga Sutras 1.12-1.16). The root of the word Ashram is "shrama," which means
"effort" or "striving." The hermitage or home of a swami or other person serving
people in their efforts towards inner peace and spiritual awakening is called an
Ashram. Thus, our community of meditation, contemplation and learning is known
as Abhyasa Ashram. More than any physical location, it is really a place of the
heart, an inner sanctuary of silence.

LOCAL ACTIVITIES
Daily Silent Meditation (30 minutes): 11:30am and 6:00pm
Friday, October 21, 7:00 pm: Satsang and Mantra
Mondays, 4:00 pm: Book Club: Bhagavad Gita
Wednesdays, 12:00 pm: Curriculum discussion
Thursdays, 7:00 pm: Swami Rama videos and discussion
Due to traveling to India, there will be no local programs from Nov 3 – Dec 8
Calendar: http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

ONLINE MEETINGS
Regular online meetings, reviewing articles from SwamiJ.com and other sources,
along with Q&A on general topics
Schedule and details: http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm
Usually several times per week unless I am traveling and have no internet access

Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 9:00pm
Open discussion.
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/497462179

Wednesday, October 28, 9:00pm
Open discussion.
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/289635018

Friday, October 30, 10:00pm
Open discussion
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/764543394

Saturday, October 31, 8:30am
Open discussion
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/545996099

Sunday, November 1, 9:00pm
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/177785162

RETREATS IN INDIA:
November 16 – December 6, 2009
March 8 - 28, 2010
November 15 - December 5, 2010
http://www.swamij.com/calendar/rishikesh-retreat.htm

CENTER FOR NONDUALISM
A Community for Non-Dual Religion, Yoga, and Philosophy
Providing a "Sunday Alternative"
Every Sunday at: Brooks Beal Center
100 Beal Parkway NW
Fort Walton Beach, Florida 32547
9:30-10:30 am: Interactive Program
10:30-11:00 am: Fellowship
11:00-12:00 am: Main Program; speaker, guided meditation, inspirational reading
12:00-12:30 pm: Fellowship

Website:
http://www.centerfornondualism.org/
Newsletter:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CenterForNonDualism/

Annual Conference and Retreat:
Transcending Fear, the Greatest Obstacle to Nondual Realization
February 25-28, 2010

Swami Jnaneshvara upcoming participation:
December 13, 11:00am: Speaker in main program
December 21, 9:30: Interactive Program: Satsang and discussion

ARTICLES:
Frequently Asked Questions from SwamiJ.com
http://www.swamij.com/faq.htm

REFLECTIONS:
David Frawley, an internationally recognized scholar and teacher, is quoted in
the Sep/Oct 2000 issue of Yoga Journal: "Yoga in the West has only scratched the
surface of the greater Yoga tradition," he says. "The Yoga community in the West
is currently at a crossroads. Its recent commercial success can be used to build
the foundation for a more profound teaching, aimed at changing the consciousness
of humanity. Or it can reduce Yoga to a mere business that has lost connection
with its spiritual heart. The choice that Yoga teachers make today will
determine this future."

PODCASTS:
Archive of audio podcasts:
http://www.swamij.com/podcast.htm

YOUTUBE:
Archives of my videos on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/yogabindu
http://www.youtube.com/swamijb

CONNECTIONS
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/swamij
Twitter: http://twitter.com/swamij
Calendar: http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm
Email and postal contact: http://www.swamij.com/contact.htm

Our community of meditation and contemplation is devoted to training and
nurturing those who deeply long for the direct experience of union with the
eternal, pure center of consciousness, the bliss of being that is one with the
absolute reality, as the wave who seeks to remember it is one with the ocean.
One word for that union is "Yoga." The word "Abhyasa" means "practices." Abhyasa
is purposefully choosing to do that which leads to "sthitau," which is a stable,
steady, undisturbed inner calmness or tranquility. Abhyasa is one of the twin
foundations of Yoga, along with Vairagya, the mental stance of non-attachment
(Yoga Sutras 1.12-1.16). The root of the word Ashram is "shrama," which means
"effort" or "striving." The hermitage or home of a swami or other person serving
people in their efforts towards inner peace and spiritual awakening is called an
Ashram. Thus, our community of meditation, contemplation and learning is known
as Abhyasa Ashram. More than any physical location, it is really a place of the
heart, an inner sanctuary of silence.

LOCAL ACTIVITIES
Daily Silent Meditation (30 minutes): 11:30am and 6:00pm
Friday, October 21, 7:00 pm: Satsang and Mantra
Mondays, 4:00 pm: Book Club: Bhagavad Gita
Wednesdays, 12:00 pm: Curriculum discussion
Thursdays, 7:00 pm: Swami Rama videos and discussion
Calendar: http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

ONLINE MEETINGS
Regular online meetings, reviewing articles from SwamiJ.com and other sources,
along with Q&A on general topics
Schedule and details: http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm
Usually several times per week unless I am traveling and have no internet access

RETREATS IN INDIA:
November 16 – December 6, 2009
March 8 - 28, 2010
November 15 - December 5, 2010
http://www.swamij.com/calendar/rishikesh-retreat.htm

ARTICLES:
The Essence of Spiritual Life, by Swami Rama
http://www.swamij.com/swami-rama-essence.htm

REFLECTIONS:
One of my fondest memories is of the day Swami Rama said to me simply, "You are
on the path. I will lead you." He has done what he said he would do, for which I
am truly grateful.

CONNECTIONS
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/swamij
Twitter: http://twitter.com/swamij
Calendar: http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm
Email and postal contact: http://www.swamij.com/contact.htm

CENTER FOR NONDUALISM
A Community for Non-Dual Religion, Yoga, and Philosophy
Providing a "Sunday Alternative"
Every Sunday at: Brooks Beal Center
100 Beal Parkway NW
Fort Walton Beach, Florida 32547
9:30-10:30 am: Interactive Program
10:30-11:00 am: Fellowship
11:00-12:00 am: Main Program; speaker, guided meditation, inspirational reading
12:00-12:30 pm: Fellowship

Website:
http://www.centerfornondualism.org/
Newsletter:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CenterForNonDualism/

Annual Conference and Retreat:
Transcending Fear, the Greatest Obstacle to Nondual Realization
February 25-28, 2010

Swami Jnaneshvara upcoming participation:
October 25, 9:30am: Interactive Program: Satsang and discussion
November 1, 11:00am: Speaker in main program
December 13, 11:00am: Speaker in main program
December 21, 9:30: Interactive Program: Satsang and discussion

True Faith and Pure Reason
by Swami Rama
From Enlightenment without God

Religions have two great weapons to conquer the hearts of their followers: faith
and grace. The way faith is described in religious scriptures is not actually
faith at all, but is blind belief based on ignorance and rigidity of tradition.
Tradition and truth are entirely different. One is mingled with customs,
systems, cultures, habits, thoughts, feelings, and desires, and the latter is a
search for the Ultimate Reality. For attaining truth, everything the aspirant
has, including thoughts, deeds, and speech, becomes a means for attaining truth;
while in tradition, all means are used for the sake of convenience, pleasure,
and gratification. Religionists and their faithful followers are afraid to
analyze the very nature of their faith. Thus, one is lost in a morass of
religious fanaticism. Faith that does not recognize the faculty of reasoning and
that has not been filtered by reasoning is based on blind beliefs that remain
unexamined. They thus unnecessarily create doubts, and when doubts are not
resolved, such faith disappears. Blind faith, being empty and devoid of any real
reason or fact, is often found wanting when one has a problem and expects to
find a strong basis that will support and carry him through difficult times.
Then one finds, instead, nothing to hold on to or anchor oneself to. Because of
this weakness in religious faith, religious dogma says that faith is a gift from
God, and that if one questions it, then it might vanish and be lost. True faith
is supported by pure reason, which is attained through thoughtful analysis of
life. Following the extended practice of sâdhanâ and purification, a few
fortunate seekers realize and know the nature of the world as it is and also
experience the all-pervading truth that enlightens the' dark chamber of the
aspirant's heart.

http://www.swamij.com/

Just for the fun of it:
Gulf of Mexico, Fort Walton Beach, FL, Sep 3, 2009 at Okaloosa Island
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH8T1UsZ_Vg

Each human is one with the nondual Reality, as a wave is not separate from the
ocean.

Swami J
http://www.swamij.com/

Actions are the child of mind.
Mind is the child of desire.
Desire is the child of habit.
Habit is child of the senses.
The senses are the child of actions.
The Self is an orphan.

Swami Jnaneshvara
http://www.swamij.com/

ONLINE:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm
CALENDAR:
http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

ONLINE MEETINGS:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

Tue, Sep 1, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/442452538

Wed, Sep 2, 2009 7:00 AM - 8:00 AM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/889234963

Thu, Sep 3, 2009 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/280086362

Fri, Sep 4, 2009 10:00 PM - 11:00 PM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/374896346

Sat, Sep 5, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/932212818

Sat, Sep 5, 2009 10:00 PM - 11:00 PM CDT
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/802437650

Sun, Sep 6, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagad Gita
Online copy is here.
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/467165875

CALENDAR (gatherings):
http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

SEP 2, WED, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering
SEP 3, THU, 7:00pm: Videos of Swami Rama lectures
SEP 4, FRI, 7:00pm: First Friday gathering
SEP 6, SUN, Sep 6, 9:30am - 12:00pm: Center for Nondualism

SEP 12-26: Costa Rica
SEP 29-OCT 2: Pittsburgh
OCT 8-11: Buffalo/East Aurora, NY
NOV 16 - DEC 6: Meditation Retreat in Rishikesh, India
MAR 8-28, 2010: Meditation Retreat in Rishikesh, India

Paramahansa Yogananda: "What is Yoga?"
http://www.swamij.com/traditional-yoga.htm#yogananda

Paramahansa Yogananda, the well-known author of Autobiography of a Yogi,
responds to the question "What is Yoga?" in the text The Essence of
Self-Realization:

"Yoga means union. Etymologically, it is connected to the English word, yoke.
Yoga means union with God, or, union of the little, ego-self with the divine
Self, the infinite Spirit. Most people in the West, and also many in India,
confuse Yoga with Hatha Yoga, the system of bodily postures.

But Yoga is primarily a spiritual discipline . I don't mean to belittle the Yoga
postures. Hatha Yoga is a wonderful system. The body, moreover, is a part of our
human nature, and must be kept fit lest it obstruct our spiritual efforts.
Devotees, however, who are bent on finding God give less importance to the Yoga
postures. Nor is it strictly necessary that they practice them. Hatha Yoga is
the physical branch of Raja Yoga, the true science of Yoga. Raja Yoga is a
system of meditation techniques that help to harmonize human consciousness with
the divine consciousness.

This video is a fantastic 3-D demonstration of diaphragmatic breathing, and
should be useful to all practitioners of any form of yoga, and especially
teachers of any form of yoga. Diaphragmatic breathing is widely misunderstood in
modern "yoga" classes and schools where the diaphragm is incorrectly thought to
be in the abdomen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp-gCvW8PRY

More information about diaphragmatic breathing:
http://www.swamij.com/diaphragmatic-breathing.htm

Activities This Week (UPDATED): Tue, Aug 25 – Sun, Aug 30

Calendar: http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

Tuesday, Aug 25, 2009 8:30 - 9:30 PM CDT (US)
Karma – Online Discussion
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/261581859

Wednesday, August 26, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 11:30 PM to Thu, Aug 27, 2009 12:30 AM CDT
Open Discussion for late-night people and people who live in countries  and time
zones east of the USA. Specific topics may be covered, rather than completely 
"open" discussions.
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/253126699

Thursday, Aug 27, 2009, 7:00pm: Swami Rama videos (in Florida)

Thursday, Aug 27, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Online: Yoga Sutras 1.1-1.4: What is Yoga?
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/456671282

Friday, August 28, 7:00 pm: Mantra Mela

Saturday, Aug 29, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
Open Online Discussion
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/711467954

Sunday, August 30, 11:00 AM
Presentation at the Center for Nondualism: Metaphors of Consciuosness

Sunday, Aug 30, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita (Ongoing discussion)
Online copy is here.
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/525818970

Activities This Week: Tue, Aug 25 – Sun, Aug 30

Tuesday, Aug 25, 2009 8:30 - 9:30 PM CDT (US)
Karma – Online Discussion
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/261581859

Wednesday, August 26, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 11:30 PM CDT
Open Discussion for late-night people and people who live in countries  and time
zones east of the USA. Specific topics may be covered, rather than completely 
"open" discussions.
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/253126699

Thursday, Aug 27, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Online: Yoga Sutras 1.1-1.4: What is Yoga?
Registration Web Link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/456671282

Friday, August 28, 7:00 pm: Mantra Mela

Saturday, Aug 29, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
Open Online Discussion
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/711467954

Sunday, August 30, 11:00 AM
Presentation at the Center for Nondualism: Metaphors of Consciuosness

Sunday, Aug 30, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita (Ongoing discussion)
Online copy is here.
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/525818970

Webinar:
Introduction to the Yoga Sutras
Thu, Aug 20, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/592736019

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsang:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

Online open discussion:
Wednesday, Aug 19, 2009 11:30 PM CDT
With Swami Jnaneshvara
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/232365571

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsang:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

We Are All Hindus Now
Newsweek, Aug 15, 2009
By Lisa Miller
http://www.newsweek.com/id/212155

America is not a Christian nation. We are, it is true, a nation founded by
Christians, and according to a 2008 survey, 76 percent of us continue to
identify as Christian (still, that's the lowest percentage in American history).
Of course, we are not a Hindu—or Muslim, or Jewish, or Wiccan—nation, either. A
million-plus Hindus live in the United States, a fraction of the billion who
live on Earth. But recent poll data show that conceptually, at least, we are
slowly becoming more like Hindus and less like traditional Christians in the
ways we think about God, our selves, each other, and eternity.

The Rig Veda, the most ancient Hindu scripture, says this: "Truth is One, but
the sages speak of it by many names." A Hindu believes there are many paths to
God. Jesus is one way, the Qur'an is another, yoga practice is a third. None is
better than any other; all are equal. The most traditional, conservative
Christians have not been taught to think like this. They learn in Sunday school
that their religion is true, and others are false. Jesus said, "I am the way,
the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me."

Americans are no longer buying it. According to a 2008 Pew Forum survey, 65
percent of us believe that "many religions can lead to eternal life"—including
37 percent of white evangelicals, the group most likely to believe that
salvation is theirs alone. Also, the number of people who seek spiritual truth
outside church is growing. Thirty percent of Americans call themselves
"spiritual, not religious," according to a 2009 NEWSWEEK Poll, up from 24
percent in 2005. Stephen Prothero, religion professor at Boston University, has
long framed the American propensity for "the divine-deli-cafeteria religion" as
"very much in the spirit of Hinduism. You're not picking and choosing from
different religions, because they're all the same," he says. "It isn't about
orthodoxy. It's about whatever works. If going to yoga works, great—and if going
to Catholic mass works, great. And if going to Catholic mass plus the yoga plus
the Buddhist retreat works, that's great, too."

Then there's the question of what happens when you die. Christians traditionally
believe that bodies and souls are sacred, that together they comprise the
"self," and that at the end of time they will be reunited in the Resurrection.
You need both, in other words, and you need them forever. Hindus believe no such
thing. At death, the body burns on a pyre, while the spirit—where identity
resides—escapes. In reincarnation, central to Hinduism, selves come back to
earth again and again in different bodies. So here is another way in which
Americans are becoming more Hindu: 24 percent of Americans say they believe in
reincarnation, according to a 2008 Harris poll. So agnostic are we about the
ultimate fates of our bodies that we're burning them—like Hindus—after death.
More than a third of Americans now choose cremation, according to the Cremation
Association of North America, up from 6 percent in 1975. "I do think the more
spiritual role of religion tends to deemphasize some of the more starkly literal
interpretations of the Resurrection," agrees Diana Eck, professor of comparative
religion at Harvard. So let us all say "om."

Online discussion:
What is Yoga?
Throughout the website the word "Yoga" is used in its traditional meaning of
spiritual realization, rather than the revisionist meaning of Yoga as a physical
fitness program. Traditionally, Yoga (Sanskrit: union) has referred to the
realization through direct experience of the preexisting union between Atman and
Brahman, Jivatman and Paramatman, and Shiva and Shakti, or the realization of
Purusha standing alone as separate from Prakriti. Yoga is the realization of
union between the microcosm of individuality with the macrocosm of universality.

What is Yoga?
Tue, Aug 18, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/558156491

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsangs:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm
Wed, Aug 19, 2009 11:30 PM CDT
Thu, Aug 20, 2009 9:00 PM CDT
Sat, Aug 22, 2009 8:30 AM CDT

Online open discussion:
Saturday, Aug 15, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
With Swami Jnaneshvara
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/651456875
For your convenience, you may preregister; you will be notified/reminded by
email before the start time.

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsang:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

Sunday, Aug 16, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita (Ongoing discussion)
Online copy is here.
Registration:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/411455203

Wednesday, Aug 19, 2009 11:30 PM to Thu, Aug 20, 2009 12:30 AM CDT
Open Discussion for late-night people and people who live in countries  and time
zones east of the USA. Specific topics may be covered, rather than completely 
"open" discussions.
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/232365571

Saturday, Aug 22, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
Open Discussion
Registration:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/114416195

Sunday, Aug 23, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita (Ongoing discussion)
Online copy is here.
Registration:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/616041787

Tuesday, Aug 24 or later, 2009 8:30 PM - 9:30 PM CDT (US)
Tradition of the Himalayan Masters
Registration Web Link: to be announced

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 11:30 PM to Thu, Aug 27, 2009 12:30 AM CDT
Open Discussion for late-night people and people who live in countries  and time
zones east of the USA. Specific topics may be covered, rather than completely 
"open" discussions.
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/253126699

Saturday, Aug 29, 2009 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM CDT
Open Discussion
Registration:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/711467954

Sunday, Aug 30, 2009 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM CDT
Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita (Ongoing discussion)
Online copy is here.
Registration:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/525818970

Online webinar:
Navigating the SwamiJ.com website
Thursday, Aug 13, 2009 8:30 PM - 9:30 PM CDT (US)
By Swami Jnaneshvara
It may seem odd to have instructions on how to use a website, but the need comes
from the common statement of people that while they love the articles on the
website, they don't know where to get started. By understanding the way the site
is intentionally designed, it might be easier to use.
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/826672394
For your convenience, please preregister; you will be notified/reminded by email
before the start time.

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsang:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

Online webinar:
Tradition of the Himalayan Masters
By Swami Jnaneshvara
Review of the tradition related articles on SwamiJ.com
Tuesday, Aug 11, 2009 8:30 PM - 9:30 PM CDT (US)
Tradition of the Himalayan Masters
Registration Web Link:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/870044699
For your convenience, please preregister; you will be notified/reminded by email
before the start time.

More info on all upcoming online webinar programs and satsang:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

NEXT Online Discussion:
Wed, Aug 5, 2009 9:15 AM - 10:15 AM CDT
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/727445539

More info:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

-------

We are now having meetings or online classes through GoToWebinar.com to
complement or replace the broadcasts through Ustream. There is no fee for you to
participate in any of the meetings, although I have contracted the service and
paid any fees.

As we evolve the class schedules, we will likely have several categories of
gatherings:

1) Open discussions for topics of your choice.
2) Overviews of the SwamiJ.com website and practices.
3) Specific articles from the website.
4) Discussions of texts, such as traditional texts or those of Swami Rama.

Please join in and play, as we learn together.

Swami J


More info:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

Please see the calendar for details:
http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

DAILY*, 11:30am and 6:00pm: Silent meditation
EVERY* MON, 4:00 pm: Book Club, Bhagavad Gita
EVERY* MON, 7:00 pm: Masala Monday
EVERY* WED, 2:00 pm: Curriculum review gathering
EVERY* THU, 7:00 pm: Videos of Swami Rama lectures
EVERY* SAT, 8:30 am: Online interactive discussion
EVERY* SUN morning: Center for Nondualism
EVERY* SUN, 9:00 pm: Online interactive discussion of Bhagavad Gita
*Exceptions are dates on which I am traveling

Upcoming (subject to change):

AUG 5, WED, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering
AUG 6, THU, 7:00pm: Videos of Swami Rama lectures
AUG 7, FRI, 7:00pm: 1st Friday Discussion
AUG 8, SAT, 8:30am: Online video discussion

AUG 9, SUN, 9:30am - 12:00pm: Center for Nondualism
AUG 9, SUN, 9:00pm: Online Bhagavad Gita discussion
AUG 10, MON, 4:00pm: Book Club, Bhagavad Gita
AUG 10, MON, 7:00pm: Masala Monday
AUG 12, WED, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering
AUG 13, THU, 7:00pm: Videos of Swami Rama lectures
AUG 15, SAT, 8:30am: Online interactive discussion

AUG 16, SUN, 9:30am - 12:00pm: Center for Nondualism
AUG 16, SUN, 9:00pm: Online Bhagavad Gita discussion
AUG 17, MON, 4:00pm: Book Club, Bhagavad Gita
AUG 17, MON, 7:00pm: Masala Monday
AUG 19, WED, 12:00pm: Curriculum review gathering
AUG 20, THU, 7:00pm: Videos of Swami Rama lectures
AUG 22, SAT, 8:30am: Online interactive discussion
AUG 22, SAT, 10:00am: Third Saturday satsang (4th this month)


SEP 12-26: Costa Rica
SEP 29-OCT 2: Pittsburgh, PA
OCT 8-11: Buffalo/East Aurora, NY
NOV 16 - DEC 6: Meditation Retreat in Rishikesh, India
MAR 8-28, 2010: Meditation Retreat in Rishikesh, India

Please see the calendar for details:
http://www.swamij.com/calendar.htm

NEXT Online Discussion:
Tue, Aug 4, 2009 9:15 PM - 10:15 PM CDT
Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/111428378

More info:
http://www.swamij.com/meetings.htm

-------

We are now having meetings or online classes through GoToWebinar.com to
complement or replace the broadcasts through Ustream. There is no fee for you to
participate in any of the meetings, although I have contracted the service and
paid any fees.

As we evolve the class schedules, we will likely have several categories of
gatherings:

1) Open discussions for topics of your choice.
2) Overviews of the SwamiJ.com website and practices.
3) Specific articles from the website.
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Energy of Consciousness in the Human Personality
From: Inspired Thoughts of Swami Rama
by Swami Rama

The universe is a dance of energies that vibrate at many frequencies. They ebb
and flow, merge and part, form ripples, tides, currents, eddies, and whirlpools.
They become units of all sizes, from atoms to stars, from individual souls to
cosmic beings, and again they dissolve into each other. As rays, streaks,
streams, rivers, oceans of light, they flow into each other and separate again,
changing frequencies--and in chang-ing frequencies, they become suns, galaxies,
spaces, airs, winds, fires, liquids, solids. They become the bodies of human
beings into which the energy called consciousness comes and is embodied.

Of all the flowing energies in the universe, consciousness is the most dominant,
the one from which all the others proceed and into which they all merge. The
ancient texts are fond of the phrase, "from consciousness down to the solid
earth," for all this is a single matrix, a tantra of energy, and within it are
myriads of matrices, woven and interwoven. The human being is one such matrix of
energies--ebbing, flowing, dancing at frequencies ranging from those of solid
bones all the way to the subtlest waves of consciousness. Those who can
understand this personality matrix will understand the whole universe.

Observe the creation of a single human personality. As two human streams of
consciousness love each other, the force of their love invites a third one for
whom they provide a minute body. This third one brings along in its wake a
matrix of energy, and its body grows along the lines of this energy. The fetus
is connected to the mother at the navel, and it is from the navel that
seventy-two thousand energy channels, or nadis in Sanskrit, fan out into the
personality system. Since the energy pattern is arranged in a symmetrical
manner, the body grows in a beautifully symmetrical way. For instance, look at
even the hairlines of the body, and you can see how they are patterned along the
symmetrical paths of the energy flow.

The personality of the fetus or of a fully grown human being is not separate
from the universal dance of energies. Observe how many forces interact with the
biosphere, how many energies enter into it and emerge from it unceasingly.
Observe how the body clock responds to solar, lunar, and stellar times, and how
the blood responds to the tides in the oceans. Although all these times, tides,
and forces often seem to operate individually, each answering to its own
constituent rhythm, their patterns are all vibrant subsystems within the single
master system of consciousness, whose dance it all is.

The vast, all-pervading oceanic energy of consciousness barely touches us with
its outer fringes, and we come alive, becoming persons. The vibration
frequencies in us that are too solid, too dense, not subtle enough to flow in
consonance with consciousness, become our material body, the non-I. Energy thus
condensed becomes a cell. The cell is filled with the vital energy called prana,
which is maneuvered by the mind-energy. The I in us is pure consciousness. It
owns and operates the body-vehicle, and it guides the mind. It is the purest,
finest vibrating energy.

THE MATRIX OF LIFE

Thus, like the rest of the universe, we are layer upon layer of energy or light,
which form complex patterns in which the subtler layers are aware of the grosser
ones but not vice versa (which is why they are hierarchical). Through the
process of meditation and self-awareness, however, it is possible for us to
attune ourselves to these energy processes. In fact, all of our information in
this regard comes to us from the experiences imparted through the oral tradition
by great meditation masters. Others who follow this path of self-awareness will
eventually know the dance that the personality, and the universe, and all the
energies flowing between and within them, are dancing. There is no greater
excitement than that of suddenly discovering that the universal ocean of prana
is flowing right through us, that our brains are but so many stepping areas in
the great dance of the universal mind, and that all I claim to be is simply a
"thrill" passing into this person I from the universal consciousness. And then
the single point of this dynamic thrill becomes diffuse, and its millions of
sparks, like an incredible display of fireworks, rush out into a vast network of
energy channels that are spread throughout my person, to vitalize me, to make me
mentally and physically a living being, to illuminate me so that I can say "I".

Those whose awareness if bound to the earthly level frequencies know, as the
real person, only the physical body. Others, who refine their
self-identification by attuning to finer frequencies, know of an undying
consciousness. To know this is to know that we are immortal. But before we can
reach the point of comprehending the immortality of our universal consciousness,
it is essential that we understand the relationships between and among various
hierarchical levels of energy. This understanding is not an intellectual
process. It is a matter of letting our interior awareness travel along the lines
of diffuse patters of energy so that we can actually perceive all their modes of
power and its operation. The yogi does this. He sends his awareness on this
incredible interior journey and returns from it to chart for others the maps of
consciousness. There is no other way to comprehend what consciousness is, what
roles it plays in running our personalities.

The yogi finds that the energies (of various levels of subtlety ranging from the
low frequency, earthly, solid manifestation to the very high frequency, almost
undetectable mental waves) all interact with each other in many forms; he finds
that the relationship between the denser and finer energies is that of
interdependence. The denser ones affect the finer ones in a more immediate way,
but the finer ones turn out to be the masters in the long run. Take, for
example, our dense body. Its bad posture adversely affects the flow of breath,
but when the will in our consciousness decides that the breath be made to flow
perfectly, the body has to arrange itself in a posture that will facilitate the
flow.

The relationship between the body and prana may be viewed similarly. A bad
posture clogs the pathways of prana. But it is the experience of those who
practice the subtler varieties of hatha yoga that once the blocks on the prana's
pathways have been removed through the practice of postures, the prana itself
begins to give little surges into the organs so that the body rights itself
inadvertently into correct posture. What is more, many practitioners of
kundalini yoga report that as a result of their practices, an involuntary
cleansing of internal systems takes place, which affects the prana matrix and
thereby influences the body.

The relationship between prana and mind energies is no different. An incidence
of low prana may befog the mind for the time being. But again, the will of
consciousness infuses the mind with a certain illumination, and then prana has
no alternative but to obey the mind. Thus, through deep meditation, the mind can
be used to intensify the strength of prana.

As we have hinted above, the key to the relationship between the various
energies is the will that is inherent in consciousness. Will, however, should
not be confused with the much-used term will power, which has become a word that
almost connotes violence. Will power is an exertion of the lower mind. Will is
simply an inherent quality of consciousness through which consciousness directs
all its operations. These operations then affect our exterior environment and
become our actions. One who cultivates self-awareness observes and, through the
will, consciously controls all the interior operations of mind, prana, and body.

The higer-frequency energies contain within themselves all the power of the
lower frequencies, but not vice versa (again, they are hierarchical in nature).
By the same token, the mind can measure all the powers of the body and senses,
but they in turn cannot measure much of the mind's power. It is for this reason
that some modern scientific instruments can measure physiological signs of a
certain mental state but are powerless to measure the state itself. In other
words, one may measure delta brain waves, but a "depth gauge" to measure the
experience of sleep itself has not yet been invented.

This leads us to some very interesting observations about the mental state of
sleep. An examination of the body, of course, reveals that one is asleep. The
question then arises as to whether the signs seen in the body can tell us
everything about the mental state of sleep. The answer, certainly, is no. The
yogis say that only a certain surface of the mind is asleep but that a vast area
of the mind never sleeps. For if the entire mind were to sleep, who is it that
would continue the digestive processes during that time? Who would keep the
lungs breathing and the heart pumping? If the entire mind were to sleep, who
would wake us up again? Seeing that the body (which is run by the mind)
maintains some of its operations during sleep, we surmise that a part of the
mind must remain awake; but if we simply depend on body consciousness to
experience that mind which remains awake while we sleep, we are left helpless.
Yet we know that the will of consciousness is operant in the mind in order to
keep the body functioning and to wake us up again. Thus it becomes clear that
the finer energies cannot be contained in, or measured by, the denser ones, but
the opposite is not the case.

LEVELS OF SELF-IDENTIFICATION

Our greatest concern in a study of of the relationship among energies within the
human personality is with the question of self-identification, called abhimana
in Sanskrit. In the average individual, consciousness has gravitated to
identification with the densest energy level, the body--or so it appears. But,
in fact, consciousness can identify with each of the forms the energy takes and
call them all I. For instance, a person may identify his relationships with
various members of his family. Consider these four statements: "He is my father,
I am his son; she is my sister, I am her brother; she is my wife, I am her
husband; she is my daughter, I am her father." In each statement, the I is
common, but the relationship differs. The person saying "I" has the experience
of being in all four roles--those of son, brother, husband, and father. But each
of his relatives can play only a single role with him. The wife cannot know him
as a son, the sister cannot identify with the "father" role in him. Yet he is
all four states within himself. He is also apart from these--just himself--when
sitting and writing a poem to his divine lover. He is free of all human
relationships at that time, yet he is even closer to his true identity. It is
thus with consciousness. At the level of the body we identify consciousness with
the body and it says, "Yes, body too is made of my being, but I also breathe in
breath, animate the body through prana, and think when I am mind. And yet I
dwell in my own nature apart from these at all times. They are my modes, but I
am not their mode. They are my variations, but I am the theme."

In other words, even though most human beings seem to identify with only the
surfaces of their bodies, consciousness remains wide awake and active elsewhere
too, for if their identifications were truly limited to the surfaces of their
bodies (as in the case of someone sleeping), how could they breathe with the
lungs, digest with the internal organs, and send out brain waves? On a still
deeper level, how could they have internal emotions and other forms of thought?
Obviously, consciousness is operant in and identified with each of these forms
of energy even though it appears that their main identification is with the
surface of the body. As we cultivate meditative self-awareness, we gradually
proceed from the exterior to the interior self-identification of
consciousness--first with the body, then the prana, then many stages of mind,
one after another, and finally, with pure consciousness alone.

A question is often asked, "How did consciousness ever lose its purity in the
first place?" The answer is that it never did. Just as one's whole mind is never
asleep even though the sleeping part does not know of the ever-awake part, and
just a a person's sister does not know him as his daughter's father, so
identification with body consciousness is vastly different from identification
with pure consciousness, or the One. But the full and pure consciousness
continues on, taking care of all its children--the lower-level frequencies that
are powerless to contain and measure it.

Regarding this question of the purity of consciousness, the ancient texts on the
nature of consciousness have repeatedly made this assertion: "Who are you that
asks this question?" A being identifying yourself with the consciousness as it
extends into the body? Just move a bit on the spectrum. Keep moving. All of
those colors reflect the same light. When did light ever cease to be light? The
green is green and the red is red, but the light is always the light. Only when
you identify the light with one of its modes do you see blue or red. See all of
consciousness, and your body is included.

Are there special procedures, processes, or connections that consciousness
follows in running our personalities? The universal consciousness principle may
be compared, for our purpose here, to a current into which, through many
sockets, various electric appliances are plugged. The same one current supplies
cooling power to the cooler, heating power to the heater, helps a radio to tune
into sound waves, and the TV to gather and project visual images. So also is the
consciousness principle (the primary force from which all other energies are
derived) connected into all living beings, supplying to each its/his/her power
for will, knowledge, and action.

CENTERS OF CONSCIOUSNESS

In human beings this primary consciousness becomes operative through a system of
psychophysiological centers. So far we have been traveling along the finest
current. Now we begin to look from the opposite, grosser end called the physical
body. This body with all its cells, as we said earlier, is run by prana; the
prana is directed by the mind and the mind is guided by consciousness. There are
areas in our human personality where these various energies are joined together
in close consonance, resonating to each other's vibrations, deriving their power
from consciousness,which, however, is absolute in itself and resonates to no
other. In these specific areas the vibration passes from consciousness into the
mind-prana-body system--and from these areas the energy is distributed into the
rest of the personality. These are the psychophysiological centers that are
plugged into the current of consciousness and that respond to its universal
rhythm.

Take, for example, our breathing processes. What is the origin of breath which,
when looked at physically, is nothing but a series of pockets of air trapped
into certain cavities? What turns that air into flowing breath? The rhythm of
the movement of certain organs. What moves the organs? The prana. What causes
the prana to vibrate so that the organs linked to its specific areas should thus
move rhythmically? The mind, of course. The mind is moved by consciousness.

Again, look at it differently. The universal consciousness, which makes the
world dance by its power, sends the tiniest spark of its thrill through the mind
into our psychophysiological centers in such locations as the navel, cardiac
center, throat, and the pineal area. The thrill creates a pulsation in the prana
system that in turn creates certain rhythmic movements in the organs connected
therewith. The rhythm is synchronized, coordinated, because it originates with
the same original thrill. Through this process, air, which would otherwise
remain trapped in the cavities (as in a dead body) begins to flow as a smooth
stream, and we say that the child has begun to breathe. On the other hand, when
the thrill of consciousness is withdrawn, the breath simply becomes trapped air,
and the doctor says that the person is dead. He who understands the source of
the thrill knows that the rhythm of his breath responds to the same vibration
that produces pulsations in the hearts of suns. It is thus that the yogis give
to some of their breathing exercises names such as "piercing through the sun,"
surya-vedhana.

We need to further elaborate as to how consciousness becomes operative in the
personality. It is not subject to limitations of space, time, dimensions, or
personalities in its full universal identification. It is sent forth into our
being, which is made of lower and denser frequencies, like a straight beam of
light penetrating through a rocky cave. Because the lower-frequency energies
vibrate in a time-space reference, creating a physical body, a physical locus
has to be assumed in us for that light which transcends all loci. So the yogis
say that this immense, intense energy beam of consciousness, the kundalini, is
located in us in a channel extending from the base of the spine up to and
engulfing the entire brain region. Though nonphysical (and therefore not
tangible), it is experienced by the yogis in deep meditation as an unceasing
flash of rod-like lightning shining with a light like that of ten thousand suns,
yet as slim as though it were a ten-thousandth of a hair's breath in width. It
passes through seven ever-vibrant and dynamic psychophysiological stations or
centers into which it sends its sparks, whereby they become functional and the
personality becomes operant. Thus the consciousness touches us and we come
alive, becoming persons.

It is not difficult to locate these centers of consciousness or chakras. They
are all marked one way or another. Their locations are: (1) the base of the
spine and the perineum, (2) the root of the genitals, (3) the navel, (4) the
cardiac region between the breasts, (5) the hollow of the throat, (6) between
the eyebrows, and (7) the top of the head.

Many times it is asked if the consciousness and the energy of these centers or
chakras flow in the spine or in the front of the body. The answer is that the
distinction is arbitrary and imaginary. The front and back locations exist only
with reference to the materially dense body, but the field of finer energies
permeates the entire region and does not correspond to the dimensions that are
assumed with reference to the spaces and times to which the body is bound.

TUNING TO THE HIGHER LEVELS

The consciousness that has descended into us as the kundalini contains in it
both life and awareness. It may be called the life force (jiva-shakti) or the
consciousness force (chit-shakti). Through the chakras, a division of its two
powers occurs, for in order for the personality to function, a certain
specialization becomes necessary. A semblance of awareness is imparted to the
energy called the mind, and at the same time aliveness and vitality of the
cells, organs, and senses also comes into operation through prana receiving the
infusion of life energy from the kundalini. Thus the two powers of the kundalini
consciousness devolve onto the mind and prana, and through them they are further
infused into the entire personality. The thrill of life and awareness, however,
that passes through the psychophysiological stations into the personality, is so
minute compared to the actual power of consciousness, that yogis repeatedly tell
us that the true consciousness is lying dormant, asleep in us.

All that humankind has ever accomplished or created, all that ever passes
through an individual human being, is no more than a minute fraction of the
universal consciousness. But the majority of human beings are not capable of
experiencing even this minute thrill at its fullest, because the lower-level
energies are not capable of containing or measuring higher-level energies. By
the same token, if given more than the requisite voltage, any energy system will
overload and blow up the circuits. We have established such strong
identification with lower-level energies (the body, emotions, etc.) that we have
weakened our power system and made it incapable of receiving a larger dose of
the thrill. So we have to purify the personal consciousness and gradually tune
it to its higher-level energies until enough strength is built up in the system
for us to be able to awaken to the full glory that is flowing into us even as we
read this. Those who have tried experimenting with the kundalini consciousness
without such preliminary purification and without expert guidance have only
suffered damage to both the psyche and the body.

In us, the gates of the chakras are thus open only enough to permit a mild
infusion of consciousness. But look at the intense awareness we have in these
centers. Even that mild infusion of dormant energy leaves us restless in each
center. Look at what going on in us at each of these stations: in the perineum
and the genital areas, the sensations can sometimes seem to be uncontrollable;
in the navel region, the hungers cannot be satiated; the pul of rising emotions
felt in the cardiac region keeps thousands of psychiatrists busy; and all the
words that we have ever spoken from the larynx are not quite enough. As to the
forehead and the brain--they are the devil's workshop. The energy already
disposed through each of these centers often seems to be excessive to us, and we
then say, "I just don't know what to do with my restlessness." This feeling of
overload, that we are about to blow a fuse, is a common experience. It happens
because the lower-frequency energies (such as those involved in ordinary
physical and sense experiences) do not have the capacity to absorb all the power
that is being infused into us from consciousness.

THE INWARD PATH

The yogi resorts to a different path--the inward one. And here we come to the
difference between closed stations and open stations. It is stated in the
kundalini literature that an average person is living with closed chakras that
are waiting to be opened. Many who are not initiated into this science
erroneously think that with the opening of a chakra the outward activity in that
center of consciousness will increase, thus making, let us say, a sexy person
yet sexier, or an articulate person voluble! But such externalized activity only
dissipates the energy at its lowest frequencies. It has nothing to do with
highly refined interior consciousness.

The pulsations that we experience in ordinary daily life in the various
psychophysiological stations are nothing but reminders of a higher presence
within. They are like lighthouses guiding ships. Each pulsation says to our
lower-level energy consciousness: "Come, this way; here is a gate through which
you enter inward into the highest awareness." It leads to the place from which
this minute light is sent forth. If we observe each pulsation in our personality
as such a reminder, we begin to listen to an inner music, and we may use each
such pulsation first as a point of focus, then as a thread leading inward. For
example, let us consider the sexual thrill in the second station. It makes an
average person restless, for the infusion of energy from within is so powerful
(even though it is infinitesimal compared to all the power of consciousness)
that no amount of sexual activity can bring total satiety. The yogi, however,
regards this center only as a gateway to higher-level energy consciousness. Its
pulsations he sees only as reminders of the inner sources. He closes the outward
flow, and that is called opening the chakra. All externalized restlessness then
ceases. The lower-frequency energy is returned to the higher-frequency.

In other words, any time a sexual pulsation is felt in a yogi's person, he
responds to is, considers it a blessing as a reminder, and uses it as the end of
a thread leading inward to pure consciousness. He reverses the flow. Compared to
the ecstasy of this inward flow of the personal consciousness into the universal
consciousness, the outward sexual flow is a useless discharge, and all of its
intense enjoyment is like sucking on the peel of an orange after squeezing out
and, alas, throwing away the juice. Again, when the throat center begins to
open, the yogi seeks silence. When he does utter a word it is so power-packed as
to be recorded as sacred scripture and repeated for millennia around the globe.
Such were the words uttered by the Buddhas and Christs of history.

We may divide human beings into those of the inward-flowing consciousness
(antar-vritti) and those of the outward-flowing consciousness (bahir-vritti).
Those in the first category live and walk in the awareness of their cosmic
connection. They are unceasingly and interminable conscious of the thrill of the
universal divine consciousness running through them. They do not utilize any of
their energies as mere persons, but serve as channels for the cosmic flow. They
are dependent on nothing external and on no person, but many are dependent on
them for succor, solace, knowledge, and healing. Those in the second category
are those who believe that only the information passing through the senses and
into the brain constitutes personality and consciousness. Their excitements are
derived not from the inner thrill, but from the contact that dense senses make
with yet denser exterior objects. Thus their psychology is that of a dependent
person, however much they may clamor for individual freedoms and claim
self-independence. Those in the first category, the rare few in he history of
mankind, are committed to turning sensory awareness inward in order to free
themselves from the bondage of dependence on the limited exterior and to
experience the unlimited flow of cosmic energies that are at their disposal.

We need to understand how this is accomplished, how the outward flow of
awareness may be reversed so that the intricate dance of the interior energies
may become real. We need to understand that through the application of will we
can cultivate a resolve to change our self-identification from lower-frequency
energies to the higher one. That is immortality. That is freedom of
consciousness from the bonds of space, time, karma, and causation. It is the
dance of the freedom of energies.

December 21, 2012 Alignment:
Ask the NOVA expert:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bi2nFVGxzcM

From:
http://www.dlshq.org/teachings/yoga.htm

YOGA DEFINED

The word 'Yoga' comes from a Sanskrit root 'Yuj' which means 'to join'. In its
spiritual sense, it is the process by which the identity of the individual soul
and the Supreme Soul is realized by the Yogi. The human soul is brought into
conscious communion with the Divine Reality. Just as camphor melts and becomes
one with fire; just as a drop of water when it is thrown into the ocean, becomes
one with the ocean; the individual soul, when it is purified, when it is freed
from lust, greed, hatred and egoism, when it becomes pure (Sattvic), becomes one
with the Supreme Soul. The science that teaches the way of acquiring this occult
knowledge is called 'Yoga Sastra'.

Yoga, in a generic sense, refers to Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, Jnana
Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Mantra Yoga, Laya Yoga or Kundalini Yoga. In a restricted
sense, it means the Ashtanga Yoga or Raja Yoga of Patanjali Maharishi only.

The word Yoga is also applicable in a secondary sense to all those factors and
practices that are conducive to the final achievement or fulfillment of Yoga,
and as such indirectly lead to final freedom or perfection. Similarly, though
the one who has reached the final Asamprajnata Samadhi or union with Reality is
called a Yogi, one who is attempting to get perfection in Yoga is also called a
Yogi.

Yoga philosophy is one of the six systems of Hindu philosophy. Unlike so many
other philosophies of the world, it is a philosophy that is wholly practical.
Yoga is an exact science based on certain immutable Laws of Nature. It is well
known to people of all countries of the world interested in the study of East
civilization and culture, and is held in awe and reverence as it contains in it
the master-key to unlock the realms of Peace, Bliss, Mystery and Miracle. Even
the philosophers of the West found solace and peace in this Divine Science.
Jesus Christ himself was a Yogi of a superior order, a Raja-Yogi indeed. The
founder of the Yoga Philosophy, Patanjali Maharishi, was not only a Philosopher
and a Yogi, but a Physician as well. He is said to have lived about three
hundred years before Jesus Christ.

Yoga is that state of Absolute Peace wherein there is neither imagination nor
thought. Yoga is control of mind and its modifications. Yoga teaches us how to
control the modifications of the mind and attain liberation. It teaches us how
to transmute the unregenerate nature and attain the state of Divinity. It is the
complete suppression of the tendency of the mind to transform itself into
objects, thoughts, etc. Yoga kills all sorts of pain, misery and tribulation. It
gives you freedom from the round of births and deaths, with its concomitant
evils of disease, old age, etc., and bestows upon you all the Divine Powers and
final liberation through super-intuitional knowledge.

Equanimity is Yoga. Serenity is Yoga. Skill in actions is Yoga. Anything by
which the best and the highest in life can be attained is also Yoga. Yoga is
thus all-embracing, all-inclusive and universal in its application leading to
all-round development of body, mind and soul.

Yoga is primarily a way of life, not something which is divorced from life. Yoga
is not forsaking of action, but is efficient performance in the right spirit.
Yoga is not running away from home and human habitation, but a process of
moulding one's attitude to home and society with a new understanding. Yoga is
not a turning away from life; it is spiritualization of life.

YOGA IS UNIVERSAL

Yoga is for all. Yoga is universal. It is not a sectarian affair. It is a way to
God and not a creed.

The practice of Yoga is not opposed to any religion or any sacred Church. It is
purely spiritual and universal. It does not contradict anyone's sincere faith.

Yoga is not a religion, but an aid to the practice of the basic spiritual truths
in all religions. Yoga can be practised by a Christian or a Buddhist, a Parsee,
a Muslim, a Sufi or an atheist.

To be a Yogi means to abide continuously in God and to live at peace with men.
Yoga is union with God. Yoga is union with all. God dwells in all.

THIS IS NOT YOGA

A man gets himself buried in a box underneath the ground. He does this by
plugging the nostrils through Khechari Mudra. This is no doubt a difficult
Kriya. He gets Jada Samadhi. This is a state like deep sleep. The Samskaras and
Vasanas (subtle desires) are not fried by this Samadhi. He does not return with
superintuitional knowledge. This cannot give Mukti or Liberation. This is kind
of feat only. This is not a sign of spirituality. People use this Kriya for
acquiring money, name and fame. When they come out of the box, they stretch
their hand for money. They make transactions before they enter the box.

Tie the hands and legs of a man with iron-chain and shut him in a room. Before
you lock the door he will stand before you. Get inside the room. He will be
again there. No doubt this is very, very astonishing. It is a mere trick. It is
a kind of Jaalam (illusion). Some people can seat on a plank studded with
sharpened nails and chew snakes like chocolates. If you pierce a long needle in
their arms, no blood will come out. Some can draw water from stone. A Yogic
charlatan can perform all these things through some trick or Jaalam. But these
have nothing to do with real Yoga.

The public will take a man to be a Yogi or Guru only if he exhibits some
Siddhis. It is a serious mistake. They must not be overcredulous. They will be
easily duped by these Yogic charlatans. They must use their power of
discrimination and reasoning. They must study the ways, habits, nature, conduct,
Vritti, Svabhava, antecedence, etc., of the Gurus and test their knowledge of
scriptures, before they come to any definite conclusion.

PREREQUISITES FOR YOGA PRACTICE

Moral purity and spiritual aspiration are the first steps in the path of Yoga.
One who has a calm mind, who has faith in the words of his Guru and Sastras, who
is moderate in eating and sleeping, and who has intense longing for deliverance
from the Samsara-chakra is a qualified person for the practice of Yoga.

An aspirant in the path of Yoga should have faith, energy, cheerfulness,
courage, patience, perseverance, sincerity, purity, lack of despondency of mind,
dispassion, aspiration, concentration, serenity, self-restraint, truthfulness,
non-violence, non-covetousness, etc.

An austere and simple life is indispensable for Yoga. The foundation of Yoga is
self-control. Discipline is the essence of Yoga, discipline of the body as well
as discipline of the mind.

In the practice of Yoga, there is a reversal of the normal outgoing activity of
the mind. Steadiness of mind is very essential for a reversal of the normal
outgoing activity of the mind. Unless the mind is first made steady and brought
under complete control, it will not be possible to change its course to the
opposite direction.

BENEFITS OF YOGA PRACTICE

Life today is full of stress and strain, of tension and nervous irritability, of
passion and hurry. If man puts into practice a few of the elementary principles
of Yoga, he would be far better equipped to cope with his complex existence.

Yoga brings in perfection, peace and lasting happiness. You can have calmness of
mind at all times by the practice of Yoga. You can have restful sleep. You can
have increased energy, vigour, vitality, longevity and a high standard of
health. You can turn out efficient work within a short space of time. You can
have success in every walk of life. Yoga will infuse in you new strength,
confidence and self-reliance. The body and mind will be at your beck and call.

Yoga brings your emotions under control. It increases your power of
concentration at work. Yoga discipline gives poise and tranquillity and
miraculously rebuilds one's life. The Yoga way of life deepens man's
understanding and enables him to know God and his relationship with Him.

Yoga leads from ignorance to wisdom, from weakness to strength, from disharmony
to harmony, from hatred to love, from want to fullness, from limitation to
infinitude, from diversity to unity, and from imperfection to perfection. Yoga
gives hope to the sad and forlorn, strength to the weak, health to the sick and
wisdom to the ignorant.

Through Yogic discipline, mind, body and the organ of speech work together
harmoniously. For a Yoga practitioner, a new outlook, a new health, a new
awareness and a new philosophy rush in and vividly transform his life.

Lust for power, material greed, sensual excitement, selfishness, passion for
wealth and lower appetites have drawn man from his true life in the spirit into
the materialistic life. He can regain his lost divine glory if he practices, in
right earnest, the principles of Yoga. Yoga transmutes animal nature into divine
nature and raises him to the pinnacle of divine glory and splendour.

BEWARE OF SIDDHIS

If a Yogi is not careful, if a Yogi is not well-established in the preliminary
practices of Yama and Niyama, he is unconsciously swept away from his ideal by
temptation—Mara or Satan. He uses his powers for selfish ends and suffers a
hopeless downfall. His intellect becomes blind, perverted and intoxicated. His
understanding gets clouded. He is no longer a divine Yogi. He becomes a
black-magician or Yogic charlatan. He is a black sheep within the fold of Yogis.
He is a menace to the society at large.

Many people are attracted to the practice of Pranayama and other Yogic
exercises, as it is through Yoga that psychic healing, telepathy,
though-transference and other great Siddhis are obtained. But Yoga is not for
attaining Siddhis or powers. If a Yogic student is tempted to attain Siddhis,
his further progress is seriously retarded. He has lost the way.

Do not stop Sadhana when you get a few glimpses and experiences. Continue the
practice till you attain perfection. Do not stop the exercise and move about in
the world. Examples are not lacking. Numerous persons have been ruined. A
glimpse cannot give you safety.

The Yogi who is bent upon getting the highest Samadhi must reject Siddhis
whenever they come. Siddhis are invitations from Devatas. Only by rejecting
these Siddhis can one attain success in Yoga.

Meditation with Swami J in Costa Rica, September 2009
Info:
http://www.swamij.com/calendar/costa-rica-sep09.htm

In loving service,

Swami J

Efforts at Regulation Have Yoga Teachers Bent Out of Shape
By A. G. SULZBERGER
Published: July 10, 2009

From the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/11/nyregion/11yoga.html?_r=1

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Ten years ago, with yoga transforming
itself into a ubiquitous pop culture phenomenon from a niche pursuit, yoga
teachers banded together to create a voluntary online registry of schools
meeting new minimum standards for training instructors in the discipline.

But that list — which now includes nearly 1,000 yoga schools nationwide, many of
them tiny — is being put to a use for which it was never intended. It is the key
document in a nationwide crackdown on yoga schools that pits free-spirited yogis
against lumbering state governments, which, unlike those they are trying to
regulate, are not always known for their flexibility.

Citing laws that govern vocational schools, like those for hairdressers and
truck drivers, regulators have begun to require licenses for yoga schools that
train instructors, with all the fees, inspections and paperwork that entails.
While confrontations have played out differently in different states, threats of
shutdowns and fines have, in some cases, been met with accusations of power
grabs and religious infringement — disputes that seem far removed from the
meditative world yoga calls to mind.

In April, New York State sent letters to about 80 schools to warn them to
suspend teacher training programs immediately or risk fines of up to $50,000 —
prompting yogis around the state to join in opposition, and, apparently,
persuading the state to back down.

In other states, regulators were not moved. In March, Michigan gave schools on
the list one week to be certified by the state or cease operations. Virginia's
cumbersome licensing rules include a $2,500 sign-up fee — a big hit for modest
studios that are often little more than one-room storefronts.

Lisa Rapp, who owns My Yoga Spirit in Norfolk, Va., said she had canceled her
future classes and was preparing to close her seven-year-old business this
summer. "This caused us to shut down the studio altogether," Ms. Rapp said.
"It's too bad, because this community really needs yoga."

The conflict started in January when a Virginia official directed regulators
from more than a dozen states to an online national registry of schools that
teach yoga and, in the words of a Kansas official, earn a "handsome income" in
the process. Until then, only a few states, like Wisconsin, had been aware of
the registry and had acted to regulate yoga instruction.

The registry was created by the Yoga Alliance, a nonprofit group started in 1999
to establish teaching standards in an effort to have the industry regulate
itself. In a recent newsletter, the alliance warned its member schools that
nationwide licensing might be inevitable, "forcing this ancient tradition to
conform to Western business practices."

"We made it very, very easy for them to do what they're doing right now," said
Leslie Kaminoff, founder of the Breathing Project, a nonprofit yoga center in
New York City, who had opposed the formation of the Yoga Alliance. "The industry
of yoga is a big, juicy target."

New state regulations would not directly affect the drop-in classes attended by
many of the 16 million Americans estimated to practice yoga. But the classes
they would affect — instruction on teaching yoga — are an important source of
revenue for many schools, and, of course, train future instructors.

"It's the perpetuation of the species," said S. J. Khalsa, who operates
Kundalini Yoga East in Manhattan, a school that offers teacher training courses.
"We're not in it to make tons of money," he said. "We're trying to create a
place where we change your consciousness."

However, Sybil Killian, general manager for the OM Yoga Center, also in
Manhattan, questioned whether yoga could fairly claim to be a spiritual — rather
than a business — pursuit in an era when, according to an industry estimate, it
earns $6 billion a year in the United States.

"People buy $1,000 pants to sweat in because while they're getting enlightened
they need to look good," Ms. Killian wrote in an e-mail message to other New
York yoga teachers. "Make no mistake, ladies and gentlemen, yoga is an industry.
One need only leaf through the advertising section of Yoga Journal to know
that."

Regulators said that licensing the schools would allow states to enforce basic
training standards and protect customers who usually spend $2,000 to $5,000 on
training courses, not to mention provide revenue for cash-starved governments.
"If you're going to start a school and take people's money, you should play by a
set of rules," said Patrick Sweeney, a Wisconsin licensing official, who
believes that in 2004 he was the first state official to discover the online
registry and use it to begin regulating yoga teaching.

"Sooner or later, probably every state will do this," said Patricia Kearney, an
instructor of health and exercise science at Bridgewater College in Virginia,
who has been researching the trend and blogging about it. "Once people get used
to it, it will ultimately benefit yoga. But it will not be without loss. Some
good small programs will close. But so will some not-so-good programs that
probably should close."

In New York State, though, teachers fought back, complaining that the new rules
could erode thin bottom lines, contradict religious underpinnings and, most
important, shut down every school in the state during an eight-month licensing
period.

"It basically destroys the essence of yoga, to control and manipulate the whole
situation," said Jhon Tamayo of Atmananda Yoga Sequence in Manhattan, shortly
after receiving one of the warning letters from the state. "No one can regulate
yoga."

Brette Popper, a co-founder of Yoga City NYC, a Web site that has closely
chronicled licensing developments, said that the yoga community — described on
the site as "a group that doesn't even always agree about how to pronounce `Om'
" — was finally uniting around a common enemy.

The teachers formed a coalition to lead the effort and enlisted a state senator,
Eric T. Schneiderman of Manhattan, to take up their cause, hoping that New York
would buck the national trend. "It's really kind of historic in the yoga
community," Ms. Popper said.

That unity was on display last month in a small yoga studio in Midtown
Manhattan, where nearly 100 devotees from around the state packed into the room,
barefoot and cross-legged on the wood floor. The group, whose members ranged
from lithe young teachers in spandex to older ones in religious garb, opened
with a traditional chant and ended two hours later struggling with parliamentary
procedure as it tried to establish a formal organization. One attendee cast the
conflict as "bureaucracy versus freedom."

Alison West, the meeting's organizer, who was selected to lead the new
coalition, the Yoga Association of New York State, prayed for "some joyful
conclusion we've never conceived."

Within days, Joseph P. Frey, an associate commissioner with the State Education
Department, said in an interview that the department would suspend the licensing
effort, allow the classes to continue and instead lobby to have legislation
passed adding yoga to a list of activities that are exempt from regulation.

"I understand how folks could get upset," Mr. Frey said.

Gurudeva is a Stream of Knowledge
From The Essence of Spiritual Life
By Swami Rama
ISBN 8190100491

A time comes when the seeker goes through a period of argumentation with herself
and cannot decide. At this time a real preceptor is needed. How will you find
the right master? No one can search for a preceptor. There is a saying in the
scriptures: "When the disciple is prepared, the master appears." This happens
only because of samskaras. Teacher and student samskaras are very ancient and
strong.

If you are not prepared, he will be there, but you won't notice or respond. If
you do not know what a diamond is, the diamond may be there, but you ignore it
and pass it by, taking it to be just a piece of glass. Further, if you do not
know the difference, you may acquire a piece of glass, think that it is a
diamond, and cherish it your whole life.

A genuine spiritual teacher, one who is assigned to teach according to
tradition, searches out good students. He looks for certain signs and symptoms;
he wants to know who is prepared. No student can fool a master. The master
easily perceives how well the student is prepared. If he finds that the student
is not yet ready, he will gradually prepare him for the higher teachings. When
the wick and oil are properly prepared, the master lights the lamp. That is his
role. The resulting light is divine.

You need someone who can guide and help you. You need an external guru as a
means to attain the guru within you. Sometimes you may become egotistical and
decide that you don't need a guru. That is just ego talking.

You will never meet a bad guru if you are a good student. The reverse is also
true; if you are a bad student, you won't meet a good guru. Why should a good
guru assume responsibility for a bad student? Nobody collects garbage. If you
are in search of a guru, search within first. To become a yogi means to know
your own condition here and now, to work with yourself. Don't grumble because
you don't have a teacher. Ask whether you deserve one. Are you capable of
attracting a teacher? Are you prepared to be guided?

There is a vast difference between an ordinary teacher and a spiritual master or
guru. That which dispels the darkness of ignorance is called guru. In the West
the word guru is often misused. In India this word is used with reverence and is
always associated with holiness and the highest wisdom. It is a very sacred
word. It is seldom used by itself, but always with its suffix, deva. Deva means
"bright being." An enlightened master or guru is called gurudeva.

When a student goes to a guru, he takes a bundle of dry sticks. With reverence
and love he bows and says, "Here, I offer this." That indicates that he is
surrendering himself with all his mind, action, and speech with a single desire
to attain the highest wisdom.

The guru burns those sticks and says, "Now I will guide you and protect you in
the future." Then he initiates the student on various levels and gives him the
disciplines to practice. The guru imparts a word and says, "This will be an
eternal friend to you. Remember this word. It will help you." Then he explains
how to use the mantra. That is called mantra initiation.

You may try your best to do something for him, but you cannot, because he
doesn't need anything. You wonder, "Why is he doing so much for me? What does he
want from me?"

He wants nothing, for what he is doing is his duty, the purpose of his life. If
he guides you, he is not obliging you; he is doing his work. He cannot live
without doing his duty. Genuine gurus cannot live without selflessness, for
selfless love is the very basis of their enlightenment. They radiate life and
light from the unknown corners of the world. The world does not know them, and
they do not want recognition.

Such people are called gurus. They guide humanity. As the sun shines and lives
far above, the guru gives spiritual love and remains unattached.

Guru is not a physical being. Those who think of the guru as a body or as a man
do not understand this pious word. If a guru comes to think that his power is
his own, then he is a guide no more. The guru is tradition, he is a stream of
knowledge. That stream of knowledge goes through many channels. Christ also said
this when he healed people: "This is because of my Father; I am only a channel."

A guru should receive your love and respect. If my guru and the Lord both come
together, I will go to my guru first and say, "Thank you very much. You have
introduced me to the Lord." I will not go to the Lord and say, "Thank you very
much, Lord. You have given me my guru."

The master's ways of teaching are many and sometimes mysterious. He teaches
through speech and actions, but in some cases he may teach without any verbal
communication at all. The most important teachings have their source in
intuition and are beyond the powers of verbal communication.

It is a great joy, perhaps the greatest day for a seeker, when she or he meets
her/his beloved Master, who is totally selfless and loving like an ocean of
bliss, overflowing with love all the time.

Search for the guru within yourself and anyone who leads you to your inner guru
is your guru.

`Lotus feet' means the feet that are on the ground, but never touch the ground.
One who lives in the world and does not belong to the world, one who is
overflowing with love, for such a great soul the poets and writers say, `lotus
feet.'

Such a great man has power to show the path of freedom to others. Whether he is
in the world or outside, he can also heal the sickness arising from karmic
debts. He can remain untouched and above without being involved or reaping the
fruits arising from others' karmic debts. A true master has control over himself
and moves freely in the world.

When a potter has completed making his pots, the wheel of the potter still
rotates for some time, but is unable to manufacture pots. For a liberated soul,
the wheel of life remains in motion, but his karma does not create any bondage
for him. His actions are called actionless actions. When the student is
competent to tread the path of enlightenment, it becomes easy for a great man to
guide him, and one day he also attains ultimate freedom.

The Story of Stuff
http://www.storyofstuff.com

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives
affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view.
The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside
of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the
connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls
us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you
something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all
the stuff in your life forever.

Love and Relationships - by Swami Rama
From Conscious Living
By Swami Rama
ISBN 8188157031

There are two laws, the law of contraction and the law of expansion. Hate
others, you are going through the law of contraction. Love all, you are going
through the law of expansion. Learn to love, that is the law of expansion. What
does love mean? It means to give, without any expectation, to your own people.
This is a school where you learn to give unconditionally. Then you will learn
that nothing is difficult for you, nothing is difficult. First thing you should
learn is to just give. Instead of arguing with your wife, just give her what she
wants. Just give your children what they want. Slowly, you will discover that
they have started loving you so much and they have become so very considerate.
They will never exploit your generosity. Learning to give is one of the greatest
of arts. Give selflessly, to those at home, to those with whom you live. Start
doing it there. Love will completely transform you, for love alone has that
power, even death does not have the power to transform you. So if you love, then
there is only love, there is no space for you. At present you have likes and
dislikes; but with love, there is a sense of equality, you love all, you can
never hate anyone. There is that underlying understanding that I will love all
and exclude none. You are free. It is a joy that leads to bliss. There is so
much expansion of your mind that anything that is hidden, that is unconscious,
comes forward as a parom Conscious Living
By Swami Rama
ISBN 8188157031

There are two laws, the law of contraction and the law of expansion. Hate
others, you are going through the law of contraction. Love all, you are going
through the law of expansion. Learn to love, that is the law of expansion. What
does love mean? It means to give, without any expectation, to your own people.
This is a school where you learn to give unconditionally. Then you will learn
that nothing is difficult for you, nothing is difficult. First thing you should
learn is to just give. Instead of arguing with your wife, just give her what she
wants. Just give your children what they want. Slowly, you will discover that
they have started loving you so much and they have become so very considerate.
They will never exploit your generosity. Learning to give is one of the greatest
of arts. Give selflessly, to those at home, to those with whom you live. Start
doing it there. Love will completely transform you, for love alone has that
power, even death does not have the power to transform you. So if you love, then
there is only love, there is no space for you. At present you have likes and
dislikes; but with love, there is a sense of equality, you love all, you can
never hate anyone. There is that underlying understanding that I will love all
and exclude none. You are free. It is a joy that leads to bliss. There is so
much expansion of your mind that anything that is hidden, that is unconscious,
comes forward as a part of the conscious mind. Why should you be unhappy? You
know who is unhappy? One who is selfish. Who is happy? One who is selfless. It's
that simple. I am not telling you to go crazy, giving away all your wealth to
strangers, becoming uselessly charitable, no! I am telling you to do experiments
at home, with those who live with you. Transforming your personality is the
simple way to attainment. Let us not make it difficult.

Your home is a miniature universe. Have you seen the family of Shiva? You Hindus
should understand this symbolism. Shiva has got a deadly cobra around his neck.
His son Ganesha rides on a mouse. Is it possible for a snake and a mouse to live
together? Parvati has a tiger and Shiva has a bull. A snake lives with a mouse
and a bull lives with a tiger. Man lives with a woman, a woman lives with a man.
It's a symbol of unity in diversity. O man, learn to adjust your life in such a
way that there is no conflict at all. You can do that. Things impossible can be
made possible, provided you learn to understand life. So Shiva's family tells
you that there are disagreements, disparities in life; yet our goal is to be
aware of, to establish the unity beneath all these diversities. We can do this
with prayer, by praying to the Lord within you. Or you can do it with
meditation.

There are always conflicts, confusion, with relationships in the world. A wife
and husband, traditionally married and living together with all the amenities of
life, claim to love each other, yet remain frustrated. Why? Because they do not
understand themselves. How is it possible for them to realize life and to
understand the goal of life through marriage? Girls and boys think that marriage
is the solution to the problems of life. And they get very excited. The girl
thinks that one day the prince of my dreams will come forward, I will get
married and live happily ever after. The boy also thinks that the day I find my
ideal partner, I'll be very happy. But, nothing happens, because a basic
philosophy, basic understanding, basic knowledge, is missing. This is especially
so with those from Eastern traditions. They bank more on the sayings of their
books and they talk about their ancestors. "Our scriptures are great, our
rishis, our sages, were great, our forefathers were great." But how about you,
sir? We have to understand this.

We used to live in the mountains of India, the Himalayas, that you have all
heard of and many of you have visited. One day, a prince from a nearby state,
who was educated in Oxford, came to visit my Master with all his guards and
secretaries. That morning I was standing outside the cave monastery where I was
brought up. The prince came forward and said, "Come here, O brahmachari
(apprentice). Come here." I said, "What's the matter? Who are you?" He said, "I
want to see your Master." I said, "You cannot see him. Don't order me around and
get out of this place." So his secretary came forward and said, "Do you know he
is a prince?" I said, "I don't care. I am the prince of the Himalayas." The
secretary now became very humble, as did the prince,"Sir, can I please see your
Master?" I said, "Ok." My Master was sitting inside. The prince, affecting the
mannerisms of polite society, said, "Good morning to you, sir. You seem to be
lonesome." My Master replied, "Yes, because you have come."

Don't forget who makes you lonesome, remember this point. Those who claim to
love you make you lonesome. A foreigner, a stranger, does not make you lonesome.
Who makes you lonesome? Those who are closest to you. Because you expect too
much from others, and others do not have the capacity. Many young boys and girls
think that marriage is the solution for life. It is not. It is like a fortress,
those who are in it cannot come out and those who are outside want to get in,
all with great suspense. One is a helpless state, another is state of
suspension. In my opinion, we should all learn to understand something in our
childhood and start training and teaching our children so that they understand
something about life, learning to examine one's own self, then learning to
relate with others. We remain strangers to ourselves and yet we try to
communicate in the external world with others and that is not helpful. It is
creating sickness. I have been doing experiments, I have been analyzing things,
I've been watching, observing things very subtly. What do we do in the name of
love? In the name of love we use others, we lean on others, we, instead of
helping, hurt others, we injure others, we become dependent. Dependency is a
sort of disease.

When you get married, have four understandings with your partner. We will not
fight in the mornings, we will not fight before going to bed, we will not fight
while eating food, but the rest of the time if we want to fight, we can fight.
It's very injurious if you do not have such an understanding in life, such a
simple agreement. If two people fight, I can stop their fight just like this.
You know what I tell the wives? I don't call them housewives, that's a bad word.
No woman is married to a house, so no one should be called a housewife. I tell
them, please, when you are angry, the other person should understand that you
are angry, and he should not lose his patience during that time. He should just
remain quiet. Simple advice. When do you get angry? Not when you are balanced.
You get angry when you are emotional, irrational. But what happens? Suppose you
are angry, and then your wife also gets angry, and the children start crying,
and even the neighbors also get involved, what will happen? This thought
pollution that you are creating will go on expanding, spreading to the whole
universe. So learn to understand that the individual family is something great,
meant to radiate love to the neighbors, to the whole universe. And for that you
need understanding. When your partner is upset, it is best to keep quiet. After
sometime your partner says, "I'm sorry." But if you go on fighting that is not
therapeutic, that's not healthy. I'm not saying that you should both sit in
silence and not do anything. I'm saying two wheels of a chariot will lead the
chariot in the same direction. And that is very good. Please fight but not all
the time.

Don't fight with a woman, for you will never win. You will be sorry if you fight
with her. Once, Nancy Reagan, the wife of President Reagan began to cry after a
fight they had. President Reagan, the President of the United States, who had
the power to press a button that could destroy the whole world, begged his wife,
"Please Nancy, please don't cry. I, with all my powers, am at your disposal."
But Nancy wouldn't stop. He used all his powers but he failed. Finally he
started crying and Nancy said, "Don't cry, my boy. Now, you know who the boss
is."

Learn to understand everything about yourself. It doesn't take much time. You
don't need a swami, a yogi, a scripture or anything. Just be thoughtful. Sit
down for few minutes. I have seen a husband saying sorry to his wife 100 times,
because she was very calm. Whenever he got angry she remained calm. So after a
few minutes he would say, "Honey, I'm sorry." But if a husband says sorry 100
times a day, he's a rat. He's no real husband. I find this type of imbalance
everywhere. But if both are calm, understand each other and have this
understanding, "Well honey, when you are upset, I will not say anything and when
I am upset, please don't say anything. Let us have this clear contract." Then
there will be no problem. But you don't want to sort out your problems. The
great institution called the institution of marriage has become an institution
of misery. I know, because I am a counselor. I have counseled 45,000 couples,
and none of them were happy. And those who are happy, I adore them. Two wheels
of the same chariot can go travel the road very pleasantly. It's difficult for a
single wheel to do this. So in the world, two people can do wonders, provided
they adjust, provided they understand each other.

Attachment is misery, nonattachment means love. First understand that. I am
attached to this chair. Is it good? Because it is not mine, I don't have a right
to be attached. I can use it. Husband is yours, love him instead of being
attached to him, because a day will come when you two will be separated. It's
nature. It will happen with everybody. Therefore, follow the path of love which
is called non-attachment. Attachment brings misery, nonattachment means love
that gives freedom. A little bit of understanding is needed. Mothers, you are
the builders. You are the first architects of this world. This architecture has
come from your minds. Don't forget that you are superior to men. You carry a
child for eight to nine months. The power that you have, man does not have. If
you put a small pebble on his tummy and tell him to walk for two-three days, he
cannot do it. You are definitely superior. But don't be proud, don't get carried
away with women's liberation. Don't forget that you are a great mother. When a
woman became pregnant, she wanted shelter. She told her husband, "I need a
shelter for my child. So far we have been irresponsible. I will have a tender
child, how can I look after my child? I need some shade, I need a home." And he
started building a home and gradually that thought became a school called the
school of architecture.

Mothers, you are the real architects. This is your responsibility. Man is tired
and worn out. You should wake up, get up and build our society. That which man
cannot do, you should learn to do, because you can do it. A child's education is
totally in your hands. The seeds which are sown in childhood are the real
foundation for education. You have a great responsibility. You are definitely
superior and higher than man. Don't have this complex that I am inferior because
I am a woman. You have great powers. When we learn to understand this, we will
realize that a great part, a vital part of our society is being misused. Women
are being misused, exploited for marketing, for publicity, with posters and all
kinds of vulgarity. We should be aware of the wealth we have.

In childhood, the mind remains tender. A tender bamboo can be bent easily but
not a mature one. A child's mind is very receptive. All the seeds sown in
childhood grow very nicely. You and I, if we now appear in a high school
examination, will both fail. Childhood is something great. A child needs
guidance. Actually, there is chaos all over the world in our educational
systems. If we impart good education to our children, become selfless examples
for them and give them love, perhaps they will grow, become the best citizens of
the world and the whole universe will bloom like a flower. Education is very
important. An old man is exactly like a child, but full of follies. Childhood is
pure without any follies. So when a child grows, he grows with the education
that has been imparted by his environment, education imparted at home which you
call culture, education imparted by the college and the university. Parents
should make some sacrifices for their child and work with the child. But what do
parents do? Instead of giving education to the child, they give them their
problems. "Do this, do that. If you don't do it, I'll spank you." The child is
confused. The child grows but grows with many conflicts. I don't think we should
impart such conflicts to our children, create conflicts in their minds. We
should not do that. The parents should learn to meditate and children will
always imitate their parents. From childhood they will form such habits which
will create their personality and that's what they become. So, from the age of
three, children should learn how to sit in meditation.

An individual creates a whirlpool for himself. An individual is helpless. He has
to perform his duties and when he performs his duties he has to reap the fruits.
We all have to perform our duties, that is our intrinsic nature. I am not
hindering the running of the world and the perfomance of actions. I'm just
saying that we, as members of our society, should become responsible. We should
learn to give away the fruits of our actions and continue to do our duties with
this understanding. Anything that you assume in your life is your duty. You are
born in a particular family, in a particular society, in a particular country.
You have to do your duties according to your family, according to your society,
according to your country and finally to all of humanity. This is what the Gita
teaches. Then, society will bloom, the flower of society will bloom in a better
way. There are two worlds, the world created by Providence like the sun, moon,
stars, earth, and water, and the world created by us, by human beings. I am
talking about the world created by human beings and not the world created by
Providence. Let us manage the world created by us, let us not worry about the
world created by Providence.

In this cosmic cycle of evolution, a time comes when you become a human being.
Time is rotating constantly. There are other kingdoms that we have gone through,
perhaps; no one knows, I don't know. When you have become a human being, you
have a power, you are responsible for your own actions. What you do as a human
being depends upon you. A human being has got three aspects: the animal aspect
in the human being, the man in the human being, and the divine in the human
being. All three combined is called a human being. The question is what degree
of divinity is in you, what degree of the animal aspect, and what degree of
humanness? You will have to analyze that. I am not searching for God. Really I
am not because my God is in front of me—all of you. These beautiful faces belong
to my God. Anything that dwells in you is my God. I am not searching for God. I
am searching for someone, but I have not met him as yet. I am searching for a
perfect human being. And wherever I go, I look for him, but I don't find him. So
I am sad. I have visited 156 countries in the world. I have not yet met that man
for whom I am searching. Let's all make the effort to become good human beings,
to be good citizens, to love all and exclude none. That is the way to the
divine.

I have seen something amazing. When I go to see many swamis, they always ask me,
"Do you go into the world and see people, how are they?" They think about you,
and you people think about them. So remain wherever you are, enlightenment has
nothing to do with renunciation or action. You should learn to build your
concept of life and it's not very difficult, it is your birthright. No matter
what cultural background you have, which religion you belong to, if you have not
built your personal philosophy, it's not going to help you. Every now and then,
great men come and give a push to humanity as a whole, to help them attain the
next step of civilization. What do they do? Can you create a flower, a leaf, a
blade of grass? No. The flowers are the same, but these great men change the
basket, according to their times.

A good yogi who has received a glimpse of this knowledge starts working with
himself. Not by running away from the world, not by abandoning his duties, not
by renouncing but living in the world yet remaining above. You know what is your
symbol? Your symbol is beautiful, it's called a lotus. A lotus grows in the
water and mud, yet remains above. I don't have that symbol. I am a swami, that
is not my symbol. You are definitely superior to me. A householder's duty is not
at all inferior, provided you remember the symbolism of the lotus.

Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois has left the body 2:30 pm (India Standard Time) on May
18, 2009. Pattabhi Jois, born July 26, 1915, is widely known as a master teacher
of hatha yoga, teaching under the name of Ashtanga Yoga, a term that -- prior to
Pattabhi Jois' modification -- has historically referred to the eight rungs of
Yoga as outlined in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. He will surely be missed by
many thousands of followers and practitioners of his version of hatha yoga
throughout the world.

Shakti is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that
move through the entire universe. Shakti is the concept, or personification, of
divine feminine creative power, sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine
Mother' --- Happy Mother's Day everybody!

In loving service,

Swami J