SECRETS WITHIN YOGA: BE THE GURU

Photo Credit: Painting of Mahavatar Babaji by Nandhi

YOGA WORKS ON THE PUSH AND PULL FACTOR.

The push is our own daily discipline and effort. The pull is grace. This grace is attributed to our Guru whom we invoke through our daily yoga. If in a yoga class, expressing reverence and gratitude to the yoga teacher at the beginning and end of yoga sessions does contribute to enhancing the inherent goodness of the inner journey of yoga.

In nearly all Eastern philosophies importance, reverence and respect is given to the Guru, the one who opens the door to our inner wisdom.

This “Guru” is most times a living master or sometimes a spiritual being whose grace and guidance, the journey through consciousness as in yoga is enhanced. Awareness from a yogic perspective is the wisdom guiding us beyond the state of the ‘no-thought’ where the mind has no more thoughts. This ‘awareness’ as the wisdom behind thought is the Guru. In yoga, as we journey through consciousness and states beyond the mind, the awareness beyond the mind as the Guru continues to guide us.

This Guru could be Christ, Ramana Maharishi or any master of consciousness whom we feel deeply connected to or grateful for. When we invoke our Guru through our daily hatha yoga by way of breath, bandha (inner lock), visualization and intent, we open ourselves to be at the receiving end of grace that transforms our inner and outer realities.

The mind is the tool to awareness and the journey beyond consciousness.

Breath is the key to utilizing the mind. Each thought carries energy and thoughts of our Guru as in physical or spiritual form does carry expanded energy of wisdom that guides, transforms and evolves us. When we invoke our personal Gurus to guide us through our yogic journey, we are guided through a higher wisdom connection that is fulfilling and nourishing as the next level of consciousness.

The Guru Chakra:

The Guru Consciousness is from the awareness of the chakra above the navel called by the yogis, the Guru Chakra (not described in any text books or intellectual teachings of yoga). Taping into this energy field just above the navel, we possess vast unlimited energy even as we awaken to primal wisdom of higher consciousness. Yogis activate this energy field above the navel, the Guru Chakra to climb above consciousness that gives the freedom to be beyond hunger, heat/cold and sleep/tiredness.

With daily practice invoking our Gurus, we master consciousness to become the Guru. Expanded consciousness is Mother Kundalini. When we realize that the Guru is Kundalini and that Kundalini is a state of consciousness, we are the Guru.

How to incorporate the Guru Chakra in your daily yoga practice:

[It is recommended to practice Sun Salutations as a sequence to incorporate the invoking of the Guru. Sun Salutations is a sequence of postures that help warm up at the beginning stages of yoga. In this sequence, from posture to posture, awareness of breath, the mind and the body is with ease.]

1. Invoke your Guru at the start of the sequence when bringing your palms together as in Anjali mudra (palms together at the front of the chest). Remember your Guru through each following sequence and through each breath.

2. Stand with the legs slightly apart imagining ourselves as a pyramid. Feel the root chakra within ourselves as the center of the pyramid. Experience ourselves as stable and steady while aware of each breath.

3. Inhale our breath all the way down from the root chakra. Let the breath fill up from the lower belly and upwards.

4. In the retention of breath, be conscious of the spot above the navel. Contract the spot above the navel.

5. In the exhale, elongate the breath as a slow exhale while being conscious of the navel chakra and the Guru within our breath.

6. Do the entire sequence of Sun Salutation being aware of each breath as the journey within the breath invoking the Guru.

7. Through each posture, feel the Guru Chakra and all our effort from the body towards the postures coming from the Guru Chakra.

8. Upon completing the Sun Salutation sequence and coming back to the Anjali mudra (palms together at the front of the chest), exhale through the third eye, visualizing the Guru as Spirit within ourselves.

Ultimately, through our daily yoga, we realize our inner fire and the invoke Gurus as the higher consciousness we awaken to be. The Guru within is awake as blessings of yoga!

 So be the Guru!

Rare Video Footage of Tirupati Venkateswara Balaji

Rare video footage recorded by the Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam 50 years ago as a promotional video for the Tirupati Balaji temple. You can see the abhishekam of the moola vigraha without ornamentation, followed by the deity in full gold and diamond dress. This is the only authentic video of Tirupati Balaji ever recorded. This footage was shown on a Telugu news channel. The reporter gives a 30 second introduction before the footage begins.

Naadi Dosha & Ayurveda

In Indian contemporary life, we have either forgotten some of the concepts or have lost their real and original meaning. 'Nadi' is one such concept. To understand its meaning we have to go to the historic era. The Vedic philosophy enjoys the glory for its magnanimous approach. The vedic concepts were built upon cosmic system and its interlude with the human individual system.

The concept of 'Yathaa Pinde Tathaa Brahmaande' (whats in the cosmos is equally represented in every living body) influences the fundamental rules of Ayurveda, Astrology, Vastu, Spiritual and Religious practices. Ayurveda considers that the five prime elements namely - Fire, Earth, Air, Water and Ether make up a human body. These major elements when combined with each other, create three patterns - combination of Air & Ether makes one constituent called 'Vaata'; Fire & Water makes 'Pitta' and Earth & Water makes Kapha. A healthy body should have balance of these three combinations. However, each body holds an imbalance in favour of one of the combinations. This imbalance is called Dosha. The resultant variants of this imbalances are known as Tri-Dosha. The excess of Vaata is called Vaata Dosha; excess of Kapha creates Kapha Dosha and excess of Pitta creates Pitta Dosha. Depending upon the basic Dosha of a human body, the Prakriti (constitution) of a person was marked as 'Vaata Prakriti, Kapha Prakriti or Pitta Prakriti. 

During old days in India, a Vaidya (an Ayurvedic Physician) could be seen holding the wrist of the patient contemplating upon the pulse, breath and Prana of the patient. Side by side he would ask primary questions about the problems of the patient, its intensity, time when the trouble started, about last meals etc. This preliminary examination was called 'Nadi' examination. Thus Nadi was relavent with the time of consultation and examination of the biological environment of the patient. This happens to be a unique characteristic of Indian system of medical treatment. Through Nadi examination, identification of the basic pattern of the patient's body system was undertaken. The state of Tri-Dosha was to be determined so that medicine can be prescribed to re-instate the internal biological harmony of human body with the universal elements in the environment. 

In those days the Vaidyas were supposed to know Astrology, Mantra Shastra and Karma Kanda besides his own expertise in Ayurveda. This is the reason, the concepts of Astrology and Ayurveda got mingled with each other. This multi-discipline expertise has contributed in formulating Astrological rules for estimating compatibility between would be spouses. While the emotional attributes of the persons are important; the biological characteristics are equally important. Since, the basic purpose of marriage is the regeneration of offspring, a fruitful marriage greatly depends upon biological compatibility.

Here, Ayurveda plays supporting role in astrological assessment of ability of the would be couple to regenerate their offspring. For the purpose of judging matrimonial compatibility; an astrologer, on the basis of horoscope, determines the prakriti of both the candidates. Every Nakshatra/its charan or pada signifies a set of biological constitution of the native. This classification is called Nadi and they are named Adi, Madhya and Antya. 

They represent Vaata, Kapha and Pitta dosha respectively. Thus, when the boy and the Girl have same Nadi, this signifies that both of them have the same dosha, biological imbalance. So when they copulate, the fetus inherits the same Dosha in a great proportion. Needless to say that this would be in great dis-harmony with the nature and the fetus is put to tremendous struggle right at the inception stage. Depending upon the intensity of the Dosha, there is either no conception possible at all, it may result into a miscarriage or it may give birth to a very sickly child. 

If we extend the ayurvedic notion of 'Dosha', we know that the basic prakriti of a person does not remain static throughout. It gets modified with the changes in season, food habits and temperament of the person and his life style as a whole. Any Vaidya will be able to suggest different sets of food etc. to counter the Dosha according to the season. Similarly, with the practice of Pranayama and Yogasanas it is quite possible to bring in desired changes in the body system. This will modify the basic prakriti of a person to a considerable degree. 

It is, therefore, always wise to consult an expert Vaidya when a pair of otherwise very good compatibility factors, is rejected on the basis of Nadi Dosh alone through astrological assessment. The adverse observations provided by an astrologer regarding progeny, should be counter checked through pathological tests like Rh factor etc. Looking to the availability of evolved tools and instruments with finer accuracy, its wise to take help of other tools. If we have binoculars, it would be foolish to stretching our specs to observe stars in the sky. I think its matter of common sense.

A wise person would take advantage of all the wisdom available to him. One should not reject a nice pair of prospective candidates for marriage only on the basis of Nadi Dosha. Instead, services of an Ayurveda expert be taken to ascertain whether there is acute incompatibility in terms of Prakriti or physician be consulted to determine problems related with the Rh factor etc. The couples who are childless and if they find their Nadi to be the same, they may draft recommendation on diet, etc., through an Ayurveda expert.

By India Divine