In Vedic astrology, gemstones are recommended based on your horoscope. It is believed that by wearing these prescribed gemstones you can overcome the obstacles in your chart. The cause of unhappy relationships or lack of success can be astrological. Wearing a certain gemstone may turn your love life and career around so you can have a fulfilling relationship. Gems affects the subtle energy field, which emanates from every living thing, where our energetic and emotional habits, thought patterns, belief systems, and so on reside. The energy pattern of a gem directly affects one's emotional and mental energies, and over a period of time this promotes long-lasting changes. But the correct use of Gems is quite necessary. Gems are classified in to two types : Hot And Cold. Ruby, Red coral, Diamond and Cat's eye are Hot gems whereas Pearl, Topaz, Blue Sapphire and Gomed are Cold in nature. We select Gems to increase the efficiency or for removal of the deficiency. These remedial stones act in two ways; one is by its spectrum effects and other is by radioactive effects. When a ring is worn, Gem goes on continuously vibrating its power which is absorbed in the individual aura. The protective aura thus becomes powerful to resist any untoward vibrations coming from external sources.
Ruby (Manimya)Ruby is said to give name, fame, virtue, vigor, warmth and commanding power to its user. It also enhances the status of a person. Normally red in color, it helps to cure peptic ulcer, fever, rheumatism, gout. Ladies should avoid the use of Ruby as it can destroy the body luster. Ruby should be used in Gold.
Represents
Finger
Used with Metal
Sun, our soul
Ring finger
Gold
Pearl (Moti)Pearl is used to remove the evil effects of moon and it strengthens the mind and increases the good sleep and cures insomnia. It also gives good memory, cures uterine disorders, heart trouble and eye diseases, hysteria and pleurisy etc. It also increases sexual strength and makes the conjugal life happy, removes melancholy and increases fortune.
Represents
Finger
Moon, our mind
Little finger
Silver
Red Coral (Moonga)It is said that Red Coral instills courage in its user. It also helps in curing blood related diseases. This is normally red in color. Coral ensures material happiness, recovery from diseases indicated by Mars such as fever, cough etc.
Represents
Finger
Mars, our efforts& protection
Ring finger
Silver
Emerald (Panna)It increases intelligence and brain power. It improves faculties related to brain such as memory, communication, intuition, the intellect and the ability to learn. It is advised that newly wed couples should not wear this because it impairs conjugal happiness due to reduction in sexual desires.
Represents
Finger
Used with Metal
Mercury, our communication skills
Little finger
Gold
TopazTopaz is one of the most widely used gems to help achieve better financial status. It is also believed that if there are obstructions in finding a suitable match for a girl, she gets married by wearing Topaz. This is normally yellow in color. It improves vision, gives life security, protects one from poverty, removes adversity, misfortune and melancholy.
Life lessons
Keep your face always toward the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you .
Saturday, September 19, 2009
NAVARATRI POOJA
Goddess Shailaputri is the first Navdurga among the nine Goddesses worshipped during DURGA
NAVARATRI FESTIVAL . Maa Sailaputri is worshipped on the first day or on the
Kalash
Sthapana or Ghatshtapana day. In 2009, Shailaputri puja in Durga Navaratra festival is
performed on September 19.
Shailaputri Devi – Previous incarnation:
Mata Shailputri is the daughter of King Himavanth (Raja Himalaya), the emperor of mountains.
Shailaputri married to Lord Shiva by performing a severe penance for Shankar Mahadev.
Shailaputri was the daughter of Daksha Prajapati in her previous birth. During Daksha Yagna,
she sacrificed her life in Yagna vatika and incarnated as Shailputri in her next birth to marry
Lord Shiva.
Shailaputri Mata – Spiritual Practice:
During the first day of Navratri Durga pooja, Yogis keep their mind and heart on Muladhara
chakra which is the initial point of their spiritual practice or Sadhana. Shailputri represents the
Muladhara chakra of spiritual practice.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Vedic astrology Love , relationship and marriage
Influence of Astrology in Indian MarriagesAstrology is considered to be the oldest of all sciences, which studies the effects of the planetary positions and movements on our lives. Indian Astrology is an integral aspect of the Vedic literature (Vedic Astrology) and was practiced over the years by Indian sages and passed on to their disciples.
In olden days, the kings would depend on astrology to determine the right and auspicious time before embarking on any new and important initiatives.
Ages later, today, we still find the strong influence of astrology in our day-to-day life. Any major event in life, whether it is marriage, buying a car, buying a house, or even entering a new house, is undertaken only after consulting the astrologer for an auspicious time. Astrology is in-depth science with multiple widespread branches.
It is used to create birth or natal charts (Jathaka / Janampatri) based on the time, date and place of birth, to answer any specific questions ‘Prashnas’, to find the auspicious time and day called ‘Muhurtha’.
While all of these aspects of astrology are well in use today, one of the most popular one is the creation of Jathaka’s and matching of Jathaka’s for marriages.
Marriage is an important aspect of life. In India, when a child is born, the exact place, date and time is documented and when the child grows older his/her natal chart is created based on this birth data.
When the child attains marriageable age, his/her natal chart is matched with those of prospective brides and grooms to find an astrologically compatible match.
This is an age-old tradition, which is practiced with equal fervor even in this tech-savvy, net-savvy age. It is interesting to note that, thousands of years ago astrology was imparted by the teachers to their pupils orally.
During the beginning of ‘Kali Yuga’ the astrological literature was documented for the future generation.
Today, the essence of astrology has been captured and converted into astrological software. These software’s are immensely accurate and provide extensive reports based on scientific calculations.
One such service is provided on the website www.BridesandGroomsIndia.com, which is an Indian matrimonial site.
The Astrology section provides various astrological services like horoscope / natal chart generation, horoscope / natal chart matching for compatibility, star matching for compatibility. Indian Astrology is an integral part of the Indian culture and most of the marriages are consummated only after consulting an astrologer.
At BridesandGroomsIndia.com a genuine effort is made to help prospective couples figure out whether they are compatible to be bound in the holy wedding knot.
In olden days, the kings would depend on astrology to determine the right and auspicious time before embarking on any new and important initiatives.
Ages later, today, we still find the strong influence of astrology in our day-to-day life. Any major event in life, whether it is marriage, buying a car, buying a house, or even entering a new house, is undertaken only after consulting the astrologer for an auspicious time. Astrology is in-depth science with multiple widespread branches.
It is used to create birth or natal charts (Jathaka / Janampatri) based on the time, date and place of birth, to answer any specific questions ‘Prashnas’, to find the auspicious time and day called ‘Muhurtha’.
While all of these aspects of astrology are well in use today, one of the most popular one is the creation of Jathaka’s and matching of Jathaka’s for marriages.
Marriage is an important aspect of life. In India, when a child is born, the exact place, date and time is documented and when the child grows older his/her natal chart is created based on this birth data.
When the child attains marriageable age, his/her natal chart is matched with those of prospective brides and grooms to find an astrologically compatible match.
This is an age-old tradition, which is practiced with equal fervor even in this tech-savvy, net-savvy age. It is interesting to note that, thousands of years ago astrology was imparted by the teachers to their pupils orally.
During the beginning of ‘Kali Yuga’ the astrological literature was documented for the future generation.
Today, the essence of astrology has been captured and converted into astrological software. These software’s are immensely accurate and provide extensive reports based on scientific calculations.
One such service is provided on the website www.BridesandGroomsIndia.com, which is an Indian matrimonial site.
The Astrology section provides various astrological services like horoscope / natal chart generation, horoscope / natal chart matching for compatibility, star matching for compatibility. Indian Astrology is an integral part of the Indian culture and most of the marriages are consummated only after consulting an astrologer.
At BridesandGroomsIndia.com a genuine effort is made to help prospective couples figure out whether they are compatible to be bound in the holy wedding knot.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
How to Choose Your Career - Vedic astrology reading .
They say that most people do complete and total career changes at least once often twice in their lifetimes. Very few people chose the ideal perfect career for themselves when they're in high school and blissfully happily work those same jobs for the rest of their lives. With the way that technology and everything else changes so fast, I think it's ridiculous to expect to stay in one job from the time you leave school until you retire. Even staying in the same company can be a huge challenge. So how will you pick your first career? Your next major career change?
The first thing I want you to look at is what kinds of things do you enjoy doing and what you are naturally good at. Imagine that you just won the lottery and you will never have to work again for another day of your life. How would you spend your time? After the shopping sprees and traveling and such grows old, you're going to have to fill your days up doing something so that you aren't bored out of your mind. What would you do? What would consume your attention if you could freely bury yourself in it? Is there a way to make a living at that now? Is there a way to incorporate some of that into your current career? Could you begin doing it now as a hobby and grow it into a second income and eventually quit your 'real job' to play full time at your new
hobby/career?
You obviously have to look at practicality issues. Truth be known my very favorite thing to do is drive convertibles and suntan at the beach. That's not likely going to ever become a career and it sure as heck isn't going to pay my bills! You have to look at what you like to do and take a realistic look at whether the market is ever going to pay you an income for doing it. Just because you love doing something doesn't mean that the world is going to love giving you money for doing it. There are plenty of musicians and artists out there who can't earn enough to support themselves. It takes more then just a love of your work. Pick a number of different things that you love and narrow the list down by deciding which ones would realistically finance you at the level that you require.
Another thing to consider, especially when you're choosing your first job is how much education or special training is required. How many kids think that because they love to play basketball that they'll be the next Michael Jordan? How many put in the kind of work and practice that he did? If you want to be a doctor, then you better seriously contemplate the years of college and the extremely high cost of going to medical school. Down the road, a lot of the experience you get in one career can be transferred to your next career. Customer service skills that you learn while waiting tables will still serve you later when you're an entrepreneur. If you have a lot of the skills from previous work experience, but not all of them, then you have to figure out how to finance going to night school or whatever else you need to do to change careers. Additional education and skills shouldn't stop you from
changing to a great job that you know you'll love, but you do need to take it into serious consideration while making the choice.
Many of the community colleges have these cool placement tests that tell you what kinds of work you'd be happy doing. They ask you a bunch of multiple choice questions like if you'd rather work indoors or outside. Do you want to travel as part of your career or stay home? How much weight are you willing to lift? How introverted or extroverted are you? How much money do you want to make? After you answer these questions and a bunch more, the computer system spits out a list of careers that you would be suited to. Keep in mind that what interested you at twenty isn't likely to be the same as what interests you at forty. I would think that you could do an online search and find some of those tests online. These will give you some ideas you may have never considered. I remember taking one when I was in my early twenties and I ranked extremely high at "Clergy." I laughed and thought that was the stupidest thing I'd ever heard of. I wanted to be a motivational speaker and it took me a couple of days before I realized that it's a very similar job description. Whether I'm telling you about God or I'm telling you how to pull yourself up by your bootstraps, it's the same skills and many of the same daily tasks. I'm preaching a different topic, but I'm still up on my soapbox telling you what to do and telling you how to live, aren't I? So be open minded to what the test results show.
So, start out by brainstorming ideas of things that you would love to do if money was not an issue.
Then add to it the results of one of those placement tests. Take the ideas from those two exercises and start looking at the practicalities of marketability and how much education and training are necessary. If you can find a way to do what you love and make a living at it, then you've got the key ingredients to creating a life of abundance and prosperity that the rest of the world only dreams of. You don't have to stay with something just because you used to love it and now you make a lot of money doing it. If you are bored and ready for something new, then start dreaming and planning your next adventure.
Copyright 2004, Skye Thomas, Tomorrow's Edge
Skye Thomas is the CEO of Tomorrow's Edge, an Internet leader in inspiring leaps of faith. She became a writer in 1999 after twenty years of studying spirituality, metaphysics, astrology, personal growth, motivation, soulmates, and parenting. Her books, articles, and astrological forecasts have inspired people of all ages and faiths to recommit themselves to the pursuit of happiness. To read more of her articles and to sign up to receive her free weekly newsletter, go to www.TomorrowsEdge.net. To download free previews of her books, go to www.SkyeThomas.com.
Skye@TomorrowsEdge.net
The first thing I want you to look at is what kinds of things do you enjoy doing and what you are naturally good at. Imagine that you just won the lottery and you will never have to work again for another day of your life. How would you spend your time? After the shopping sprees and traveling and such grows old, you're going to have to fill your days up doing something so that you aren't bored out of your mind. What would you do? What would consume your attention if you could freely bury yourself in it? Is there a way to make a living at that now? Is there a way to incorporate some of that into your current career? Could you begin doing it now as a hobby and grow it into a second income and eventually quit your 'real job' to play full time at your new
hobby/career?
You obviously have to look at practicality issues. Truth be known my very favorite thing to do is drive convertibles and suntan at the beach. That's not likely going to ever become a career and it sure as heck isn't going to pay my bills! You have to look at what you like to do and take a realistic look at whether the market is ever going to pay you an income for doing it. Just because you love doing something doesn't mean that the world is going to love giving you money for doing it. There are plenty of musicians and artists out there who can't earn enough to support themselves. It takes more then just a love of your work. Pick a number of different things that you love and narrow the list down by deciding which ones would realistically finance you at the level that you require.
Another thing to consider, especially when you're choosing your first job is how much education or special training is required. How many kids think that because they love to play basketball that they'll be the next Michael Jordan? How many put in the kind of work and practice that he did? If you want to be a doctor, then you better seriously contemplate the years of college and the extremely high cost of going to medical school. Down the road, a lot of the experience you get in one career can be transferred to your next career. Customer service skills that you learn while waiting tables will still serve you later when you're an entrepreneur. If you have a lot of the skills from previous work experience, but not all of them, then you have to figure out how to finance going to night school or whatever else you need to do to change careers. Additional education and skills shouldn't stop you from
changing to a great job that you know you'll love, but you do need to take it into serious consideration while making the choice.
Many of the community colleges have these cool placement tests that tell you what kinds of work you'd be happy doing. They ask you a bunch of multiple choice questions like if you'd rather work indoors or outside. Do you want to travel as part of your career or stay home? How much weight are you willing to lift? How introverted or extroverted are you? How much money do you want to make? After you answer these questions and a bunch more, the computer system spits out a list of careers that you would be suited to. Keep in mind that what interested you at twenty isn't likely to be the same as what interests you at forty. I would think that you could do an online search and find some of those tests online. These will give you some ideas you may have never considered. I remember taking one when I was in my early twenties and I ranked extremely high at "Clergy." I laughed and thought that was the stupidest thing I'd ever heard of. I wanted to be a motivational speaker and it took me a couple of days before I realized that it's a very similar job description. Whether I'm telling you about God or I'm telling you how to pull yourself up by your bootstraps, it's the same skills and many of the same daily tasks. I'm preaching a different topic, but I'm still up on my soapbox telling you what to do and telling you how to live, aren't I? So be open minded to what the test results show.
So, start out by brainstorming ideas of things that you would love to do if money was not an issue.
Then add to it the results of one of those placement tests. Take the ideas from those two exercises and start looking at the practicalities of marketability and how much education and training are necessary. If you can find a way to do what you love and make a living at it, then you've got the key ingredients to creating a life of abundance and prosperity that the rest of the world only dreams of. You don't have to stay with something just because you used to love it and now you make a lot of money doing it. If you are bored and ready for something new, then start dreaming and planning your next adventure.
Copyright 2004, Skye Thomas, Tomorrow's Edge
Skye Thomas is the CEO of Tomorrow's Edge, an Internet leader in inspiring leaps of faith. She became a writer in 1999 after twenty years of studying spirituality, metaphysics, astrology, personal growth, motivation, soulmates, and parenting. Her books, articles, and astrological forecasts have inspired people of all ages and faiths to recommit themselves to the pursuit of happiness. To read more of her articles and to sign up to receive her free weekly newsletter, go to www.TomorrowsEdge.net. To download free previews of her books, go to www.SkyeThomas.com.
Skye@TomorrowsEdge.net
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Compatibility, Love, and Astrology - Vedic astrology and western astrology
Compatibility, Love, and Astrology -
More than just Sun SignsWhen it comes to astrology and compatibility there is more to it than just the compatibility of the sun signs.
When it comes to the relationship between two people there is of course much more that has to do with the success or the failure of their future than astrology. But for those people that follow astrology and the sun signs, looking at the sun charts can make for interesting comparison.
There are many aspects to astrology that are much more complex that they first seem. Comparing charts can sometimes seem far more complicated than beneficial.
However, there are some theories that can be simplified without the use of a chart. When you first go to an astrologer there are several pieces of information that you're going to need to provide so that the astrologer will be able to get an accurate reading on you and your star sign personality.
You'll need to have your exact date of birth, including the time that you were born.
If you don't know that time you were born your chart won't be quite as precise and accurate as when you have this information.
The time that you were born will give the astrologer information about your ascendant and descendant axis, as well as where you are in the house placements. When your time of birth information is missing your compatibility chart won't be very accurate.
The other piece of information that you're going to need do provide is where you were born. You many wonder what your place of birth has to do with your sun sign and astrology.
This bit of information is needed so that the chart can be as complete as possible. Once the astrologer has finished your chart you'll have some idea as to what other astrology charts are compatible with you.
This way when you meet someone you can find out what their sun sign is and see how well matched you are. Of course you should never take this too seriously, but you can however have a fun conversation over the dinner table about how compatible you are.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Pranayam and meditation Om Yoga Meditation
Om Yoga Meditation: Why Yoga?
The following is an excerpt from the book "Om Yoga: Its Theory and Practice."
Om is the Supreme Brahman. (Svetasvatara Upanishad 1:7)
He who utters Om with the intention 'I shall attain Brahman' does verily attain Brahman. (Taittiriya Upanishad 1.8.1)
The Self is of the nature of the Syllable Om. (Mandukya Upanishad 1.8.12)
Meditate on Om as the Self. (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.3)
Liberation-Freedom
Yoga is all about freedom. Only a fraction of the earth's population is formally imprisoned, but the entire human race is imprisoned in the earth itself. None are free from the inevitability of sickness, age, and death, however free of them they may be at the moment. The human condition is subject to innumerable limitations. Who really controls his life fully, attains all his goals, and knows no setbacks of any kind? No one. Om Yoga is the way to freedom from suffering and limitation. Regarding Om, the Yoga Sutras (1) simply say: "Its repetition and meditation is the way(Yoga Sutras 1:28). Even a superficial perusal of the Upanishads reveals that the meditation practice known and recommended by the Vedic Rishis (2), and later Patanjali and Krishna, (3)A Divine Incarnation (avatar) born in India about three thousand years ago, Whose teachings to His disciple Arjuna on the eve of the Great India (Mahabharata) War comprise the Bhagavad Gita.) was based on Om, the sacred syllable that both symbolizes and embodies Brahman, the Absolute Reality.
It is my hope that you will test for yourself the spiritual alchemy of Om Yoga that is set forth here. If your practice is exactly as outlined and of sufficient duration, your experience will be the proof of its validity and its efficacy.
"This is the bridge to immortality. May you be successful in crossing over to the farther shore of darkness." (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.6)
Why Yoga?
Since the spirit is always free, and nothing can change it-nor does it ever need any changing-the question naturally arises: "Why bother with yoga at all? If our real self is ever perfect and free, what needs to be done? What can be done?"
It is true; the spirit is ever-free, but it has forgotten that and identifies with its experience of bondage and consequently (seemingly) suffers. Our situation is like someone who is asleep and dreaming that he is being tortured and beaten. In reality he is not being touched at all; yet he is experiencing pain and fear. He need not placate, overpower, or escape his torturers. He needs no more dream activity! He needs only to wake up. Yoga is the procedure of self-awakening.
In his commentary on the Yoga Sutras Shankara (The great reformer and re- establisher of Vedic Religion in India around 300 B.C.) has an "opponent" say: "How can there be a means to obtain liberation? Liberation is not a thing which can be obtained, for it is simply cessation of bondage." And Shankara replies: "You are wrong. For ignorance [bondage] to cease, something has to be done, with effort, as in the breaking of a fetter. Though liberation is not a 'thing,' inasmuch as it is cessation of ignorance in the presence of right knowledge it is figuratively spoken of as something to be obtained." And he concludes: "The purpose of Yoga is the knowledge of Reality."
What is Yoga?
"Yoga" is a Sanskrit word that means "to join." Yoga, then, is union and the way to union. What do we join through yoga?
First, we join our awareness to our own essential being: spirit that is consciousness. In yoga philosophy this is known as the atman or self. Next we join our finite consciousness to the Infinite Consciousness: God, the Supreme Self (Paramatman). In essence they are eternally one, and according to yogic philosophy all spirits originally dwelt in consciousness of that oneness. But in the descent into the material world for the purpose of evolving and extending its scope of consciousness, the individual spirit has lost its awareness of that eternal union, and therefore los the capacity to live in and manifest the union on a practical level. Through yoga the lost consciousness can be regained and actualized in the individual's practical life sphere. So profound and so necessary is yoga to the evolving consciousness, there is no more important subject in the world.
Regarding this, a yogi-adept of the twentieth century, Dr. I. K. Taimni, remarked in his book The Science of Yoga: "According to the yogic philosophy it is possible to rise completely above the illusions and miseries of life and to gain infinite knowledge, bliss, and power through enlightenment here and now while we are still living in the physical body. And if we do not attain this enlightenment while we are still alive we will have to come back again and again into this world until we have accomplished this appointed task. So it is not a question of choosing the path of yoga or rejecting it. It is a question of choosing it now or in some future life. It is a question of gaining enlightenment as soon as possible and avoiding the suffering in the future or postponing the effort and going through further suffering which is unnecessary and avoidable. This is the meaning of Yoga Sutra 2:16: 'The misery which is not yet come can and is to be avoided.' No vague promise of an uncertain postmortem happiness this, but a definite scientific assertion of a fact verified by the experience of innumerable yogis, saints, and sages who have trodden the path of yoga throughout the ages."
Yoga philosophy
Yoga must be approached initially as a philosophy-but a philosophy which by its very nature stimulates its investigators to engage in practical applications through which they will experience-and demonstrate-its truth and worth. That which begins as theory develops into practice which culminates in realization. Yoga is thus a philosophy, a discipline, and an experience. It is a revelation of consciousness. And since rational thought always precedes rational action, we should begin with the philosophical side of Yoga.
Then and now
In the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita Krishna tells Arjuna: "There was never a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor any of these kings. Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be."(Bhagavad Gita 2:12) That is, we are eternal beings, without beginning and without end. Originally we were points of conscious light in the infinite Ocean of Conscious Light that is God. We were gods within God. And so we still are, for it is not possible to be outside of Infinity Itself. Yet we are also here in this ever-changing world-a place that completely overwhelms the truth of our immortal life within God. For countless life-cycles we have found ourselves embodied in material cases, little body-prisons within the greater prison of the cosmos. And that is where we are right now.
There is a law that governs the place and kind of our embodiment. That law is karma, the principle of exact and inevitable reaction to our own actions and mental states, resulting in a seemingly endless domino effect of continual birth and death. Yoga offers us the possibility of ending this chain of embodiments by awakening and transformation from time and mortality into eternity and immortality.
God and gods
We are gods within God, finite spirits within the Infinite Spirit. But what is "spirit"? Yoga tells us that spirit is consciousness, hence we are eternal consciousnesses, each of us individual and distinct. ("Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be.?") Yet we are more. For we do not have an existence independent of one another or independent of God. Rather, we take our being from God as the waves take their existence from the ocean, sharing it with all the other waves.
God is the eternal Root or Ground of our being, our greater Self. We are not God, but in some ineffable manner God is us-the Self of our self, the Spirit of our spirit. God is all, and we are the parts-each of us possessing an eternal and irrevocable distinction. That is why, as already quoted, Krishna told Arjuna: "There was never a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor any of these kings. Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be." It is incalculably important to realize this before we can have any viable understanding of or approach to ourselves, to our lives, to others, and even to God. The distinction between God, us, and one another is real and eternal; yet so is our unity.
In God there is unity; in us there is diversity. These two seemingly contradictory states coexist in perfection. Because of this we have the term advaita which does not mean "one," but simply "not two." Reality is neither One nor Two. It is a unity that possesses diversity. It is a mystery, but it can be realized by direct experience, and yoga is the means to that experience.
God and creation
God, the infinite Spirit, is pure consciousness, but-as we are experiencing even now-He has extended or emanated Himself as the cosmos: physical, astral, and causal. This seemingly dual nature of God as Light and Power, as Consciousness and Matter, has puzzled the minds of even the wise.
God, the Original Being, projects Himself as the ever-changing dance of creation, as the evolving light that is the cosmos. God projects the creation, evolves it, and withdraws it back into Himself in a perpetual cycle. Thus the creation can be thought of as God's body-that God becomes incarnate in creation again and again. And as parts or reflections of God we do exactly the same through reincarnation.
And us...
All conscious beings have existed eternally within the Being of God-living within the heart of God, one with Him, distinct though not separate. Having their being rooted in the infinity of God, the individual consciousnesses have within them a natural impulse to transcend their finitude and attain the boundlessness of their Origin. This, of course, is impossible, since the essential, eternal nature of a being cannot be altered. Being rooted in God, and therefore in a sense a part of God, all beings are as immutable as God-the only infinite Being. Yet the urge for transcendence is part of their nature.
The solution to this dilemma is actually quite simple: the individual consciousnesses cannot alter their natural state of finitude but they can come to share and participate in the infinite Consciousness of God. As Sri Ma Anandamayi said: "The soul can become godlike, but it cannot become God." That is, they cannot become infinite themselves, but they can experience the infinity of another: their divine Source. Just as a psychically sensitive person can experience the thoughts and feelings of another but does not become that other person, so the individual consciousness can come to experience the Consciousness of God while remaining in its limited native state.
It is necessary, then, for the individual spirit to develop the capacity for such a state of awareness. And this is done by learning to fully experience the state of existence of a being completely different from oneself-to enter into an altogether alien mode of being while retaining the awareness of one's true identity. In other words, the individual spirit must learn to put on the "costume" of a consciousness utterly different from its own and become able not just to fully experience that other mode of consciousness, but also to develop the ability to function as that other kind of being.
Evolutionary creation
To enable the spirits to enter into this process, God breathes forth or emanates His own Self as the Power from which is manifested all the realms of relative existence, from the most subtle worlds of nearly-perfected beings to the most objective worlds of atomic matter. The spirits then enter into relative existence by taking on coverings, or "bodies," (There are five such concentric sheaths or bodies: the sheaths of bliss, intellect, mind, life-force and the physical body-the anandamaya, jnanamaya, manomaya, pranamaya and annamaya bodies (koshas) respectively.) of varying grades and patterns of vibratory energies and descending into this material world. Here they begin working their way back up the ladder of ever-evolving forms, beginning with forms whose scope of consciousness is lesser than theirs and working their way upward, entering into higher and higher levels of awareness until they can surpass their original breadth of consciousness and begin to partake of a life of awareness much beyond their own.
Furthermore, in the intervals between embodiments the spirit spends time in the astral regions where awakening and growth also take place. (This is best explained in the forty-third chapter of Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda.) Upward and upward they evolve until their capacity for awareness is developed to such a perfect state that they can actually experience the Being of God in full participation in God's all-embracing Consciousness, thenceforth to live in His infinity.
The master yogi, Dr. I. K. Taimni, in The Ultimate Reality and Realization, says this: "It is only when the realization of being a pure spirit or atma has been attained that it is possible to achieve the final goal of union of the atma with the Paramatma, the Supreme Spirit which exists eternally beyond the manifested universe and from which the manifested universe is derived. When this final realization has been attained and union of atma with Paramatma has been brought about there is not only a complete sharing of consciousness between the two but also of the infinite Power which is inherent in the Universal Consciousness.?It is necessary to distinguish between the powers which are acquired on the realization that he is a pure spirit or atma and those which are attained when he is able to destroy the last vestige of egoism and his consciousness becomes united with that of Paramatma. The former, though tremendous in some respects, are still limited, while the latter which are really the Powers of the Supreme Spirit are infinite and can manifest through the center of consciousness of a self-realized individual because there is fusion of the individual consciousness with the Supreme Consciousness and the channel between the two is open."
We do not become God the Absolute, but we enter into that Absolute Life and are one with it. As Shankara explains in his Yoga Sutra commentary: "When the light of several lamps appears simultaneously, it cannot be made out which is the light of which." Consequently we experience the infinite Being of God-infinite Consciousness-as our own being. Krishna has described it thusly: "When you have reached enlightenment, ignorance will delude you no longer. In the light of that knowledge you will see the entire creation within your own atman and in me." (Bhagavad Gita 4:35) Buddha called this "seeing with the Divine Eye." When we are unshakably established in that Consciousness the goal has been attained.
As Shakespeare wrote, "all the world's a stage" with the individual spirits wearing their costumes and playing their parts. Just as actors begin with small parts and progress to bigger roles by demonstrating their skill in those smaller parts, so also do the spirits advance to higher and more complex forms of existence and consciousness, at last returning home to God. The Sufi poet, Rumi, wrote: A stone I died and rose again a plant.A plant I died and rose an animal;I died an animal and was born a man.
Why should I fear? What have I lost by death?As man, death sweeps me from this world of men
That I may wear an angel's wings in heaven;Yet e'en as angel may I not abide,For nought abideth save the face of God.
Thus o'er the angels' world I wing my wayOnwards and upwards, unto boundless lights;
Then let me be as nought, for in my heartRings as a harp-song that we must return to Him. Oliver Wendell Holmes, one of many great Americans whose belief in reincarnation is overlooked, wrote in his poem, The Chambered Nautilus: Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul! As the swift seasons roll! Leave thy low-vaulted past! Let each new temple, nobler than the last, Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast,Till thou at length art free, Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea!
That is the purpose of this creation and our place in it through a seemingly endless chain of births in this and the higher worlds: to evolve beyond all worlds by expanding our consciousness through form after form, eventually reuniting ourselves consciously with God, leaving many "outgrown shells by life's unresting sea." For long ages beyond calculation this growth has occurred automatically, spontaneously, with no thought or intention on our part. But the time comes in our evolutionary scenario when comprehension dawns and we understand that we must take our own evolution in hand from that time forth. This is necessary for the development of our higher potential. As God controls and directs the macrocosm, we must now begin doing the same with the microcosm that is "us." And yoga is the means of our self-evolution that leads to our self-mastery and perfect union with the Supreme Self: God. Yoga is both the knowledge of cosmic and human makeup and the key to unlock them and ascend to freedom in spirit. Yoga is the means by which we answer for ourselves the prayer:
Lead me from the unreal to the Real.Lead me from darkness to the Light.Lead me from death to Immortality.
The following is an excerpt from the book "Om Yoga: Its Theory and Practice."
Om is the Supreme Brahman. (Svetasvatara Upanishad 1:7)
He who utters Om with the intention 'I shall attain Brahman' does verily attain Brahman. (Taittiriya Upanishad 1.8.1)
The Self is of the nature of the Syllable Om. (Mandukya Upanishad 1.8.12)
Meditate on Om as the Self. (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.3)
Liberation-Freedom
Yoga is all about freedom. Only a fraction of the earth's population is formally imprisoned, but the entire human race is imprisoned in the earth itself. None are free from the inevitability of sickness, age, and death, however free of them they may be at the moment. The human condition is subject to innumerable limitations. Who really controls his life fully, attains all his goals, and knows no setbacks of any kind? No one. Om Yoga is the way to freedom from suffering and limitation. Regarding Om, the Yoga Sutras (1) simply say: "Its repetition and meditation is the way(Yoga Sutras 1:28). Even a superficial perusal of the Upanishads reveals that the meditation practice known and recommended by the Vedic Rishis (2), and later Patanjali and Krishna, (3)A Divine Incarnation (avatar) born in India about three thousand years ago, Whose teachings to His disciple Arjuna on the eve of the Great India (Mahabharata) War comprise the Bhagavad Gita.) was based on Om, the sacred syllable that both symbolizes and embodies Brahman, the Absolute Reality.
It is my hope that you will test for yourself the spiritual alchemy of Om Yoga that is set forth here. If your practice is exactly as outlined and of sufficient duration, your experience will be the proof of its validity and its efficacy.
"This is the bridge to immortality. May you be successful in crossing over to the farther shore of darkness." (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.6)
Why Yoga?
Since the spirit is always free, and nothing can change it-nor does it ever need any changing-the question naturally arises: "Why bother with yoga at all? If our real self is ever perfect and free, what needs to be done? What can be done?"
It is true; the spirit is ever-free, but it has forgotten that and identifies with its experience of bondage and consequently (seemingly) suffers. Our situation is like someone who is asleep and dreaming that he is being tortured and beaten. In reality he is not being touched at all; yet he is experiencing pain and fear. He need not placate, overpower, or escape his torturers. He needs no more dream activity! He needs only to wake up. Yoga is the procedure of self-awakening.
In his commentary on the Yoga Sutras Shankara (The great reformer and re- establisher of Vedic Religion in India around 300 B.C.) has an "opponent" say: "How can there be a means to obtain liberation? Liberation is not a thing which can be obtained, for it is simply cessation of bondage." And Shankara replies: "You are wrong. For ignorance [bondage] to cease, something has to be done, with effort, as in the breaking of a fetter. Though liberation is not a 'thing,' inasmuch as it is cessation of ignorance in the presence of right knowledge it is figuratively spoken of as something to be obtained." And he concludes: "The purpose of Yoga is the knowledge of Reality."
What is Yoga?
"Yoga" is a Sanskrit word that means "to join." Yoga, then, is union and the way to union. What do we join through yoga?
First, we join our awareness to our own essential being: spirit that is consciousness. In yoga philosophy this is known as the atman or self. Next we join our finite consciousness to the Infinite Consciousness: God, the Supreme Self (Paramatman). In essence they are eternally one, and according to yogic philosophy all spirits originally dwelt in consciousness of that oneness. But in the descent into the material world for the purpose of evolving and extending its scope of consciousness, the individual spirit has lost its awareness of that eternal union, and therefore los the capacity to live in and manifest the union on a practical level. Through yoga the lost consciousness can be regained and actualized in the individual's practical life sphere. So profound and so necessary is yoga to the evolving consciousness, there is no more important subject in the world.
Regarding this, a yogi-adept of the twentieth century, Dr. I. K. Taimni, remarked in his book The Science of Yoga: "According to the yogic philosophy it is possible to rise completely above the illusions and miseries of life and to gain infinite knowledge, bliss, and power through enlightenment here and now while we are still living in the physical body. And if we do not attain this enlightenment while we are still alive we will have to come back again and again into this world until we have accomplished this appointed task. So it is not a question of choosing the path of yoga or rejecting it. It is a question of choosing it now or in some future life. It is a question of gaining enlightenment as soon as possible and avoiding the suffering in the future or postponing the effort and going through further suffering which is unnecessary and avoidable. This is the meaning of Yoga Sutra 2:16: 'The misery which is not yet come can and is to be avoided.' No vague promise of an uncertain postmortem happiness this, but a definite scientific assertion of a fact verified by the experience of innumerable yogis, saints, and sages who have trodden the path of yoga throughout the ages."
Yoga philosophy
Yoga must be approached initially as a philosophy-but a philosophy which by its very nature stimulates its investigators to engage in practical applications through which they will experience-and demonstrate-its truth and worth. That which begins as theory develops into practice which culminates in realization. Yoga is thus a philosophy, a discipline, and an experience. It is a revelation of consciousness. And since rational thought always precedes rational action, we should begin with the philosophical side of Yoga.
Then and now
In the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita Krishna tells Arjuna: "There was never a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor any of these kings. Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be."(Bhagavad Gita 2:12) That is, we are eternal beings, without beginning and without end. Originally we were points of conscious light in the infinite Ocean of Conscious Light that is God. We were gods within God. And so we still are, for it is not possible to be outside of Infinity Itself. Yet we are also here in this ever-changing world-a place that completely overwhelms the truth of our immortal life within God. For countless life-cycles we have found ourselves embodied in material cases, little body-prisons within the greater prison of the cosmos. And that is where we are right now.
There is a law that governs the place and kind of our embodiment. That law is karma, the principle of exact and inevitable reaction to our own actions and mental states, resulting in a seemingly endless domino effect of continual birth and death. Yoga offers us the possibility of ending this chain of embodiments by awakening and transformation from time and mortality into eternity and immortality.
God and gods
We are gods within God, finite spirits within the Infinite Spirit. But what is "spirit"? Yoga tells us that spirit is consciousness, hence we are eternal consciousnesses, each of us individual and distinct. ("Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be.?") Yet we are more. For we do not have an existence independent of one another or independent of God. Rather, we take our being from God as the waves take their existence from the ocean, sharing it with all the other waves.
God is the eternal Root or Ground of our being, our greater Self. We are not God, but in some ineffable manner God is us-the Self of our self, the Spirit of our spirit. God is all, and we are the parts-each of us possessing an eternal and irrevocable distinction. That is why, as already quoted, Krishna told Arjuna: "There was never a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor any of these kings. Nor is there any future in which we shall cease to be." It is incalculably important to realize this before we can have any viable understanding of or approach to ourselves, to our lives, to others, and even to God. The distinction between God, us, and one another is real and eternal; yet so is our unity.
In God there is unity; in us there is diversity. These two seemingly contradictory states coexist in perfection. Because of this we have the term advaita which does not mean "one," but simply "not two." Reality is neither One nor Two. It is a unity that possesses diversity. It is a mystery, but it can be realized by direct experience, and yoga is the means to that experience.
God and creation
God, the infinite Spirit, is pure consciousness, but-as we are experiencing even now-He has extended or emanated Himself as the cosmos: physical, astral, and causal. This seemingly dual nature of God as Light and Power, as Consciousness and Matter, has puzzled the minds of even the wise.
God, the Original Being, projects Himself as the ever-changing dance of creation, as the evolving light that is the cosmos. God projects the creation, evolves it, and withdraws it back into Himself in a perpetual cycle. Thus the creation can be thought of as God's body-that God becomes incarnate in creation again and again. And as parts or reflections of God we do exactly the same through reincarnation.
And us...
All conscious beings have existed eternally within the Being of God-living within the heart of God, one with Him, distinct though not separate. Having their being rooted in the infinity of God, the individual consciousnesses have within them a natural impulse to transcend their finitude and attain the boundlessness of their Origin. This, of course, is impossible, since the essential, eternal nature of a being cannot be altered. Being rooted in God, and therefore in a sense a part of God, all beings are as immutable as God-the only infinite Being. Yet the urge for transcendence is part of their nature.
The solution to this dilemma is actually quite simple: the individual consciousnesses cannot alter their natural state of finitude but they can come to share and participate in the infinite Consciousness of God. As Sri Ma Anandamayi said: "The soul can become godlike, but it cannot become God." That is, they cannot become infinite themselves, but they can experience the infinity of another: their divine Source. Just as a psychically sensitive person can experience the thoughts and feelings of another but does not become that other person, so the individual consciousness can come to experience the Consciousness of God while remaining in its limited native state.
It is necessary, then, for the individual spirit to develop the capacity for such a state of awareness. And this is done by learning to fully experience the state of existence of a being completely different from oneself-to enter into an altogether alien mode of being while retaining the awareness of one's true identity. In other words, the individual spirit must learn to put on the "costume" of a consciousness utterly different from its own and become able not just to fully experience that other mode of consciousness, but also to develop the ability to function as that other kind of being.
Evolutionary creation
To enable the spirits to enter into this process, God breathes forth or emanates His own Self as the Power from which is manifested all the realms of relative existence, from the most subtle worlds of nearly-perfected beings to the most objective worlds of atomic matter. The spirits then enter into relative existence by taking on coverings, or "bodies," (There are five such concentric sheaths or bodies: the sheaths of bliss, intellect, mind, life-force and the physical body-the anandamaya, jnanamaya, manomaya, pranamaya and annamaya bodies (koshas) respectively.) of varying grades and patterns of vibratory energies and descending into this material world. Here they begin working their way back up the ladder of ever-evolving forms, beginning with forms whose scope of consciousness is lesser than theirs and working their way upward, entering into higher and higher levels of awareness until they can surpass their original breadth of consciousness and begin to partake of a life of awareness much beyond their own.
Furthermore, in the intervals between embodiments the spirit spends time in the astral regions where awakening and growth also take place. (This is best explained in the forty-third chapter of Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda.) Upward and upward they evolve until their capacity for awareness is developed to such a perfect state that they can actually experience the Being of God in full participation in God's all-embracing Consciousness, thenceforth to live in His infinity.
The master yogi, Dr. I. K. Taimni, in The Ultimate Reality and Realization, says this: "It is only when the realization of being a pure spirit or atma has been attained that it is possible to achieve the final goal of union of the atma with the Paramatma, the Supreme Spirit which exists eternally beyond the manifested universe and from which the manifested universe is derived. When this final realization has been attained and union of atma with Paramatma has been brought about there is not only a complete sharing of consciousness between the two but also of the infinite Power which is inherent in the Universal Consciousness.?It is necessary to distinguish between the powers which are acquired on the realization that he is a pure spirit or atma and those which are attained when he is able to destroy the last vestige of egoism and his consciousness becomes united with that of Paramatma. The former, though tremendous in some respects, are still limited, while the latter which are really the Powers of the Supreme Spirit are infinite and can manifest through the center of consciousness of a self-realized individual because there is fusion of the individual consciousness with the Supreme Consciousness and the channel between the two is open."
We do not become God the Absolute, but we enter into that Absolute Life and are one with it. As Shankara explains in his Yoga Sutra commentary: "When the light of several lamps appears simultaneously, it cannot be made out which is the light of which." Consequently we experience the infinite Being of God-infinite Consciousness-as our own being. Krishna has described it thusly: "When you have reached enlightenment, ignorance will delude you no longer. In the light of that knowledge you will see the entire creation within your own atman and in me." (Bhagavad Gita 4:35) Buddha called this "seeing with the Divine Eye." When we are unshakably established in that Consciousness the goal has been attained.
As Shakespeare wrote, "all the world's a stage" with the individual spirits wearing their costumes and playing their parts. Just as actors begin with small parts and progress to bigger roles by demonstrating their skill in those smaller parts, so also do the spirits advance to higher and more complex forms of existence and consciousness, at last returning home to God. The Sufi poet, Rumi, wrote: A stone I died and rose again a plant.A plant I died and rose an animal;I died an animal and was born a man.
Why should I fear? What have I lost by death?As man, death sweeps me from this world of men
That I may wear an angel's wings in heaven;Yet e'en as angel may I not abide,For nought abideth save the face of God.
Thus o'er the angels' world I wing my wayOnwards and upwards, unto boundless lights;
Then let me be as nought, for in my heartRings as a harp-song that we must return to Him. Oliver Wendell Holmes, one of many great Americans whose belief in reincarnation is overlooked, wrote in his poem, The Chambered Nautilus: Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul! As the swift seasons roll! Leave thy low-vaulted past! Let each new temple, nobler than the last, Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast,Till thou at length art free, Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea!
That is the purpose of this creation and our place in it through a seemingly endless chain of births in this and the higher worlds: to evolve beyond all worlds by expanding our consciousness through form after form, eventually reuniting ourselves consciously with God, leaving many "outgrown shells by life's unresting sea." For long ages beyond calculation this growth has occurred automatically, spontaneously, with no thought or intention on our part. But the time comes in our evolutionary scenario when comprehension dawns and we understand that we must take our own evolution in hand from that time forth. This is necessary for the development of our higher potential. As God controls and directs the macrocosm, we must now begin doing the same with the microcosm that is "us." And yoga is the means of our self-evolution that leads to our self-mastery and perfect union with the Supreme Self: God. Yoga is both the knowledge of cosmic and human makeup and the key to unlock them and ascend to freedom in spirit. Yoga is the means by which we answer for ourselves the prayer:
Lead me from the unreal to the Real.Lead me from darkness to the Light.Lead me from death to Immortality.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Yoga for good health
Are You Willing To Follow Eight Yoga Exercises For the Lower Back?
EXERCISES FOR BACK RELIEF
Many people believe that rest is best for a painful back, but actually, what your back really needs when it's hurt is exercise. Regular exercise relieves back pain by strengthening and stretching the muscles that support the spine and helps to prevent future injury. This is a use it or lose it situation: the more you rest, the weaker your back gets, even if it is hurt. Studies have actually shown that you can heal your back pain faster and get back to your regular activities with just two days of rest. This article will focus on Yoga Exercises. Remember to contact your doctor before beginning any exercise program.
YOGA EXERCISES FOR YOUR BACK
A good, regular yoga practice will go far in relieving the stress and tension that sometimes cause mild back pain, and in fact, studies have shown that yoga is the number one most effective exercise for relieving back pain. However, not all yoga poses relieve back pain, and some can in fact aggravate existing pain, so it is important to know which poses will be most helpful in relieving back pain. It is best to do these exercises under the supervision of a certified yoga instructor, and if you encounter any problems with these poses, you should consult an expert. Even just one or two sessions with a yoga instructor can help, as an instructor will help you with your form and posture during poses. Here are some of the best yoga poses for relieving back pain. Each pose should be held from five to ten seconds, depending upon your level of comfort, and should be done on a mat or other soft, supportive surface.
CORPSE: Lie flat on your back in a relaxed position, arms resting at your sides, palms down, and legs lying naturally, with knees turned out slightly. If it hurts your back to have your knees turned outward, do this pose with knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Breathe in and out for a few seconds while allowing any tension to leave the body.
CAT STRETCH: Start out on your hands and knees with a flat back. Your hands should be directly under your shoulders with fingers spread. Knees should be directly under the hips. Head is held loosely so that you are looking at the floor between your hands. Inhale, and as you exhale, arch your back toward the ceiling, tuck your chin in to your chest so that you are looking at your navel, and tuck your tailbone underneath. Hold, then release back into your original position.
WIND-RELEASING POSE: Lie flat on your back as in Corpse pose. As you inhale, bend your knee, place your hands right below the knee, and draw your leg towards your chest. Your left leg should remain flat on the floor. Exhale and bring your forehead up to touch your knee. Inhale, and then as you exhale, return to your original position. Repeat with the other leg.
SAGE TWIST: Warning for this pose-it involves twisting your back, so you should take particular care not to twist too far or you risk aggravating any existing back pain. This should be a gentle stretch; twist just as far as is comfortable. Sit on the floor with both legs out in front of you. Bend your right knee, lift your right leg over your left, and place your right foot on the floor next to your left knee. Sitting with spine straight, place your left elbow on the right side of your right knee. Bend your left arm so that your left fingertips are touching your right hip, while at the same time, twisting to look over your right shoulder. This is where you need to be careful not to twist too far. Hold for a few seconds, release, and repeat on the opposite side.
PALM TREE: Stand with feet facing forward, arms at your sides, weight distributed evenly on both feet. Raise both arms over your head, interlock your fingers, and turn your hands so that your palms are facing upward. Next, place your palms on your head and turn your head so that you are looking slightly upward. Stretch your arms upwards, and at the same time, come up onto your toes if you can do so without pain. Stretch your entire body upward and hold, if you can. Some people have difficulty balancing during this pose, so just do the stretching part if you need to.
FISH POSE: Lie on your back with knees bent and arms at your side. Arch your back as far as you comfortably can and raise it off the ground by pushing the floor with your elbows. If you can, tilt your head backwards and rest the crown of your head on the floor. Breathe deeply from the diaphragm and hold pose for one minute if you can.
LOCUST: Lie face down with arms at the side, palms down, and elbows slightly bent with fingers pointing towards the feet. Raise your legs and thighs as high off the ground as possible without causing your back any pain. Hold for one second and repeat up to twelve times. This can be a vigorous exercise so you must take care to strain already injured muscles.
BENDING FORWARD POSTURE: Stand up straight with feet together and arms hanging loosely along your sides. Breathe in deeply and raise your arms straight above your head. While breathing out, bend forward and touch your toes if you can. If you can't reach your toes, grab hold of your ankles or calves. To complete the pose, you should touch your head to your knees, but this may be too difficult for many who suffer from lower back pain. Your movements during this pose should be smooth, not jerky.
EXERCISES FOR BACK RELIEF
Many people believe that rest is best for a painful back, but actually, what your back really needs when it's hurt is exercise. Regular exercise relieves back pain by strengthening and stretching the muscles that support the spine and helps to prevent future injury. This is a use it or lose it situation: the more you rest, the weaker your back gets, even if it is hurt. Studies have actually shown that you can heal your back pain faster and get back to your regular activities with just two days of rest. This article will focus on Yoga Exercises. Remember to contact your doctor before beginning any exercise program.
YOGA EXERCISES FOR YOUR BACK
A good, regular yoga practice will go far in relieving the stress and tension that sometimes cause mild back pain, and in fact, studies have shown that yoga is the number one most effective exercise for relieving back pain. However, not all yoga poses relieve back pain, and some can in fact aggravate existing pain, so it is important to know which poses will be most helpful in relieving back pain. It is best to do these exercises under the supervision of a certified yoga instructor, and if you encounter any problems with these poses, you should consult an expert. Even just one or two sessions with a yoga instructor can help, as an instructor will help you with your form and posture during poses. Here are some of the best yoga poses for relieving back pain. Each pose should be held from five to ten seconds, depending upon your level of comfort, and should be done on a mat or other soft, supportive surface.
CORPSE: Lie flat on your back in a relaxed position, arms resting at your sides, palms down, and legs lying naturally, with knees turned out slightly. If it hurts your back to have your knees turned outward, do this pose with knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Breathe in and out for a few seconds while allowing any tension to leave the body.
CAT STRETCH: Start out on your hands and knees with a flat back. Your hands should be directly under your shoulders with fingers spread. Knees should be directly under the hips. Head is held loosely so that you are looking at the floor between your hands. Inhale, and as you exhale, arch your back toward the ceiling, tuck your chin in to your chest so that you are looking at your navel, and tuck your tailbone underneath. Hold, then release back into your original position.
WIND-RELEASING POSE: Lie flat on your back as in Corpse pose. As you inhale, bend your knee, place your hands right below the knee, and draw your leg towards your chest. Your left leg should remain flat on the floor. Exhale and bring your forehead up to touch your knee. Inhale, and then as you exhale, return to your original position. Repeat with the other leg.
SAGE TWIST: Warning for this pose-it involves twisting your back, so you should take particular care not to twist too far or you risk aggravating any existing back pain. This should be a gentle stretch; twist just as far as is comfortable. Sit on the floor with both legs out in front of you. Bend your right knee, lift your right leg over your left, and place your right foot on the floor next to your left knee. Sitting with spine straight, place your left elbow on the right side of your right knee. Bend your left arm so that your left fingertips are touching your right hip, while at the same time, twisting to look over your right shoulder. This is where you need to be careful not to twist too far. Hold for a few seconds, release, and repeat on the opposite side.
PALM TREE: Stand with feet facing forward, arms at your sides, weight distributed evenly on both feet. Raise both arms over your head, interlock your fingers, and turn your hands so that your palms are facing upward. Next, place your palms on your head and turn your head so that you are looking slightly upward. Stretch your arms upwards, and at the same time, come up onto your toes if you can do so without pain. Stretch your entire body upward and hold, if you can. Some people have difficulty balancing during this pose, so just do the stretching part if you need to.
FISH POSE: Lie on your back with knees bent and arms at your side. Arch your back as far as you comfortably can and raise it off the ground by pushing the floor with your elbows. If you can, tilt your head backwards and rest the crown of your head on the floor. Breathe deeply from the diaphragm and hold pose for one minute if you can.
LOCUST: Lie face down with arms at the side, palms down, and elbows slightly bent with fingers pointing towards the feet. Raise your legs and thighs as high off the ground as possible without causing your back any pain. Hold for one second and repeat up to twelve times. This can be a vigorous exercise so you must take care to strain already injured muscles.
BENDING FORWARD POSTURE: Stand up straight with feet together and arms hanging loosely along your sides. Breathe in deeply and raise your arms straight above your head. While breathing out, bend forward and touch your toes if you can. If you can't reach your toes, grab hold of your ankles or calves. To complete the pose, you should touch your head to your knees, but this may be too difficult for many who suffer from lower back pain. Your movements during this pose should be smooth, not jerky.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Navaratri festival about Maa (Godess ) durga
Jayanti mangala kaali bhadra kaali kapalini , durga kshama shiva dhatri swaha swdha namostute .
Godess Durga, in Sanskrit means "She who is incomprehensible or difficult to reach." Goddess Durga is a form of Sakti worshiped for her gracious as well as terrifying aspect. Mother of the Universe, she represents the infinite power of the universe and is a symbol of a female dynamism. The manifestation of Goddess Durga is said to emerge from Her formless essence and the two are inseparable. She is also called by many other names, such as Parvati, Ambika, and Kali. In the form of Parvati, She is known as the divine spouse of Lord Shiva and is the mother of Her two sons, Ganesha and Karttikeya, and daughter Jyoti. Destroyer of demons, she is worshiped during an annual festival called Durga puja, especially popular among Bengalis.
Goddess Durga exists eternally, always abiding in her own sweet nature and inhabits the hearts and minds of her ecstatic devotees. As Shakti power, she shapes, nurtures, and dissolves names and forms, while as subtle spiritual energy called Kundalini, She lights the lotuses fo the seven centres of awareness in the sacred human body. Goddess Durga killed the powerful demon Mahish and all his great commanders. When demonic forces create imbalance all god unite becoming one divine force called Shakti or Durga.Goddess Durga exists eternally, always abiding in her own sweet nature and inhabits the hearts and minds of her ecstatic devotees. As Shakti power, she shapes, nurtures, and dissolves names and forms, while as subtle spiritual energy called Kundalini, She lights the lotuses fo the seven centres of awareness in the sacred human body. Goddess Durga killed the powerful demon Mahish and all his great commanders. When demonic forces create imbalance all god unite becoming one divine force called Shakti or Durga.
This year navaratri is starting from 19-september -2009 . If you worship Maa godess durga with pure devotion you get what you want .
Navratri, the festival of nights, lasts for 9 days with three days each devoted to worship of Ma Durga, the Goddess of Valor, Ma Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth and Ma Saraswati, the Goddess of Knowledge. During the nine days of Navratari, feasting and fasting take precedence over all normal daily activities amongst the Hindus. Evenings give rise to the religious dances in order to worhip Goddess Durga Maa.
1st - 3rd day of Navratri On the first day of the Navaratras, a small bed of mud is prepared in the puja room of the house and barley seeds are sown on it. On the tenth day, the shoots are
about 3 - 5 inches in length. After the puja, these seedlings are pulled out and given to devotees as a blessing from god. These initial days are dedicated to Durga Maa, the Goddess of power and energy. Her various manifestations, Kumari, Parvati and Kali are all worshipped during these days. They represent the three different classes of womanhood that include the child, the young girl and the mature woman. 4th - 6th day of Navratri During these days, Lakshmi Maa, the Goddess of peace and prosperity is worshipped. On the fifth day which is known as Lalita Panchami, it is traditional, to gather and display all literature available in the house, light a lamp or 'diya' to invoke Saraswati Maa, the Goddess of knowledge and art. 7th - 8th day of Navratri These final days belong to Saraswati Maa who is worshipped to acquire the spiritual knowledge. This in turn will free us from all earthly bondage. But on the 8th day of this colourful festival, yagna (holy fire) is performed. Ghee (clarified butter), kheer (rice pudding) and sesame seeds form the holy offering to Goddess Durga Maa.
Mahanavami The festival of Navratri culminates in Mahanavami. On this day Kanya Puja is performed. Nine young girls representing the nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshiped. Their feet are washed as a mark of respect for the Goddess and then they are offered new clothes as gifts by the worshiper. This ritual is performed in most parts of the country.
YOU CAN CONTACT ME FOR NAVARATRI POOJA .
Godess Durga, in Sanskrit means "She who is incomprehensible or difficult to reach." Goddess Durga is a form of Sakti worshiped for her gracious as well as terrifying aspect. Mother of the Universe, she represents the infinite power of the universe and is a symbol of a female dynamism. The manifestation of Goddess Durga is said to emerge from Her formless essence and the two are inseparable. She is also called by many other names, such as Parvati, Ambika, and Kali. In the form of Parvati, She is known as the divine spouse of Lord Shiva and is the mother of Her two sons, Ganesha and Karttikeya, and daughter Jyoti. Destroyer of demons, she is worshiped during an annual festival called Durga puja, especially popular among Bengalis.
Goddess Durga exists eternally, always abiding in her own sweet nature and inhabits the hearts and minds of her ecstatic devotees. As Shakti power, she shapes, nurtures, and dissolves names and forms, while as subtle spiritual energy called Kundalini, She lights the lotuses fo the seven centres of awareness in the sacred human body. Goddess Durga killed the powerful demon Mahish and all his great commanders. When demonic forces create imbalance all god unite becoming one divine force called Shakti or Durga.Goddess Durga exists eternally, always abiding in her own sweet nature and inhabits the hearts and minds of her ecstatic devotees. As Shakti power, she shapes, nurtures, and dissolves names and forms, while as subtle spiritual energy called Kundalini, She lights the lotuses fo the seven centres of awareness in the sacred human body. Goddess Durga killed the powerful demon Mahish and all his great commanders. When demonic forces create imbalance all god unite becoming one divine force called Shakti or Durga.
This year navaratri is starting from 19-september -2009 . If you worship Maa godess durga with pure devotion you get what you want .
Navratri, the festival of nights, lasts for 9 days with three days each devoted to worship of Ma Durga, the Goddess of Valor, Ma Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth and Ma Saraswati, the Goddess of Knowledge. During the nine days of Navratari, feasting and fasting take precedence over all normal daily activities amongst the Hindus. Evenings give rise to the religious dances in order to worhip Goddess Durga Maa.
1st - 3rd day of Navratri On the first day of the Navaratras, a small bed of mud is prepared in the puja room of the house and barley seeds are sown on it. On the tenth day, the shoots are
about 3 - 5 inches in length. After the puja, these seedlings are pulled out and given to devotees as a blessing from god. These initial days are dedicated to Durga Maa, the Goddess of power and energy. Her various manifestations, Kumari, Parvati and Kali are all worshipped during these days. They represent the three different classes of womanhood that include the child, the young girl and the mature woman. 4th - 6th day of Navratri During these days, Lakshmi Maa, the Goddess of peace and prosperity is worshipped. On the fifth day which is known as Lalita Panchami, it is traditional, to gather and display all literature available in the house, light a lamp or 'diya' to invoke Saraswati Maa, the Goddess of knowledge and art. 7th - 8th day of Navratri These final days belong to Saraswati Maa who is worshipped to acquire the spiritual knowledge. This in turn will free us from all earthly bondage. But on the 8th day of this colourful festival, yagna (holy fire) is performed. Ghee (clarified butter), kheer (rice pudding) and sesame seeds form the holy offering to Goddess Durga Maa.
Mahanavami The festival of Navratri culminates in Mahanavami. On this day Kanya Puja is performed. Nine young girls representing the nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshiped. Their feet are washed as a mark of respect for the Goddess and then they are offered new clothes as gifts by the worshiper. This ritual is performed in most parts of the country.
YOU CAN CONTACT ME FOR NAVARATRI POOJA .
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Astrology tell who we are and gives a good dire ction in our life making life better than any other creature .
Astrology Signs and Planets Reveal Who We are ?
Even though astrology may not be a part of your world, there is solid proof that it can be a great resource for finding out who you are? Of course, if you are like most people, you probably think of astrology as a fun game and should not be taken any more seriously than the contents of a fortune cookie.
"The resulting fluctuations of earth's field are picked up by the nervous system of the fetus, which acts like an antenna, and these synchronize the internal biological clocks of the fetus which control the moment of birth. The tuning of the fetal magnetic antenna is carried on by the genes which it inherits, and these to some extent will determine its basic genetically inherited personality characteristics. Thus the positions of the planets at birth are not altering what we have inherited genetically but are labeling our basic inherited personality characteristics."
if a renowned scientist is confirming what astrologers have been saying for thousands of years, it is time for us to take notice and take advantage of the marvelous resources that an astrological birth chart can reveal for you. No longer can we condemn astrology as superstition, because it has been proven that the zodiacal position of the planets and signs at the time we were born actually reveal who we really are.
You can actually confirm this for yourself with a little investigation.The astrological birth chart can reveal your life purpose, the lessons that you need to learn, your unique gifts, talents, relationships to other
people, and your psycho-sexual profile.Astrology can show your sexual likes and dislikes. These preferences are revealed by the position of your Venus and Mars at he time you were born.
A skilled astrologer can describe these desires quite clearly and help you understand them. He can also help you understand your sexual relationship to another person. Can you imagine the value of having such information at your fingertips.If you wish to determine whether or not you are sexually compatible with your partner or a possible mate, you would first need to locate the sign positions of Venus and Mars (e.g., my Venus is in Gemini and my Mars is in Aquarius) at the time and place of your birth. Then you would need to learn how these planets function in those Signs and how they relate to the sexual energy of the other person. You can find more information about this at The location You can also get free astrology lessons on this blog if you would like to start learning how astrology works. Please keep reading this blog regulary and you can contact me . i will be happy to assist you . You are welcome to contact me .
Even though astrology may not be a part of your world, there is solid proof that it can be a great resource for finding out who you are? Of course, if you are like most people, you probably think of astrology as a fun game and should not be taken any more seriously than the contents of a fortune cookie.
"The resulting fluctuations of earth's field are picked up by the nervous system of the fetus, which acts like an antenna, and these synchronize the internal biological clocks of the fetus which control the moment of birth. The tuning of the fetal magnetic antenna is carried on by the genes which it inherits, and these to some extent will determine its basic genetically inherited personality characteristics. Thus the positions of the planets at birth are not altering what we have inherited genetically but are labeling our basic inherited personality characteristics."
if a renowned scientist is confirming what astrologers have been saying for thousands of years, it is time for us to take notice and take advantage of the marvelous resources that an astrological birth chart can reveal for you. No longer can we condemn astrology as superstition, because it has been proven that the zodiacal position of the planets and signs at the time we were born actually reveal who we really are.
You can actually confirm this for yourself with a little investigation.The astrological birth chart can reveal your life purpose, the lessons that you need to learn, your unique gifts, talents, relationships to other
people, and your psycho-sexual profile.Astrology can show your sexual likes and dislikes. These preferences are revealed by the position of your Venus and Mars at he time you were born.
A skilled astrologer can describe these desires quite clearly and help you understand them. He can also help you understand your sexual relationship to another person. Can you imagine the value of having such information at your fingertips.If you wish to determine whether or not you are sexually compatible with your partner or a possible mate, you would first need to locate the sign positions of Venus and Mars (e.g., my Venus is in Gemini and my Mars is in Aquarius) at the time and place of your birth. Then you would need to learn how these planets function in those Signs and how they relate to the sexual energy of the other person. You can find more information about this at The location You can also get free astrology lessons on this blog if you would like to start learning how astrology works. Please keep reading this blog regulary and you can contact me . i will be happy to assist you . You are welcome to contact me .
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
LAKSHAMI STOTRAM FOR WEALTH .
If you are facing financial problems in your life and having bad time . You can recite this Lakshami strotram daily and you will see within 21 days . your finances will start growing .
Shriimatpayonidhiniketana chakrapaanebhogiindrabhogaramaniranjita punyamuurte Yogiisha shaashvata sharanyabhavaabdhipotalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 1Brahmendrarudramarudarkakiriitakotisanghattitaanghrikamalaamalakaantikaanta Lakshmiilasatkuchasaroruharaajahansalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 2Sansaaraghoragahane charato muraaremaarograbhiikaramruigapravaraarditasya Aartasya matsaranidaaghanipiiditasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 3Sansaarakuupamatighoramagaadhamuulamsampraapya duhkhashatasarpasamaakulasya Diinasya deva kruipanaapadamaagatasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 4Sansaarasaagaravishaalakaraalakaalanakragrahagrasananigrahavigrahasya Vyagrasya raagarasanorminipiiditasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 5Sansaaravruikshamaghabiijamanantakarmashaakhaashatan karanapatramanangapushhpamh Aaruhaa duhkhaphalitam patato dayaalolakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 6Sansaarasarpaghanavaktrabhayogratiivradanshhtraakaraalavishhadagdhavinashhtamuurteh Naagaarivaahana sudhaabdhinivaasa shaurelakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 7Sansaaradaavadahanaavadabhiikarorujvaalaavaliibhiratidagdhatanuuruhasya Tvatpaadapadmasarasiisharanaagatasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 8Sansaarajaalapatitasya jagannivaasasarvendriyaarthabadishaarthajhashhopamasya Protkhanditaprachurataalukamastakasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 9Sansaarabhiikarakariindrakaraabhigaatanishhpishhtamarmavapushhah sakalaarthinaasha Praanaprayaanabhavabhiitisamaakulasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 10Andhasya me hruitvivekamahaadhanasyachoraih prabho balibhirindriyanaamadheyaih Mohaandhakuupakuhare vinipaatitasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 11Baddhvaa gale yamabhataa bahutarjayantahkarshhanti yatra bhavapaashashatairyutam maamh Ekaakinam paravashan chakitan dayaalolakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 12Lakshmiipate kamalanaabha suresha vishhnovaikuntha kruishhna madhusuudana pushhkaraaksha Brahmanya keshava janaardana vaasudevalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 13Ekena chakramaparena karena shankhamanyena sindhutanayaamavalambya tishhthanh Vaame karena varadaabhayapadmachihnamlakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 14Sansaarasaagaranimajjanamuhyamaanamdiinan vilokaya vibho karunaanidhe maamh Prahlaadakhedaparihaaraparaavataaralakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 15Prahlaadanaaradaparaasharapundariikavyaasaadi bhagavatpungava hruinnivaasa Bhaktaanuraktaparipaalanapaarijaata lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 16Lakshmiinruisinha charanaabjamadhuvratenastotran kruitan shubhakaram bhuvi shankarena Ye tatpathanti manujaa haribhaktiyuktaa steyaanti tatpadasarojamakhandaruupamh 17
Shriimatpayonidhiniketana chakrapaanebhogiindrabhogaramaniranjita punyamuurte Yogiisha shaashvata sharanyabhavaabdhipotalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 1Brahmendrarudramarudarkakiriitakotisanghattitaanghrikamalaamalakaantikaanta Lakshmiilasatkuchasaroruharaajahansalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 2Sansaaraghoragahane charato muraaremaarograbhiikaramruigapravaraarditasya Aartasya matsaranidaaghanipiiditasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 3Sansaarakuupamatighoramagaadhamuulamsampraapya duhkhashatasarpasamaakulasya Diinasya deva kruipanaapadamaagatasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 4Sansaarasaagaravishaalakaraalakaalanakragrahagrasananigrahavigrahasya Vyagrasya raagarasanorminipiiditasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 5Sansaaravruikshamaghabiijamanantakarmashaakhaashatan karanapatramanangapushhpamh Aaruhaa duhkhaphalitam patato dayaalolakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 6Sansaarasarpaghanavaktrabhayogratiivradanshhtraakaraalavishhadagdhavinashhtamuurteh Naagaarivaahana sudhaabdhinivaasa shaurelakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 7Sansaaradaavadahanaavadabhiikarorujvaalaavaliibhiratidagdhatanuuruhasya Tvatpaadapadmasarasiisharanaagatasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 8Sansaarajaalapatitasya jagannivaasasarvendriyaarthabadishaarthajhashhopamasya Protkhanditaprachurataalukamastakasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 9Sansaarabhiikarakariindrakaraabhigaatanishhpishhtamarmavapushhah sakalaarthinaasha Praanaprayaanabhavabhiitisamaakulasyalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 10Andhasya me hruitvivekamahaadhanasyachoraih prabho balibhirindriyanaamadheyaih Mohaandhakuupakuhare vinipaatitasya lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 11Baddhvaa gale yamabhataa bahutarjayantahkarshhanti yatra bhavapaashashatairyutam maamh Ekaakinam paravashan chakitan dayaalolakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 12Lakshmiipate kamalanaabha suresha vishhnovaikuntha kruishhna madhusuudana pushhkaraaksha Brahmanya keshava janaardana vaasudevalakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 13Ekena chakramaparena karena shankhamanyena sindhutanayaamavalambya tishhthanh Vaame karena varadaabhayapadmachihnamlakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 14Sansaarasaagaranimajjanamuhyamaanamdiinan vilokaya vibho karunaanidhe maamh Prahlaadakhedaparihaaraparaavataaralakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 15Prahlaadanaaradaparaasharapundariikavyaasaadi bhagavatpungava hruinnivaasa Bhaktaanuraktaparipaalanapaarijaata lakshmiinruisinha mama dehi karaavalambamh 16Lakshmiinruisinha charanaabjamadhuvratenastotran kruitan shubhakaram bhuvi shankarena Ye tatpathanti manujaa haribhaktiyuktaa steyaanti tatpadasarojamakhandaruupamh 17
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Vedic astrological remedies solution for every problem
Vedic Astrological Remedies As every science, there is theory and its proofing. A very long experience has proved theories and practical aspects of Indian astrology. Practical aspects are the predictions and the recommendations and these recommendations actually are the remedial aspect. In Indian astrology, first of all the horoscope is analyzed to see actually what is the cause of the problem? Planets govern human life. In the horoscope of a person if planet is malefic, badly situated, combust, retroget or weak in any way, this can be harmful and may ruin the persons life. To curtail this malefic effect and to make planets benefic, certain time-tested remedies are suggested in Indian astrology. Only a competent astrologer must prescribe these astrological remedies to help and reduce the suffering of mankind since a wrong remedy may be harmful. Various astrological remedies are practiced described as below Gem Therapy Yantra Therapy Mantra Therapy Rudraksha Therapy Gem Thterapy In Indian astrology, there are nine main planets and nine gems are associated to them. These nine gems are known as Navratna. Their substitutes are also available. There are many theories to practice Gem therapy but mainly Gem therapy is used to strengthen the planet whose role in the oroscope is positive but it is weak. In Ayurveda powder extract of gems are used to cure many diseases. Yantra Therapy this is very complex subject. There are different kinds of energy fields associated to different Gods. A yantra is visual representation of an energy field. These are of two-type (1) numerical yantra (2) geometrical yantra. Different yantras are used for different purposes. The yantra must be powered by mantras so that they can be used to please a god. These different energies or yantra have different powers to serve some
special purposes as to win a court case, be successful in a business or carrier, to get name and fame, etc. Mantra Therapy In Indian astrology, Mantras are used basically for two purpose. (1) To curtail malefic effects of the planets and make them benevolent. (2) To please the presiding God of a planet for example God Hanuman Ji for Mars, God Vishnu Ji for Mercury etc. mantras are the means to connect us to god. Mantra must be recited in a specified no of times to get a desired effect and must be learnt from a person who knows the wordings, melodies and other essential elements of mantras. Rudraksha Therapy In Hindu belief, the origin of rudraksha is from the tears of God Rudra, God Shiv Ji. God Shiv Ji wears rudraksha in his hairs, neck, hands even in his ears. Rudraksha heals many diseases like high blood pressure, jaundice, indigestion, disease pertaining to respiratory system, fevers and many other diseases. Rudraksha therapy is used in two ways. We can wear it as a mala or string in the neck. Wearing mala would provide us its medicional properties plus it would curtail malefic effects of bad spirits.Secondly we can take its powder extract as Ayurvedic medicine.
special purposes as to win a court case, be successful in a business or carrier, to get name and fame, etc. Mantra Therapy In Indian astrology, Mantras are used basically for two purpose. (1) To curtail malefic effects of the planets and make them benevolent. (2) To please the presiding God of a planet for example God Hanuman Ji for Mars, God Vishnu Ji for Mercury etc. mantras are the means to connect us to god. Mantra must be recited in a specified no of times to get a desired effect and must be learnt from a person who knows the wordings, melodies and other essential elements of mantras. Rudraksha Therapy In Hindu belief, the origin of rudraksha is from the tears of God Rudra, God Shiv Ji. God Shiv Ji wears rudraksha in his hairs, neck, hands even in his ears. Rudraksha heals many diseases like high blood pressure, jaundice, indigestion, disease pertaining to respiratory system, fevers and many other diseases. Rudraksha therapy is used in two ways. We can wear it as a mala or string in the neck. Wearing mala would provide us its medicional properties plus it would curtail malefic effects of bad spirits.Secondly we can take its powder extract as Ayurvedic medicine.
Yoga and mediation controlling thoughts . Be positive with yoga
Yoga is controlling of thoughts arising in the mind. When thoughts are controlled or prevented through practice, the seer or practitioner(yogi) rests in his true self or soul(atman). Either you remain in true self or control thoughts, the other will result automatically. In true self one shall not see or hear anything. Bcause there is none other than the self. When there is anything other than the self, one shall see or hear something. When everything has merged in the pure consciousness of the true self, when there is none other than the self, what is to see or hear?
Everybody has this experience in deep sleep. In the waking and dreaming states everybody sees or hear something. But when one enters into deep sleep nothing is seen or heard of. This is because the mind and senses are immersed in the pure consciousness of an individual. With the mind and senses all objects, all worlds, all desires are immersed in pure consciousness. For this one feels the bliss after a sound sleep. This bliss is very less in comparision to the bliss one may feel by resting in true self consciously or knowingly.
A practitioner(yogi) does not always remain in true self. In the other state or when he is not in a yogic state, he remains in his thoughts(I.4). As a being navigates between waking, dreaming and deep sleep states, so a Yogi either remains in true self or remains in thoughts and actions. In that state self, mind and thought become one. For this a yogi achieves whatever he desires, because soul is all powerful. He knows how to put his self in his thought or action.
Patanjali describes that there are five types of thoughts and each thought may either be of pleasure or of pain(I.5). Thoghts are of five types because we have five sense organs. The thought related to each sense organ may either be of pleasure or of pain. The sight of chieldren playing is of pleasure whereas the sight of a dead body is of pain. This way there are ten types of thoughts.
Patanjali in his Yogasutra further describes - each of these ten types of thoughts may further be divided into five types based on proof(pramana), opposite(viparyay), alternative(vikalpa), sleep(nidra) or memory(smriti)(I.6). So in all there are fifty types of thoughts.
Thoughts based on proof are percieved directly through senses or through mind. Senses perceive the outside worldly objects and mind realises the true self. So there should not be doubt regarding there presence. Existence of sun or moon is a proven thought. If a blind believes that sun or moon does not exist, he is in opposite thought or opinion. If a man believes that he has no self or soul or soul is inferior to someone called God, he is in opposite thought or dualism. The Upanishads declare that soul is Brahman, the ultimate Reality. When people cannot perceive a thing directly and remain in opposite thoughts, they depend upon alternative or imaginary thoughts. People cannot perceive God direcly and for that they make statues of Gods and Goddesses and compose mythology and believe in them. Thoughts categorised as sleep lack all kinds of sound knowledge or consciousness. People remain in perpetual darkness of ignorance. Mindless and irrational social and religious practices are nothing but ignorance. Such ignorance is stored up in the mind as memory. It hides the truth and one fails to understand the importance of proven thoughts. Spiritual and yogic upliftment is possible only when one accepts the proven thoghts.
Everybody has this experience in deep sleep. In the waking and dreaming states everybody sees or hear something. But when one enters into deep sleep nothing is seen or heard of. This is because the mind and senses are immersed in the pure consciousness of an individual. With the mind and senses all objects, all worlds, all desires are immersed in pure consciousness. For this one feels the bliss after a sound sleep. This bliss is very less in comparision to the bliss one may feel by resting in true self consciously or knowingly.
A practitioner(yogi) does not always remain in true self. In the other state or when he is not in a yogic state, he remains in his thoughts(I.4). As a being navigates between waking, dreaming and deep sleep states, so a Yogi either remains in true self or remains in thoughts and actions. In that state self, mind and thought become one. For this a yogi achieves whatever he desires, because soul is all powerful. He knows how to put his self in his thought or action.
Patanjali describes that there are five types of thoughts and each thought may either be of pleasure or of pain(I.5). Thoghts are of five types because we have five sense organs. The thought related to each sense organ may either be of pleasure or of pain. The sight of chieldren playing is of pleasure whereas the sight of a dead body is of pain. This way there are ten types of thoughts.
Patanjali in his Yogasutra further describes - each of these ten types of thoughts may further be divided into five types based on proof(pramana), opposite(viparyay), alternative(vikalpa), sleep(nidra) or memory(smriti)(I.6). So in all there are fifty types of thoughts.
Thoughts based on proof are percieved directly through senses or through mind. Senses perceive the outside worldly objects and mind realises the true self. So there should not be doubt regarding there presence. Existence of sun or moon is a proven thought. If a blind believes that sun or moon does not exist, he is in opposite thought or opinion. If a man believes that he has no self or soul or soul is inferior to someone called God, he is in opposite thought or dualism. The Upanishads declare that soul is Brahman, the ultimate Reality. When people cannot perceive a thing directly and remain in opposite thoughts, they depend upon alternative or imaginary thoughts. People cannot perceive God direcly and for that they make statues of Gods and Goddesses and compose mythology and believe in them. Thoughts categorised as sleep lack all kinds of sound knowledge or consciousness. People remain in perpetual darkness of ignorance. Mindless and irrational social and religious practices are nothing but ignorance. Such ignorance is stored up in the mind as memory. It hides the truth and one fails to understand the importance of proven thoughts. Spiritual and yogic upliftment is possible only when one accepts the proven thoghts.
Ayurveda and yoga For better life follow yoga and live healthy
Ayurveda and yoga are sister sciences that have been united for thousands of years for the sake of healing body, mind, and consciousness. Generally speaking, Ayurveda deals more with the health of the body, while yoga deals with purifying the mind and consciousness, but in reality they complement and embrace each other.
The ancient rishis (seers) were the original masters of all Vedic sciences. They understood that good health is a great asset on the path toward Self-realization. If the body is neglected it can easily become an obstacle to spiritual practice. Anyone who has practiced meditation for any length of time would agree to how difficult it can be to sit still for long periods of time without feeling discomfort and fatigue. Both yoga and Ayurveda are mutually supportive and offer many ways to prevent and heal various disorders as well as to cleanse and rejuvenate the body.
Besides sharing a philosophical foundation, both systems have many similarities in relation to attitude, nutrition, diet, hygiene, exercise, cleansing practices, as well as spiritual practices. Traditionally, a student of yoga would first live close to and serve the guru for many years, during which time he would learn healthy habits. The basic Ayurvedic principles for health and longevity were past on in the lineage in oral form to serve as a foundation for a life of sadhana (spiritual practice).
Nowadays, the teachings of yoga are easily available to all, and whether prepared or not we can leap headlong into its practice. This has its blessings, in the sense that more people can be turned on to the teachings, although much is often lost without the parampara, or close guidance at the feet of an accomplished master. With this in mind, modern yoga practitioners would most certainly benefit from a basic knowledge of Ayurveda to help establish a healthy daily routine and adjust their practice according to the constitution, dosha imbalance, season, and so on, to prevent disease and promote longevity.
First, let's take a look at the similarities between yoga and Ayurveda:
* Both are ancient Vedic teachings. Yoga originates in the Yajur Veda, while Ayurveda originates in the Atharva Veda and Rig Veda.
* Both recognize that keeping the body healthy is vital for fulfilling the four aims of life: Dharma (duty), Artha (wealth), Kama (desire), and Moksha (liberation).
* Both recognize that the balance of doshas (humors), dhatus (tissues), and malas (waste products) is essential for maintaining good health.
* Both share virtually the same metaphysical anatomy and physiology, which consists of 72,000 nadis (subtle channels), 7 main chakras (energy centers), 5 bodily sheaths, and the Kundalini Shakti (energy).
* Both advocate the use of diet, herbs, asana, pranayama, meditation, mantra, astrology, prayer, puja, and rituals for healing the entire being.
* Both encourage physical health as a good foundation for mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
* Both share the same view on psychology. Ayurveda embraces all six of the main schools of philosophy including the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and Vedanta (a non-dual philosophical and spiritual path). They both understand that the attachment to the body-mind complex is the root cause of all suffering and that the ultimate state of health is experienced when we abide in our true nature, which is total peace, regardless of the state of the physical body.
* Both use cleansing methods for the body, all of which encourage the removal of waste products and toxins through their natural routes of elimination. Ayurveda has panchakarma (five cleansing actions) and yoga uses Shat Karma (six purification measures).
Ayurvedic approach to asana practice
The use of asana, pranayama, and meditation for healing is known as Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy and has been used for thousands of years by Ayurvedic and yogic adepts. In Yoga Chikitsa, a group of yogic exercises are chosen that will best support the individual and are practiced daily. This can be done over an extended period of time in conjunction with an Ayurvedic regime and herbal and dietary therapies. Yoga Chikitsa also plays an integral role in the Ayurvedic cleansing and rejuvenation process known as panchakarma.
For a well balanced personal yoga practice, it is important to take into consideration the individual's body structure, prakruti (original constitution), and vikruti (present constitutional imbalance). The following are general recommendations according to the predominant dosha.
Vata predominant individuals should remember to focus on calming, grounding, stillness, strengthening, and balancing while doing their practice.
Precautions for vata:
* Vinyasa or flow styles of yoga tend to move too quickly from one pose to the next and can aggravate the hyper-mobile quality of vata over time. Flow sequences can be made to be more vata pacifying if they are not excessively long, the length of time poses are held is extended, and transitions are done slowly and consciously.
* Those with lower back problems may find that bending the knees in standing forward bends can prevent discomfort.
* Back bends should be done slowly, carefully and within one's own limits.
Pitta individuals should maintain a calm, cool, and relaxed intention while doing asanas. Pitta types may benefit from trying to cultivate an attitude of forgiveness, and of surrendering or offering the fruits of their practice to the divine of to those in need of positive healing energy. Because asana practice tends to generate heat in the body, it is best to do them at cooling times of the day, such as dawn or dusk. Also, it is useful to place some emphasis on poses that help to release excess heat from the body, such as poses that compress the solar plexus and poses that open the chest like.
Kapha types tend to be sedentary and often dislike vigorous exercise. For this reason, their practice should be energetic, warming, lightening, and stimulating, providing they are physically capable. Vinyasa or flow style yoga is good for kapha because it is dynamic and moves quickly from one pose to the next, it induces sweating and gets the heart pumping.
Yoga poses that address specific doshic problems can be easily added to an Ayurvedic regime and integrated into an existing yoga routine, or they can be organized as a small session with the help of an Ayurvedic clinician who knows each individual case well and can help set up a well balanced program according to the needs of each client.
Ayurveda also offers Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy, for specific doshic disorders. It is advised to consult an Ayurvedic practitioner for an individualized regime.
Ayurvedic Approach to Pranayama (breathing techniques).
The ultimate goal of pranayama is to calm the mind and prepare it for meditation. It also has a therapeutic effect on the physical body as well. It is not essential to do a pranayama practice according to dosha, but knowing its effects on the body is a valuable tool for management of the doshas. Below is a general list of pranayama and bandha exercises according to dosha.
Vata: Nadi Shodhana, Kapala Bhati, Agnisara Dhauti, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra.
Pitta: Sheetali or Sitkari, Nadi shodhana.
Kapha: Bastrika, Agnisara Dhauti, Kapala Bhati, Ashvini Mudra (contracting and releasing Mula Bandha), Ashvini Mudra, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra.
Furthermore, the Four Purifications taught in our workshops is an ancient method from the Ashtanga Yoga for purifying the gross and subtle body in order to prepare it for more advanced practices. They are tridoshic and safe for everyone, providing they are performed correctly.
Meditation According to Dosha.
These spiritual paths and their meditation techniques can be practiced by anyone, regardless of their prakruti. This list is only intended to give an idea on how dosha can support or influence one's spiritual practice. Many traditions of yoga blend various aspects of the paths listed here.
* Vata: Kriya Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga and other structured techniques help to keep vata stabilized and focused.
* Pitta: Jnana Yoga and Vedanta are good for pitta types because they often have sharp intellects and have a keen interest in self-study (Atma-vichara).
* Kapha: Bhakti yoga is natural for kapha types because they are often loving and devotional by nature.
Ayurvedic and Yogic Diet.
Ayurveda is more concerned with food being constitutionally balanced, while Yoga promotes a diet that is sattwic (light and pure). A combination of both aspects is the best choice for a yogi or anyone wanting to make real progress on a spiritual path.
Ayurvedic diet:
* According to dosha.
* Primarily vegetarian (meat is used as medicine, mainly for extreme deficiencies).
* Primarily cooked (raw food in moderation, especially for vata types).
* Containing six tastes.
Yogic diet:
* Sattwic vegetarian diet.
* Easy to digest.
* Simple meals (to limit desire).
* Both cooked and raw.
* Foods recommended in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika consist of rejuvenating substances such as wheat, whole grain, white basmati, corn, raw milk, raw sugar, butter, ghee, honey, dried ginger, mung beans, pure water, vegetables.
* Fruits, roots and nuts.
* Avoiding excessive hot, sour, salty, fermented, and fried foods.
* Avoiding tamasic (dulling) foods like meat, onions, garlic and mushrooms as a regular part of the daily diet.
Cleansing in Yoga and Ayurveda.
Ayurveda and Yoga both emphasize cleansing of the body for health and support of spiritual practices. Their methods are similar and work by expelling excess dosha and ama, or toxins, using the body's natural routes of elimination.
The yogic method is known in the Ashtanga tradition as Shat Karma, or six cleansing measures. These are:
1. Neti (nasal cleansing):
Jala neti (salt water flushing of the sinuses).
Sutra neti (nasal cleaning with string).
2. Dhauti (washing the GI tract).
Teeth, tongue, eyes, ears and forehead.
Agnisara Dhauti.
Vamana Dhauti (vomiting salt water).
Vastra Dhauti (washing with a cloth).
Varisara Dhauti (washing with water for purgation).
3. Basti (enema).
4. Trataka (forehead wash, gazing into a candle flame).
5. Nauli (intestinal washing, abdominal rolling).
6. Kapala Bhati (skull shining).
The Ayurvedic method for cleansing and rejuvenation is known as panchakarma (pancha karma), or five cleansing actions. This program is usually done for a week or two, but can also be done for longer periods depending on the case. The five actions of this method are:
1. Basti (Enema).
2. Nasya (Nasal application of herbs and herbal oils).
3. Vamana (Therapeutic vomiting).
4. Virechana (Purgation).
5. Rakta Moksha (Blood letting).
The ancient rishis (seers) were the original masters of all Vedic sciences. They understood that good health is a great asset on the path toward Self-realization. If the body is neglected it can easily become an obstacle to spiritual practice. Anyone who has practiced meditation for any length of time would agree to how difficult it can be to sit still for long periods of time without feeling discomfort and fatigue. Both yoga and Ayurveda are mutually supportive and offer many ways to prevent and heal various disorders as well as to cleanse and rejuvenate the body.
Besides sharing a philosophical foundation, both systems have many similarities in relation to attitude, nutrition, diet, hygiene, exercise, cleansing practices, as well as spiritual practices. Traditionally, a student of yoga would first live close to and serve the guru for many years, during which time he would learn healthy habits. The basic Ayurvedic principles for health and longevity were past on in the lineage in oral form to serve as a foundation for a life of sadhana (spiritual practice).
Nowadays, the teachings of yoga are easily available to all, and whether prepared or not we can leap headlong into its practice. This has its blessings, in the sense that more people can be turned on to the teachings, although much is often lost without the parampara, or close guidance at the feet of an accomplished master. With this in mind, modern yoga practitioners would most certainly benefit from a basic knowledge of Ayurveda to help establish a healthy daily routine and adjust their practice according to the constitution, dosha imbalance, season, and so on, to prevent disease and promote longevity.
First, let's take a look at the similarities between yoga and Ayurveda:
* Both are ancient Vedic teachings. Yoga originates in the Yajur Veda, while Ayurveda originates in the Atharva Veda and Rig Veda.
* Both recognize that keeping the body healthy is vital for fulfilling the four aims of life: Dharma (duty), Artha (wealth), Kama (desire), and Moksha (liberation).
* Both recognize that the balance of doshas (humors), dhatus (tissues), and malas (waste products) is essential for maintaining good health.
* Both share virtually the same metaphysical anatomy and physiology, which consists of 72,000 nadis (subtle channels), 7 main chakras (energy centers), 5 bodily sheaths, and the Kundalini Shakti (energy).
* Both advocate the use of diet, herbs, asana, pranayama, meditation, mantra, astrology, prayer, puja, and rituals for healing the entire being.
* Both encourage physical health as a good foundation for mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
* Both share the same view on psychology. Ayurveda embraces all six of the main schools of philosophy including the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and Vedanta (a non-dual philosophical and spiritual path). They both understand that the attachment to the body-mind complex is the root cause of all suffering and that the ultimate state of health is experienced when we abide in our true nature, which is total peace, regardless of the state of the physical body.
* Both use cleansing methods for the body, all of which encourage the removal of waste products and toxins through their natural routes of elimination. Ayurveda has panchakarma (five cleansing actions) and yoga uses Shat Karma (six purification measures).
Ayurvedic approach to asana practice
The use of asana, pranayama, and meditation for healing is known as Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy and has been used for thousands of years by Ayurvedic and yogic adepts. In Yoga Chikitsa, a group of yogic exercises are chosen that will best support the individual and are practiced daily. This can be done over an extended period of time in conjunction with an Ayurvedic regime and herbal and dietary therapies. Yoga Chikitsa also plays an integral role in the Ayurvedic cleansing and rejuvenation process known as panchakarma.
For a well balanced personal yoga practice, it is important to take into consideration the individual's body structure, prakruti (original constitution), and vikruti (present constitutional imbalance). The following are general recommendations according to the predominant dosha.
Vata predominant individuals should remember to focus on calming, grounding, stillness, strengthening, and balancing while doing their practice.
Precautions for vata:
* Vinyasa or flow styles of yoga tend to move too quickly from one pose to the next and can aggravate the hyper-mobile quality of vata over time. Flow sequences can be made to be more vata pacifying if they are not excessively long, the length of time poses are held is extended, and transitions are done slowly and consciously.
* Those with lower back problems may find that bending the knees in standing forward bends can prevent discomfort.
* Back bends should be done slowly, carefully and within one's own limits.
Pitta individuals should maintain a calm, cool, and relaxed intention while doing asanas. Pitta types may benefit from trying to cultivate an attitude of forgiveness, and of surrendering or offering the fruits of their practice to the divine of to those in need of positive healing energy. Because asana practice tends to generate heat in the body, it is best to do them at cooling times of the day, such as dawn or dusk. Also, it is useful to place some emphasis on poses that help to release excess heat from the body, such as poses that compress the solar plexus and poses that open the chest like.
Kapha types tend to be sedentary and often dislike vigorous exercise. For this reason, their practice should be energetic, warming, lightening, and stimulating, providing they are physically capable. Vinyasa or flow style yoga is good for kapha because it is dynamic and moves quickly from one pose to the next, it induces sweating and gets the heart pumping.
Yoga poses that address specific doshic problems can be easily added to an Ayurvedic regime and integrated into an existing yoga routine, or they can be organized as a small session with the help of an Ayurvedic clinician who knows each individual case well and can help set up a well balanced program according to the needs of each client.
Ayurveda also offers Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy, for specific doshic disorders. It is advised to consult an Ayurvedic practitioner for an individualized regime.
Ayurvedic Approach to Pranayama (breathing techniques).
The ultimate goal of pranayama is to calm the mind and prepare it for meditation. It also has a therapeutic effect on the physical body as well. It is not essential to do a pranayama practice according to dosha, but knowing its effects on the body is a valuable tool for management of the doshas. Below is a general list of pranayama and bandha exercises according to dosha.
Vata: Nadi Shodhana, Kapala Bhati, Agnisara Dhauti, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra.
Pitta: Sheetali or Sitkari, Nadi shodhana.
Kapha: Bastrika, Agnisara Dhauti, Kapala Bhati, Ashvini Mudra (contracting and releasing Mula Bandha), Ashvini Mudra, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra.
Furthermore, the Four Purifications taught in our workshops is an ancient method from the Ashtanga Yoga for purifying the gross and subtle body in order to prepare it for more advanced practices. They are tridoshic and safe for everyone, providing they are performed correctly.
Meditation According to Dosha.
These spiritual paths and their meditation techniques can be practiced by anyone, regardless of their prakruti. This list is only intended to give an idea on how dosha can support or influence one's spiritual practice. Many traditions of yoga blend various aspects of the paths listed here.
* Vata: Kriya Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga and other structured techniques help to keep vata stabilized and focused.
* Pitta: Jnana Yoga and Vedanta are good for pitta types because they often have sharp intellects and have a keen interest in self-study (Atma-vichara).
* Kapha: Bhakti yoga is natural for kapha types because they are often loving and devotional by nature.
Ayurvedic and Yogic Diet.
Ayurveda is more concerned with food being constitutionally balanced, while Yoga promotes a diet that is sattwic (light and pure). A combination of both aspects is the best choice for a yogi or anyone wanting to make real progress on a spiritual path.
Ayurvedic diet:
* According to dosha.
* Primarily vegetarian (meat is used as medicine, mainly for extreme deficiencies).
* Primarily cooked (raw food in moderation, especially for vata types).
* Containing six tastes.
Yogic diet:
* Sattwic vegetarian diet.
* Easy to digest.
* Simple meals (to limit desire).
* Both cooked and raw.
* Foods recommended in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika consist of rejuvenating substances such as wheat, whole grain, white basmati, corn, raw milk, raw sugar, butter, ghee, honey, dried ginger, mung beans, pure water, vegetables.
* Fruits, roots and nuts.
* Avoiding excessive hot, sour, salty, fermented, and fried foods.
* Avoiding tamasic (dulling) foods like meat, onions, garlic and mushrooms as a regular part of the daily diet.
Cleansing in Yoga and Ayurveda.
Ayurveda and Yoga both emphasize cleansing of the body for health and support of spiritual practices. Their methods are similar and work by expelling excess dosha and ama, or toxins, using the body's natural routes of elimination.
The yogic method is known in the Ashtanga tradition as Shat Karma, or six cleansing measures. These are:
1. Neti (nasal cleansing):
Jala neti (salt water flushing of the sinuses).
Sutra neti (nasal cleaning with string).
2. Dhauti (washing the GI tract).
Teeth, tongue, eyes, ears and forehead.
Agnisara Dhauti.
Vamana Dhauti (vomiting salt water).
Vastra Dhauti (washing with a cloth).
Varisara Dhauti (washing with water for purgation).
3. Basti (enema).
4. Trataka (forehead wash, gazing into a candle flame).
5. Nauli (intestinal washing, abdominal rolling).
6. Kapala Bhati (skull shining).
The Ayurvedic method for cleansing and rejuvenation is known as panchakarma (pancha karma), or five cleansing actions. This program is usually done for a week or two, but can also be done for longer periods depending on the case. The five actions of this method are:
1. Basti (Enema).
2. Nasya (Nasal application of herbs and herbal oils).
3. Vamana (Therapeutic vomiting).
4. Virechana (Purgation).
5. Rakta Moksha (Blood letting).
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