When Ed trained in yoga he lived in silence, practice and service. He soon became aware that yoga is far more than just a series of postures or mental exercises, but rather is a way of life that leads to self-realization. He trained at the Bihar School of Yoga in India during the late 1960s, where he became a swami -- a yoga expert. But only when he came back to the west and began to live as a yogi did he see how inclusive and far-reaching yoga really is.
Although it has its roots in Hinduism, yoga transcends the limitations of religion; it stands alone. Yoga means union; it is waking up to the beauty both within ourselves and realizing the sacredness of all life. And it is the expression of love: loving yourself and others, which frees us from a chaotic mind, negativity and neurosis.
In this way we see that true yoga -- the very essence of what yoga means -- is when we find our freedom, when we open our hearts and love beyond ourselves, when we serve and awaken. For only when we open our hearts can we realize the brilliance of who we are.
Many of us are tempted to study the traditional yoga teachings, the texts, sutras and vedas, but in this way we can easily gain an intellectual understanding and miss the direct experience. For none of this, as fantastically wonderful as it is, will ever make us happy or set us free. We learn the greatness of the wise ones but how does it help us? Until we open our heart, look within and rejoice in the love that is our true nature, all the teachings are just words. They can inspire our intellect but can never enlighten us. We can quote the scriptures, we can even become a learned scholar, but we are not true yogis until the intellect is no longer running the show.
In the western world we worship the intellect -- if we have a degree we are highly respected, if we don't we are considered uneducated. But many of the sadhus of old -- the original yoga practitioners -- were poor and uneducated, they couldn't even read or write. Instead, they experienced and realized yoga deep within their hearts and lives, as the truth of yoga is beyond both mind and intellect.
The real experience of yoga is not found through the books or teachings, as helpful and inspirational as they may be. When we are about to die it won't help to know what page we are meant to be on! Yoga can only be known by embodying it within ourselves. We manage in this world through our senses and mind; we rely on them to function in this complexity of life. But only when we enter the heart is the truth revealed.
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There is nothing particularly wrong with the intellectual approach-
It is just that the intellect is so powerful - it takes over the mind & makes you feel that you are so right- that knowledge of things is supreme etc. the more you know - the more facts etc. you accumulate. The more information, the more you know about the Vedas, The Gita etc. the more you know & understand yoga!
There is very little room for other views - one gets fixed & locked into their way is thee way-
Anyone who challenges this view is like an enemy -
just as various comments from people about the intellect being a obstacle has caused such a fuss!
When you 'realize' that nothing is solid - that true freedom is not holding on to any view-
That in truth in freedom there is no reference point -
only then what we say here can be fully understood.
Be an empty vessel & let the light of wisdom & compassion flow naturally through!
when you see - are aware of the many ways we get hooked by out thinking & analyzing overly caught in our heads then we can come from a place of wisdom!
Yoga is to embody the truth - to live & be free - to know yourself - not as a thought or idea - not with the intellect or emotions but in every aspect of your being! you become the embodiment of happiness of peace!
All else is misunderstanding!
Of course every aspect of yoga is a delight!
but it won't set you free - unless it is internal - most yoga practices are external - involving body, emotions, mind/intellect -
truth is within -
Intellectual or Jynana yoga is still a mind game tricky in that you appear to know but knowledge is not wisdom! wisdom is Self-Realization -
The musk deer has a beautiful smell in it's belly yet searches throughout the forest for the smell. People look outside themselves for happiness & freedom. They think by reading the holy books- the Gita, Shastras & listen to intellectual teachers & cultivating the intellect that they will know the truth but that is a trap of the ego-mind - all that may be wonderful & inspiring but again it is not truth!
The truth is revealed when you give it all up - surrender - as it all is ignorance. Surrender even the teacher & the guru - be alone, naked in the truth, that is waking up that is Self-Realization - that is truth- That is Yoga!
Wake-up! Enjoy the journey!
Treasure yourself,
Paramahamsa Swami Brahmananda- Ed Shapiro -
initiated
Thank you!
they believe they are practitioners who have understood yoga -
knowing anything about yoga is just that - it is knowing but not embodying -
these people are known as textbook yogis!
You can see comments here - people who keep insisting they understand -
but they are deluded - as there is no yoga without wisdom - you cannot get wisdom from a book or from anyone whoever the teacher - many of the famous ones are caught in their PR -
they believe their followers -
& think they are great yogis but if they have not realized "no mind" -
"radiant emptiness" they are only fooling themselves - they are not free -
awakening is from within not without -
read the comments here from people who say they know yoga - & know that this is mental yoga it is the ego speaking & not the heart - until you are free - you are not a yoga.
you can never learn yoga from outside you can only sit with & be inspired you can receive transmission but ultimately you can only do it by yourself!
Scholars give the appearance of knowing - in India the Brahman's who are the scholars - they are held high - they act like they know but the true wise ones the yogis laugh at them -
Even the 4 Shankaracharya's (or 4 Pope-like) figures are the scholarly ones - they know the Mahabharata can sing the Gita & memorized the Shastra 's by heart but this is intellect.
In the USA they have knowledgeable teachers held high by many but they are not free! they are not unconditionally happy!
They are caught in their minds - their students think they are the cats meow but they have Enlightened ego's - they even believe they are all knowing but again it is ego identification not the real thing!
Many students think if they come into their heart as has been stated in a comment here that it is bhakti yoga - but that is the ego mind speaking it is ignorance being spouted for without the heart opened Enlightenment - Self-Realisation is incomplete.
It is dry Yoga not fully ripe - the heart is the core of your being it is not wishy-washy love - rather it is the way to transcend the limitations of the intellect!
May all beings be free from suffering!
To disagree is what good blogging is about it is part of life -
there is no need to lose control & worry if someone blasts your comment or says that your understanding is grossly wrong -
that is their view - so let's not get to wow wow - let's be cool in all circumstances - isn't that the real yoga?
what is important is to not have to be right all the time & to respect others pints of view even if you completely believe the other person is missing the point!
I honor you Dharma Kate & that you strongly feel differently & even at times I believe you do not know what I am saying or maybe I don't you!
It is healthy to have dialogue with you Kate!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Ed
Besides, the path of intellect and study is a well-honoured one in Yoga. The jnanis may not get as much attention as the bhakit practitioners but I have been served greatly by the scholarship of people like Georg Feuerstein, Michael Stone, Mircea Eliade and Stephen Cope.
To sum it up, Swami Ed... it's what we do with our intellectual gifts that will make it yoga or anti-yoga. It can serve us, leading us closer to union, be used to control and dampen the ego. Alternatively, it can used to fuel the ego .. turn it into excesses. It is possible to over think yoga, as much as one can overthink anything. Thinking can be used as a substitute for action.. which I frequently succumb to. However, I have learned through experience that action without thinking is frequently unskilful.
Namaste,
Kate
you say:
it's what we do with our intellectual gifts that will make it yoga or anti-yoga.
again wrong understanding it is ego, monkey mind speaking not wisdom mind - it can never serve us!
again it is incorrect!
Thinking yoga is like holding coal & believing you won't get burnt.
awakening is spontaneous - you cannot control the ego either it is like catching the wind-
you say:
However, I have learned through experience that action without thinking is frequently unskillful.
wisdom is authentic the mind is unreliable it is like a naughty child - that is why the world is in such a mess
This comment is just what we are talking about - it is coming from intellect not wisdom!
Without heart there is no true understanding - intellect is the opposite of wisdom
In my over 40 years & 16 books I often see comments that appear to make sense but this is nonsense!
I guess I'll respectfully agree to disagree with your assessment that bhakti is the ONLY way to union. I disagree because experience tells me otherwise. It's not that I have anything against the bhakti path -- my own beloved teacher is a bhakta. And I have no dog in this fight. My path is neither bhakti nor jnani.
To continue to discuss this matter while you are in an such an attacking mode is not condusive to peace. I apologize for having let this loose. It has never been my intention to forment such anger.
Thank you for your response. It is illuminating but right now, the skilful action for me is cultivate vairagya. .
Om Shanti, Ed, and again, I apologize for having upset you so.
Kate
Om Shanti,
Kate
yoga is not what you think -
Yoga is non-dual -
this is confusion!
This morning, practice became yoga due to the influence of the intellect. I was working with a posture that presented considerable physical challenge to me and as I "worked" it, the following came to mind: sthira sukham asanam .. the posture is firm AND soft (easy).. YSP II.46. My sutra studies, which are very intellectual in orientation, came to the rescue and reminded me that it ain't yoga if it ain't both effort and release. I spent the remaining time using my intellect to dissect the "problem" -- where was I holding that I didn't need to... was it an issue of support? Alignment? With some patience I "found" the posture -- it will never make the front cover of Yoga Journal but that's the point. By use of the intellect, I was able to let go of the ego's fixation of outward form and release into the essence of the posture.
"cont"
The mind of wisdom, seeing things as they are is the way to go!
In Self-Realization - the intellect is redundant -
truth emerges - wisdom beyond the intellect!
:)
'chair yoga' even corpse pose yoga -
do your best & leave the rest!
Thanks! I will.
The Buddha's main teaching was don't do as I say find out what is real for you!
He sat & then woke up - he didn't read it in a book -
be quiet be still - the Buddha woke up when his mind became empty transparent -
you can be a scholar or you can wake up it's your choice!
How do you know if he existed - forget the Buddha -
what is real for you?
That was Voltaire's main teaching too...
No reason why you can't be both a scholar and awake. If anything, being a scholar helps, because critical thinking is absolutely necessary for successful Buddhism.
gathering of information -
a person of wisdom is free/awake - a scholar is not!
you say:
If anything, being a scholar helps, because critical thinking is absolutely necessary for successful Buddhism.
Buddha wasn't a Buddhist neither Jesus Christian -
Buddha was a Hindu - Jesus was a Jewish person -
They both sort their own truth & became free!
You say:
being a scholar helps, because critical thinking is absolutely necessary for successful Buddhism.
What is successful Buddhism? many successful Buddhist are still not happy - they practice go on retreats & still their ego, monkey mind plagues them!
They are stuck!
ISMS are WASIMS
What you say here is wisdom:
monkey mind is a teacher and like all teachers must become obsolete either through failure or success, failure creates "cults" of personality where the goal is to serve the master, or success where reality is seen to be master, and so anyone can stand in for reality, or reality can stand in for anyone, i forget which, actually both and neither, but anyway what has happened is intellect has filled up the sky so you don't notice the sky at all, so worried about that weather. once reality is grasped there is nothing more to learn, reality is already complete,
& what you say here is spot on:
so therefore the vast and endless padding that intellect represents and so instead of singing, study the theory of music, but reality dosn't play that game, reality only is revealed nakedly, intellect is for translation not creation, it is a servant not a leader. but poor old ego doesn't know any better, until "too late".
The "Truth" of yoga may be beyond the intellect but it takes a truck-load of mental focus (dharana) to position the (merely?)
This statement & belief is a trap of the ego-mind - as long as you think it takes a truckload you are creating obstacles. I have been teaching Internationally over 42 years & see that people are too in their heads!
The truth is here - right now - there is nothing else - as long as you believe somewhere in the future holds the truth - somewhere in the future is your freedom you will NEVER EVER get there!
YES YES YES the Intellect is an obstacle & as long as you want to keep that myth going you can!
It's up to you!
If not now- then when?
Good luck maybe in ya next life!
Swami Brahmananda Saraswati (Ed Shapiro)
With the contrasting exception of America, where we worship the absence of intellect, especially as of lately...
As for the political scene numbing down is necessary!
forget the western world
when you wake up you will see all this is nonsense!
On a separate note Yoga for me is a flexibility exercise but I don't think I need to believe in the supernatural things they claim about it to enjoy it.
for us
ISMS are now WASIMS
Is breathing supernatural if so then you believe in the supernatural - is caring for others or loving supernatural -
Don't be confused -
Yoga is just being aware!
of yourself & of life - It is being a good person & doing good things like -
Skiing with awareness, Like anything you do with a feeling of dignity & respect!
The mind is like the sky - things come & go - make friends with yourself - accept what is happening - you may need to seek therapy or guidance - I had a bright one- I was living in England & didn't have many friends which was challenging - my therapist taught me there is wisdom in the shadow in what I was going through - she said the depression would make me a better teacher - I now see what I went through was my teacher!
Treasure yourself,
Ed
I trained in India through transmission - as the ancients were taught called Upadesh - from the mouth of the guru to the ear of the disciple -
Few people can be a true Jnani, a living Master is needed - you say Viveka or discrimination -
The ego is not reliable - the is tricky - only a Realized one can guide you in viveka!
You say:
What about the yamas & niyamas, which at times force you to make a decision that is not necessarily an easy one?
I say:
Actually Yama & Niyama are advanced - not the first 2 limbs - as taught by Patanjali
Paramahamsa Satyananda who I personally trained with taught that until you are Self- Realized you cannot perfect yama & niyama -or understand morals & ethics-
ahimsa or non injury never cause suffering to yourself or others in thought, word or deed!
To never cause harm is rare - never speak untruth, be moral, never steal etc.
You say:
For all the talk about being guided by the heart, it is still our brains that do the processing-
Your Heart is the King the mind the adviser - the mind goes into the world - explores, processes etc. then comes back to the king who makes the decision!
Classical Yoga is best learned from a teacher who has realized the essence of yoga. Someone who embodies the teachings. Yoga cannot e learned from a book
In the ancient times the wisdom was handed down - was learned and is known as the Upanishads - upadesh - you spent time with a master & when the master felt you were ready your were sent out and would move about never staying in one place more than 3 days!
ok enough!
Hari Om Tat Sat!
Swami Brahmananda (Ed Shapiro)
First, you mention viveka coming from the heart. But all of our perceptions and emotions come from our brain. This could just be a linguistic disagreement, but this is basic neuroscience. I can always appreciate a good metaphor. The idea that 'viveka comes from the heart,' however, is little more than a metaphor, which leads us back to intellect as the guiding force.
Secondly, I understand that classical yoga is best learned from a teacher. But there are many forms of yoga, both traditionally and in modern times. The guru model is A way of learning yoga, all I was saying is that there are others. It's dangerous to think that the way that you learned is the only way - it's the gateway to fundamentalism, and fundamentalism starts by leaving everyone else behind.