Laya Yoga – Introductory definitions (13)

Laya Yoga is a path of chakra’s purification and development. It contains all sadhanas of yoga i.e. methods of practicing. It particularly introduces internal structure of human being and all it’s substances. Laya is well-known for presenting ways of purifying chakras and this what we call aura, an energetic sheath of a man. 

  • Sthulla-sharira is our physical cover, a thick substance.
  • Linga-sharira is more subtle substance called an ethereal double. It is a substance of Chi (energy of life) and a substance of instinct or biological needs. Kahuns use to call it a spectral substance, kinoaka.
  • Kama-sharira is a substance of emotions and passion, desire and emotional devotion or wishes as well. Simultaneously it may be called an astral body.
  • Manas-sharira is a substance of intellect, memory, thinking and imaginations. It is a lover mind, mental body.

Kama and manas are usually strongly connected with each other. It means that a thought and emotion are usually synchronous. Kahunas call conglomeration of kama-manas unihipili. It is like our thinking and excited child, lover ego or personality. Whole body of linga-kama-manas is called prakryti, so – nature, matter. It is entirety of psychical matter, whole element of lover ego (widen of energy and sex level below unihipili).

Chakras (cakras, cakra) – centers of energy seem to be like organ in ethereal body, inside them in linga-sharira develops our conscience and energetic potentials. These centers influence varied part of physical body. We can cause healing influence to certain parts or functions of our organism. Chakras exist in each substance. The most perceptible for use are centers of ethereal body (linga). Part of human deeper than personality is purusha or brahman, our eternal essence. It is threefold in it’s aspects so it creates three upper substances.

  • Sutrama-manas is a higher mind, a causal body. Here is located the memory of karma, so the record of previous lifes. It is a level from which the law of karma functions, it is a law of return, law of repayment. This level creates our future incarnations. It is a substance of abstraction, ideas, understanding and cosmic intelligence.
  • Budhi is a substance of awaking, intuition, wisdom, peace, synthesis, feelings and knowledge. Here we achieve the level of consciousness development as Rama, Shiva, Krishna, Buddha, Abraham, Moyzes, Zaratushtra, Jesus, Muhamad, Sai Baba and many others great masters of our planet did.
  • Atma is a substance of will and strength, power and freedom. It is called a breath of God. Cosmic, nourishing breath is located here, from which reveals the screenplay of humanity formation. Kahuns call Sutrama-manas and budhi as Aumakua, so the higher ego or parental pair of higher egos. Atma is a source of contact called Poe Aumakua, which means the field or space of divine egos. 

Three upper substances create the spiritual area of our interior. Is a primary nature by Buddhists and Christ’s awareness of Christian mystics. We are talking about higher Trinity.

So there are four important planes, on which one develops during the process of spiritual growth:

  • Sthulla – physical, material, corporal consciousness, during the process of individual development. Greeks used to call physical body as soma.
  • Prakriti – physical consciousness, the consciousness of soul, also called lunar, lower personality or ego. Greeks used to call it  psyche.
  • Purusha (Brahman) – spiritual consciousness, higher and solar one, consciousness of masters and saints. Greeks used to call it as pneuma. It is a sun supporting and illuminating lower nature. 
  • Iśvara – divine consciousness of avatar, existence of God. Greeks used to call it as Theos. Iśvara can be expressed in two rings: Anupadaka – external part of divinity (arab. Sifat) and Adi (zat) – internal part of divinity. Logos, primary, non-made light, source where everything comes from, even the manifestation of God. 

Antahkarana – a thread of life, an energy canal, which links all stages and levels of consciousness. It consists of three main energy canals, connected with each other, which we call gunas. Their colours are blue, red and yellow. Prakriti and Brahman are synchronised and controlled by energies which come from Iśvara. Kahunas call it as aka, a thread, line or lead. It is berth in the center of heart, in anahata. More about read below. 

Yoga means mainly unification or communion. It is harmonized path of all human’s substances by surrounding them with consciousness. When taking the width of consciousness under consideration we can distinguish four human types: materialist, (psychic), (holistic), yogin.

The source, founder and highest teacher of yoga on Earth is master known as Shiva, revered by many as God or Half-God. In invisible spaces he lives around of the top of Kailas Mountain in India. He comes down in different ages and initiates various ways of yoga, which are presently helpful to humanity. He is well known for these descents as Babaji, which means Honourable Father. He is a father indeed and is directly or indirectly a founder of various forms of yoga. Advanced trainees of yoga are his primary students. There is a mantra (sound formula) calling up for Shiva. It sounds like Om Namah Shivaya. It serves to deeper meditation with Shiva, the master of yoga. As a master he gives the deepest initiations in arcana of yoga in all it’s various forms.

Shiva recommends the path of self-discipline, moderation, friendship, openness, joy, sacrifice; self-realising, favour, resistant, freedom and mastery, which all describe the essence of yoga.

Hatha yoga is the most external training formula of yoga, and laja yoga is the most internal one. They are like one coin, and all it’s variations are like fragmentary aspects of work one and the same yoga at different stages of our development. 

Because of physical body and it’s energy appears hatha yoga. Because of energy’s substance appear it’s varieties as prana yoga, considering energy of life, lingam join yoga working on energy of life, or tantra yoga which links two of them. Yogis sometimes show controversies in European culture, the cause is lack of knowledge basic symbols of yoga and the general lack of knowledge in the field of basic spiritual matters, like understanding of Iśwara – divinity as a pair of cosmic parents, fulfilling themselves energies. Chinese symbol yin-yang can be appropriate for those great forms of yoga. Third level is bhakti yoga connected with development of astral body – kama. And fourth is connected with mental body – manas, and it is called as jnana yoga. It is a path of wisdom and knowledge and spiritual knowledge as well. 

Methods of laya yoga that refer to development and purifying center of energy in ethereal body (linga-sharira) are generally called as kundalini tantra yoga. Methods of Tantra contain breathing exercises sound and vision techniques. Generally breathing yoga is called as raiyu yoga. It contains all activities with breathing. Work beset on sounds is called as mantra yoga and vision or imaginations methods are called as dhyana yoga or yoga of light (adhi yoga). It is about meditation on imagination of chosen item of practice. Usually these items are lights, balls or canals of energy.

All these detailed forms of yoga are basic practice system for purifying and deeper development of our physical interior and finally for opening canals and unification of psyche and spirit.

Work with chakras is like first step to self-purification and broadening of consciousness, to higher levels. Through chakras we have an insight into deeper fields of reality than the deepest part, which is material world.

Prana is energy of life or vital force of our organism. Linga-sharira leads it through energy canals called nadi. It is a basic force of life and it flows in every single canal of energetic body and can be perceived as many various lights. The colour of primary prana energy penetrating cosmos is white. The colour of prana penetrating and healing our physical body is pink. 

The source of prana for our body and psyche is our higher ego, so purusha or brahman. Hebrews used to call it nefet, Muslims call it baraka, in Polynesia they call it mana, tao call it chi and Japanese – ki. 

Flows or prana, no matter direction and source, have different names and functions. These are two exemplary streams:

  • Udana – stream of energy lead to the top of head which works from up there to the navel or a little lower to the interior of abdomen. It is cosmic energy. It can be lead in through legs or indrawn of breath. This energy enables conscious passing away and it protects from physical and psychical dirt. It enables levitation. It’s like a breath of water.
  • Samana – stream of energy which starts around navel and leads vital force to every fringe of body. Vital force broadens from the navel to all body and fill it all. It is fiery breath.

This is list of basic chakras in ethereal body. There is seven of them and they are symbolically described in blossom of lotus forms (padma). 

  1. Muladhara – center at the basis of trunk, which root is around coccyx and the central part at height of crotch. Mula means root and dhara – reservoir. Speaking symbolically this flower has got three petals, which are three energy canals (nadi). It rules over Earth element and is penetrated by energy of tamaguna (inertia). Basic colour of aura is blue, and the symbol is a cross or triangle with its top downward (symbol of womb). It contacts us with ethereal.
  2. Svadhishtana – center below navel, in lower part of abdomen. Sva – is Self, dhi – light, shtana – living. It is very important center, a place of location light of Self (lower ego). The root of his center is placed in lower part of lumbar vertebras, and inside lower abdomen. This chakra is built of six colourful petals formed in two triads. Its symbol is crescent or six-humeral star. It controls the water element (jala), and is controlled by radzaguna (passion). Basic colour of aura (opening one) is red. This center contacts us with astral body (kama). In fact there is also seventh, central canal of energy or petal when speaking symbolically, which colour is white.
  3. Manipura (-ka) – stomach center, above navel, usually called as solar plexus. It’s root is located in lower part of brest vertebras and the flower grows in upper part of abdominal cavity. Mani means a jewel and pura- garden. So it is a garden of jewels. It controls fire element and is controlled by stream of satwaguna – energy of harmony and goodness. Basic colour of aura is yellow, and the symbol are three triangles inside circle. It contains ten energy canals or petals. And it enables contact with mental world (manas).
  4. Anahata – heart center, dorsal, also called as a bell. It is located inside chest and it’s root between spatulas. Opening colour is golden-yellow and also white as far as spiritual arcana are concerned. Anahata means sound, word, vibrations. It controls element of air, wind, and bound to all three gunas. Element of air is an opening one, than it transfers into water or fire element. It’s symbol is twelve-rayed sun, the same petals it has. Through heart we simultaneously penetrate three worlds.
  5. Vishuddhi – center in upper part of neck, behind the tongue. Important functions of this center are control of ether element (kasha, light) and power on four other elements, contact with causal body, and stimulation of creative forces. Colour opening is emerald (blue-green) or silver. Wished is a light of puryfication. It is lead by tamaguna (inertia). It consists of sixteen stream of energy or petals. Through this center we read record of karma. Symbol of it is empty circle.
  6. Ajna – center inside head, located at height of forehead and ears. It is often called as third eye responsible for clairvoyance through time and space and mind perceiving. It controls element of life and gives power over senses. It’s a link of budhi with physical body. Opening colour is pink-blue. Symbol is “eye of wisdom”. Rajaguna (passion) controls this center. It consists of 96 petals (canals) focused into 6 groups with 16 similar streams of energy in each of them. Ajna means order.
  7. Sahasrara – center called thousand-leafed. It’s root is on the top of head and the flower grows upward. Ra – means sun, sra – working, saha – thousand. It is a sun working on opening the thousand. 960 petals in external circle and 12 in internal one. It is controlled by satvaguna energy. Colour opening aura is white-violet. It gives full-power in both bodies: psychical and energetic.

Hum!

Aćarja Lalit Mohan G.K.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *