Tag: patanjali
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Yoga – gymnastics or philosophy? Why did the West fall in love with yoga and asanas? (102)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next If, in a street poll, we ask passersby whether they know what yoga is, the majority will confirm. Some will say it is a form of gymnastics, like stretching and Pilates; others will associate yoga with Hinduism and Buddhism, and still others will describe it as personal development. The latter…
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The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by BonGiovanni
The Threads of Union 1. Samadhi Padah – on Contemplations2. Sadhana Padah – on Spiritual Disciplines3. Vibhuti Padah – on Divine Powers4. Kaivalya Padah – on Realizations Before beginning any spiritual text it is customary to clear the mind of all distracting thoughts, to calm the breath and to purify the heart. Part OneSamadhi –…
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Trataka – Foundation of Focus (32)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next Focusing, also called concentration, focusing attention or narrowing the field of consciousness, has its own special dimension of practical work in yoga. Mahavatar Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras calls the focusing of consciousness the term satkara. It refers to a state in which our whole mind is merged, absorbed in…
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The Great Initiations (22)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next The light of yoga will illuminate Your path, Pilgrim to the Truth. The chalice is a vessel of the heart based on the solar plexus and open towards the thymus. The first stage of the journey is the flower of the cardiac plexus blooming right up. The whole luminosity of…
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The Foundations of Laya Marga (9)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next Laya is primarily the PATH OF ABSORPTION. The Higher Self, the divine material element, absorbs the substance of ego, transforming the entire material projection into a subtle shape which is a perfect reflection (image) of the Ideal Human Being (PURUSHA). The Path of Absorption (LAYA MARGA) is characterised by three…
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On Consiousness-Related Phenomena and Their Restraining (Sutra I, 5-11) (5)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next Now let us proceed with the study of the first anga, i. e. class in the studies of yoga. It is going to be a path containing verses or aphorisms from the fifth to the eleventh, inclusive of the last one. We will get to know the basic concepts of…
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Dikshan. How One Starts Practising Yoga (4)
Previous ★★★ Index ★★★ Next If you carefully study the whole textbook of Patanjali, entitled “Yogasutra”, you will notice that the classical collection of teachings on pursuing the path is divided into four parts or series of teachings. It turns out that all traditions and spiritual schools, starting with Egypt and ending with India, divided…