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Going Through Hell? Keep Going
In Mysore, Sharath said, people who know 1/2 are dangerous. People who know nothing are fine. People who know everything are fine. People who know 10%-20% are very dangerous. I would like to add to this. It is only dangerous if those who know 10-20% or 1/2, feel that they know 100%. When we can admit that we don’t have it all figured out, it is okay. When we walk around acting like we do, even when we don’t, that is dangerous. In the western Yoga community, there is a tendency to deny, bury or ignore emotions that people see as “unyogic”. It is frowned upon for an active…
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Questioning God
In the world of traditional Yoga, The Bhagavad Gita is seen as one of the seminal texts on Yoga. Arjuna, the main character of the Gita, is conflicted because he has to go to war against his teachers, friends and family. He spends most of the book questioning and conversing with the god Krishna, his charioteer, about his tumultuous feelings. Arjuna is a righteous Prince who has always had God on his side but he still questions. Krishna, answers his questions and these answers become a talk on Yoga and duty. Asking questions from a pure heart, is not bad. Wanting to know the answers is not bad. Not knowing and not understanding is…
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Yoga Sutras For Modern Day Life: Yoga Is Not an Escape From Life
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 2:10: When the five types of colorings (kleshas) are in their subtle, merely potential form, they are then destroyed by their disappearance or cessation into and of the field of mind itself. Defining the Sutra 5 Kleshas Ignorance (avidya) Ego (asmita) Attachment to Pleasure (raga) Aversion to Pain (dvesa) Fear of Death (abhinivesah) The Kleshas don’t completely go. We need our mind to interact with life. Without a sense of “I”, we couldn’t function. In order to use our mind and our bodies, we have to connect with them. We have to know they are ours to use. The Yogi eventually gets the Kleshas to a point where…
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Adventures in Mysore India, Alignment and Injuries, Ashtanga Adaptability, Ashtanga Quotes, Conference Notes, Gita, Teaching Ashtanga, Uncategorized, Yoga Philosophy, Yoga Sutras
Yoga Sutras for Modern Day Life: Insidious
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 2:5: Avidya (Ignorance) is seeing the impermanent as permanent, the impure as pure, the painful as pleasant and the non Self as the self. Defining the Sutra: It is important to note that Patanjali is speaking about a certain type of ignorance. Normally, ignorance is defined as not knowing or even ignoring what you know. Avidya is a deeper more insidious type of ignorance. Avidya is when you believe something to be true and you have no clue that it is not. Avidya is when a child is terrified of the monster under the bed. Avidya is when a person believes that all Black people are bad. Avidya is when…
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Adventures in Mysore India, Ashtanga Adaptability, Ashtanga Quotes, Gita, History, Teaching Ashtanga, Uncategorized, Yoga Philosophy, Yoga Sutras
Highlights From Yoga Philosophy Study with Greg Nardi
I had the privilege of studying yoga philosophy this weekend with Greg Nardi. Here is his bio from his website, Ashtanga Yoga World Wide. Greg Nardi, founder of Ashtanga Yoga Worldwide, has spent years of dedicated practice under the guidance of Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore, India. In 2003, he was given authorization to teach from Pattabhi Jois, and in 2009, he completed a level 2 authorization course from Sharath Jois. He is currently learning the advanced series under Sharath’s guidance at the KPJAYI. Greg perpetually studies and practices Yoga, Eastern Philosophy and Sanskrit mantra chanting. He participates in Georg Feuerstein’s Traditional Yoga Studies course and has studied…
