How to Deal With the Illusions of Life
Simply saying: “It is all an illusion,” really does very little. Consider how we attend a play or a motion picture and become completely engrossed in the spectacle, responding with various emotions. All the time we know it is just pretend, but that does not keep us from responding as though it were real. How is this? It is the nature–yes, the purpose–of the mind!
Podcast: What Is the Bhagavad Gita, and Why Is It So Valuable?
In today’s podcast our friend Jonathan Mahoney asks Abbot George about the Bhagavad Gita, its story and its value for the spiritual seeker. Abbot George discusses Vyasa, the pivotal figure in early Hinduism, and the author of many works, including the epic Mahabharata, from which the Bhagavad Gita is taken.
Yoga: Science or Religion?
Why is Yoga considered a science rather than a religion? Because it is a precise methodology that has nothing to do with faith or the action of another being–including God. If you do it, it works, if you don’t, it won’t. It is just like a machine.
Reincarnation: Choosing Our Costumes in the Drama of Life
Every time we are about to reincarnate we look at our karmic balance sheet and decide just what karmas-good and bad-shall be reaped in the next life. It is rather like plotting a drama in which we are going to be the star. Having outlined the play, we then work on our costume-the kind of body we are going to have-and the sets-the kind of place we are going to live in…
The Two Essential Pillars of Yoga
Two things are needed for the ending of mental modifications (vrittis). One is abhyasa–sustained spiritual practice. This is why Krishna speaks of abhyasa yoga. The other is purely psychological: vairagya: “Non-attachment; detachment; dispassion; absence of desire; disinterest; or indifference. Indifference towards and disgust for all worldly things and enjoyments.”
Essential Facts About Soham and the Yogi
A mantra is any sound formula that by its own inherent vibration creates a change, either inner or outer. Soham is therefore a mantra–the supreme mantra. But the secret of its supremacy is the fact that it is also the Divine Name of both God, the Paramatman, and the individual Self, the Jivataman. This is indicated by the two oldest Upanishads–the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad the the Isha Upanishad.