Podcast: The Yoga Life 4: Niyama, the “Do”s of Yoga
Having finished Yama, the “Don’t”s of Yoga, in the last podcast, we now consider Niyama: the “Do”s of yoga. Shaucha: purity, cleanliness Santosha: contentment, peacefulness Tapas: austerity, practical (i.e., result-producing) spiritual discipline Swadhyaya: introspective self-study, spiritual study Ishwarapranidhana: offering of one’s life to God Click … Continue reading
Avidya: Primal Ignorance, the Source of Life’s Miseries
Sutras 4 and 5 of Book Two of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (Read Yoga: Science of the Absolute) 4. Avidya is the source of those that are mentioned after it (see What Are the Kleshas?), whether they be in the dormant, attenuated, alternating or expanded condition. … Continue reading
Podcast: The Yoga Life 3: Asteya, Brahmacharya, and Aparigraha, and the Great Vow
In today’s podcast Abbot George finishes the consideration of Yama, with its last three elements: asteya, brahmacharya, and aparigraha, and the sidesteps that people will take to avoid a strict adherence to these important principles. Then he considers the “Great Vow” of the Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. … Continue reading
What are the Kleshas? (Hint: They Are Not an Alien Life-Form)
Sutras 2 and 3 of Book Two of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 2. (Kriya-Yoga) is practiced for attenuating Kleshas and bringing about Samadhi. “Klesha” means taints or afflictions. A klesha is something that diminishes or distorts our consciousness, bringing misery and pain in some form. … Continue reading
The Yoga Life 2: a Practical Understanding of Harmlessness and Truthfulness
In this podcast Abbot George begins a practical and detailed analysis of the first of the components of Yama: Ahimsa (harmlessness) and Satya (truth), which it is essential for the aspiring yogi to understand. Ahimsa is not willfully causing any harm or pain whatsoever to … Continue reading
Our Origin as Children of Light
An excerpt from “The Gospel of Thomas for Awakening” (now available at Amazon in print and Kindle formats) Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day (I Thessalonians 5:5). Jesus said, If they say to you, “Where did you come … Continue reading