- The Fourfold Yoga - Part IIl
- by: G Kumar, Astrologer &
Epistemologist
Union via Psychic Control ( Raja
Yoga )
Union via Psychic Control is
known as Raja Yoga. Raja means King and this Yoga is defined
as the Regal Yoga or the king of all the yogas.
Raja Yoga has eight limbs called
Ashtanga Yoga.
|
The Eightfold Raja Yoga
Yama - Observance of Right Conduct ( Non-violence,
Truth, Non-covetousness, continence, not receiving donations
)
Niyama - Meditation, Self-Study, contentment, purity
internal & external, and reverence for the Lord
Asanas - Physical exercises that relax and tone up our
muscles
Pranayama - Breath control exercises that slows
our breathing and regulates the flow of Prana
Pratyahara - Withdrawal from the outer world or
disconnecting the mind from the sensory world. |
|
Dharana Concentration
Dhyana - Meditation
Samadhi - Achievement of Cosmic Consiousness.
Without control of the mind,
nothing spiritual can be achieved. Mind binds, mind liberates.
Mind is the cause of all bondage.
These are what the ancient sages
meant by the sevenfold mode of cosmic existence, the septenary
principles through which the Universal expresses itself.
Controlling mind is the most
difficult thing in the world. You may be able to control everything
but never the mind.
Mind is subtle matter, according
to Indian Philosophy. ( Indian Philsophy is a humiliating term
given to the twelve positive sciences in the Vedas ).
There are many definitions of
mind. One definition is that Mind is finer matter in vibration.
Another definition is that Mind is a steady stream of thoughts.
We can say that, like a river flowing, continous thought flow
is Mind.
Mind has been compared to a monkey.
It jumps from one thing to another. Controlling this monkey is
very difficult due to its jumping nature.
Once upon a time, there was a
monkey ( Mind ). Someone gave it alcohol and it became intoxicated.
Later a scorpion called Avarice bit him. Later, it was bitten
by the sting of Jealousy. Then all of a sudden an evil spirit
by the name of Pride possessed him. Just imagine how difficut
it is to control such a mind!
The Unified Vital Energy ,
the Cosmic Prana
"The Unified Field is the
only Reality " said Einstein. "This Unified Field is
the Brahman of the Vedists and the Tao of the Chinese "
averrs Dr Fritjof Capra in his book " The Tao of Physics
".
All the four basic forces in
the Universe - weak nuclear force, strong nuclear force, electricity
and magnetism - are but different manifestations of that Unified
Power which the Vedists call Prana.
As per Raja Yoga, there are only
two powerful forces in the Universe- Akasha ( Ether-principle
) and the Cosmic Energy, Prana.
All that we see around us, taste,
touch and feel is simply one of the many manifestation of this
Akasha. This all pervasive energy manifests as the sun, the moon,
the stars, the earth etc. The other elements - Vayu ( air ),
Agni ( Fire ), Apa ( water ) & Prithvi ( earth ) are only
its grosser manifestations.
Our bodies belong to the Ocean
of gross matter and our minds belong to the Ocean of subtle matter
( mind ). So long as Prana is active, there is life; when Prana
goes to sleep, as it were, life ceases to be.
Self- purification, the process
of Raja Yoga.
If we can find a method of returning
gross matter to its origin, we will be amazed to observe that
it vanishes leaving only subtle matter behind and if we can still
return this subtle matter to its Cause, we shall observe that
it disappears, leaving only the Self behind.
This method of Self-purification
is what is called the "returning process". My body
will vanish when it becomes pure. Vanish ? Not literally but
figuratively which means I will live as if my body were not there.
My body won't assert its demands and I won't feel its weight.
This "returning process",
if applied to the mind ( The word Religion is derived from the
Latin Relegaire - " to go back" ) can make it invisible:
it won't boss me, drag me hither and thither and I wont feel
trapped in it. This process of self-purification will reveal
to us " finer and finer dimensions of our being ",
until we reach the finest " The Self or the Divine ",
or the Ocean of Consciousness.
I am the Silence which is more
than sound!
If therewithin Thou lose thee, Thou art found!
The Nameless shoreless Ocean which is "I"
Thou cannot breathe, but in its bosom drowned! ( Tennyson )
More information about Transcendental
Philosophy & Yoga can be had from http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/yogamain.htm
Look at the Oceans of Matter,
Mind & Consciousness
As waves what we should do is
to look at the Ocean of the Triune Being- Matter, Mind and Consciousness.
We, as waves, belong to the Ocean.
The Absolute is like an infinite
Ocean. In order to merge in the Absolute we can meditate like
this
Above, it is full of me; below,
it is full of me; in the middle it is full of me. I am in all
beings, and all beings are in me. Om Tat Sat, I am It. I am existence
above mind. I am the One Spirit of the Universe. I am neither
pleasure nor pain.
The body eats, drinks and so
on. I am not the body. I am not the mind.... I am Consciousness,
Knowledge. Bliss.
I am the essence and the nectar
of Knowledge. Through Eternity, I change not. I am calm, resplendent
and unchanging.
I am That, whereof Being is the
likeness
Mine, the Amrit is;
And immortality is Mine
And Mine perfect felicity ! ( The Song Celestial )
The Invisible Channels ( Nadis
)
Raja Yoga postulates that the
human body has invisible channels called Nadis. The major left
Nadi is called the Ida and the major right Nadi, the Pingala.
The Sepentine coiled Energy called Kundalini, lies coiled in
the base Root Chakra ( Muladhara ). Through another invisible
channel called the Sushumna, the Kundalini, the Serpent Power,
rises in its ascent towards the Crown Chakra ( Sahasrara ). By
Pranayama, this mighty corresponding microcosmic power of the
Cosmic Shakthi, which is latent in all beings, can be evoked.
A Power to call Eternity into
Time
And make the body's joy as vivid as the soul's ( Aurobindo )
It is this Power-aspect of the
Consciousness which India has represented as the Divine Mother
- Prakriti in Sankhya, Maya in Vedanta & Shakti in Tantra.
Pranayama
Many think Pranayama is the control
of breath. This is far from true. Pranayama means to know and
control the Vital energy or Prana. Control of this mighty energy
gives us infinite power. If a man can know and control Prana,
where power is there not in him ?
He can control everything from
microcosm to macrocosm, the whole universe comes under his control.
The ancient Seers sought Truth
within themselves and asked the perennial question " What
is it, when known, everything is known ? "
Since it is impossible to study
all sciences in a lifetime ( each science being an infinite ocean),
the ancient Seers were after the mighty Secret, some special
knowledge of Substance, which when known, everything is known!
All principles have a Unitary
principle as the base. If that is comprehended, then everything
is comprehended. All powers are but manifestations of that Cosmic
Energy, Prana. He who has controlled Prana has controlled all
the minds in the universe; all the bodies of the Universe: for
Prana is the base of all Manifestation !
How to control Prana is the
aim of Pranayama.
The sum total energy in the Universe
is an absolute constant: Universal Energy can neither be created
nor destroyed; hence it is indestructible. It has two aspects,
unmanifest and manifest. This power is Prana and its
control is Pranayama.
The main aim or Pranayama is
to arouse the Kundalini. In ordinary mortals the base of the
Sushumna will not be open. To open it is the function of Pranayama.
In Sanskrit, Kundalini means
the coiled Energy. The base of all mental impulses is the Root
Chakra and the Consciousness - Force power is this coiled energy.
When we concentrate deeply or meditate intensely, we find that
this place of the Root Chakra is heated up. When we do Raja Yoga,
we experience a subtle warmth. This coiled Serpentine energy
rises via the Sushumna and when it hits the different Chakras,
it creates tremendous reactions.
Practice of Pranayama - The
Three techniques
First technique
We have to breathe in deeply
( as deeply as possible ) through both the nostrils and then
breathe out slowly. We have to do this initially to prepare ourselves
for the practice of Pranayama. Here the time taken for exhalation
and inhalation should be equal. Normally instead of counting
one, two, three, in the Orient, mantras are chanted. Om is the
usual mantra chanted.
Second Technique
Inhalation is known as Pooraka
Retention is known as Kumbhaka
Exhalation is known as Rechaka
First inhale, then retain breath
& then exhale.
If inhalation is 4 seconds, retention
of breath should be 16 seconds and exhalation 8 seconds. During
this process, one should meditate upon the triangular Root Chakra
( Muladhara ). Mind should concentrate on this Chakra.
Third Technique
In this technique, first do Pooraka
( inhalation ). Then immediately do Rechaka ( exhalation ). Then
do Retention ( Kumbhaka )
If you do the first technique,
your voice will become beautiful. Your face will appear peaceful.
The more you practise this technique, the more peace you will
get.
Once the Golden Serpent rises,
your thinking will change. Your perceptions will change. Then
you need not rely on books. Then your mind will become your book.
This wonderful phenomenon called the mind is a repository of
endless knowledge. Once the Kundalini via the Sushumna rises,
we reach a transcendental plane. The main aim of the Yogi is
to open the Sushumna. On the path of the Sushmna are the Chakras,
dynamoes of cosmic energy in man.
She sports as Universal Power
in the Macrocosm; and in the microcosm as the coiled Serpent
Power!
Infinite Power of the Absolute
art Thou!
The Cause of the Universe as Maya
The entire Creation is Thy Play
Thy blessing is Bliss Absolute !
The essence of all sciences art
Thou
All women Thy manifestations !
The visible Universe Thou art
And the dormant Serpentine Power !
The Scientific basis for observing
continence
Semen and the mind are interrelated.
That is why Continence has been prescribed for controlling the
mind. Dhanwantri, the Father of Ayurveda told his disciples that
the panacea for all ills is Brahmacharya ( Continence).
The basic principle of Raja Yoga
is that seminal energy has properties of Vidyut ( electricity
) Ojas ( light ) & Tapas ( heat ). This energy when preserved
is converted to spiritual energy and stored in the brain. This
process is called sublimation. Havelock Ellis, in his Psychology
of Sex, opines that the sublimation of the seminal energy can
give skills, artistic and scientific. He only proved what Raja
Yoga proclaimed thousand of years ago.
This seminal energy ( Urdhwa
Retas ) is stored by the Raja Yogi in the body by observing Brahmacharya.
Raja Yoga advocates the preservation of the seminal energy for
12 years for the yogic faculties to blossom. Once sublimated,
this energy goes by the name of Ojas ( Effulgence ) and is stored
in the brain !
Copyright 2003 G. Kumar |
