Asana, Pranayam, Prana, & Prasad
Showing 1–12 of 13 results
Asana & Pranayam in Tantra #5
Far more comprehensive than exercises prescribed in the hatha yoga system, Tantra views body and energy as aspects to be purified, then connected inwardly to mind, intelligence, ego, and one’s Divine Nature — much in keeping with the authentic Yoga of Lord Patanjali. These connections lead the soul to Its inherent perfection, as all Yogas should.
Destruction of Disease #250
As a companion to the wisdom chart #249, and on the same topic, additional teachings are given by Lord Vasishtha to the young Sri Ram about ways to deal with the infirmities of body and mind while occupying a body in the physical world. And even beyond merely dealing with it effectively, there is also the element of transcendence that is inferred in this rich and powerful transmission of wisdom on an age-old issue always plaguing humanity.
Food and Brahman #4
Conscious eating — a potentially sublime act in human life — has gone by the wayside in today’s world. From the taking of food, to the birth of children, and on into the development of subtle powers of prana and shakti needed to realize God, the importance of food, on all levels of our being, is obvious. The principle of food suggests much more than “healthy minds and bodies. The realization of Brahman is involved when food is brought up by spiritual practices from the gross, to the subtle, to the causal level of our being — as this universal mantra used by millions of souls to bless what they eat, duly signifies.
Granthis — Knots in the Body/Mind Mechanism #180
The Sanskrit word, “granthi,” signifies blockages that occur at all levels of the embodied soul’s psycho/physical being. This has usually to do with not having ones prana purified and accessible, and there are many reasons for this shortcoming — impure food, poor eating habits, laziness, karmas from past lifetimes, bad upbringing, etc. The wisdom chart here goes about listing the main impediments that cause such blockages to occur, so that the soul desirous of freedom can resolve to change their habits, find a guru, receive instructions, and move forward to the goal of human existence — enlightenment of all levels of being.
Manahpranasambandha #32
Food, prana, and shakti power — there could hardly be three more powerful and serious considerations for the sensitive soul who is courting the all-important achievement of success in spiritual life. In this inclusive chart on consummate spiritual practice, the four pillars of timely attainment are clearly listed, all attended by and filled in with the dynamic facets of practice that connect them all together into one, unbroken ladder of spiritual ascension.
Origin & Perpetuation of Disease #249
For all sensitive beings who suffer on account of the miseries of others, the question of the cause, or origin, of diseases, soon makes its way to the forefront of the mind. It was no different for Sri Ram, the avatar of his age, who, as a young teenager, went away from his father’s palace on pilgrimage for the first time — just like Lord Buddha was to do millennia later — only to find that beings across the face of the country were undergoing cycles of suffering in life and mind. This sobering spectacle caused the young man to question the holy beings near to him, and come forth with answers to this difficult question — as this dharma chart so effectively offers up for all beings seeking respite from the onslaught of disease.
Phases and Permutations of the All-Pervasive Prana #17
A missing principle in contemporary thought and its knowledge, prana is also a missing link that, when discovered and connected properly, reveals and assists the internal connections that make for spiritual life at its foundation. Unfortunately, even the gross, physical prana is not given its study from the right perspective. The food we eat and digest, and the energy that operates our five senses, is supplied and suffused by raw prana. When basic prana is flowing, connected to the breathing process, and then seen as what enlivens our thinking process, then the psychic prana gets discovered, and sacred principles are seen and communed with in meditation.
Prana & the Illusion of Death #310
In this extremely valuable dharma art wisdom chart, the subject of death is taken up from the unique standpoint of nonduality, which declares it to be an outright illusion. Books are being written even today on this inferior way of describing death, which is just the transitory realm of the god, Yama. In authentic Upanisadic lore, and in Yoga, it is the prana that must be seized and utilized in order to destroy death outright, and reclaim access to ones true nature — the Atman.
The Four Clarities of Food #133
The basis of all life, as well as the foundation for spiritual life at its outset, has much to do with prasad, or sanctified food. Obversely, the overall ill health of ordinary people, as well as the reason for lack of success in beginning aspirants on the spiritual path, also involves food. With a study of teachings that involve information and discipline around sanctifying one’s food before eating it, this dharma chart shows both the reasons for success and failure in the health regimens of living beings. To quote Lord Vasishtha, “Food eaten without purifying it first with the mantra only turns into poison in the bloodstream.”
The Four States & the Vital Breath #308
Being an ancient teaching from the Para Brahma Upanisad, coupled with rare teachings from the timeless rishi, Pippalada, this wisdom chart outlines India’s way of inward, intelligent thinking that runs along what the yogis call nadis, channels that carry consciousness in and out of the body, and through many worlds. It will be necessary for seekers of this inward trajectory to awaken and purify the prana first, then connect it with shakti, and then course the internal way of the luminaries with newly found confidence inspired by realized guides.
The Role of Food and Prana in Spiritual Life #3
The secret of sanctified food remains unknown to most beings in this day and age. The energy called prana that powers the senses and thoughts also escapes detection and proper usage. Ironically, a healthy lifestyle is also just the tip of the iceberg. When food, mantra, and spiritual disciplines are all properly connected, two powers for transformation — ojas and tejas — become available to the seeker of Truth, and a return of reverence for food and life-force will occur.
The Singular Prana and its Five Forms #50
What connects the five elements to the five senses, and those two sets of fives to the five subtle senses and five subtle elements (tanmatras), is both grounds for beginning the inner spiritual journey and the ground of Yogic practice as well. Such rare wisdom, realized in meditation, not only opens many subtle doors to the “kingdom within,” but destroys age-old doubts about the incarnating soul, subtle and material nature, and the singular Transcendent Reality that remains pure, perfect, changeless, and nondual despite the many transformations going on in mind and matter.