yoga abhyasa (13)

fine tuning to
nature

By Kulamarva Balakrishna

Vienna,Wednesday,January 23,2008:I think
it is better to quote the late Mr.I.K.Taimni.What
is =abhyasa=?......It is true that in the particular
system of yoga put forward by Patanjali only
eight kinds of practices have been included
and hence it is called ashtanga yoga,i.e.yoga
with eight component parts. But there are
other systems of yoga.... Patanjali has included
in his system practically all those... etc=.The
eight parts of yoga are not Abhyasa practices.
That is my point.Those eight parts make up
the yoga system meant to be practiced.
The practices are different techniques of
exercises.There need be no confusion on
that.Those parts and practicing techniques
we discuss on the way.

That practice is done over a long time,life
time continuously with devotion to get used and
established.=sa tu dirghakala nairantarya
satkara sevito drudhabhumuh=.For example
in the practice of music,the raga parts are
repeated in practice.But in yoga the yama
and niyama parts especially can not be treated
as practice but to be taken as living principles.
There are five yama principles and five niyama
principles.We look at them when they are
described.Yoga is a way of life like that shown
by Shakyamuni Buddha.He got enlightenment
but did not rest at that but continued a balanced
life taking along =enlightenment=,knowledge,
=dharma=nature,=sangha=belongingness
principle of democracy.These three are held
together by mindfulness or awareness.

Vairagya is defined as non interest for seen,
experienced and unseen but heard substances
as a subjective individual.That is overcoming
of practically simple mundane desires.
=drushta anushravika vishaya vitrushnasya
vasheekara samjna vairagyam=.Vairagya is
normally a tendency of disinterest.Some people
have it at birth itself their sensitivities are not
diverted at external substances or experiences.
Under such conditions it is easy for the students
to devote to the yoga way of life of without seeing
things by personal individuation.A general
view of life and environment is welcome but
a subjective view is not conducive for yoga
way of life.

Beyond this the yoga student need to get
to know the real nature of =purusha=
that is life itself.Then mind´s thirst for
gunas,qualities counted as three =satva,
rajas and tamas=according the tendencies
disappear.This status is indeed the goal
of yoga.A kind of indifference to the mundane
in life.The mundane is what makes a man
or woman to think subjectively as separate
from the rest of the environment.

I like here to point out when we pray,we also
think the whole moving and the stable
living and apparently non living objects pray
with us.We as articulate humans pray aloud
or silent with our mind applied.Then we are
aware birds pray, flowers pray,waves also
pray etc.The intensity of this understanding
makes us to be considerate to our entire
environment thus fine tune us to the nature´s
harmony.That is indeed the goal of a yogi.
(end)