Embarking upon a spiritual journey has been the most rewarding, sane and beneficial thing I have ever done. I hope everyone will come to look inside themselves and question what the true meaning of their existence is, and then to try to find a way to answer that question.
Because of my natural tendencies or previous karma, or likely both, I was drawn to eastern thought, mainly Hindu and Buddhist philosophies along with their corresponding yogic practices. The little I've learned thus far I'd like to spread the word about in hopes that others can apply the same practices and achieve the same sense of peace and the much, much deeper appreciation for life as I have. I have to say in advance, however, that as marvelous as yoga is it is not a toy to be played around with. Anything that has the power to generate and release energies within the body and induce higher states of awareness is to be respected.
We cannot practice the higher stages of yoga in the beginning of our sadhana. In this day and age everyone wants the best results immediately, while putting in the least amount of effort possible. This is not how yoga works and can be very dangerous. We must be very careful not to adopt these attitudes. This is of utmost importance for people to understand - yoga is a powerful system of transformative practices that can cause serious harm if not respected and taken slowly. People have done irreversible damage to themselves from trying to practice the higher methods of yoga before they were ready. Therefor it is essential we start at the beginning and pace ourselves. This isn't said to scare anyone away from yoga, and the things discussed on this blog really aren't of a high enough caliber to cause that kind of damage. It's essential to build a solid foundation first, working hard to thoroughly purify the body and mind before trying to deal with the very powerful energies we have within us.
This is why yoga has been traditionally taught in a guru/disciple relationship. It is imperative that one has a guru or qualified teacher before trying to commence the higher practices. There are plenty misconceptions about gurus out there and it should also be noted that there are plenty of false gurus too. When you have progressed sufficiently on the path, you will find your guru and when you do, you will feel you have finally come home after a long and arduous journey. We don't need to understand this principle right now, but we do need to make sure we aren't biting off more than we can chew.
You wouldn't give a power tool to an infant. Likewise, don't think you can handle the more advanced sadhanas without first spending adequate time laying down the proper foundations. Don't overdo the more basic techniques either - we'll discuss how we should go about pacing ourselves in a later post. I've over done it a few times already resulting in anxiety, fear before falling asleep and uncomfortable energies in the body that would not dissipate, and this was from overdoing some of the basic practices.
Due to the purifying effects of yogic practices on the body, mind and soul, there will be times where some of your more uncomfortable baggage is brought up. If you go on a detox diet, the body will purge toxins it has accumulated resulting in headaches, acne and lethargy. Likewise, yoga will sometimes "purge" physical, emotional and spiritual toxins, and this is an extremely important part of the yogic process - without it we cannot advance to higher states of awareness. The good news is that this likely won't be happening until after you've already come to realize a more peaceful and nonreactive way of living. Yoga first brings about harmony in the body/mind complex, and when you're ready for the purging it will come.
Please be respectful of yourself and of yoga, and you will soon find the peace and depth to life that you may have been looking for.
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