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PEARLS OF YOGIC WISDOM | |
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Offered by Travellers on the Yoga Path
It is unnatural to think of yourself as a body. The body is just like a nest. You, the Soul, are like a bird. * The physical body is like the outer wall of a bird's nest. The mind is like the soft lining inside. The Soul is the bird. Like a bird, rest in your nest when you feel like it. Spread your wings and fly when you will. But above all, make your nest beautiful both outside and inside. * Some religious systems teach that you must wait for Salvation till the Day of Judgement which will come at the End of the World. In Yoga, on the other hand, we can become Liberated in this very lifetime. * When climbing a mountain, look up not down. How can you see the Sky if you keep your eyes down, how can you be free if you attach yourself to material things? * All material objects, all limited things, are just fragments of Life. If you wish to see the whole of Reality, look at things with Shiva's Eye, the Eye of Unity. * Some people know neither what they want nor what it takes to obtain it. A Teacher of Yoga asked a student what she wanted. The student replied: Love and Happiness. The Teacher asked: What would you be prepared to give in return? The student remained silent. If you knew what you have to give to obtain something, would you still want it? Moreover, would you be able to give what is required? Do you have what it takes? * He who mixes with rubbish will be eaten by pigs. He who sticks to pure food will share in the banquet of the Chosen Ones. * Association with goodness - both in thought and action - is declared by the Yoga Masters to be the most powerful weapon in the struggle against the forces of darkness. It is also the vehicle that enables a Soul to ascend to the summit of his aspirations, no matter how remote the point of departure. In this connection, the Scriptures relate that, once upon a time, the King of Varanasi - also known as Kashi, the holy city of India - decided that the time had come for his youngest daughter to marry. Being a Spiritual man and desiring the best for his daughter and his country, the King announced that he would give his daughter and half of his kingdom, as was the custom, to the best man among those who could meditate on Shiva, the Lord of Yoga, continuously for a whole year. A well-known bandit, hearing of this, thought it would be an easy task for him to fool the King and, disguised as a Yogi, sat down under a tree on the bank of the river Ganges. Sure enough, as the months passed by, although at first he was just pretending to meditate, he was slowly drawn into deeper and deeper states of consciousness. At the end of the year, impressed by the inner peace and happiness radiated by the "bandit-Yogi", the King happily asked him to accept his kingdom and his daughter. Opening his eyes, the Yogi politely turned down the offer and with a smile on his face, fell back into meditation. * Love is a feeling of Joy that arises from the experience of Unity with the object of Love. Falling in love with somebody is only the beginning. The real goal is to be in love with Love itself - which is the essence of life. * True Love is self-sufficient, self-contained and self-satisfied. It needs nothing but itself. * Love is the most beautiful expression of Unity and the sweetest fruit of Yoga. Love is sweet in the beginning, in the middle and in the end. If Love tastes bitter, it is not ripe. * Life is based on Unity. When awake, we are in Unity with our body. When dreaming, we are in Unity with our mind. In deep sleep, we are in Unity with our Soul. In meditation, we are in Unity with the Universal Consciousness, the Over Soul. * When the Soul is not in charge, the mind and with it, material reality, takes over. * As you advance on the Path of Yoga, strange things begin to happen. You may sing a song you have never heard before. You may write poetry or paint a beautiful painting. You may even fall in love with a blade of grass. Ah, to be drunk on the sweet wine of Unity! * Yoga is not an end but the beginning of Infinite Life. * Oh Followers of the Path! Do you hear the Celestial Drum beating? Do you see the Whirling Dance of Our Mighty Lord? Come, let's join in the Cosmic Dance And Whirl with the Magic Wheel of the Universe! * You think a thought, God Thinks the Universe. Both thoughts are made of the same substance. * The Fire of Yoga must be kept burning through practice.
* The mantra is the Divine light seed that grows into the Lotus Flower of Enlightenment. * They say that the Third Eye is the eye of the heart. Indeed, the heart itself is a big eye. It is an organ of inner perception that can see, feel, know and understand everything everywhere and in all directions at the same time. It also has the capacity to see beauty everywhere and in all directions at the same time and feel love everywhere and in all directions at the same time. And because of that it is happy everywhere and always. * Meditation is the door through which we enter the real World of Yoga. * As long as you keep to the Straight Path you cannot become lost. * The most beautiful thing about a lake is its capacity to reflect the Sky. * Somebody asked: "Does the World have a purpose?" The purpose of Earth is to make us aware that there is something above us called Sky; the purpose of Water is to remind us that the Sky is the fountain of all life; the purpose of Fire is to remind us that the Sky is the source of all light; the purpose of Wind is to remind us of the Sky's invisible power; the purpose of the Sky is to take us to its infinite expanse; above all, the purpose of all this is to awaken in us a sense of wonder and appreciation for everything we have. * When Earth has dissolved in Water, when Water has been consumed in Fire, when Fire has been quenched in Wind, and the Wind has merged into the Sky, all that remains is the creative light of Consciousness. * When Shiva, the Universal Consciousness, opens His eyes, He projects the World. When, on the other hand, He shuts His eyes, He sees just Himself in the mirror of His Own heart. Following Shiva's example, the Yogi like a faithful devotee, turns his attention inwards and beholds his own true Self. * As a young boy, Yogi Devadatta (also known as Haradatta) once visited a Yoga Lodge (ashram or math) where he was to stay overnight. As he was going towards his chamber carrying a burning candle, one of the Lodge Elders, wishing to test him, enquired: O Devadatta, where does that light come from? Upon which Devadatta put out the candle and replied: O Venerable Elder, please tell me where the light went to, and I will tell you where it came from. With an affectionate smile on his face, the Elder asked: You have answered well, Devadatta, but can you also tell me what light is that by which we see this darkness? And they say that, on hearing this, young Devadatta had his first glimpse of Enlightenment and from then on he travelled far and wide, always ready to offer a spark of Wisdom to those who are willing to receive it that their own inner fire of truth may be kindled.
** Please note that while all contributions to this collection of "Pearls of Wisdom" are welcome, they will be admitted for inclusion entirely on The Yoga Council's own criteria of selection and editing.
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