Yoga Private Lessons

“The law of self, or of self-realization, applies to all life from the lowest to the highest, to the individual and the collective. Self-realization is to actualize what you potentially are. Every atom is god potentially and will some time be god actually. In the great process of manifestation the atomic being gradually acquires everything – its individual character, its freedom, and its divinity – by developing its individual character. This law says that the individual’s development is his own business, that only the individual can develop himself. Everybody develops by experience, his own working up of individual experiences. It depends on the individual himself whether, when, how, to what extent he will develop. Infallible insight and understanding are acquired only through his own experience. What is freely given to the individual is lost again, unless the understanding he already has can by its own work incorporate this with his general fund of experiences of life. The path of self-realization is the path of arduous work from ignorance to omniscience, from inability and impotence to omnipotence, from bondage to freedom. The path to truth is the path of your own experience of life through reality seen and lived. You must walk every step of that path yourself. Nobody else can walk it for you. Everybody believes in his hypotheses, constructs his theories. By experiencing their fictitiousness himself, the individual feels his way forward. Erring is a necessary part of seeking and finding. Each level of development implies new problems of life to be solved by the individual on his own. Problems wrongly solved, unsolved, or solved by the help of others (even of avatars, if that would be the case), come up again, until the solution by individual character is conclusive. What in the problem is purposeful for the individual is only found by individual character. Of course, this should never prevent intellectual enrichment be exchanging different experiences of life and ways of looking at things. But to force one’s opinion on others is meaningless or harmful. The individual’s truths of life are self-evident to him with his individual character or on his level. To teach people to comprehend all too lofty ideals or drill in a certain pattern of behaviour is easy. But character is not changed in that way. What is taught to you, whatever you comprehend but lack the experience of life to understand, remains alien to your being and is often turned into something hostile to life in your subconscious.””

—

from The Philosophers Stone, by Henry Laurency

(Source: heartmindawakening)

Heart

In the center of the cavity of the Heart, the sole Brahman shines by itself as the Atman (Self) in the feeling of ‘I-I’. Reach the Heart by diving within yourself, either with control of breath, or with thought concentrated on the quest of Self. You will thus get fixed in the Self.
- Ramana Maharshi

Self - Realization

The state we call realization is simply being oneself, not knowing anything or becoming anything. If one has realized, he is that which alone is, and which alone has always been. He cannot describe that state. He can only be That. Of course, we loosely talk of Self-realization for want of a better term.

That which is, is peace. All that we need do is to keep quiet. Peace is our real nature. We spoil it. What is required is that we cease to spoil it.

- Ramana Maharshi

Yama and Niyama

Yama: Precepts of Social Discipline

Ahimsa — Non-violence. Not harming other people or other sentient beings. Not harming onesself. Not harming the environment. Tolerance even for that which we dislike. Not speaking that which, even though truthful, would injure others.

Satya — Truthfulness. Note that sometimes we may know our words are literally true, but do not convey what we know to be truthful. This is a child’s game. Satya means not intending to deceive others in our thoughts, as well as our words and actions.

Asteya — Non-stealing. Not taking that which is not given.

Brahmacarya — Regarding others as human beings rather than as male and female bodies. The spirit of this precept is conservation of energy for the purpose of spiritual practice. This includes not only sexual restraint, but protecting our energy for instance by avoiding endless chattering with no clear purpose.

Aparigraha — Abstention from greed. Not coveting that which is not ours. Avoidance of unnecessary acquisition of objects not essential to maintaining life or spiritual study.

Niyama: Precepts of Invididual Discipline

Sauca — Cleanliness. Not only external cleanliness of the body, but attending to internal cleanliness such as avoiding the impurities of anger and egoism. Moderation in diet.

Santosa — Contentment. Not spiritual complacency, but acceptance of the external situation we are allotted in this life.

Tapas — Austerity. Deep commitment to our yoga practice. “Blazing practice with religious fervor.”

Svadhyaya — Self-study. Spiritual self-education. Contemplation and application of the scriptures or sacred texts of our chosen path.

Isvara pranidhana — Surrender of the self to God. Acknowledgement that there is a higher principle in the universe than one’s own small self. Modesty. Humility.

Good Luck! Namaste)))