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YogaLife Spring-Summer 2012
YogaLife Spring-Summer 2012
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Spring/Summer 2012
Celebrating
40 YEARS
Sadhana Intensive
August 4 19, 2012 (International)
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Yoga Psychology and Mental Health With Dr Uma Krishnamurti: July 28 August 3, 2012 How to Design Healing Spaces with Vastu Shastra With Olga Sokolova: August 10 12, 2012 Yoga as Medicine With Timothy McCall, MD: 5 August 20 26, 2012
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EDITORS LETTER
Swami Mahadevananda
Swami Durgananda
Srinivasan
Welcome
2012 here we are. In the midst of all sorts of predictions, excitement and worry as the world as we have known it for the last few centuries seems to fall apart, yoga feels like a sheltering monastery (see article of Swami Swaroopananda): it gives us a sense of stability, connection to the source within and a different perspective on the transformation of the world. The message of the Bhagavad Gita, to do our contribution to this world but remain unaffected by it, is more modern than ever (see the article on the Gita). We need to focus on connecting to the Self within, take responsibilities for our thoughts and actions rather than create suffering for ourselves by trying to please the world and generate endless karma (see Swami Vishnudevanandas article on Karma and reincarnation). To remain balanced in this challenging world, we need to stay connected to the source of energy within and learn how to recharge: you can improve your skills in this practice by connecting to your solar plexus. See the article of Swami Sivadasananda on this topic. Harmony in our environment is also of great help to restore a sense of inner wellbeing: the article on the science of Vastu Indian architecture, or the art of placement, will inspire you to become aware of the energy flow in your home and how learn ways to improve it. Finally, it is a great joy to announce that the Sivananda organization is developing its activities in Australia: we will be conducting a Teachers Training course there in 2013 and will hopefully soon open a centre in Sydney or Melbourne. It is a time to connect, practice together and encourage one another in staying strong in our spiritual practice. May the blessings of Swami Sivananda and Swami Vishnudevananda be with us all. May we be humble instruments in their hands to help spread the light of yoga in the world.
$5 Canada $3.50 US
2.50 UK
3.70 Europe
Spring/Summer 2012
Celebrating
40 YEARS
Cover
2012 marks a milestone 40 Years of Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres in Europe. The Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre in Vienna was founded in 1972 by Swami Vishnudevananda and was the first Sivananda Yoga Centre in Europe. Since then 10 Centres and 2 Ashrams have been established helping many people to find health and inner peace through Swami Vishnudevanandas 5 points of Yoga.
HEADQUARTERS
SIVANANDA ASHRAM YOGA CAMP
Eighth Avenue, Val Morin, Quebec, Canada JOT 2RO Tel: +1 819 322 3226 email: hq@sivananda.org Est 1957
With ashrams and centres located around the world see page 68 for addresses
The International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, founded by Swami Vishnudevananda is a non-profit organisation whose purpose is to propagate the teachings of yoga and vedanta as a means of achieving physical, mental and spiritual well-being and Self-realisation.
CONTENTS
SIVANANDA
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8 12 17 22 28 32 35 36 38 42 46 48 50 54 57 58 60 62 64 68
Excerpts from Philosophy of Dreams
By Swami Sivananda
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12 32 54
Yoga in Australia
By Swami Bhagavatananda
Poems from the Autobiography of Swami Sivananda The Power of Vedic Rituals Sivananda Ashram and Centre Addresses
A listing of Sivananda Ashrams, Centres and teachers worldwide
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Excerpts from
By Swami Sivananda
Chuang Tze, a Chinese Philosopher, once dreamt that he was a butterfly. On waking, he said to himself, Now, am I a man dreaming that I am a butterfly, or am I a butterfly thinking that I am a man?
he mind creates the dream out of the materials supplied by the experiences of the waking state. The dream creatures spring up from the bed of Samskaras or impressions in the subconscious mind. Indigestion also causes dreams. The Taijasa is the dreamer. It is the waking personality that creates the dream personality. The dream personality exists as the object of the waking personality and is real only as such. The waking and dreaming states do not exist independently side by side as real units. Why do we dream? Various answers have been given to this question. Dreams are nothing but a reflection of our waking experience in a new form. According to Sigmund Freud all dreams without any exception are wish-fulfillment. The physical stimulus alone is not responsible for the production of dreams. The dream mechanism is very intricate. The wishes are of an immoral nature. They are revolting to the moral self, which exercises a control on their appearance. Therefore, the wishes appear in disguised forms to evade the moral censor. Very few dreams present the wishes as they really are. Dreams are partial gratification of the wishes. They relieve mental tension and thus enable us to enjoy repose. They are safety valves to strong impulsions. You will know your animal-self in dream. The objects which manifest during the dreaming state are often not different in many respects from those which one perceives during his waking state. During the dreaming state
he talks with members of his family and friends, eats the same food, beholds rivers, mountains, motor cars, gardens, streets, oceans, temples, works in the office, answers question papers in the examination hall, and fights and quarrels with other people. This shows that man does not abandon the results of his past relations with objects when he falls asleep. The person who experiences the three states, viz., Jagrat or waking-state, Svapna or dreaming state, and Sushupti or deep-sleep state is called Visva in the waking state, Taijasa in the dreaming state and Prajna in the deep sleep state. When one gets up from sleep, it is Visva who remembers the experience of Prajna in deep sleep and says, I slept soundly. I do not know anything. Otherwise remembrance of the enjoyment in deep sleep is not possible. The reactions to dreams differ according to mental disposition, temperament and diet of the person. All dreams last for mere seconds. Within ten seconds you will experience dreams wherein the events of several years happen. Some have dreams occasionally, while some others experience dreams daily. They can never have sleep without dreams. The sun is the source and the temporary resting place of its rays. The rays emanate from the sun and spread in all directions at sunrise. They enter back into the sun at sunset, lose themselves there and come out again at the next sunrise. Even so the states of wakefulness and dreaming come out from the state of deep sleep and re-enter it and lose themselves there to follow the same course again.
Whatever appears in the dream world is the reproduction of the waking world. It is not only the reproduction of the objects seen, experienced or dealt with in the present life, but it may be the reproduction of objects seen, experienced or dealt with in any former life in the present world. Therefore the dream world cannot be said to be independent of the waking world. The objects that are seen in the state of wakefulness are always seen outside the body. It is, therefore, external to the dreamer, while the dream world is always internal to the dreamer. That is the only difference between them. During the dream state the whole wakeful world loses itself in the dream state. Therefore, it is not possible to find the distinctive features that would help the dreamer to distinguish the waking world from the dream world. Scientists and Western philosophers draw their conclusions from the observations of their waking experience. Whereas the Vedantins utilise the experiences of the three states viz., waking, dream and deep sleep and then draw their conclusions. Hence the latters conclusions are true, correct, perfect, full and integral, while those of the former are partial and one sided. The individual soul does not know that he is dreaming during his dream state and is not conscious of himself as he is bound by the Gunas of Prakriti. He passively beholds the creations of his dream mind passing before him as an effect of the workings of the impressions (Samskaras) of his waking state.
Many riddles of life are solved through hints from dreams. Dreams indicate which way the spiritual life of a man is flowing. One may receive proper advice for self-correction through dreams. One may know how to act in a particular situation through dreams. The dreams point out a path unknown to the waking consciousness. Saints and sages appear in dreams during times of difficulty and point out the way. The Vedantins study very deeply and carefully the states of dreams and deep sleep and logically prove that the waking state is as unreal as the dream state. They declare that the only difference between the two states is that the waking state is a long dream, Deergha Svapna. So long as the dreamer dreams, dream-objects are real. When he wakes up the dream world becomes false. When one attains illumination or knowledge of Brahman, this wakeful world becomes as unreal as the dream world. The real truth is that nobody sleeps, dreams or wakes up, because there is no reality in these states. Transcend the three states and rest in the fourth state of Turiya, the eternal bliss of Brahman, Satchidananda Svaroopa.
Dream Philosophy
Certain Karmas are also worked out in dreams. A King experienced a dream in which he acts the part of a beggar and suffers the pangs of starvation. Certain evil Karmas of the King are purged out in this experience. If a man is not able to become a king on account of the evil influence of some planets, he plays the part of a king in his dream. His strong desire materialises in the dream state. One derives more pleasure in dreams than in the waking state when he experiences pleasant dreams, because the mind works more freely in dreams. When a strong desire is not gratified in the waking state, you obtain its gratification in dreams. The mind has more freedom in the dreaming state. The mind is then like a furious elephant let loose. One dreams many things that are never to be experienced in this life such as,He dreams he is flying in the air. A dream is not an entirely new experience, because most often it is the memory of past experiences. In the waking state the light of the self is mixed up with the functions of the organs, intellect, mind, external lights etc. In dreams the self becomes distinct and isolated as the organs do not act and lights such as the sun that help them are absent. The dreamer is not affected by whatever result of the good and evil he sees in the dream state. No one regards himself a sinner on account of the sins committed in dreams. People who have heard of them do not condemn or shun them. Hence he is not touched by them. An action is done by contact of the body and the senses,
Scientists and Western philosophers draw their conclusions from the observations of their waking experience. Whereas the Vedantins utilise the experiences of the three states viz., waking, dream and deep sleep and then draw their conclusions.
It is possible for a dreamer to remain cognisant during his dream state of the fact that he is dreaming. Learn to be the witness of your thoughts in the waking state. You can be conscious in the dream state that you are dreaming. You can alter, stop or create your own thoughts in the dream state independently. You will be able to keep awake in the dream state. If the thoughts of the waking state are controlled, you can also control the dream thoughts. Profound wisdom comes through reflection on dreams. No one has known himself truly who has not studied his dreams. The study of dreams shows how mysterious our soul is. Dreams reveal to us that aspect of our nature which transcends rational knowledge. Every dream presentation has a meaning. A dream is like a letter written in an unknown language.
Waking as a Dream
In both states waking and dreaming objects are Perceived , i.e., are associated with subject-object relationships. This is the similarity between the two. The only difference between the two states is that the objects in dreams are perceived in the space within the body, whereas in the waking condition they are seen in the space outside the body. The fact of being seen and their consequent illusoriness are common to both states. The illusion of both the states is established by their being seen as object, other than the self, thus creating a difference in existence. Anything that is perceived is unreal, for perception presupposes relation and relation is non-eternal, for the relations of the waking state are contradicted by those of dream and vice versa. As duality is unreal, all objects must be unreal. As long as the dream lasts, waking is unreal; as long as waking lasts, the dream is unreal. The reality of the one is dependent on the reality of the other. But dream is proved to be unreal; hence waking is also unreal. Dream-relations are contradicted by waking-relations. Waking relations are contradicted by Super-consciousness which is uncontradicted. Non-contradiction is the test of reality. That which persists forever is real. That which does not and which has a beginning and an end is unreal. Dreaming and waking have both a beginning and an end. But it may be contested that one thing exists as the cause of the other in the
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I N T E R N AT I O N A L S I VA N A N D A Y O G A V E D A N TA C E N T R E S
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e are celebrating what? Today we are celebrating what? Not VE Day. Not victory. We are celebrating Defeat Day, DD, because victory comes only when you have control over your own inner enemy and when you conquer the inner battle. That is the day that is called Victory Day. When are you going to conquer your inner enemy, and who are your inner enemies? There are five big enemies. Their leader is called the mind, and his five generals are the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. These five generals take the army into sensual pleasures. The cause of war is because we are unable to control and conquer these inner enemies.
Today, just before I came to Satsang, I saw a newsreel about the Victory Day celebration by the Russians and I saw them marching: left, right, left, right, left right. Of course, the Americans are also marching, so also the British, the French and so on and so on. But do you know, whether you are German, British, Russian, American, believer, or non-believer, death is painful to all of you, whatever you are called, whatever label you give: German, American, or Russian. Because you put a label on someone do you think that their pain is not less? Do you think that death is less painful for a German mother compared to a Russian or American mother or a British mother? Death is painful to all. Twenty million Russians died in the war.
Arise, awake! Stop not till you reach that Immortal Self which Thou Art. That Immortal Self doesnt have any birth or death: that is only for the body.
yes, and hes having an affair with her, and she is running with another man, and she is divorced... These are the thoughts you are going to have every day. That is called asang. You never have any benefit out of it. This type of scandal, back-biting, idle talk, can you get any peace out of it? So, Satsang is to remind you, Man, dont worry about others. Even if there is a World War and the world is going to vaporise, you are Immortal. There is no death or birth for you. Arise, awake! Arise, awake! Stop not till you reach that Immortal Self which Thou Art. That Immortal Self doesnt have any birth or death: that is only for the body. Satsang is to remind you, do not just think of your money, bank balance etc. This lifetime is only for a very short time, for one hundred years. But what will happen after a hundred years? Even if there is no World War III, what will happen? Still you have to die and then, can you go with your wife, can you take your wife with you? Your children with you? Money? Bank balance? All the ornaments and earrings and the gold watch etc.? You cant even take a MasterCard there! Even your American Express card has no use. You cant take money. You can only go as you came: you came naked and you go naked. You are not even allowed to take this physical body because it belongs to the earth, plants, vegetables or bacteria that will turn it back. When you leave this place again in a short time Satsang will make you ready to face the last thought. The last thought determines that both your astral life and also your future incarnation will be happy. It determines what kind of incarnation you are going to have. We believe in reincarnation, not that life is going to end after this particular lifespan and then theres
Now, the question is, if we all leave this planet Earth today or tomorrow what type of last thought will there be?
etc. Always, invariably. Now, the question is, if we all leave this planet Earth today or tomorrow what type of last thought will there be? Now I will tell you a small story from a Purana, from one of our ancient epics. There was a great Brahmin, a priest born in the Brahmin caste. He did lots of pranayamas, sandhyavandanas and Gayatri morning, day and evening according to the tradition. He led a very spiritual life, but when he grew up he fell in love with a prostitute, and started drinking and forgot all his Brahminic actions. He had several children with this woman and the last boy, the youngest boy, was called Narayana. Now this Brahmin was lying on his death-bed and suddenly he saw some frightening figures. There was
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According to yoga psychology your last thought determines what your future thoughts are.
adult, but still from his earlier life, the intense pranayama and mantra he repeated, the mantra is still in his mind, his subconscious mind, that is why he called, Narayana, come here, otherwise he would have called, My son, come here and that would have been completely different. According to yoga psychology your last thought determines what your future thoughts are, so whatever thoughts you are creating through Satsang, repeating Om Namo Narayanaya, Om Namah Sivaya, Hari Rama etc. these thoughts will become very powerful and create new grooves in your subconscious mind, and the last thought will be of Narayana or Krishna or whichever mantra you are repeating. That is why we have Satsang and ask you to repeat Gods name. It is not to convert you to any ism but to make your thought very powerful; otherwise your last thought will be ... money! Ah, the stock market investment, then you will be born as a teller, a bank teller and you can count millions and millions of dollars morning till evening! So, whatever position you are in now, whatever existence you are having now, these things were already determined by
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The purpose of Silence or meditation is to bring your energy level within: not outward, extrovert, but introvert.
to your evolution you go to the third dimension, fourth dimension, fifth dimension or even to the seventh dimension if you are very highly evolved. Otherwise people with fear, with no idea, they will go to the first and second heaven and there they suffer terribly, because they do not know how to use their thought. In Satsang we are also teaching you how to use your thought from the very beginning. It is called, Go within. The purpose of Silence or meditation is to bring your energy level within: not outward, extrovert, but introvert. I will tell you some stories that explain what extrovert and introvert mean. Extrovert means that the senses go outward to the sensual pastures like wild horses, and introvert means bringing those wild horses to the centre, to the soul. That is called, meditation. Through meditation you can bring the senses inward and you will have happiness while living on this planet and also happiness hereafter. The first story is about a man who is seated under a tree in a desert. The tree gives him shade and a little cool breeze. All around he is surrounded by white sand. As the sun starts rising on the horizon, he begins to get thirsty and as the sun gets higher and higher he gets more and more dehydrated and thirsty for water. Still he sits under the shade. Suddenly, as his thirst increases, his desire for water becomes important for his very existence. He sees in the white sandy area a beautiful, shimmering lake. Waves. Ripples. What is that? A mirage! If you havent seen a mirage you would know what it is like. It is literally like a lake or a sea. I have seen that. That white sand is not white sand any longer; it is a lake, full of water and waves. Now he has seen with his perception that there is water, but, by intellectual analysis he knows that there cant be any water, there is only sand. But his perception, his eyes, he sees this beautiful, shimmering lake. So the question is, Shall I go, or shall I not go? The intellect says, Dont go. You are sitting under the shade. When you go there you will get dehydrated and die in the desert. But the perception says, There is water. Now, which one are you are going to follow? Are you going to believe your perception, or your reasoning? Do you get up and
In Satsang, we make you think. There is no happiness outside. If there is happiness, it is coming from within.
In Satsang, we make you think. There is no happiness outside. If there is happiness, it is coming from within. The dog who is chewing a dry bone and is having beautiful juicy blood coming out of it thinks, Oh, it is coming from the dry bone but it is coming from his own palate. In the same way, we think that happiness is coming from the outside, but everything is from within. So Man, Satsang says, Dont go outside. Dont accept this perception. Use your intellect, your reasoning and analyse it. That is what Satsang is doing. Satsang is trying to remind you again and again, go within and make your mind one-pointed and strong.
Satsang is trying to remind you again and again, go within and make your mind one-pointed and strong.
The last story is about a hunter who went hunting, and after hunting was tired and sat under the shade of a tree to eat his lunch. He was about to open and enjoy his lunch and suddenly, in a nearby bush, there was a lion. The lion was also hungry, and he saw this hunter seated comfortably. He thought, Ahhh,
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There is nothing more elevating and sublime than to be a witness to the living divine Presence in all beings, and to strive to awaken that consciousness in others, too. Swami Sivananda
e are the result of many generations which moved away from the laws of nature. Look at the way our ancestors and our family lived: greatgrandmother, grandmother and mother, many of them moved away from nature. Therefore, we think it is normal. It has brought us physical and mental problems. Many have complaints about eyes, teeth, gums, joints or stomach. People say, I dont know why I am so sluggish, why I am depressed. These things happen because we have moved away from nature. Not just our body, but also the bodies which created this present body, what we now call genes. When we are out of touch with nature, we lose our inner balance, our centre, our emotional balance, our balance of body awareness. We do not have the quality of life we would like to have, and so we lose contact with our atman (the inner Self), and with shanti (peace). Separation from the Self happens when we do not accept the laws of nature. This is the root cause of all our suffering. Look at nature, understand nature around you as well as the nature within you. Then you will connect back to the atman.
Slowly, suffering will cease, like fog moving away from the shore. Nature moves quietly. Diseases come quietly; at first you dont notice them. Also, well-being is so quiet that you soon forget how bad you used to feel. Pain is forgotten very quickly, otherwise women wouldnt have second babies. They forget the pains. Yoga helps you to reconnect in different ways, depending on your personality. There are different paths there is bhakti yoga, karma yoga, jnana yoga, and raja yoga. By slowly integrating these systems, the practice takes you from jiva, (individual consciousness, believing I am this and that), back to the inner Self. That is how yoga works, it unites jiva with atman, the immortal Self.
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Teaching Autosuggestion
Swami Vishnudevananda was a master in teaching autosuggestion. He would announce the autosuggestion very thoroughly. It was a logical sequence, you just had to follow it. He would start from the feet and slowly work the way up to the head. He would say each autosuggestion three times: I relax the feet, I relax the feet, my feet are relaxed. He was not speaking to himself, he was speaking it for you. So you could lie there and hear it as if youre speaking to yourself. My feet are relaxed. After relaxing the limbs, the back and the head, autosuggestion is given to the inner organs: heart, liver, kidneys, etc. Through the power of thought all these inner organs relax also. The teacher sits and concentrates with the students. You go with the students through all the inner organs. It is a very powerful technique. Mental and spiritual relaxation follow. Finally, there is silence. The teacher sits in silence and does Japa (mantra repetition). After some minutes you chant OM very softly. Everybody sits up and you close with the final prayer. This completes this master class, which we learned from Swami Vishnudevananda.
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A lesson learned
Dont be rigid
Rigidity is to be avoided. Nobody is bad because he eats fish and is smoking. We used to do it ourselves, maybe you are still doing it. Dont judge, just work on yourself. Otherwise you will not fit in society anymore. Today vegetarianism is more widely accepted, smoking in public places and at work is prohibited in many countries and alcohol is becoming less fashionable. It takes time to understand the psyche of your surroundings and to understand yourself also. Avoid extreme attitudes, these make life unnecessarily difficult. If you remember the universal law of love, then you will be fine. You will find the strength to be patient and compassionate. Instead of looking at the mistakes of others, we must learn to see how much love they actually have. Everyone has love, we were all born of love. Atman and love are the same. In most people, love is coloured or camouflaged. Once you learn about someones upbringing, you may start to understand why they have to cover up many things. When you talk about their childhood you understand why they are the way they are. When you teach yoga, dont think everybody is like you. Many different people and situations exist in this world, so patience, compassion and understanding are needed. Be like a friend, not like a teacher. In yoga it is very difficult to separate one from another, because yoga is so personal.
The first time I saw Swami Vishnudevananda was at a lecture in California. There were about fifty people. I was sitting in the back and wanted to see who Swami Vishnudevananda was. Everybody was sitting. But in a corner of the room there was a man standing on his head during the whole lecture. He looked a little rough, his clothes were not very fresh and the headstand was not very straight. Yet he managed to remain in the headstand for a whole hour. And Swamiji didnt say anything. I was wondering: Why does he not say something? My mind was quite negative. The fact that I kept repeating this thought did not change the situation. The man was still in the headstand and the lecture was going on. I missed most of the lecture, as I was so much involved in judging the situation of this man remaining in the headstand. When the lecture was over, the man came down from the headstand and went to see Swamiji. Swamiji right away introduced him to the audience. He had learned yoga while in prison in San Francisco, by studying the Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnudevananda. He actually taught himself the headstand. He was now out of jail and wanted to show how much he had learned. As a sign of gratitude he remained in the headstand throughout the lecture. You never know how one thing relates to another. When we think about something, when we say something, or rather our thinking wants to say something, we must be careful and not judge. I learned a big first lesson that day. I saw that I had no compassion, that I was completely judgemental. My mind was negative towards something which I thought was not correct. Yet in the context of the connection between this man and Swamiji, it was perfectly correct. This happened almost 40 years ago. I have never forgotten it.
Avoid judgements
According to the universal law of cause and effect, whatever you think will come back to you. Often people say: Oh! I dont
How do we preserve our energies? As you go through the TTC experience, and learn the asanas and the pranayama, you know that the aim of yoga is peace, or shanti. The most important peace is mental peace. Thoughts can travel. Whatever you think will reach other people, it will reach the universe, and it will bounce back to you. Thoughts have a great power. You, as teachers, must be very aware of your thoughts, particularly
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Mental growth is the most important goal in yoga. Physical growth will follow, but mental growth is more important.
a while the body will show it. Later on they may have diseases due to a lack of certain hormones, which they stop producing properly because of depression. Watch your mental health constantly, your body will benefit tremendously, along with the help of asanas and pranayama.
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any years ago, Swami Vishnudevananda, the founder of the Sivananda International Vedanta organization, the largest yoga organization in the world today, foresaw this cataclysmic time we are experiencing at the beginning of the 21st Century. In 1969, as he sat in deep meditation in our ashram in the Bahamas, he experienced a powerful vision that the whole planet Earth was engulfed in fire forcing everyone to flee. As everyone tried to escape the fire, they broke loose of their self-made barriers: physical barriers, mental barriers, spiritual barriers, gender barriers, religious barriers, and racial barriers. All those limitations that people artificially restrict themselves with suddenly became meaningless in the presence of that disaster. Swami Vishnudevananda awoke from this vision trembling for he thought that a great calamity was imminent. Then he had a sudden insight. Swamiji realized that by transcending their barriers to escape this fire, humanity could actually become united. For in this tragedy, people of all nations, races, classes and religions fled side by side. They did not notice their differences. They were of one mind together. In the face of a common threat, humanity would finally learn to join together. Once all barriers are broken, Swamiji said, mankind can be united. Even though the vision itself was frightening and terrifying, it pointed out the opportunity for humanity to change and move on to a greater and brighter future. This vision revealed a new mission to Swami Vishnudevananda: the pursuit of peace. He responded by creating the Sivananda organization under the banner of the T.W.O. (True World Order) whose purpose is to promote unity in diversity.
He taught that the key to external peace is inner peace. Once inner peace is found, it can be shared with others.
He gathered around him sincere aspirants from all walks of life, cultures and religions. First he taught them yoga and then trained them to teach yoga to others. This was the beginning of the formal Sivananda Teacher Training Course (TTC) initiated by Swami Vishnudevananda over forty years ago. He said, I am going to sow the seed of peace in my students hearts. Their yoga practice will water the seed of inner peace. Then that seed will sprout. They will have a direct experience of inner peace first and then they will go out into the world and share it with thousands. As soon as he trained yogis, he immediately sent them out into the world on this mission. He visualized a new generation of leaders graduating from the TTC who would transmit the meaning of peace sending it out like a wave to soothe a world ravaged by war, destruction and suffering. Swami Vishnudevananda compared yoga teachers to peace ambassadors and new leaders. He was not only referring to trained yoga teachers but any aspirant who sincerely studies yoga. He foretold how people would approach yogis with questions and find comfort, guidance and protection in the teachings that yogis give them. What people need most during these times is spiritual protection. Swamiji foresaw that yogis and yoga teachers would generate a lot of change in our world. He predicted that in 20 or 30 years time, when his vision manifests, millions and millions of people will be practicing yoga everywhere. Swamijis vision of many millions practicing yoga is happening today. It is now acknowledged that yoga is the fifth largest
Swami Vishudevananda taught that in order for humanity to realize this wonderful new future, people must learn the practice of peace.
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Through the knowledge of yoga, all doubt, all conflict and all darkness that engulfs us within and without can be removed and we can attain a reality of happiness, peace, harmony and light.
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IN DIVER
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Swami Vishnudevananda taught us to be a sheltering monastery, offering strength to others through the teachings of yoga.
There are many who worry during these difficult times; they focus on the turmoil itself. One of the principles that Swami Vishnudevananda taught us was the principle of positive thinking. Not foolish positive thinking but reasonable positive thinking. Things are happening on the planet that are of a positive nature too and that have never happened before in our history. Yogis must remain positive and strong. We must always remember that Swami Vishnudevananda taught us to be a sheltering monastery, offering strength to others through the teachings of yoga. So what can we as individuals do? First of all, we can keep our Self connected to the seed of inner peace and good within us by our daily yoga practice. Then, we can share our knowledge with others, teaching by our example. In our humble way, we can help by offering this wonderful knowledge to others. It will give people inner strength. It will give them hope and a clearer vision of their world and their own role in it. So it becomes extraordinarily important to teach yoga. It is essential to teach yoga and spread its message worldwide. As a trained yoga teacher, you can have a great impact. Even if you are not a graduate of a yoga teacher training course, as a yoga practitioner you are a yoga teacher by example. Whether you are a yoga teacher or not, understand that your existence is very meaningful and important for humanity. Whether you believe it or not, you will start to see more and more people coming to you to ask for spiritual shelter, help, advice and support. Your centeredness will be an anchor for many. Yogis are not the only ones who can offer this help. All peaceful people, aspirants who have knowledge, training and power can offer spiritual support. If we are to survive these scorching fires of suffering predicted by Swami Vishnudevananda, we must become an essential shelter or monastery for others in this very moment. n Swami Swaroopananda is a senior disciple of Swami
Vishnudevananda and is Acharya (spiritual director) of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres on the west coast of America and Israel. He is also director of the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat in Nassau, Bahamas.
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Near Paavana Vilakku Junction, New Natham Road Saramthangi Village, Vellayampatti P.O. Madurai, Tamil Nadu, 625503 E-Mail: madurai@sivananda.org
Tel: +91 986 565 5336 / +91 452 291 2950 www.sivananda.org/maduri
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low and rhythmical abdominal breathing is part of every yoga session. Each time you breathe using the diaphragm, your solar plexus is being stimulated. This article aims to explain how the solar plexus can function as a gateway to gaining conscious control over the autonomic nervous system.
The solar plexus, or celiac plexus, is a complex network of nerves located in front of the abdominal aorta, behind the stomach, on the level of the first lumbar vertebra.
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Parasympathetic System
Contracts pupils Ganglion Stimulates flow of saliva Constricts Medulla bronchi oblongata Slows heartbeat Stimulates digestion Stimulates secretion of digestive juices Contracts bladder
Sympathetic System
Dilates pupils Inhibits flow of saliva Dilates bronchi Accelerates heartbeat Secretion of stress hormones Inhibits digestion Release of extra blood sugar Inhibits bladder contraction
Vague nerve
(This relay action is not shown in the drawing above.) The solar plexus also communicates sensory information from the abdominal area back to the central nervous system. During the final relaxation at the end of a yoga session, this sensory information considerably deepens body awareness.
Figure A Inhalation
Figure B Exhalation
A. During inhalation the diaphragm contracts and moves downwards. B. During exhalation it relaxes and moves back up. Visualizing the connection of the phrenic nerve via the diaphragm to the solar plexus can help in understanding how conscious abdominal breathing is a major tool in achieving: Improved digestion and absorption of nutrients. Improved blood sugar balance. A balanced adrenalin secretion, which in turn helps to balance the fight and flight response as well as regulating behaviour, motivation and attention. Improved sensitivity for the abdominal organs.
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Yoga teaches that we are in essence pure Spirit or Consciousness, which expresses itself through three bodies the physical, the astral, and the causal body. The astral body contains 72,000 nadis, or subtle energy channels. Seven chakras, or networks of nadis, are found along the sushumna nadi, the main energy channel located in the spinal cord. Each chakra of the astral body corresponds to a nerve plexus in the physical body. The solar plexus is the physical counterpart of the manipura chakra. Through the practice of asanas and pranayama, as well as other Hatha Yoga practices, the two main energy currents of the astral body, prana and apana or ha (sun) and tha (moon), converge and unite in the manipura chakra (ha-tha-yoga). In the physical body, this union can be compared to balancing the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Prana, nadis and chakras are subtle in nature. Therefore one may doubt that they actually exist. Visualizing the
impulses of the phrenic nerve travelling through the solar plexus to your diaphragm can help you to deepen your sensitivity for the solar plexus. By focusing on these physiological changes, you may become aware of the more subtle life force, or prana, which operates behind or actually within the impulses of the nervous system.
Swami Sivadasananda
Is a long time disciple of Swami Vishnudevananda and the director of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre in Madrid. He is also Yoga Acharya for the Sivananda Yoga Centres in Europe and S.America. e-mail: SwamiSivadasananda@sivananda.net
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TTC REFRESHER
Further Training for Sivananda Yoga Teachers
June 19 25, 2012
Fresh Inspiration!
www.sivananda.org/orleans www.sivananda.eu
igh in the mountains of Thailand, far North of Bangkok city, sits a jewel of a sanctuary, perched high on a hill amongst the cascading, lush greenery of the Chiang Rai province. The serenity of the place takes your breath away with its beauty and stillness. Some 420 meters above sea level, we find ourselves amidst bamboo forests, organic terraced vegetable gardens, water lily ponds, luxury cottages, tree jasmine and tropical orchids which together create a silent, ecological blend with nature. This bamboo-themed oasis, the Phu Chaisai Resort and Spa, was the location of the 2nd annual Sivananda Thailand Teacher Training Course (TTC), in October.
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The TTC welcomed 71 students from all over the world including Thailand, Japan, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium, Australia, Canada, the United States, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and India. The TTC teachers and support staff came from Canada, India, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Thailand. Swami Mahadevananda and Prahlada arrived to head the event. On the first day, the course initiation ceremony was held in the new bamboo sala, built especially by Phu Chaisai Resort for the TTC program. Swami Mahadevananda, Prahlada and special guest Khun Da, the owner of the resort, presided over the event. Since the inaugural Thailand TTC in 2010, our host, Khun Da, has visited Swami Mahadevananda in two locations: at Yoga Camp/Organization Headquarters in Canada, and at Dhanwantari Ashram, Neyyar Dam, in Kerala, India. From these experiences, Khun Da has developed a close affinity with the logistics and rhythm of the Sivananda Organization Ashram life, leading to more opportunity for Khun Da to participate in the 2011 course and enhance the experience of the TTC students. The students settled quickly into the resort facilities and the TTC program, making new friends and enjoying the beautiful natural setting of the tropical gardens. Immediately, Swami Mahadevananda inspired students with his thought-provoking Satsangs and vedanta lectures, discussing the paradigm of todays western society and its stereotypical views. Meanwhile, Prahlada delivered the introduction to teaching asanas, with students showing precision and confidence in their own asana practice. Prahlada also kept the
students focused with the Bhagavad Gita classes, simplifying the verses and teaching how to apply these lessons to their daily lives. From the Bhagavad Gita, Prahlad shifted to the Anatomy and Physiology lectures, where students showed much interest in learning and asked many in-depth questions during the study nights. Vijay (from Delhi) and Anjeli (from Yoga Camp) taught the asana practical classes. Practicing pranayama in the serene atmosphere of the mountains filled the students with more prana each day. The harmony with nature was evoked during many beautiful silent walks with the scenery of undulating hills and pockets of mist in the bamboo forests. The first silent walk was through giant bamboo forests and ponds with water lilies. Another walk, led by Khun Da, was to the picturesque tea plantation nearby where students had the memorable experience of picking tea leaves at sun rise. There were excursions into the forests after overnight rains, experiencing the fresh smells of wet soil and washed leaves. Another time, Prahlada led everyone on a magical pre-dawn silent walk to Khun Das house. On the roof of her hilltop mud house, students sat for a silent meditation and Satsang. The sun rose, lighting up the entire landscape of hills, river valley, forest and farmland, all framed by a rainbow. Following the Satsang, rain appeared so the pranayama class was quickly relocated to inside Khun Das house. Later Swami Mahadevanandaji joined the group and took everyone to his house for a surprise ice cream party. It was a morning to remember. As a long-standing tradition of Swami
Vishnudevanandas, bonfires were occasionally lit, with locally-grown popcorn and hot chocolate drinks, and students quickly offered their talents of singing and dancing to enhance the experience. Days off comprised of exciting adventures away from the resort, or a rest by the resorts pool or massage table. On the first day off, most students opted to take the local tour, organized by the resort. The first stop was the famous Mae Fah Luang Gardens at Doi Tung, former home of the Thai Kings mother. Next was the Golden Triangle a famous yellow sandbar in the middle of the Mekong River, forming the border of Thailand with Burma and Laos. The Opium Museum displayed the regions turbulent history. Another option was an overnight trip to nearby Chiang Mia and the Tiger Kingdom, where students could pet the tigers, followed by a visit to an Elephant Show for elephant rides, elephant football and to view the talented elephants painting scenic watercolours! One morning, Kriyas were taught with some students having success on their first attempt at Vastra Dhauti. The talent shows were enjoyed by all, with lovely singing from the TTC students and a very entertaining Japanese comedy dance. A group of guest students from a local university came to perform graceful Thai dances and lively percussion sessions. As the students became familiar with the chanting, the Satsangs were noticeably filled with prana, culminating with the first Sunday prayers ending in applause. It was noted that during the TTC, the Universal Prayer had been presented in a total of 13 languages. One evening after Satsang, students
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If you would like to help review additional recordings, so we can make more available on the internet, please send an email to sita@sivananda.net
By Charles Poncet
remark, but Schopenhauer was then the favorite of any young man romantic enough to be caught in the Zeitgeist and wondering what the future may have in store for him. Albert Einstein had said that after pondering about how the universe was created and reading the Gita, everything else seemed superfluous. Herman Hesse saw it as the revelation of wisdom which enables philosophy to blossom into religion; according to Carl Jung, the famous analogy in the Gita of the tree growing down and not up (Chapter 15 as I did not know back then) showed that we are not an earthly but a heavenly plant. Ralph Waldo Emerson claimed that Krishna had all the attributes of a monotheistic god and those of the Upanishadic absolute and even that misanthrope, fellow humans hater Henry David Thoreau would praise the Baghavad Gita! Such unanimity had to mean that the text was worth an effort. I tried and I submit that the Gita is similar to Ornytorinchus paradoxus, an Australian wonder, which lays eggs but breastfeeds its progeny, has a ducks beak but four legs, displays a beaver tail but has a venomous sting, sleeps 14 hours a day but reacts to the smallest electrical current generated by its prey. The Gita is liber paradoxus, a paradoxical book, not an intellectual pursuit as such, but neither fully in the realm of mystical musings; devotional in many ways but rigorously logical in others. In other words it is hard to categorize. Think of it as a handbook, perhaps. It contains the how to of the various yoga paths and the more one comes into contact with it, the deeper it seems to become. The idea that a warrior would refuse to fight because he does not wish to kill people he knows and loves seems pretty straightforward, and the reader immediately sympathizes with Arjunas despondency on the battlefield, only to see the other main character nothing less than a God, mind you give the hero a thorough dressing down and a brutal reminder that his duty as a soldier is to fight and kill. That has to be the most original and eye catching introduction to a philosophical discourse in human history! Beginners should not read the Gita but simply listen to an introduction and approach it with the firm assurance that nobody is asking them to believe anything, then read a couple of chapters and start thinking. Reactions may vary but the book is likely to be somewhat heavy going after the second chapter. It is then better set aside for a while, to be taken up again whenever the mind is tired of the daily Mahabharata. Not a holy book in the traditional sense, it is profoundly Hindu in its presentation of a universe working its ways through various cycles, yet obviously compatible with whatever Weltanschauung one most easily relates to. It is one of the few pieces of reading that seem to become more and more relevant as ones life moves through its different cycles, so it would be really self-defeating to stay away from it when it happens to be available. n
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Yoga Asa
Swami Sivananda (18871963)
Exhale and place the arms by the side. For the next round, in position 4 stretch the left leg back first. (Alternate the legs for each round). Exhale, palms together. Inhale, stretch up and back keeping the arms and legs straight. Inhale, stretch up and back keeping the arms and legs straight.
Swami Vishn
12
Exhale, bring the left foot forward so both feet are together, keep the head touching the knees
1 2 3
Exhale, bend forward and place the hands by the side of the feet, head touching the knees.
11 10 9
Sun Salutation
Surya Namaskar
Repeat 12 times
Inhale, stretch the right leg back, place the knee on the floor, keep the chin up.
Inhale, stretch the right leg forward and place the foot in line with the hands, keep the left knee on the ground and the chin up.
8 7 6
Retain the breath, keep the body in a straight line, hips parallel to the floor.
Exhale, push the hips up, and push the head in towards the knees. Exhale, drop the knees chest and forehead to the floor.
Inhale, lift the head and chest, keep the hips on the floor, the feet together and the arms slightly bent.
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na Chart
Swami Vishnudevananda (19271993)
Practice in the morning or evening before meals. Begin with the Sun Salutation. Synchronise the breath with each movement. The asanas should be practiced slowly and in a relaxed manner. Between asanas, relax with six to eight deep breaths in the Corpse pose
to avoid fatigue.
nudevananda
Concentrate your thoughts on each asana and try not to let your mind wander. After completion of the asanas relax for 10 minutes in the Corpse pose.
Headstand
Sirshasana
2 Shoulderstand
Sarvangasana
Plough
Halasana
Fish
Matsyasan
Cobra
Bhujangasana
7a Half Locust
Ardha Salabhasana
7b Full Locust
Salabhasana
Bow
Dhanurasana
10a
Crow
Kakasana
10b Peacock
Mayurasana
12 Triangle
Trikonasana
Final Relaxation
Savasana
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YOGA IN AUSTRALIA
Yoga in Australia
Bringing Swami Vishnudevanandas 5 Points of Yoga Down Under!
By Swami Bhagavatananda
ne of the most distinctive traits of Swami Sivananda and Swami Vishnudevananda was that they perceived the whole world as one family. For them, there was no stranger on this planet. Therefore, what made them most happy was when they saw the universal teachings of yoga spread to every corner of the world, and both dedicated their life and energy to help this to happen. Through the tireless and lifelong service of Swami Vishnudevananda to teach yoga in the name of his master, the Sivananda Centres and Ashrams came into being all over the world in Asia, the US, Canada, Europe and South America. Sivananda Yoga Centres all over the world? Wait a minute, there are indeed some blank spots left on this planet, none of them purposely neglected by Swamiji and Master Sivananda, who simply ran out of their span of life. One of these blank
spots is the whole continent of Australia, a huge country filled with sweet, yoga-enthusiastic people, writing emails to the Sivananda Centres such as: I am Australian and live in Sydney/Melbourne /Brisbane/ Perth and would be very interested in learning traditional, integral yoga as taught by the Sivananda Yoga Centres. As I saw on your webpage that you have Centres in many countries, but cannot afford a long distance flight, I was wondering if there are any Sivananda Centres or Retreats or Teachers Training Courses here in Australia? So far, all that could be done was, with a heavy heart, to send a reply in the negative.
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YOGA IN AUSTRALIA
Actually, to say there is no Sivananda Yoga in Australia is not entirely true there has been quite some activity in the past. Swami Vishnudevananda himself was in Australia in the fifties for a month on his way from India to the West. He stayed mainly in Perth, but also visited Sydney and Melbourne, and over the years, some Australians became close disciples of Swamiji. Further, there were two Teachers Training Courses in Australia, in the years 1980 and 1981. Both took place on the Gold Coast in Queensland and were taught by close disciples of Swamiji with Swami Vishnudevananda himself being present for some time in one of the two courses. There also existed for some time affiliated Centres in Brisbane and the Blue Mountains and some Retreats also took place, mainly conducted by Swami Mahadevanandaji. Over the past years, activities have been mainly kept up by Kamala from the Blue Mountains, who knew Swamiji in person, ran an affiliated Centre for many years and is still teaching Sivananda Yoga Classes on a regular basis. Now, in order to continue Swamijis work, Swami Kailasananda, who is the Acharya for Australia, went there in December 2011, accompanied by a small group, to conduct a retreat near Sydney and programmes in Sydney and Melbourne. The idea was not to only re-establish activities, but also test the waters for a future TTC and maybe even a Sivananda Centre in Australia. The organization of the programmes was done through the London Centre and everyone involved got quite excited during the progress, feeling like pioneers! We were surprised how extensive the Australian database turned out to be and how many Sivananda teachers were among them. One of our close teachers in London helped to find a suitable place for a Retreat one hour south of Sydney while on a family visit to Australia. Other former London teachers, now living in Australia, helped with finding locations for the Sydney and Melbourne Open House programmes and organized a team of Karma Yogis who did a wonderful job with poster and leaflet distribution. Enrolments for the retreat started pouring in immediately
after we had set up a special webpage, sent out some e-newsletters and started flyer and poster distribution. In the end we had 43 registrations (and one baby), among them many students who had done the TTC. Flying from London to Australia with over 20 hours flight time, 13 hours of time difference and 2 days of travelling brought the term long distance flight for us to a whole new level. Upon arrival in Sydney we were warmly greeted and lovingly hosted by the Sydney Sivananda teachers and spent the rest of the day relaxing, taking a stroll along the harbour and trying to get rid of jetlag and body stiffness caused by the long flight. In the evening we had Satsang with the teachers and Karma Yogis and we could feel Master Sivananda and Swamijis energy already manifesting. The next morning, after Satsang, we took a lovely walk through the famous botanical gardens and then got ready for our Open House. We had been able to secure the excellent location of the Sydney Park Pavilion, a light and spacious hall surrounded by beautiful gardens in a well frequented area of town. We had a good turnout for the evening, both complete beginners as well as people who had in some way been in touch with Sivananda Yoga already. They all enjoyed the Asana classes and lecture on Swamijis 5 points of Yoga, followed by delicious snacks and tea. We also had set up tables with brochures and flyers and distributed loads of information material. Many expressed their joy and gratitude of having Sivananda Yoga coming to Sydney. Again we could strongly feel the blessing and support of the Masters. The next day, which was a Friday, we left Sydney for the Otford weekend retreat. By car it is one hour south of Sydney, Govinda Valley Spiritual Retreat Centre is situated in a lovely natural setting of pristine forest and luscious bushland. Amazingly enough, in spite of the setting, the Otford train station is just five minutes walking distance away, making the Retreat Centre easy to access. The staff welcomed us very warmly and served us delicious,
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YOGA IN AUSTRALIA
lovingly prepared meals throughout the weekend. Govinda Valley is surrounded by spectacular natural beauty and is a short drive from several sparkling beaches. Invitingly illuminated, endowed with the purity of the forest air, the spacious Yoga hall proved to be a wonderful place for Asana classes, lectures and Satsangs. Students started to arrive from all over the country (including Tasmania!) and got settled in their rooms or tents, and then the retreat started with an introductory talk and yoga classes for the different levels. After enjoying a yogic feast for dinner, everyone gathered in the big hall for Satsang. Thanks to Kamala, who basically brought the complete contents of her meditation room with her, we could decorate the hall beautifully and set up a gorgeous altar. Swami Kailasananda led the Meditation and powerful Mantra chanting and gave a well appreciated talk on mind control. Saturday, we had another lovely day and besides the yoga activities we all enjoyed a walk through the forest and along the cliff line providing a gorgeous ocean view. The eucalyptus scented air of the Australian bush and colourful exotic birds made us feel we were paying a visit to paradise. In the evening Swami Kailasananda led a teachers meeting with 19 teachers. Many among the teachers expressed their hearts desire to have a Sivananda Centre in their area, retreats on a regular basis and TTC and ATTC in Australia. With great zeal and enthusiasm, strategies were discussed to set up future activities and Karma Yoga projects were allocated such as: Looking for suitable places for retreats and TTC Looking for possible locations for Sivananda Centres in Sydney and Melbourne and maybe also Brisbane Setting up a webpage with profiles of active Sivananda teachers to enable students to find a teacher in their area, with something similar on Facebook Forming Satsang groups for Sydney and Melbourne with the intention to meet once a month Parallel to the teachers meeting we held a Mantra talk for those interested in Mantra initiation and afterwards everyone met for another inspiring Satsang before a full day came to its end. All rested for the night, sending a silent prayer of thanks for the working heaters in the rooms since an unexpected drop in temperature made the nights quite chilly. On Sunday, we had another gorgeous day of yogic practice and nature walk and Swami Kailasananda gave Mantra initiation to four students who felt ready to take that important step on their spiritual path. She also blessed in the name of the Masters the sweet baby son of former staff members Madhava and Shyamala and applied holy powders on his surprised, frowning little forehead. May he be blessed with a glorious future, long life and happiness. Needless to say that the little one quickly became everybodys pet during the weekend, being passed from one person to the next for a cuddle with the poor mother searching through the whole building for her son. After a final gathering and Arati, warm goodbyes were exchanged and we returned to Sydney. On the way back, we stopped for a beach walk. We made a second halt at the huge Venkateshwara temple and immediately felt transported to India. The temple consists of two spacious separate buildings. In the first one Vishnu, Lakshmi, Andal, Rama and Hanuman are worshipped, the second one is dedicated to Siva, Parvati, Ganesha, Subramanya and Durga. The temple is richly decorated and buzzing with pujas and other rituals of worship performed by a number of Indian priests. The following day we paid a visit to Kamala in the Blue Mountains, who showed us around that area of spectacular beauty and also drove us to the place with the best view on the famous peaks called the Three Sisters Afterwards we went to . her beautiful house outside of Katoomba and prayed in her meditation room and had tea. The next morning we took a flight to Melbourne, the last stop on our trip. The Melbourne teachers and Karma Yogis received us affectionately and with the same hospitality that just seems to be part of Australian nature. The VIYETT/Hampton Yoga Centre had offered to host our two-day programme and made its beautiful, large yoga hall available for our activities. We had very well attended asana classes, lectures and Satsang, and everyone enjoyed delicious prasad and tea afterwards. Many students came for personal talks and guidance on their further practice. Some future teachers from a Teachers Training programme at the Centre also participated on both days. Our heartfelt thanks to the owner and staff of the Hampton Centre who made the programmes happen so smoothly! As we had some time during the day, we enjoyed an early morning walk and sunbath at one of Melbournes beautiful beaches and drove through town afterwards to search for suitable areas for a Sivananda Centre. Time flew by and the next morning we had to leave. Swami Kailasananda flew to India for the EBM meeting and the rest of the group returned to Europe. All of us had the feeling that it is the strong wish of Swami Sivananda and Swami Vishnudevananda to have a TTC and a permanent place in the form of a Centre in Australia, and work to make it happen continues.
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YOGA IN AUSTRALIA
A four week intensive residential course covering all aspects of Yoga, just one hour south of Sydney in the luscious bush land of Otford. Govinda Valley is surrounded by spectacular natural beauty and is a short drive from several sparkling beaches.
Yoga Vacation
January 14 February 9, 2013 (free choice of dates) Weekend Retreat: September 21 23, 2012 In Sydney, Melbourne and Byron Bay in September 2012
Sivananda Yoga Australia
Founder: Swami Vishnudevananda
Special Workshops
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T
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here are six systems of Indian philosophy, not more nor less. Before we discuss these 6 systems, it will help us if we understand what Indian philosophy is, and even before that, what philosophy itself is. Philosophy (philo-sophia, love of wisdom) is the pursuit of wisdom and as such is superior to any of mans other pursuits, including knowledge, and it is more subtle. In everyday life, manpower, or money-power, shouts. It cant speak in a low voice. Bull-power, or muscle-power, also shouts. Wisdom speaks very slowly and quietly, but it goes deeper inside the listener. In the western tradition, philosophy is an intellectual pursuit which relies on reason, argument, discussion and debate. Philosophical knowledge has grown from age to age, from the
Greek tradition Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle to the contemporary stage. The philosopher states a belief, and then through logical argument explains how he has penetrated the multifariousness of life to arrive at his conclusion. In this way, a philosopher is a distinguished person who tries to provide the key to the beginning and the end of the world, to existence and life itself. Indian philosophy is much older than its western counterpart, and has a slightly different approach. In the west, philosophy is predominantly an intellectual and rational pursuit based on reason, argument, discussion and debate, Indian philosophy is more intuitive. Intuition is supra-rational, above reason, above argument, above debate. It is direct experience, or direct perception, for which the special term is realisation.
3. Samkhya
Samkhya subscribes to dualism and is itself a dualistic system. Dualism means that there are two parallel realities: like the two rails of train track, they run close to each other but never collide. One reality is matter (Prakriti) and the other is spirit (Purusha). The world is the manifestation of Prakriti, and the soul or Self is Purusha. Our bodies, including the physical body, mind
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4. Yoga
Yoga is the supplementary and complementary system to Samkhya. The sage Patanjali says that there are 8 steps to yoga and, one by one, the aspirant can ascend to Samadhi, the 8th and final stage, a trance-like state when one forgets pain and pleasure, 6. Uttar Mimamsa or Vedanta the body, sickness, thirst, hunger, sleep and all the functions The last of the 6 systems is known as Uttar Mimamsa or that belong to the lower range of our existence. Vedanta, propounded by Badarayana (also called Vyasa). Just The 8 steps are: Yama; Niyama; Asana; Pranayama; as Samkhya and Yoga are complementary systems, as are Nyaya Pratyahara; Dharana; Dhyana; and Samadhi all terms used and Vaisheshika, so also can Mimamsa and Vedanta be deemed by Patanjali. Step by step, the complementary and supplementary aspirant ultimately reaches Samadhi. systems to each other. Samadhi is union with ones own real Samkhya says that the soul Vedanta is the philosophy being. Yoga does not interfere with is immortal, it is not born propounded by the Upanishads. the Samkhya theory of existence, it The Upanishads are the cream and will not die. It is only supplements it by adding the practical of the Vedas, coming at the the body which has been steps we can take to realise that our concluding portion of each of the soul is immortal. If one mistakenly composed and which will Vedas. Whatever has been identifies the Self with nature, which depicted, discussed and conveyed decompose. Why should the is inert, unconscious, mind-less matter, through the Upanishads is known soul worry for this bodily then yoga has a methodology to put as Vedanta. It is a thoroughly us back on the right path. The existence? metaphysical, ontological theory, methodology is known as Ashtanga dealing with the nature of ultimate yoga: Ashta means 8, Ashtanga reality and the contrast of this means 8-fold path. It can be understood within a few minutes changing, perishable, mundane world from that absolute, but it takes a whole lifetime of actually practising it to master it. eternal, abiding reality. How can we know which sources will Otherwise, when it comes to the crunch, when we are facing reveal the ultimate reality to us? That has been discussed death, we forget the philosophy and our fear of death takes in Vedanta. over. Like a rat is afraid of a cat and a cat is afraid of a dog, so Vedanta has a huge literature, but its essential philosophy there is a systematic fear of being hunted by death throughout has been contained in just 5 sentences. They are known creation. Man has many problems but the last and foremost as Mahavakyas. problem is death. All the 6 systems of Indian philosophy were initially When we are born we do not experience pleasure or pain propounded in aphoristic sutra and are very cryptic with because we need some amount of knowledge or consciousness few words. Since then, they have been discussed in detail to experience even pleasure. Similarly, we cannot know what death by acharyas and scholars. Like mantra, the aphorisms of the will bring us, we can only imagine it. Yoga says that, although 6 systems are short and uncomplicated but they carry great the spirit is quite apart from the physical material body, the two depth of meaning. n separate entities have become compromised, and therefore the real purpose of life is to discriminate between the two. Then fear of death will be eliminated. That is the purpose of yoga, or yoga philosophy. All of the 6 systems ultimately have the same target liberation (also known as mukti, or moksha, or salvation). They Professor Pandey is a retired professor of Indian philosophy from show the way to move from ignorance to knowledge and break Vrindavan, North India. the cycle of bondage which causes us to suffer.
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alvation, liberation, When I first started working on the project, psychological enlightenment, patterning, and karma. I thought I would be helping and teaching Samadhi: these those inside, but I quickly realized that I had This ignorance brings words name about conditions as much to learn from them. The boundless where the individuals a transcendental state of being. Yoga students rights are sacrificed, wisdom of the yoga teachings were often are instructed that the crystallized in the correspondence from our lost, or stolen. The experience of such a state individual finds himself incarcerated yoga students, people just like of spiritual attainment with a relative loss me, searching for an intrinsic peace from the of liberty to experience is beyond all and any description, but its potential ultimate imprisoner of us all our own egos the consequences of is immediately inferred by his plight, and ends up and minds. looking into our longing for in prison to live a freedom and our joy when we have it, even fleetingly. The tragic form of personal dominion in the name of justice and ultimate goal of yoga practice is moksha, the liberation of the supposed rehabilitation. fragmented psyche from the worldly bounds of ignorance and As above so below, the dictum says, proclaiming that our suffering, to the glory of Self-realization, bliss, and eternal expansive personal interior psyche tends to fructify as the world wholeness. Here, in my country of residence, the United States in which one dwells; all exterior manifestations are no less than of America, the word freedom is imbedded into the national symbolic mirrors bringing us face-to-face with the darkest psyche and the civic fundamental philosophies. Societys history corners of our minds and our edge of learning. The human and mythology, for better and for worse, is framed around a psyches tendency to lock away our fears, misjudgments, shame, center point of freedom. The culture strives to define and live up and the resulting confusion deep into the shadowy recesses of to the ideal of liberty, albeit a different, more immediately our subconscious is much the same scenario, magnified by the collective consciousness. It is shaping, or warping, our communities, graspable form of freedom than that of moksha or Samadhi, society, and culture. By putting away individuals into prisons which have, in a way, no external or apparent qualities. In the at alarming rates, they disappear from the public mindscape, name of liberty, individuals, communities, and nations set out in but not without the societal consequences similar to the jailed force to attain freedom, defend it, and secure it at all cost emotions of the individual, where one becomes emotionally even, it seems, if the cost is freedom itself. numb. Empathy and intuition die as the underground streams Ironically, the nation that uses the word freedom most of the individual mind and collective mind do not see light. frequently casts the longest shadow from the brightness of its The teachings of Yoga tell us that, beneath the illusory veils unmet ideals. Currently, the United States incarcerates more of our isolation, insecurities, and instinctual emotions, there is a than 2.3 million human beings (mostly for nonviolent drug perfection; the Self. This Self is pure, eternal, and ultimately free. offenses), amounting to more than 1 in every 100 Americans This is who we really are. This greater wisdom, for those of us being in prison. The United States has the largest prison on the outside, can easily be taken for granted, mistaking our population in the world: although its countrys population own good fortune as an end in itself. This builds a mental cage makes up less than 5% of the global population of 7 billion, that imprisons the flight of the pure mind and erects a new it holds 25% of the worlds prisoners. kind of wall around our hearts, blockading the ability to truly This supposed land of privilege and freedom often comes acknowledge the suffering of others at an existential level, and into collision with personal responsibility and integrity. even at a grossly obvious apparent level, with millions on the Sometimes this happens intentionally, sometimes accidentally, inside of barbed wire, iron bars, stress, and pain. but always it is through ignorance of the greater social forces,
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Prisoners Letters
May these few inspiring quotes from letters awaken your own sense of duty to uplift all beings:
Hello! I recently received the book you sent me (CIBY). WOW!!! Thank you very much. I didnt expect something so nice. T.M. Colorodo. Ive just started reading Mind; Its Mysteries and Control . . . its proving to be another fantastic book. I also wanted you to know that the letter you sent with the book was really appreciated as well. We all took it as a huge compliment that our progress on the yogic path means so much to all of you who are part of the Prison Outreach Project and the Yoga Center itself too. E.J. Nevada I leave here in 18 days. The book has been a great help in dealing with my transition back into society. D.W. South Carolina Dear Friend . . . thank you for sending it to me (CIBY) . . . Also, thank you for writing If you have any difficulties or questions, please feel free to contact me. Prisoners are basically an abandoned group of people. So you offering to help with difficulties and questions means a lot. S.C. Texas My paths are becoming clear and Im ever-guided to cleanse and purify all about. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. P.S. Is it possible to write to Swami Vishnudevananda? If so, where??? J.D. California
Donations
Checks can be mailed to: Sivananda Prison Project 1200 Arguello Blvd. San Francisco, CA
Online:
www.sfyoga.com (paypal) Or call (415) 681-2731 (visa, mastercard, discover
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eCooking with
Fresh Green Herbs
Fresh green herbs do not only turn the simplest dishes into delicious treats but also supply the body with precious vitamins and anti-oxidants. Enjoy this yogic-vegetarian meal which promotes Sattva (harmony) in body and mind while at the same time fulfilling all dietary needs of the body.
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Method:
Peel and grate the carrots. Wash and tear the rucola. Mix all ingredients together.
Method:
Heat the oil in a pot, add the potatoes and the squash and stir fry for a few minutes. Add 4 cups of boiling water, salt, pepper and nutmeg, cover and let it simmer until the vegetables are tender. Blend into a creamy soup and add the dill.
r es
Method:
Chop the parsley, leaving a few sprigs whole for garnishing. Wash and drain the rice, add 2 small cups of water and the salt, put a lid on, let it boil and then simmer on low heat without stirring for about 30 minutes until cooked (if you are using other rice than Basmati cooking time can be up to one hour). Sprinkle with the juice of half the lime and the chopped Parsley. Cut the remaining lime into wedges and use it along with the whole parsley sprigs for garnishing.
r es
r es
Method:
Soak the butter beans overnight in water and boil them in fresh water until soft (approx. 1 hour). Blend the beans with some of the water in which they were boiled and all other ingredients (except the basil) into a creamy puree. Fold in the chopped basil and garnish with a wedge of lemon and a few basil leaves. This puree also makes a great dip or bread spread.
r es
Method:
Wash and dice all veggies. Chop the sage and rosemary (discard the hard stem of the rosemary). Heat the oil in a pan, stir fry the veggies for 3 minutes, add a few spoons of water, cover and cook on low flame until the veggies are cooked, but still crunchy (approx. 10 minutes). Put the sunflower seeds or pine nuts, green herbs, salt, pepper and nutmeg with some water into a food processor and blend into a creamy sauce. Mix it with the veggies. Sprinkle with the crumbled Feta cheese and the olives.
Method:
Whip the cream and set aside. Mix the Mascarpone, yoghurt, sugar and vanilla essence. Mash half of the raspberries and fold the pulp and whole berries along with the whipped cream into the Yoghurt crme. Garnish each portion with a dab of whipped cream, a sprig of lemon balm and a raspberry.
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This article is in memory of my great Teacher, Padma Bhushan Dr. Ganapati Sthapati who left this physical plane on September 6th 2011.
Let the gods purify me, let men purify me with a prayer. Cleanse me all creatures that exist! May Pavamana make me pure. With this mantra the central hole should be established. Vastusutra Upanishad
I would like to start this second article with words of wisdom of an American well-known architect Frank Lloyd Wright (1867 1959). Please dont be afraid to think out of the box, dont hesitate to follow your dreams and to stand out from the crowd. Dont hesitate to dive into the Vedas of the ancients! You may find that many well-known scientists, moviemakers, architects, artists, poets and us regular folks did really dive into the Vedas and then made our own small or big discoveries, or found explanations to the very scientific or very private questions about life, truth or laws of nature. For example, a world known psychologist Carl Gustav Jung was fond of the Vedas. Look at his beautiful mandalas in the book entitled The Red Book. According to Albert Einsteins niece, Albert Einstein kept on his desk an esoteric book, The Secret Doctrine by H. P. Blavatsky which most likely had helped him to understand the TimeSpace reality of the Universe even deeper, and so forth. Wow! These world known people could connect their professional fields to the Vedas and make use of the Vedic knowledge in the modern world of
Form follows function that has been misunderstood. Form and function should be one, joined in a spiritual union.
Frank Lloyd Wright, 1908
I was talking on the phone to one landscape architect about business and went to his website. Then I found the above quote. I asked my customer, Did you place this quote on your website? He said, Yes. I replied to him happily that it is very true what Frank Lloyd Wright said! I was so thrilled that Frank Lloyd Wright got it right! Someone would ask me how much I know about Frank Lloyd Wright. I would reply that I know very little but I do know that he was a unique thinker and was not afraid to follow his great intuition. We all have wonderful intuition but we rarely listen to it. Dear readers!
thinking! Why cant we? So lets try again. Frank Lloyd Wright said that "Form follows function that has been misunderstood. Form and function should be one, joined in a spiritual union." Why is that so? OK. Please get ready to dive really deep! Function is the intrinsic structure of a form. Function is the quality of the main idea embedded into the form. Form is the function. Form and function are one. Yes, they are in a spiritual union. Why is this union spiritual? It is spiritual because function has its own energetic configuration in the Subtle or Spiritual Space. This specific configuration is the
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By chanting a mantra we are turning on the engine of the function. Someone might say ,God! This is really complicated. Yes and no. This is a very natural process which was known by ancient saints and described in the Vedas, Upanishads, Shastras and other scriptures. This had been forgotten by our modern civilization. Now we are finally waking up. For example, the heart pumps blood. So the heart has a very specific form in order to pump blood in the most efficient way. The form of the heart is the optimal form to perform the pumping function. So Vaastu Shastra refer to different types of energy grids (mandalas) for specific functions. According to Vaastu Shastra, a building with an octagonal shape is dynamic and is recommended for example for theatres. A building with a round shape is not recommended for living in because it has a very moving, spinning space but it is good for market places. It will help retailers to sell their products faster and so forth.
When form is not representing true feelings, experiences and necessary functions then this form suffers and becomes sick. This is why some buildings are sick buildings and have sick building syndrome. These sick buildings internally suffer like real beings from their wasted lives like humans suffer on the death bed from the realization of lifes unfulfilled purpose. Buildings are real living organisms because they encapsulate conscience Space inside themselves.
From the North come the twelve divine forms, thus they say. In this way according to the different qualities the one Brahman becomes twelvefold. Just as Surya is the Lord of all lights, according to their qualities are the (different) gods, and according to their features their forms arise, and from those the secondary divinities are derived. This is truth. Vastusutra Upanishad
It is not part of a fairytale. It is actually a description of deep cosmic processes happening in the space. It is about the Divine Mechanics of the conscious space. There are twelve different intrinsic qualities evolving from a single source of the Living Energy One Brahman. These twelve qualities are the base for twelve Divine Forms Gods. When twelve Divine
vibration of Divine String(s). (Please see the first article in the Spring 2011 edition of YogaLife Magazine). When the vibration of the string(s) becomes rhythmic then the subtle form hardens and organizes itself as a Mandala of energy or the energy grid. The next step is the manifest of the subtle form (Mandala) into the material world as a living material form. What is vibrating? The consciousness is vibrating. Why is the consciousness vibrating? It is vibrating with its own ideas, feelings and experiences because it is alive! This hardened form has its own sound! What is that sound? That sound
The diagram above illustrates the quotation from Vastusutra Upanishad and gives us an idea of the roots and causes of the form.
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As Visnu bestows liberation, (the Sakti of) liberation is Sri, Prthivi is to be enjoyed in the form of the object of enjoyment. As from Rudras aspect of liberation arises Amba, from his attitude of enjoyment Ambika, these two. As from Indras action of surrender comes the sacrifice, in his aspect of enjoyment (his Sakti) is Indrani.
Vastusutra Upanishad
Example 1
Example 2
Example 1
The image of the house on the left shows a violated rule of Vaastu Shastra Unobstructed Brahmasthan. The central part of the building, the Brahmasthan which is the concentration of the Divine Energy, is obstructed by the chimney. This building is really sick. It cannot breath and charge its own inhabitants with living energy. This house has a negative effect on the lives of the inhabitants.
This is the description of the intrinsic processes of the Space and its organization. This is the description of the roots of functions. This is the organics of the Form in a spiritual union with its own function Sakti. Do we really need to know these processes? Do we really need to dig that deep? Yes, of course we do need to know in-depth the processes. How else can an architect create a healing form for a building if he doesnt know about the birth of the form, the sacred processes behind it. The architect and designers are like good doctors they should know the philosophy-theory and the anatomy of the space organization. A good doctor knows not only the physiology of the body but is also aware of the complicated energetic structure of the whole body-mind-spirit system. A good doctor cures the root of disease first from disturbances in the energy fields and then the physical ailment naturally goes away. It is the same with a good architect who knows about the energetic structure of the space; thus, he can create a healthy and fully functioning form for the building which will be giving energy to people instead of draining it from them in the trial of restoring its own energy field. If our modern professionals know and understand these principles of Nature then they can definitely create beautiful, healthy and functional buildings and cities! Cities follow the same rules as buildings do. A building is a cell of an organism called the city. The Vaastu rules are the same for the city as for the building. It is like fractals implemented in nature. For example, a leaf of a tree resembles the form of a tree. The same Divine organic rules are working in a small unit of Living Energy a house, as well as in the big unit of Living Energy a city.
Example 2
The image on the right shows a healthy building where the Brahmasthan is reinforced with a skylight in the form of a cupola. This house accepts the Divine Energy freely and charges itself and also the people who work in this building with living energy. It is a very happy house. It makes people happy too and gives them more inspiration to work better with enthusiasm. I would like to share from my own experience. Somebody asked me to evaluate a mini hotel whose owner had died in a car accident. I found that the main door of the owners living quarters was in the pada of death of the Vaastu Purusha Mandala, and the grid of the building had also shifted. The owner had lived fifteen years in the building before the accident happened. Of course, we can argue that many things pointed to different correlations but you will be amazed how precise the ancient teachings are. It is a big dream of mine to conduct a study of cities based on the Vaastu Shastra. Evaluation criteria, supported by the facts derived from the study, would be used to create a manual a suggestion of true Green Design Rules of Nature for future city developments. This work would help to create well balanced and happy houses and cities. Now we can see how crucial design and planning are. Architects, town planners and designers are in charge of the development of proper architectural forms and images. Proper images lead us to the liberation impacting positively our entire well-being and vise versa, discordant forms and ill proportioned images lead us to darkness and depression. If architects, town planners, designers and other creative people from different fields dont know or dont want to know the importance of the spiritual unity of the function and the form, and that if they violate this unity then the suffering of a building or a city will make people suffer too. So lets dig really deep into the Vedas and Shastras and build happy cities and houses!
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Wishing you all a happy life, a happy city and a happy house! n Olga Mandodari is a civil engineer and a renowned Vaastu Shastra practitioner consultant. Born in St Petersburg in Russia and now living in Washington DC. Olga runs a successful consultancy advising on how to design and build living spaces with healing properties. www.mandodari.com
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Sadhana Intensive
in Orleans, France, August 2011
By Swami Vasudevananda
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n early summer I learned that I would be participating in the August Sadhana Intensive in Orleans. It is a special course and I silently looked forward to the opportunity. The Sivananda Yoga Center in Munich, where I am serving as a staff member, kept me busy for the weeks approaching the course and, as is always the case, time passed by very quickly. The date of my departure to Orleans drew nearer. Last projects had to be finished, the monthly accounts had to be sent to our accountant, the last yoga class had to be taught, and packing had to be done quickly. The last day before my departure was quite intense and ended only way after midnight. The next morning I rose at 5am to get the train to Paris. For a couple of years now there has been a fast train connection (with the French highspeed train TGV) between Munich and
Paris which takes six hours. It leaves Munich at 6.20am and arrives in Paris at lunchtime, 12.30pm. It is, in a way, a door-to-door connection between the Sivananda Yoga Centers in Munich and Paris because both centers are very near to the train stations. Having arrived in Paris, I went directly to the Sivananda Yoga Center for lunch. There I met the staff, some students and teachers whom I knew from my staff-time in Paris, and Isvara and Vasudev staff from the Sivananda Yoga Center in Berlin who already waited to continue the trip to Orleans with me. In the early afternoon, the three of us, joined by Mahadev, one of the Paris staff, took our train from Gare dAusterlitz, the Paris railway station for trains going to the South-West of France, to Les Aubrais Orleans. By chance we met two other yoginis at the railway station
who were also on their way to do the Sadhana Intensive in Orleans. Finally we arrived at the ashram. It is always a great relief to arrive there after the long journey. The first thing you notice is the very peaceful energy at the ashram. The ashram is in a rural area of France, and in fact the Bois dOrleans is the largest forest area in France. The ashram is in the middle of fields and woods, the next village a few kilometers away. It is a beautiful area for silent walks walking over the grass and in the woods, the sun slowly setting, the only noise to be heard that of birds flying in the skies. The ashram area itself has many beautiful, tall, ancient trees. The main building is the Chateau an 18th century castle - with a lot of guest rooms, the reception and the boutique. The large meditation room is under the old wooden roof of a side building and has a very large glass window front facing east. During morning satsangs you can experience the beauty of the rising sun. The ashram temple is under a large, permanent tent construction and for most of the year is cared for by an Indian priest. The main murti is a beautiful white marble Krishna.
During the course we did almost all of the classical pranayamas and bandhas described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika
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The ashram is an ideal place for such a programme as the Sadhana Intensive: it is very quiet, nature is very pure, the air fresh and clean and the temperature moderate
bandhas. During the course we also did almost all of the classical pranayamas and bandhas described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. The practice for the day was always presented to us by Swami Kailasananda, acharya and director of the ashram, who was the main teacher of the course. She was assisted by Swami Gopalananda and Swami Anantananda. In the beginning, most of us practiced on the large asana platform but over time many of the participants moved to the garden choosing a suitable tree under which they did their practice. During the day we came together for one lecture. Swami Kailasananda presented the Hatha Yoga Pradipika to us and sometimes we studied the Viveka Chudamani and the Srimad Bhagavatam. The food consisted mainly of kicheree (cooked after Swami Vishnudevanandas own recipe) supplemented by other vegetable dishes. In the mornings we were served delicious and very nourishing almond milk. In the second week, a third practice session was introduced in the evening. We started our daily practice after a short morning satsang at around 7am and ended the third practice sometimes only at 10pm, with of course some break periods in between. By the end of the course, the practice took me almost twelve hours to complete. The morning
Swami Vishnudevananda stands in front of the small hut where he practised intense pranayama for fourteen hours daily.
Time passed by very quickly as always. In the beginning of the course, we found the practice quite strenuous (we noticed that it can be hard work just to sit doing pranayama) but towards the end it started to flow. In the end, we were all very happy to have had the chance to do this very special course given to us by Swami Vishnudevananda at this equally very special place. Some of us were already starting to miss the kicheree at the graduation meal that the kitchen had lovingly prepared for us on the last day. n Swami Vasudevananda
is co-director of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre in Munich.
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PARIS, FRANCE
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre
Interest in yoga is booming in France. Since the move of the Paris centre to its new location in 2008, the centre has seen its student numbers increasing very steadily. Students enjoy the spacious and bright reception area, a place to meet, read and contemplate. A yoga festival organized in November around the release of Swamijis newly reprinted French Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga resulted in the busiest day in the history of the Paris centre so far with 158 students for the trial class alone. The book is now selling much better than in its photocopy format and is distributed in bookstores, allowing for Swamijis message to touch many more people in French speaking countries.
MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre
35 YEARS JUBILEE
ORLEANS, FRANCE
Ashram de Yoga Sivananda
The garden project at the Orleans Ashram is taking shape : We have the visit of Julia and Charles Yelton, specialists in permaculture, who have already helped at several of the Sivananda Ashrams. They made a master plan for the property and had many inspiring ideas to move the Ashram towards sustainability. With the help of the Ashram gardener and inspired karma yogis, we are starting to implement the plan. We need help, both financial and energy wise. If you would like to be part of this exciting project, please email us at orleans@sivananda.net
The Sivananda Yoga Center in Montevideo, Uruguay is 35 years old! We celebrated with a wonderful Yoga Festival. Many teachers, some of them serving at the Center since its inauguration in 1976, like Kanti Devi, Chandra, Karuna and Nirmala, together with more recent but very dedicated yogis such as Ramachandra, Vyasa, Madhavi, Rudra and Lalita offered a broad program of activities, some of them free of charge, covering many aspects of yoga, including a Hindustani music concert by local classical musicians. Radha Chaitanya came from Buenos Aires, Argentina to teach several courses. The celebrations started on Friday, September 31 in the morning with a Puja to the Divine Mother. Later, in the afternoon meditation for peace, a lecture by Kanti Devi, an asana demonstration by the advanced group and a performance by the Sivananda choir, including local songs and kirtans. Ramachandra, one of the senior teachers of the centre, gave an inspiring lecture on the five points of Swami Vishnudevananda. Teachers and students were happy and inspired by the festival celebrating the inauguration of the first Sivananda Yoga Center in Latin America, focal point from which all other centers in the continent gradually developed.
BERLIN, GERMANY
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre
The main asana hall as well as the boutique got a new look the asana hall was repainted and got a new wooden floor. The boutique area was equipped with a new carpet, new sofas and new tables. Everything looks very shiny and gives the centre a more modern outlook. The renovations were finished just in time for the annual special guest program in January.
VIENNA, AUSTRIA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre
The Vienna Centre is glad to have received three new white marble murthis: On the 20th of June Lord Ganesha, Sri Lakshmi and Sri Sarasvati arrived from Jaipur and were immediately welcomed with a small puja by the staff. Their wonderful and powerful shine is the highlight of each and every Satsang and they are adored by students, teachers and staff alike. A new altar is being designed and presumably early next year the official installation will take place. Everybody is already looking forward to this grand event.
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By Swami Sitaramananda
hakti Yoga is the branch of yoga that focuses on devotion and devotional practices. God is love and love is God. Bhakti yoga uses our fundamental emotional relationships and sublimates them into pure, selfless, divine love. There are 9 traditional ways to sublimate emotions to devotion, overcome egoism, and realize God according to the teachings of Bhakti Yoga. These methods can be applied in our relationships with others: 1. Listen to inspiring divine stories Develop the capacity to listen to others without judgment. Be honest in what you say about yourself. 2. Sing Gods glories Learn to praise others and to look for their positive qualities and be appreciative of ones own positive qualities.
Practice of Bhakti Yoga in daily life: learning about Self and seeing God through relationships
There are many different types of relationship and, in fact, life is nothing but relationships. Nothing is independent. If you think you are independent, you are creating problems for yourself because we are constantly in relationships at all times. The yoga of relationships teaches us to understand that we are in this constant complex network of relationships. It also teaches us that we need to learn from the emotional patterns that we usually follow within relationships. It is through the network of relationships that we learn and grow. People in relationships will serve as mirrors to each other emotionally in various ways so that they reach the core issue of relationships, which is the relationship with their own Self. In Yoga, we aim to stop the cycle of recurring negative emotional patterns of past relationships by looking within and starting to develop awareness about oneself. It is about being self-sufficient not in an egoistic manner but in a spiritual manner. We must find ourselves in order to have true relationships with other people. The moment that you improve your level of self love, your level of love of other people will also improve. It is automatic. If you hate yourself, you will hate other people. If youre angry with yourself, you will be angry with other people. If you are disconnected from yourself, then you will also be disconnected from other people. So there is no point in projecting blame or in trying to correct things externally, you need to correct things internally. If you find that you are always losing yourself in relationships, it is because you have lost your connection with your inner self. If you can constantly maintain the relationship with yourself, then you will have beautiful relationships externally.
3. Remembrance of His name and presence in prayers Learn to hold people you love in your heart in a prayerful mood, feel the sacredness of relationships. Be detached and forgiving. Be grateful for all people who you interact with in your life. 4. Service with humility Learn to actively serve everyone as God whether you like them or not. 5. Worship Learn to see God in your relationships. Offer your time and presence, as well as beautiful gifts, as if they are being offered to God. 6. Prostrations Learn to give utmost respect to people you encounter or people surrounding you no matter who they are. 7. Cultivate the feeling of being a servant of God Learn to develop an attitude of self-sacrifice. 8. Cultivate feelings of friendship for God Learn to open your heart equally to all, without ulterior motives and discriminating who is higher or lower than you. 9. Complete self-surrender Learn to accept all things happening to you with equanimity and overcome your own expectations or feelings about anything done by yourself or others.
Ideal Relationships
In Yoga, an ideal relationship is based on respect, devotion and self-sacrifice. Respect means you are tuning your mind to the needs of the other person, and that you accept their uniqueness, no matter what you think about it. It implies a non-judgmental attitude. Devotion is about seeing the other person as God, and that means you will treat that person with pure, unreserved love and trust, and be ready to dedicate your time and efforts to make them happy.
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Usually in relationships we reproduce the relationships that we have already known. Our minds have already been imprinted with impressions of past relationships. The way in which we view ourselves, and the way we view other people, is seen through Why do we have problems in relationships? the prism of those impressions left by past relationships. When you look externally at another person, you are defining The impressions created by the relationship with ones yourself through the differences you perceive as existing mother and father are especially strong. Those relationships between yourself and them. This is the basis of the feelings began when we were young and only our sub-conscious of attraction or repulsion we have towards others. This is or emotional instinctive minds were operational, so the because you do not really love impressions made then are your true Self, though you may very deep and unquestioDevotion is about seeing the other nable. In yoga, it is said that person as God, and that means you love external qualities about yourself (such as gender, beauty, our karma chooses our will treat that person with pure, race, intelligence, etc). In the mother and father in this same manner, you form unreserved love and trust life so that we can learn relationships based on the and grow. external appearance of other people. So in reality, these Yogis believe that we carry the joys and sufferings from relationships are just reproductions of your own belief about past lives and from the subconscious minds of our family yourself. You might blame other people but if you look back and ancestors. We carry these on in our own lives and we within yourself, you can cure the problem from within by reproduce them in our own relationships. As an example, starting to love yourself truly for who you are, and not for the a person who grew up in a dysfunctional and very angry family external qualities of illusion that you believe yourself to be. will likely form a dysfunctional angry family later on, unless he/she does a lot of conscious inner work and develops Remedy for problems in relationships detachment and awareness of the pattern. Many patterns begin Healing relationships start with self-love or Love of God. You in childhood and then get reproduced. For instance, someone have to start to love your true Self or love God. That means you who was spoilt as a child may struggle to accept blame; rather have to go through the maze of your mind and emotions and they will place blame externally because they have constantly sort out who you are and who you are not. You have to look been told that they are perfect. Other scenarios include: you at what you believe to be true, and examine whether it is true were loved, or not loved; you were isolated, or constantly put or not. If you can discard the ideas about yourself that are not down, and so on. true and you can understand the core value of yourself that Of course, we are all perfect inside but our minds are not is true, you come to accept and love your true Self. In other perfect. Our minds need to be molded in order for us to be able words, you will stop waiting for someone else to give you to reflect the perfection that is within us. We will have to do a great permission to love yourself. So often, we wait for someone else deal of self-inquiry to become independent from past impressions to make us love ourselves, and usually it is just a chain of and to correct the pattern of reproducing past relationships. projections and reproduction of expectations that creates much confusion and pain. Finding the relationship with Love itself In Bhakti Yoga, either we address the partner as a symbolic Many of us do not want to acknowledge that our relationships idealized God (the Ishta devata concept of a personally are not selfless and we cannot truly find ourselves in relationchosen form of God) or we cultivate the ideal relationship by ships. We are instead actually learning through our relationseeing our own Self or God in our inter-relationship with other ships usually in a painful manner to find ourselves. That people in our lives. The same principles apply. The same Love means that we have to recognize there is another level shines. By seeing God in your own Self or seeing God in others, of relationship that goes far beyond relationships with or a mixture of both, we are all, knowingly or unknowingly, co-workers or romantic partners or friends. It is the highest on a journey towards true unity, pure joy and pure bliss. n kind of relationship and the most difficult to get. It is the essential relationship described as pure, selfless love. It is the Swami Sitaramananda is a senior disciple of Swami Vishnudevananda relationship with Love itself. When you form that relationship, and is the director of the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm in California, USA. you will be able to feel love everywhere you go and for
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t is common practice in India to use metaphors and symbols to help explain the complex nature of life in all its aspects. Not only can abstract concepts relate to the physical entities of the world, they are a means to comprehend reality in terms of the relationship between the jivatma and paramatma the living and the divine soul and, as is often the case, in exquisite visual forms. For instance, yantras, temple sculpture and architecture use squares, circles and triangles in more abstract geometric forms. In the physical disciplines, we see embodied geometric forms. Both the use of abstract symbols and the practice of physical disciplines are part of a tradition which sees in them the means to attain knowledge of a higher, primordial order. These traditions reveal how the body and mind work in close association, with the ultimate outcome being to transcend both body and mind. Then there is no outer knowledge being imbibed, but the tapping of what is already there as a primordial aspect. Thus attaining knowledge is seen as an experiential process. At the same time, knowledge is considered either a science (sastra), attained through study and therefore suitable for enquiry about the concrete and material aspects of life, or an art (kala), attained through practice, and thus appropriate for dealing with the abstract or intangible aspects of life, like the mechanisms of the mind. However, where physical disciplines practiced in India are concerned, science and art seem to get intermingled. Yoga, for instance, enables scientific scrutiny, but Dance remains in the domain of the arts. The practice of each of these disciplines has its own specific function, yet they are both based on the study of the concrete (the body), as much as the mind, by focus and awareness. They are considered to enable experiential knowledge, because here practice is experiencing, knowing or revealing, and knowing through experience has been given utmost importance. They can be both an art and a science considering the above definitions and reveal how scientific scrutiny and experiential knowledge can go hand-in-hand when seeking knowledge of the higher order. In this article I will reflect upon how the common denominator, which is movement, can be both a sastra and a kala by looking at a performing arts tradition of India, called natya. In this art form, the world view presented in the Vedas takes a visual form, to be seen and experienced. However, I believe that what is seen as the outer form presented by a dancer can have its siddhi, or impact, only when the dancer seeks awareness and experiential knowledge, coming from practice and above all from within.
state, Siva had the desire to become many forms, causing a ripple accompanied by sound (nada). This icchashakti or I-consciousness, also understood as bhava or emotion, is thus the source for movement and has a primordial function in creation. The five elements and the five senses that were subsequently created constitute all animate and inanimate life. Creation is thus defined as Siva inhabiting the pura, or body, as purusha, and the blissfully eternal dancer, Nataraja. The senses gather knowledge of the world, but do not enable us to know what is before them, namely the eternal state. Our perceptions are based on the movement of the elements in nature abstracted into, for example, the circular movement of water or the tetrahedral shape of fire. In dance, we see both the expression of emotions and the creating of shapes through movement. The interesting part here is to understand that these movements are means by which we can retrace the path to the primordial state and, by using the senses in specific ways, experience what was before them. An analysis of movement used in dance will help reflect on this function of dance. In its first chapter, the ancient dance treatise, Natyasastra, bestows the practice of the performing arts the status of Veda in their function of giving knowledge, by calling them the Natyaveda. The sage Bharata explains that Brahma created natya by deriving its four relevant aspects, i.e. text, expression, music and sentiments, from each of the four Vedas. Natya therefore contains the knowledge of the Vedas and can show the path that they show. It is, however, the study of the practiced form, seen even today, based on the subsequent chapters that shows how this is brought about. Movement here is studied in perfect detail and in its various functions. While the performing arts are seen as a kala entailing all the four classical art forms of music, literature, sculpture and painting, here is then a sastra, a science behind it.
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Rajyashree is a dancer, choreographer and master teacher of Bharatanatyam with a dancing and teaching career in India and Europe spanning four decades. She is also a Yoga practitioner for the last 30 years.
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I Am That I Am
Timeless and spaceless is this goal Painless and sorrowless is this seat Blissful and peaceful is this Abode Changeless and boundless is this Dhama I know that I am He I have neither body, mind nor senses I have neither change, nor growth nor death I am the Immortal, All-pervading Brahman. Neither virtue nor sin can touch me Neither pleasure nor pain can affect me Neither likes and dislikes can taint me I am Existence-Absolute, Knowledge-Absolute and Bliss-Absolute. I have neither friends nor enemies I have neither parents nor relatives I have neither home nor country I am that I am. I am that I am. I am never born, I never die I always exist, I am everywhere, I have neither fear of death nor fear of public criticism I am Siva, full of Bliss and Knowledge Chidananda-rupah Sivoham, Sivoham.
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The Power
Vedic Rituals
Every human being requires protection, consecration and refinement. Puja is a traditional Vedic form of worship which enables us to offer our lives and activities to God, a way to pray that He guides us through the destiny which ultimately He controls.
of
Homa
There are many ways in the Vedic tradition to worship a chosen deity. Fire ritual (Homa, Yajna) is the most powerful of these. Through Agni, the God of fire, selected items are offered to a chosen deity. Agni banishes illness, expels negativity and protects us from distress. He is the mediator between God and men. Whatever is offered to him, he burns, purifies and accepts. A fire ritual is so powerful that it removes negative vibrations not only from the minds of those attending, but also from the area where the ritual is performed.
Yantra Puja
The second most powerful form of worship is Yantra Puja. A yantra (power diagram) is a tantric symbol of cosmic unity. Every yantra has a geometric structure which represents a particular configuration of the divine. The more abstract and precise the diagram, the greater the power of the yantra, and the use of appropriate mantras (Sanskrit sound syllables) in conjunction with the yantra, further enhances this power. When an aspirant attains a high degree of spiritual progress, he is initiated into the use of a particular yantra. That yantra fully arouses the aspirants inner life-force so that his dedication
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Murti Puja
The third and most popular form of worship is Murti Puja (idol worship). Vedanta teaches that God is the universal spirit, one with all, and wherever a person of faith wants to see Him, He will be there. However, it is hard for imperfect man to comprehend this, which is why a holy image can be so helpful: the holy image is a point at which His real presence is available to us for commune and worship. Like water running through the ground, God is everywhere, but to access Him we need a focal point, a well of faith to make Him available to worship. The great sages of India adored the holy images for they knew that when the eye of faith reveals that He accepts worship and offerings from the devotee, it is a point of real communion with the divine. Murti puja is an effective and necessary aid for the vast majority of men to gradually rise in the spiritual scale. The divine presence is made concrete, and prayers and adoration are made meaningful to those men who cannot dive into the depths of consciousness by meditation, introspection and commune with the subtle spirit within. A spiritual aspirant is free to choose and worship any form of deity, incarnation or world teacher. Any religious
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Sivananda Kutir
Uttar Kashi, Himalayas
TeachersTraining Course
8 Apr 6 May 2012 13 May 10 Jun 2012 17 Jun 15 Jul 2012 30 Sept 28 Oct 2012
Sadhana Intensive
9 23 Sept 2012
CENTRES
ARGENTINA
Centro Internacinal de Yoga Sivananda Snchez de Bustamante 2372 - (C.P. 1425) Capital Federal - Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA Tel: +54.11.4804 7813 Fax: +54.11.4805 4270 e-mail: BuenosAires@sivananda.org Centro de Yoga Sivananda Rioja 425 8300 Neuqun, ARGENTINA Tel: +54.299.4425565 e-mail: Neuquen@sivananda.org
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Dwarka Centre PSP Pocket, Swami Sivananda Marg, Sector - 6 (Behind DAV school) Dwarka, New Delhi, 110075 INDIA Tel: +91.11. 6456 8526 or +91.1145566016 e-mail: Dwarka@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre TC37/1927 (5), Airport Road, West Fort, Thiruvananthapuram Kerala, INDIA Tel +91.471.245 0942, +91.9497008432 e-mail: trivandrum@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 3/655 Kaveri Nagar, Kuppam Road, Kottivakkam Chennai 600 041, Tamil Nadu, INDIA Tel: +91.44.2451.1626 or +91.44 2451.2546 e-mail: Chennai@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre Plot #101 (Old No 23), Dr Sathar Road Anna Nagar, Madurai 625 020 Tamil Nadu, INDIA Tel: +91.452.2521170 Fax: +91.4552.4393445 e-mail: maduraicentre@sivananda.org
SWITZERLAND
Centre Sivananda de Yoga Vedanta Centre Sivananda de Yoga Vedanta 1 Rue des Minoteries CH-1205 Geneva, SWITZERLAND Tel: +41.22.328.03.28 Fax: +41.22.328.03.59 e-mail: Geneva@sivananda.net
UNITED KINGDOM
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 45 51 Felsham Road London SW15 1AZ UNITED KINGDOM Tel: +44.20.8780.0160 Fax: +44.20.8780.0128 e-mail: London@sivananda.net
BRAZIL
Centro Sivananda de Yoga Vedanta Rua Santo Antonio 374 Porto Alegre 90220-010 - RS, BRAZIL Tel: +55.51.3024.7717 +55.51.3024.7717 e-mail: PortoAlegre@sivananda.org
UNITED STATES
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center 1246 West Bryn Mawr Avenue Chicago, IL 60660, USA Tel: +1.773.878.7771 Fax: +1.773.878.7527 e-mail: Chicago@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center 243 West 24th Street New York, NY 10011, USA Tel: +1.212.255.4560 Fax: +1.212.727.7392 e-mail: NewYork@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center 1200 Arguello Blvd San Francisco, CA 94122, USA Tel: +1.415.681.2731 Fax: +1.415.681.5162 e-mail: SanFrancisco@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center 13325 Beach Avenue Marina del Rey, CA 90292, USA Tel: +1.310.822.9642 e-mail: LosAngeles@sivananda.org
AUSTRIA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Zentrum Prinz Eugen Strasse 18 A -1040 Vienna, AUSTRIA Tel:: +43.1.586.3453 Fax: +43.1.587.1551 e-mail: vienna@sivananda.net
ISRAEL
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 6 Lateris St Tel Aviv 64166, ISRAEL Tel: +972.3.691.6793 Fax: +972.3.696.3939 e-mail: TelAviv@sivananda.org
CANADA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 5178 St Lawrence Blvd Montreal, Quebec H2T 1R8, CANADA Tel: +1.514.279.3545 Fax: +1.514.279.3527 e-mail: Montreal@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 77 Harbord Street Toronto, Ontario M5S 1G4, CANADA Tel: +1.416.966.9642 e-mail: Toronto@sivananda.org
ITALY
Centro Yoga Vedanta Sivananda Roma via Oreste Tommasini, 7 00162 Rome, ITALY Tel: +39.06.4549.6529 Fax: +39.06.9725.9356 roma@sivananda.org Centro Yoga Vedanta Sivananda Milano via Guercino 1 20154 Milano, ITALY Tel: +39.02.3670.8647 Mobile: +39.334.760.5276 e-mail: milano@sivananda.org www.sivananda.org/milano
FRANCE
Centre Sivananda de Yoga Vedanta 140 rue du Faubourg Saint-Martin F-75010 Paris, FRANCE Tel: +33.1.40.26.77.49 Fax: +33.1.42.33.51.97 e-mail: Paris@sivananda.net
URUGUAY
Asociacin de Yoga Sivananda Acevedo Daz 1523 11200 Montevideo, URUGUAY Tel: +598.2.401.09.29/401.66.85 Fax: +598.2.400.73.88 e-mail: Montevideo@sivananda.org
JAPAN
Sivananda Yoga Japan, Tokyo Centre 4-15-3 Koenji-kita, Suginami, Tokyo 1660002, JAPAN Tel: +81.3.5356.7791 e-mail: info@sivananda.jp www.sivananda.jp
GERMANY
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Zentrum Steinheilstrasse 1 D-80333 Munich, GERMANY Tel: +49.89.700.9669.0 Fax: +49.89.700.9669.69 e-mail: Munich@sivananda.net Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Zentrum Schmiljanstrasse 24 D-12161 Berlin, GERMANY Tel: +49.30.8599.9798 Fax: +49.30.8599.9797 e-mail: Berlin@sivananda.net
VIETNAM
Ho Chi Minh Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center Ho Chi Minh Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center 25 Tran Quy Khoach, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, VIETNAM Tel: +8.6680.5427 or +8.6680.5428 e-mail: Hochiminh@sivananda.org
LITHUANIA
Sivananda jogos vedantos centras Vivulskio 41 LT-03114, Vilnius, LITHUANIA Tel: +370.64.872.864 Fax: + 370.5.21.041.94 e-mail: vilnius@sivananda.net
SPAIN
Centro de Yoga Sivananda Vedanta Centro de Yoga Sivananda Vedanta Calle Eraso 4 E-28028 Madrid, SPAIN Tel: +34.91.361.5150 Fax: +34.91.361.5194 e-mail: Madrid@sivananda.net
INDIA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Nataraja Centre A-41 Kailash Colony New Delhi 110 048, INDIA Tel: +91.11. 320 69070 or +91.11. 292.30962 e-mail: Delhi@sivananda.org
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AFFILIATED CENTRES
AUSTRALIA
Sivananda Yoga Centre The Shellin 40 Ninth Avenue Katoomba 2700 N.S.W. AUSTRALIA Tel: +047.82.32.45 e-mail: KamalaDevi@bigpond.com
Sivananda Yoga Centre Sarath Kumar Balan K. Nair Road, Asokapuram, Kozhikode, Kerala 673 001, INDIA Tel: +91. 495 2771754, +91. 495.2770384 Mobile: +91.944.6953652 e-mail: mail@sivanandayogacentre.com Sivananda Yoga Centre #236,5th Cross, 3rd Block, H R B R Layout, Bangalore, Karnataka, 560043, INDIA Tel: +91.80.57637144, Mobile: +91.944.8464448 e-mail: yogaprabhus@yahoo.co.uk Arsha Yoga Gurukulam Double Cutting Calvarimount Post Idukki (Dt), Kerala 680 681, INDIA Tel: +91.480284.6080 e-mail: harilal_k@yahoo.com www.arshayoga.org Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre L-12, 26th Street Annanagar East Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 600102, INDIA Tel: +91.44.26630978 e-mail: durain@gmail.com
JAMAICA
Sivananda Yoga Centre 17 Tremaine Road Kingston 6 Jamaica, WEST INDIES Tel: +1.876.381.1504 e-mail: Alina133@yandex.ru
UKRAINE
Sivananda Yoga Centre Valentina Nikitina Sadovaya Str 60, 95050 Simferopol, Crimea, UKRAINE e-mail: valentina-nikiti@mail.ru
LEBANON
Sivananda Yoga Centre Sivananda Yoga Centre 522 Couraud Street #3A Gemayzeh, Beirut, LEBANON Tel: +961.1.566.770 e-mail: sivanandabeirutcenter@yahoo.com
UNITED STATES
The Yoga Center 235 Dorris Place, Stockton, CA 95204 Tel: +1.209.463.3330 e-mail: information@stocktonyoga.com www.stocktonyoga.com Vishnudevananda Yoga Vedanta Center 1034 Delaware Street Berkeley, CA 94710, USA Tel: +1.510.273.2447 e-mail: mail@vishnuyoga.org www.vishnuyoga.org Yoga and Inner Peace 3964 Lake Worth Road Lake Worth FL33461-4054, USA Tel: +1.561.641.8888 e-mail: b@yogapeace.com Yoga Warehouse 508 SW Flagler Ave. Fort Lauderdale Florida 33301, USA Tel: +1.954.525.7726 e-mail: yogis@yogawarehouse.org www.yogawarehouse.org East Aurora Yoga (Affiliated Sivananda Center) 43 Pine Street East Aurora, New York 14052, USA Tel: 716-319-0725 e-mail: info@eayoga.com www.eayoga.com
BOLIVIA
Centro de Yoga Sivananda Santa Cruz Calle Junin #271 Santa Cruz de la Sierra, BOLIVIA Tel/Fax: +591.333.1508 e-mail: marcelaterceros@hotmail.com
NEW ZEALAND
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 145a Tukapa Street Westown, New Plymouth, NEW ZEALAND Tel : +64.6.7538234 e-mail: richnz79@yahoo.co.nz www.sivanandayoga.co.nz
BRAZIL
Centro Sivananda de Yoga Vedanta Rua das Palmeiras n/13 Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro CEP 20270-070, BRAZIL Tel: +55.21.2266.4896 www.sivanandayoga.com.br
CANADA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre affiliated Sivaram & Sasi Lakshmi, 108 Des Berges Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec, J7V 9X2, CANADA Tel: +1.450.510.2656, +1.450.510.2657 e-mail: Psivaraman@sympatico.ca Yoga Sivananda de l'Outaouais Catherine Gillies (Kumari) 745 Chemin d'Aylmer Gatineau (secteur Aylmer) Qubec, J9H 0B8, CANADA Tel: +1.819.684.2084 e-mail: info@yoga-aylmer.com www.yoga-aylmer.com Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre Vancouver 1202-2055 Pendrell Street Vancouver, B.C. V6G 1T9,CANADA Tel: +1.604.880.2109 e-mail: yoga@mail.com www.sivanandavancouver.com
POLAND
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centrum ul.Friedleina 20/6 30-009 Krakow, POLAND Tel: +48.12.634.43.83, +48.604.460.166 e-mail: yoga@yoga.krakow.pl www.yoga.krakow.pl
INDONESIA
Bali Yoga and Wellness Beate McLatchie Jl Tunjung Mekar 58 Br Peliatan, Kerobakan Bali, INDONESIA Tel: +62.8123804046 e-mail: info@baliyogawellness.com www.baliyogawellness.com
PORTUGAL
Centro de Yoga Sivananda Vedanta de Lisboa Rua Jose Carlos dos Santos No. 12 1 Andar 1700-257 Lisbon, PORTUGAL Tel: +351.21.7971.431 e-mail: sivananda.lisboa@gmail.com www.sivananda.pt
IRAN
Daneshe Yoga Center No 16+1, beside zirak zade st., Aram Alley, Soleiyman khater St. Hafte Tir SQ. Tehran, Iran Tel.: 02188304505, 02188318189 Fax: 02188319054 e-mail: Info@danesheyoga.com www.Danesheyoga.com
VIETNAM
Sivayoga Center Hoa Anh Dao School, My Dinh 1 Apartment, Tu Liem District, Hanoi, VIETNAM Phone: +4.22.60.69.68 e-mail: info@sivayoga.com.vn www.sivayoga.com.vn
SINGAPORE
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre Affiliated Singapore 21B Bukit Pasoh Road Singapore 089835, SINGAPORE Tel: +65.9067.9100, +65.9838.6704 www.sivananda.com.sg
GERMANY
International Sivananda Yoga Centre Kleiner Kielort 8 20144 Hamburg, GERMANY Tel: +49.40.41.42.45.46 e-mail: post@artyoga.de www.artyoga.de
ISRAEL
Sivananda Yoga Centre 3 Reuven Street Jerusalem, ISRAEL Tel: +972.2.671.4854 e-mail: syvc@013.barak.net.il Sivananda Yoga Centre 8 Amnon and Tamar Street, Apt 1 Herzelia, ISRAEL Tel: +972.9.9561004 e-mail: gerag@internet-zahav.net
RUSSIA
Yoga Yamuna Studio Schelkovskoe shosse, 100 105523 Moscow Tel: +7 (495) 505-04-21 e-mail: yoga@yamunastudio.ru www.yamunastudio.ru
INDIA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre 'Laksmi Sadan' College Road, Palakkad, Kerala 678 001, INDIA Tel: +91.491.254.5117, +91.491.254.4549 e-mail: Palghat@sivananda.org Sivananda Yoga Centre Nedunghattu Kalam, Mankurussi, Mankara, Palakkad Kerala 678 613 INDIA Tel: +91.491.2107550 Mobile: +91.94465554490 e.mail: ajiyoga@gmail.com T. Raghavan Kripa, Kundanmur Maradu P.O. Kochi 682304, Kerala, INDIA e-mail: trmenon@vsnl.com
SRI LANKA
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre (Affiliated) 52 Colombo Road, Piliyandala, Sri Lanka Tel: +94.75.5.018.227 e-mail: titus.wijeratne@gmail.com
ITALY
Sivananda Yoga Firenze Via de Marsili 1 50125 Firenze, ITALY Tel: +39.328.9660501 e-mail: info@yogaincentro.it www.yogaincentro.it In Sabina Yoga Centre Torri in Sabina Lazio, ITALY Tel: +39.340.387.6028 e-mail: giulialandor@tiscali.com www.insabina.com
UNITED KINGDOM
Universal Yoga Redhill House, Red Hill, Camerton, Bath, BA2 0NY, UNITED KINGDOM Tel: +44.01761.470.658 e-mail: info@universalyoga.co.uk
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TEACHERS TRAINING
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES
July 19 26: YOGA AND PSYCHOLOGY With Dr. Uma Krishnamurthi, Bangalore, India NEW: August 6 11: YOGA AS MEDICINE With Timothy McCall, MD Plus special Asana and Pranayama classes with Swami Sivadasananda, Yoga Acharya. August 16 19: VASTU SHASTRA HOW TO DESIGN HEALING SPACES With Olga Mandodari Sokolova, certified Vastu teacher August 22 31: YOGA OF THE HEART* With Nischala Yoga Devi, USA *also in Spanish 4 November 1 December: HEALTHY COOKING WITH AYURVEDA With Sanjay and Anjani Kulkarni (MD), Ayurveda-Experts, Pune, India 10 17 November: YOGA YOUR HOME PRACTICE COMPANION How to bring body and mind into balance through Yoga. 17 24 November: STUDY OF YOGA SCRIPTURES
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QUEBEC, CANADA
Jul 1 Jul 28 2012 Nov 11 Dec 8 2012
THAILAND
Oct 7 Nov 2 2012
TYROL, AUSTRIA
ORLEANS, FRANCE
Jun 29 Jul 27 2012 Jul 29 Aug 26 2012
LONDON, ENGLAND
May 26 Jun 24 2012
ALUENDA, SPAIN
Aug 16 Sep 12 2012
USTKA, POLAND
Sept 1 30 2012
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