Welcome to YBC40. If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to the email newsletter for info on classes and events, ...or link to this site via RSS feed. If you'd like you may have YBC40 articles from this site delivered by email as they're posted. Thanks for visiting and enjoy!

We just got back from Summer Solstice in New Mexico and as always it was spectacular. It was a quick trip this year as my girlfriend Jamila and I both had pretty tight schedules. We moved into the new loft on Spring Street in Downtown Los Angeles the day after driving about 14 hours coming straight home.

Besides the three days of White Tantric Yoga– which is always amazing, we each did a couple of workshops. Over dinner at Nyala the other night we took out our little notebooks (that Jamila makes with her company 11:11) and compared notes.

Here’s a summary of some things… they’re quite like Koans, some of them. Spiritual riddles to ponder.

From Guru Dev Singh’s Sat Nam Rasayan workshop:

Everything has the right to exist.
This is interesting because in a dual world we want to discern and classify with the ego– good vs. bad. If you can wrap your mind around the idea that everything in existence has a right to exist, then this might just lead you to the insight that all are one– coming and going from one source. In this way if you can say yes to both the good and the bad in your life, breathe a little deeper and keep focused on your life’s intention, you’ll get a little closer each day. Another aspect of this concept is acceptance which as we’ve mentioned before is the key to just about everything. Pain comes from wanting things to be other than they are in the moment. However when you accept everything exactly as it is in the moment, you’re free to go and do whatever you desire. You’re not caught up on the impossible mind block of wanting things to change that you can’t change. In this way, when you’ve come across something dark or negative in your life, just accept that it too has it’s right to exist, then it becomes a part of the oneness of your entire projection. This isn’t surrender, it’s acceptance and it frees you up to focus on your life’s intention.

Sat Nam Rasayan is healing with the Shuniya or Zero state:

This is a mouthful and it’s always going to be a stretch for those who don’t meditate. You have to have an experience of this state to know it. Other than that, it’s a perfect example of the unspeakable nature of these things. As Nanak has said, “talking about it is like eating nails.” That said, I learned that the healing technique of sat nam rasayan is a way of creating a state of shuniya or the meditative zero state where you intend to stop as much of the mind stuff as you can so that the ultimate source of you can come through. We know that every time we meditate, particularly on the breath, that our auric field expands. In this way, if you practice this meditative healing technique of Sat Nam Rasayan and build your ability to become neutral, you can create a very healing field for the person you’re working on. Now, going back to this business of everything has a right to exist– when you’re performing SNR, your mind and body will give you sensations and thoughts and the idea is that this is all a part of the technique. If you don’t resist it, but rather use it, then it becomes an asset and can give insight as to what the person needs. Essentially it is healing as an extension of yourself.

Now more than ever individually we need to improve ourselves and become our best. Each person who elevates themselves, elevates the collective consciousness. In these tumultuous and dark times, there’s no question that each individual must be their all.

Share This

This was in response to a post on the kundalini yoga teacher’s forum, subject: knowledge should be free. The gist was that this person thought it was hypocritical to charge for passing on spiritual teachings. The following is a response.

Many people believe that spiritual knowledge should be free. In many ways it is, but living in a world of duality, one has to give in order to get. That is also in accordance with karmic law. Karma is simply cause and effect, which was proven scientifically by Newton in his third law–“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” As far as charging for this knowledge, the waters get muddy here in the west, in our modern capitalist system.

In the past, spiritual tradition was typically handed down from Master to Student at great physical cost. A new Chela, or student, wishing to find a master and learn the spiritual path would travel arduously up into the Himalayan mountains and once he found the master, would then work for that master for several years or more until accepted. That is if the master accepted him in the first place and allowed him to work. After this tremendous expression of commitment, the student would then get one kriya to practice and master. In that context, if you stop to think about the volume of technology Yogi Bhajan passed on in such a short time, it’s mind boggling. (more…)

Share This

When I worked in commercial real estate, I had a boss who once said something very wise to me. He told me that anything you do in this life is like “getting yourself into orbit.” Think of yourself as a rocket-ship or better yet, a satellite trying to get into outer space so that you can orbit around the earth. In order to get out of the atmosphere you have to defy gravity, which takes a lot of energy. A rocket expends a lot of fuel propelling itself upward towards space. However, once you make it out of the earth’s atmosphere, the gravitational pull of the earth starts to work for you. A satellite hovers around the earth, traveling at great speeds with very little to no effort. An occasional thrust to the left or right for correction keeps the ship on course, with earth’s gravity doing all the work. It’s the same thing for anything you want to do in your life. When you begin a journey of destiny, you will meet with great resistance– this is the cost of getting into orbit.

In Think And Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill says once you determine what your definite chief aim in life is, you must demand of yourself “Persistent, continuous action toward it’s attainment.” It’s this persistent, continuous action which is the energy you use to get into orbit. (more…)

Share This

This is from my friend and fellow yogi Sat Daya Singh. Interesting insights on keeping up with the practice under all kinds of travel conditions. Great food for thought. Although he doesn’t mention it directly, maintaining a strict practice or sadhana against all odds is the epitome of The Power of Intention.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Sadhana For The Adventurer

by Sat Daya Singh

A consistent sadhana is at the core of the Kundalini yoga experience. Change occurs when one follows a daily regimen of yoga and meditation. The consistency chips away subconscious and physical blocks. Keep the sadhana strong and the universe will take care of the rest.

My heart raced during Sat Kriya as my mind interpreted unknown sounds as prowling jaguars.

A daily practice is certainly feasible when one has a set schedule and location. Awaking before dawn to do yoga is practical if one has an apartment and a nine to five job. But what happens to the traveling yogi? What becomes of sadhana if one is at a 14,000 foot campsite in the midst of a howling storm?

(read more ~ Sadhana For The Adventurer)

Share This

I came across this great blog called Gurushabad .  It’s maintained by a man from India named Surjit and it’s a pleasant little place with cool, short and to the point entries. One of his posts is so inspiring I am going to share it here.

Two seeds lay side by side in the fertile soil. The first seed said, “I want to grow! I want to send my roots deep into the soil beneath me, and thrust my sprouts through the earth’s crust above me … I want to unfurl my tender buds like banners to announce the arrival of spring … I want to feel the warmth of the sun on my face and the blessing of the morning dew on my petals!”

And so it grew…

The second seed said, “I am afraid. If I send my roots into the ground below, I don’t know what I will encounter in the dark. If I push my way through the hard soil above me I may damage my delicate sprouts … what if I let my buds open and a snail tries to eat them? And if I were to open my blossoms, a small child may pull me from the ground. No, it is much better for me to wait until it is safe.”

And so it waited…

A yard hen scratching around in the early spring ground for food, found the waiting seed and promptly ate it.

Moral of the Story: Those of us who refuse to risk and grow get swallowed up by life..

Make sure and visit his blog if you can. There’s a lot of nice thought provoking stuff there

Share This

When you set an intention, it’s like making a decision about what you wish to attract to yourself. When you decide something absolutely, the universe then responds based on your thoughts. If there is enough of belief behind your thoughts then what you want to attract to yourself will be pulled to you. This is the Law of attraction. When you set an intention you are sending out a signal to the universe. You’re saying to the universe that this event is an experience you wish to draw to yourself in the future.

Intention is a very powerful tool, because it can get you through your life over the long haul. It’s very easy to get lost in the day-to-day struggles of living this life. There’s so much to do on a daily basis that it’s easy to lose sight of where you’re navigating your ship. (more…)

Share This