Someone once asked me the following question: “In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says, ‘The yogi who perceives the essential oneness everywhere naturally feels the pleasure or pain of others as their own.’ Is it possible to feel the pain of others without losing...
Yogic Keys to Success in the Workplace
Rev. Shankar Fern believes that the workplace is the schoolhouse for evolving ourselves as spiritual beings. In this article, he highlights some of the key teachings of Swami Satchidananda that he has applied during the past three decades as a successful business...
How Responsible Are You for Your Actions?
Those who are realized beings, who have become enlightened, always must act responsibly. But, their only responsibility is to allow things to happen to them because they realize they are instruments of the Divine. As such, they are no longer creating any new karma....
The Interconnectedness of Life: Yogic Perspective on a Virus Gone Global
Right now, all of us are whirling through space on this tiny ball we call Earth. It is our common home. With each spin, we mark a day. With each revolution around the sun, we all add a year to our lives. On this fragile ball—a mere speck in the inconceivable vastness...
Patanjali’s Words: Karma, Duhkha and Viveka
Rev. Jaganath, Integral Yoga Minister and Raja Yoga master teacher, has spent a lifetime delving into the deepest layers of meaning in Patanjali’s words within the Yoga Sutras. Our series continues with sutras: 2.12 and 2.15 – 2.17. In sutra 2.12, Patanjali highlights...
Patanjali’s Words: God, Ignorance, Karma
Rev. Jaganath, Integral Yoga Minister and Raja Yoga master teacher, has spent a lifetime delving into the deepest layers of meaning in Patanjali’s words within the Yoga Sutras. Our series continues with the 24th sutra of Chapter 1 in which Patanjali goes on to further...
When Work Is Worship
Work is worship. Work is meditation. Serve all with intense love without any idea of agency and without expectation of fruits or reward. You will realise God. Service of humanity is service of God. Work elevates when done in the right spirit without attachment or...
Really Living Yoga
Sample from the Spring 2008 issue of Integral Yoga Magazine By Swami Karunananda When I think of what it means to really live Yoga, I recall a very special visit in late December, about thirty years ago. I was serving as director of the San Francisco IYI, and Sri...
Healing is Divine
Sample from the Fall 2008 issue of Integral Yoga Magazine By Swami Karunananda Sri Gurudev used to say that God laughs on two occasions. The first is when two neighbors erect a fence and declare, “This is mine, and that is yours.” The second time is when a patient...
The Yogi’s Karma Yoga
Both a renowned Sanskrit scholar and yogi, Swami Venkatesananda—like his master, Swami Sivananda—can be regarded as a sage of practical wisdom. You can also listen to these talks at swamivenkatesananda.org. We are about to investigate Karma Yoga. The word "karma"...
Karma Yoga: The Greatest Yoga
There is no greater Yoga than Karma Yoga. From morning to evening you are doing some action, so everything can be Karma Yoga. Everything should be yogic, from the minute you start brushing your teeth to the minute you go to bed. For Karma Yoga there is no time limit,...