There is a beautiful saying in one of the Hindu scriptures that says: “The body comes first. Before you begin to do anything, whatever your action is going to be, you need the body to do it.” The body is really and truly your buddy. People who want to be well and do...
The Bhagavad Gita in Daily Life: Part 6, The Inner Battlefield
In Part 5 of this series, we went over the first verse of the first chapter. I’d like to skip ahead now to the twentieth verse of the first chapter where Arjuna says to Sri Krishna: “Place my chariot in the middle of the two armies, O Krishna, so that I may behold...
The Power of the Human Mind
There is nothing more powerful than the human mind. The mind has a tremendous capacity, so it can be trained to do anything. We can see this in the mental accomplishments or siddhis. If your thought force is strong enough, just by simply looking at an ordinary piece...
The Embrace of Gratitude
Imagine waking up in the morning with a palpable sense gratitude for being alive and having another opportunity to engage in life. Imagine what it would be like to approach your whole life with gratefulness as the foundation from which you encountered each moment....
The Ultimate Growth Opportunity
The most selfless person is the most selfish one because they don’t want to disturb their peace. In the beginning of your Yoga practice, you try to stay away from all the situations that would interfere with your goal. There is some selfishness in that. But by being...
Working with Our Fears
In this inspirational as well as practical advice video from 2020, Integral Yoga master teacher and center director, Nalanie Chellaram talks about how Yoga and meditation can help us to overcome the fears and anxieties we deal with in our daily lives and also the ones...
Constant Cravings
Cravings for pleasure are never ending. Every time you try to fulfill a craving, it’s like adding more gasoline to a fire that is already burning. We can’t eliminate desires completely and we don’t need to. Desires naturally arise in the mind. They only become...
Developing Spiritual Vision
How to love everyone equally? It’s a beautiful question. There are so many differences among us in terms of age, physical characteristics, professions, and so on. The only way to love everybody equally is to see the common element running through all these...
Raja Yoga’s Essential Teaching: The Quest for Happiness
In this 3rd installment of this series on "Raja Yoga Now," Swami Karunananda encourages our readers to explore what they are truly searching for in life. And, to consider how the teachings of Raja Yoga can support one's inner exploration and spiritual journey. What do...
Light on the Yamas & Niyamas: Introduction
In this new column, Dale Ann Gray offers reflections on the yamas and niyamas of the Yoga Sutras, incorporating insights from classical Nondual Yoga. In this article, she offers an overview on the distinctions between the dualistic philosophy of Patanjali’s Yoga and...
A Solution to the World’s Problems
This talk was given by Sri Swami Satchidananda to a gathering of members from the Lions Club and Rotarian Club organizations in Hong Kong. The main reason behind all the world’s problems is selfishness. Living an unselfish life means that we perform our actions for...
The Benefits of a Yogic Lifestyle
The idea of Cosmic Consciousness is spoken of in both scriptures and in scientific journals. If we only quote the scriptures some may not accept this idea of a universal, all-pervading Consciousness. If we quote a scientist, all are ready to accept it! Modern science...
Robert Arjava Altman: A Tribute
Robert Mark Altman, best known for his work as an early staff photographer for the music magazine Rolling Stone, died at his home in San Francisco on September 21, 2021, a month shy of his seventy-seventh birthday. He had been in ill health for some time. Altman...
The Secret of Karma Revealed
As long as you feel that you are doing something, then you are responsible. But when you don’t feel that you are doing anything, and you feel that you have completely surrendered into the hands of a Higher Power that does everything, where is the karma for you? When...
When Yoga Meets Zen Meditation
Many of us come to meditation for the first time to still our mind. We recognize that the source of suffering has something to do with the way our minds work (or don’t work) and we believe that by sitting still and taming our mind we will become calm and peaceful. One...
The Real Enjoyment
Spirituality means feeling the Spirit, knowing the real you. If you want to feel the Spirit, you have to put your focus there, more than on the body and senses. The foods we eat won’t help us to experience our essential nature. Thinking often about what to eat, where...