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Originally posted by YogaIsLife

And you ask how can you know this for sure Carson? By feeling it, noticing it, knowing in your heart. I know this will probably sound like a lot of nonsense talk to you but it is like that. The more you meditate the more you notice. Just because meditation makes it clearer to see, but in fact it is working all around us, at this very minute, and all the time.

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Originally posted by YogaIsLife

Try looking at it from YOUR own perspective, within your own heart, not from what you think the homeless or the Christian church or any other person's perspectives are. Not even from your mind framework or whatever it is that you believe is right or should be right. Look within. Again, it may sound just like gibberish but it is the truth. Don't believe anybody in fact. Do you want the truth? Do you want to know "real" reality? Than if you want it bad enough it will come to you through the power of desire. It's true. I personally find meditation is a great way to stay closer to the truth.
Again it seems like one of those "divine paradoxes" - the more you look and know within yourself, the more clearer you will understand the outside world. IT is a beautiful thing.

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Originally posted by Kirtanman

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Originally posted by Sparkle

Thanks Kirtanman
Just wondering about his emphasis on pranayama.
Yogani says pranayama on its own is not enough, there must also be some form of meditation. What does Sankara Saranam say about this?

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KMLAPW [Kirtanman Long-Ass Post Warning]



Hi Sparkle - please note that your question is answered in the first sentence of my response. The rest of the post is more background on Sankara and GWR for anyone who has interest.



Namaste,

Kirtanman
**

Sankara actually advocates both (Pranayama and Silent Meditation), though with a clear emphasis on Pranayamic practice.

(Yogani seems to have somewhat uniquely - maybe just "uniquely" - discovered and promoted the ultra-powerful benefits which stem from an almost exact balance between the two disciplines - pranayama and silent meditation.)

For those (both students and teachers) who understand what works - some combination of pranayama, meditation, bhakti and inquiry tend to be the pillars of the given system of practices [we don't discuss the latter all that much in AYP, but the tendency toward inquiry* is an obvious effect of the other two activities --- just read through our forum posts, for evidence of that!).

*Using the term [inquiry] somewhat loosely - though I think most of us involved with AYP would say that inquiry (i.e. Who am I? What is God? Is there a "God"? Where does the Self begin? Or End?, Etc. Etc.) both drives our practices, and AYP forum participation, to a degree --- and/or is an effect of them.

Likewise, bhakti (devotion) drives practices, and is an effect of them - and like many teachers, Sankara addresses this aspect subtly, and without ever using that word.

Sankara clearly gets this, and God Without Religion showcases that understanding in some VERY powerful ways, IMHO.

Flip through it at a bookstore, and/or review the GWR site - I believe you'll see what I mean.

Personally, I don't know that I'll adopt ANY of the practices he recommends - only because A. AYP practices serve me quite nicely, and B. for the most part, the practices cited in GWR are very "entry level".

Sankara very much presents it all in an Open Source way - i.e. the key is to turn within, and become aware of the extent of your cerebrospinal energy flow, and the amount of energy available to it - and [KEY - to AYP and GWR practices] techniques for increasing the amounts of energy available for our cerebrospinal evolution.

VERY IMPORTANT:



(And Yes, smiling is very important -- but what I mean by the smiley is that I'm being emphatic is a very good-natured way .... )

GWR is not a replacement for AYP --- NOR is it promoted as such.

GWR addresses two key points:

*The Kingdom of Heaven is within You - as that well-known AYP group leader from a couple thousand years ago, in the Middle East, said in one of his Lessons.

*When we realize this (The Kingdom of Heaven is within You), it will help us to adjust our outlook and behavior in the world around us, and therefore positively affect all of humanity (via either small ripples, or larger ones).

GWR does an excellent job of illustrating how the world became like it is today (including the negative effects of organized religion, and why the hold of religion is so powerful, for so many people), how societies cycle, and various suggestions for how we can contribute to the greater good.

Therefore, I see AYP & GWR as perfect compliments to one another - AYP as the "Owner's Manual" for our internal practices, GWR for our "external" life in society (not in any restrictive ways, in the case of either - but as powerful pointers and sets of guidelines that can be powerfully beneficial).

Cheers & Namaste,

Kirtanman

PS - Sankara mentions that he was an ascetic - I don't see any current public reference to this, but he was very open about it as recently as 2002 or so: he was a monk with SRF (Self-Realization Fellowship) - the group started by Paramahansa Yogananda. I was involved for a while with Ananda (the offshoot started by Swami Kriyananda), and can say that this likely has a lot to do with the pranayama emphasis that Sankara has, in his teachings -- but it's probably a 70/30 split, or even 60/40 -- whereas AYP is basically 50/50 -- but the differences between the two systems are not that great.

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