Astanga Yoga is not Raja Yoga

[Guest guest]

Omprem opined:<br><br>>But they all taught

that there are 8 (ashta) essential, interconnected

elements to Ashtanga or Raja Yoga.<br><br>>If you want

to focus on asana - pranayama exclusively, you are

not practicing Ashtanga Yoga. You are practicing Dwi

Anga Yoga.<br><br>Like Omboy before him, Omprem has no

interest in addressing the topic of this list, which is

the Astanga Yoga method as taught by SP Jois. He's

attracted to the list because it gives him a forum to

pontificate and espouse his views, however unrelated or

contradictory they are to the teachings of Jois.<br><br>Jois

teaches that pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and

samadhi are to be studied after asana practice is

mastered. This is why he only discusses the first 3 limbs

in his book, Yoga Mala.<br><br>Apparently, Omprem

thinks he knows more than Jois, and knows what's best

for the deluded, lost souls on this list. I suspect

Omprem is a follower of the Brahma Kumaris organization,

a group espousing Raja Yoga. That's is his

business, of course. (Omprem has neither the integrity nor

courage to identify himself or whatever brand of yoga it

is that he practices - it certainly isn't Jois'

brand of Astanga, since I can't recall him ever

mentioning Jois' name or teachings in any of his

posts.)<br><br>One can hope that proselytizers such as Omprem will

go the way of Omboy, who for a while used this list

to promote his nude yoga classes in Chelsea.

Eventually, after reams of hyperbolic, Sanskrit-strewn posts,

Omboy gave up, and we all breathed a collective sigh of

relief.<br><br>The depths of Omprem's arrogance extends so far that

he's started to haughtily criticize us for following

the teachings of Jois, whom many of us regard as our

guru, and not following his school of Raja/Astanga

Yoga. Rather like going into a mosque and reprimanding

the Muslims there for not following Christianity.

Appalling or pitiful? Take a look at the Founder's

statement, Omprem. Nothing about Raja Yoga mentioned there.

Show some respect for people whose views differ from

your own.<br><br>As a lapsed Catholic, I'll pray for

you to St. Jude, the patron saint of lost

causes.<br><br>Cheers,<br>DMcG

[Guest guest]

ddm<br><br>You need a little more work on the

yamas and niyamas. Your posts are strident,

mean-spirited and uninformed. Beats me what your problem is.

Check with your guru (if you have access to

one).<br><br>Ashtanga Yoga MEANS the "eight limbs of yoga" OR the eight

practices that together will take you toward spiritual

enlightenment. "Ashta" = "eight". Another identical term for

Ashtanga Yoga is Raja Yoga. Is that so difficult to

understand?<br><br>And those eight limbs. You most definitely do not

'master' one and then move on to the next.<br><br> I even

provided page references to works by Patanjali and

Desikachar to help you out. Apparently to no avail. Oh well,

you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make him

drink.<br><br>By the way, didn't you promise the members of this

board that you would not vent your temper tantrums and

ignorance on this board? You promised to e-mail your venom

to me directly. Remember. If you do, send it to my

bulk mail folder because I never open

that.<br><br>Omprem<br><br>PS. I have never heard of the Brahma Kumaris group.

But I have heard of Dwi Anga Yoga and you are

practicing it.