Article sent from The Hindu

[Guest guest]

This is an interesting article and directly addresses the issues correctly

raised by Dennisji and seconded by Gregji on a recent post by Pieter Schoonheim,

'Beyond the Spectrum.' The author of this article correcly concludes:

"Yoga is not just physical postures (Asanas) and mental

exercises. It is a way to be. Yoga means to be free. If a person is free, he can

take on life in his own terms, play with life without letting it affect him."

 

warmest regards,

 

Ram Chandran

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This article is emailed to you by Ram Chandran ( rchandran )

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Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com)

Miscellaneous

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Religion

 

 

Discovering the art of living

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHENNAI, DEC. 7. The objective of man's engagement in the world is happiness.

Every single activity is in the pursuit of happiness whether undertaken

consciously or unconsciously. Education, career and family he believes will give

him happiness. In this pursuit of happiness, mankind has achieved tremendously

in the last hundred years thanks to development in science and technology. Life

has become very comfortable externally but inwardly we are no more happier or

peaceful than those who lived a century ago. On the other hand, the natural

resources have been exploited for man's happiness to such an extent that life on

the planet is threatened today.

 

If we analyse this a little further it will become obvious that human beings are

intrinsically happy during infancy and childhood and it is only when they grow

to adulthood that they start pursuing happiness, as they seem to have lost it in

the process of growing up. There is necessity for a thorough overhaul to find

out what the reason is for this incongruity because all the efforts directed

towards realising happiness seem to be in vain. Peace is the fundamental right

of human life but people make it appear as though it is the most difficult to

obtain. Why is this so? Man's conception of peace and happiness are enslaved to

external factors. However powerful a person may be, external situations can

never be under his control. So the chances of being happy under such

circumstances are remote and if one is, it must be by sheer accident and not as

a rule.

 

In his introductory lecture on Sahaja Sthithi Yoga, Sri Jaggi Vasudev said

peace, joy, fear, love or every human experience was a chemistry. The science of

Yoga is to create the right chemistry in man's nature to be peaceful and happy.

When there is a shift in an individual's life from pursuit of happiness to

expression of happiness there will be a dramatic change in his perspective of

life. There are two types of Yogas. One is similar to the flower which is

responsive and is suited to people living in society who have to respond to

others all the time. The other is the rock type indicating withdrawal from

social life.

 

There are many misconceptions about Yoga because we are familiar only with the

rebound of this science from the West. The majority associate Yoga with the

method of disciplining the body and the mind. Yoga is not just physical postures

(Asanas) and mental exercises. It is a way to be. Yoga means to be free. If a

person is free, he can take on life in his own terms, play with life without

letting it affect him.

 

 

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