Yogeshwar, the Celestial Yogi

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Yogeshwar, the Celestial Yogi

By Shambhavi Lorain Chopra

 

From the book, Yogini, Unfolding the Goddess Within by Shambhavi

Lorain Chopra (Wisdom Tree Books, www.wisdomtreeindia.com). Author's

website: www.shambhavi-yogini.com

 

Asanasthah sukham hrade nimajjati -Shiva Sutra 3.16

The yogi who establishes himself in a steady posture easily becomes

immersed in the ocean of the heart.

 

''Yogeshwar " is Shiva as the Lord of Yoga, the celestial ascetic, who

after exploring the entire evolution of life and consciousness

through the power of Yoga was able to transcend all form into the

Absolute. There were certain experiences that allowed him to do

this, reflected in various stories about him.

 

Shiva retreated to Kashi. His heart was angry, sorrowful and

remorseful. His hands were smeared with the blood of Brahma, the

Creator, whose head he had cut off, realizing that He could not find

the higher truth within this manifest realm. He brooded over the

questions that plagued his heart and soul and meditated on the ways

to understand these disturbances and realize the truth beyond the

veils of Maya, illusion. Finally he found the way through the

practice of `Yoga', the means to yoke the individual's mind with the

Supreme, where humanity and Nature can be one with the higher

consciousness of the cosmos.

 

Under a great Banyan tree seated on a tiger skin, facing the south,

Dakshina, He revealed this knowledge of Yoga without any dakshina, or

fee, to his devotees. For this, His students called Him the great

cosmic teacher 'Dakshinamurti'. He explained the two realities of

existence, both eternal. One is the Purusha, the serene cosmic spirit

that stands still beyond the reach of time and space, and the other

is Prakriti, nature, matter, the cosmic substance, the source of time

and space, which is always in a state of complexity.

 

What is born and reborn, bringing about experiences of anguish and

passion is not the Purusha, but the body and the mind, one's

Prakriti. We are reborn because we are attached to the world by our

samskaras and our Karma, and these actions generate further reactions

creating further experiences, if not in this lifetime then in

another.

 

Yoga helps one view the world as it really exists, with clarity,

dispassion, and wisdom, through conscious awareness and not merely

through opinions, emotions and preconceptions. Through Yoga we can

extricate ourselves from all delusions, ignorance, and attachments

that bind us within the relative world, stilling the mind and

remaining aware and unaffected by the existing turbulence around us.

Shiva manifested His body into various Asanas, Yoga postures

depicting the movements of various birds and beasts, energizing the

body, revealing the pulsating animal instincts deep within man,

bringing them within one's consciousness and will power.

 

Shiva revealed the secret of Pranayama, breath-manipulation, of being

able to control the movement of life giving energy, Prana, thus

enabling the mind to expand beyond the narrow confines of the body.

The great sage Patanjali documented all of Shiva's profound

teachings. " Go into yourself, as a turtle goes into its shell. " This

internalization, Pratyahara, or withdrawal of the mind from sense

objects will connect the soul with experiencing the finer nuances of

Nature, discovering the true cosmic reality behind all appearances.

 

With concentration, dharana and meditation, dhyana one can finally

reach a state of samadhi, the ability to be truly objective, rising

above all subjectivity both mental and physical, and becoming one

with the cosmic soul, Purusha. Comprehending this pure existence

leads to enlightenment, Moksha, taking our awareness beyond all

limitations, bringing in its wake an inner transformation, a power, a

passion, a will to live the most complete and compassionate life that

is possible for us.

 

Yoga is this process of unfolding the spiritual self, emphasizing the

concepts of harmony, union and the consolidation of personal traits

for a higher goal. In this unfolding, breath awareness is probably

the most essential tool. Breathing forms the link between the body

and the mind. Breath awareness is an integral part of our being alive

as well as a means of creating a higher consciousness.

 

Yoga is being in touch with the very pulse of the universal energies,

and vibrating in tandem with their gentle throb.

 

Om Dakshinamurtaye namaha!