"Yoga is creating the conditions that produce a harmony with the
incessant flow of life, existence, and Reality — an optimal state
where the reunion with the natural and universal intelligence can
occur. This union is not a new state but a return to our original
state. It is returning to our authenticity, our simplicity, and our
innocence… it is to be what we have always been….
When we speak of yoga, more than a union between two, we are
speaking of the consciousness that one can never separate from what
one is, and that such a dichotomy is just illusion or maya… "
A weekend workshop of Hatha Yoga, Pranayama -
(breathing exercises), relaxation, mantra chanting, meditation,
Vedic philosophy and live music, as well as a unique opportunity to
participate in Satsang (chanting, Kirtan and meditation) with
H.D.G. Swami Ramakrishnananda.
For registration information please call:
(646)-436-7010
Or Email: info@ramakrishnananda.com
The Retreat is based on Shaktipada’s teachings and includes a
verity of yogic practices. The following are excerpts from the book
“Yoga – Union with Reality”, by Ramakrishnananda Swami Shaktipada,
which explains some of the various types of Yoga that are practiced
in the retreat.
Integral Yoga – Sakshi Purna Yoga
“The human being is much more than a body and a
soul; he is an infinite number of different aspects, which, when
disharmonized, confront each other and create inevitable
conflicts.
In an integrative process, these different aspects become
harmonized simultaneously in the plane of action with karma-yoga,
at the level of feelings with bhakti-yoga, in the mental aspect
with raja-yoga, and, last but not least, with the observation and
self-inquiry that jnana-yoga offers.”
Hatha Yoga – By Way of the Body
“Before buying a ticket or embarking on a journey,
it is essential to know our point of origin or where we stand at
that moment…. This is what hatha-yoga advocates. It invites us to
start on the search from the closest thing to us right now — our
own body — it is an invitation to experience it — to realize it, to
live it, and finally transcend it...
Religion is a process of self knowing, of realizing our true
identity, however, what most people know and perceive about
themselves is their own body.
Hatha-yoga advises to begin this adventure, of discovering who you
really are, from what you know about yourself now. It might appear
superficial and ordinary, yet it is your actual truth. Remember to
always work with the real, with what is in front of your eyes, as
simple as it may seem; never work with dreams and fantasies,
however extraordinary they may appear….”
Bhakti Yoga – By Way of the Heart
“bhakti is the wisdom that teaches us how to use
our hearts as a path and door toward our ideal… the path of
devotion is simple in the sense that it does not require
concentration techniques or effort in meditation. A lover does not
require encouragement to think of his beloved. Even if he desired
to stop, he cannot cease from thinking of his beloved. In
bhakti, the mind flows naturally and disappears into the beloved…
love is an acid powerful enough to dissolve the ego, which is the
opposite of love. Darkness cannot withstand the light, just as the
ego cannot sustain itself in the presence of love.”
Raja Yoga – By Way of the Mind
“Meditation is a state of awareness without any intervention by the
mind; it is a situation of consciousness in which the ego is not
involved … it is not a technique or method and it cannot be taught,
for the simple reason that it does not consist of doing something,
but rather in letting go into the hands of God….
It is not something that you do, but something that happens to you.
Any practice, method or technique is a preparatory effort to create
the most appropriate situation for meditation to descend upon
you….
You hear, see, touch, yet behind all these activities there is a
feeling of “doing”… being conscious, as the word implies, is not
something you do….
Being aware you can only be….
Meditating is not a doing but a “being”….”
Jnana Yoga – Being the Self
"It is hard to see details, to observe when the distance surpasses
our ability to see…
Too great of a distance is an obstacle; however, too great a
proximity makes sight impossible. It is impossible to see our own
eyelashes, our own eyelids…
Jnana-yoga teaches that the obstacle to seeing God is of the second
kind. With distance we can do such things as build airplanes, boats
and spaceships but in proximity, it becomes impossible.
Neither God nor the Truth are distant; the problem is us and our
difficulty to capture the near, the intimate.
Between you and the Truth there is no distance. It is closer to
you, than even you yourself…"
Kundalini Yoga - The Serpentine
Power
"Pure Consciousness, or the Self, and
kundalini-shakti are not two different things...
in the world of duality, they are perceived as separate but when
united, the yogi realizes the sole nature behind the world of
duality and appearances, names and forms...
Within the sadhana of
kundalini-yoga we find different practices: asanas,
Pranayama, mudras, bandhas, mantras
and meditation. The practice purifies the body and stimulates the
remarkable psycho-spiritual power.
Awakening the kundalini is to awaken an
essential part of us, to awaken ourselves..."
For registration information please call:
(646)-436-7010
Or Email: info@ramakrishnananda.com