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- Personal Effort and Surrender in the Sadhana of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 28, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe “either/or” limitations of the mental processes leads us generally to believe that spiritual progress either comes with individual effort, or alternatively, through ‘surrender’ of the ego and letting the Divine, or the Guru, bring about the progress. Thus, there are individuals who undertake ...
Views: 621 - Developing Receptivity to the Action of the Higher Force for Transformation of the Nature - by Submitted on Apr 24, 2021 from santosh krinskyWe turn our attention and focus normally to the needs of the body, the desires and ambitions of the vital being, the impact of perceptions and the thought processes of our minds. Even when we take up a spiritual path, we try to find a practice that may involve the body, the life-energy and / or ...
Views: 619 - The Way of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 23, 2021 from santosh krinskyMany paths of yoga teach a fixed method that everyone who takes it up is asked to follow in a precise and standardized way. Whether it is the use of a fixed set of asanas, pre-determined pranayama routines, set routines of prayer, mantra, japa, or devotional practices, everyone is given ...
Views: 576 - Opening the Being to the Divine Power and Presence - by Submitted on Apr 23, 2021 from santosh krinskyA yoga that focuses on opening to a new power of consciousness beyond the mind, and that does not abandon life, but acts to transform it, has to address the issues of the limitations embedded in the existing ‘status quo’ of mind-life-body. The limitations inherent in the operations of these ...
Views: 591 - Integral Yoga: Answering the Call - by Submitted on Apr 21, 2021 from santosh krinskyFor many, the idea of Yoga is physical postures and breathing techniques, to attain fitness and flexibility. This is not the whole story, however. Hatha Yoga, which has been popularized world-wide over the last 50 years or so, is one element of the much larger understanding of Yoga which we find ...
Views: 612 - The Divine Grace and Spiritual Realisation - by Submitted on Apr 20, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe pivotal role and importance of Divine Grace in the spiritual realisation comes about because all humanity is essentially locked into the framework of our normal mental-vital standpoint and thus, cannot truly transform the consciousness without something intervening from outside this ...
Views: 651 - Divine Grace and the Action of the Laws of Nature - by Submitted on Apr 19, 2021 from santosh krinskyDue to the nature of the mind, which always seeks for “black and white” solutions and answers, it is easy to fall into the idea that everything depends on one’s own efforts, or alternatively, that one’s efforts do not matter as the Divine controls what occurs. In actuality, there is no real ...
Views: 663 - The Action of Divine Grace - by Submitted on Apr 18, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe difference between our human understanding and effort, and the action of Divine Grace, is the standpoint from which the result flows. The human ego standpoint tries to evaluate everything in reference to itself at the center, and thus, looks to “my effort”, “my results”, “my progress” and ...
Views: 654 - Understanding the Concept of Divine Grace - by Submitted on Apr 17, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe human mind likes to have a logical reason for events, and therefore we search for a causal relationship between an event and some precursor. We call this “cause and effect” or “causality” or “dependent origination” or “law of karma”, or “law of nature”. However we describe it, we are trying ...
Views: 661 - The Mother’s Force to Effectuate the Change of Consciousness - by Submitted on Apr 16, 2021 from santosh krinskyPractitioners of Yoga speak of the opening of the Kundalini and the energy rising up from the base of the spine, through the various chakras and issuing out of the 1000 petalled lotus at the top of the skull. The experience of the rising of the Kundalini is a core development in many yogic ...
Views: 561 - The Mother: Supreme Nature That Manifests All Existence - by Submitted on Apr 15, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe Supreme Divine is “One without a second”. Yet we can still make mental distinctions between the Transcendent, the Universal and the Individual aspects of the Divine, as that is the nature of the mental consciousness, and we can focus on one or another of these aspects without forgetting the ...
Views: 627 - The Divine Mother — the Consciousness-Force of the Divine - by Submitted on Apr 14, 2021 from santosh krinskyIn his book The Mother, Sri Aurobindo writes: “In all that is done in the universe, the Divine through his Shakti is behind all action but he is veiled by his Yoga Maya and works through the ego of the Jiva in the lower nature.” The Divine Shakti, the creative force of the universe, the power ...
Views: 735 - Overcoming Doubt, Fear and Depression Which May Arise During the Practice of Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 13, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe changes sought in the integral Yoga are of such magnitude and detail that they will naturally take a considerable time to work themselves out in all the levels and aspects of our being. Along the way, there come periods of difficulty which may challenge one’s faith or determination, what is ...
Views: 545 - The Divine Force Active in the Practice of Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 12, 2021 from santosh krinskyWe all generally understand the concept of force at the material level. Our entire world is driven by this force as the sun energizes the planet, as the wind, the water and the power of fire in the depths of the earth create our material environment. We understand the concept of force at the ...
Views: 667 - Hidden Powers in Life and Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 11, 2021 from santosh krinskyThere is an interesting contradiction in the way humanity deals with unseen, or invisible forces at work. We believe wholeheartedly nowadays in gravity, electricity, wireless communications, magnetic transportation vehicles, and, despite the fact that all of these represent invisible forces, we ...
Views: 698 - Invisible Forces in Our Lives and in Our Evolutionary Growth - by Submitted on Apr 10, 2021 from santosh krinskyWe do not consider, for the most part, the reliance we have for all things in our lives in the world, upon invisible forces that are at work. We basically take these things for granted, give them names and treat them as a reality that we do not have to think about or reflect upon. No one can ...
Views: 693 - Specific Incarnations of Gods and Their Powers in the Hindu Tradition - by Submitted on Apr 09, 2021 from santosh krinskyIn spiritual and religious traditions around the world, we see a proliferation of names and personalities of God. This has engendered much confusion for people who talk about monotheism versus polytheism. When one looks deeper into the question, however, it becomes clear that in most cases, ...
Views: 691 - Understanding the Role and Nature of the Gods in the Universal Creation - by Submitted on Apr 08, 2021 from santosh krinskyIt is quite natural for human beings to extrapolate the nature of the universe and the meaning of existence from the limited set of facts and information that we perceive and organize in our normal mental-logical process. Yet there is so much that falls outside the scope of these perceptions and ...
Views: 719 - God, Gods, Goddesses and Human Perceptions - by Submitted on Apr 07, 2021 from santosh krinskyDoes God exist? Are there more than one God? Is God a figment of human imagination? These questions have confounded humanity for aeons and, even today, they are hotly debated. Some believe there is only one God and that anyone who worships a different form or name of God is deluded. Some ...
Views: 729 - Doubt, and Certitude About the Divine - by Submitted on Apr 06, 2021 from santosh krinsky“Seeing is believing” has been a proverb for humanity since time immemorial. Yet, as we delve deeper into the way the world functions, we come to understand that what we see is not always an accurate reflection of the underlying reality. We see the sun rise in the East and set in the West on a ...
Views: 695 - Save the Oceans to Save the Planet, Part 4: Tough Choices to Achieve Real Solutions - by Submitted on Apr 05, 2021 from santosh krinskyThere are numerous vested interests, spanning the entire globe, which make the issues surrounding the degradation of the ocean and the ability of the planet to sustain human life and civilization, virtually impossible to resolve from our normal perspectives. Any change that seems necessary or ...
Views: 620 - Experience of the Divine and the Forms of the Divine - by Submitted on Apr 05, 2021 from santosh krinskyWhile a spiritual experience is a subjective event, we can reference the accumulated reports from around the world and throughout human history to provide an accurate picture of the types of experiences and the reality of the experience. Sometimes these experiences come after undertaking various ...
Views: 702 - The Age-Old Testimony of Spiritual Experience - by Submitted on Apr 04, 2021 from santosh krinskyWhen a tornado or a hurricane wreaks destruction in its path, we are overcome with the intensity and the pain caused by that storm. We frequently try to read into this event some personal retribution upon ourselves for some failing according to our moral code or ethical rules. We tend to look at ...
Views: 647 - The Impersonal and the Personal Divine - by Submitted on Apr 03, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe range of spiritual experiences is vast. We tend, in our mental framework, to associate our own practice or religious background or philosophy as the only, or at least, the best, way to attain spiritual realisation; yet, this is actually just a limitation of our ego-consciousness. People ...
Views: 720 - The Transcendental, the Cosmic and the Individual Divine - by Submitted on Apr 02, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe idea of a trinity of aspects or statuses of the Divine has arisen throughout the major religious and spiritual traditions of the world. It is relatively easy to conceptualise this by looking at how we experience the world. We start with an individual perspective, and reference life from that ...
Views: 840 - What Is the Divine? - by Submitted on Apr 01, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe term “Divine” is used by Sri Aurobindo, starting with the title of his magnum opus, The Life Divine. How do we understand the term? In the Taittiriya Upanishad, a seeker asks his father and guru, “Lord, teach me the Eternal.” The response provides us an understanding of the Divine: “Seek ...
Views: 842 - Impact of the Supramental Manifestation on Earthly Existence, Part 2 - by Submitted on Mar 31, 2021 from santosh krinskyThere is a verse in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad which illustrates the essential principle of an evolutionary cycle of the development and growth of consciousness, when it indicates a progression ‘from the darkness to the light, from light to greater light.” The Upanishad foresees that ...
Views: 679 - Impact of the Supramental Manifestation on Earthly Existence, Part 1 - by Submitted on Mar 30, 2021 from santosh krinskyThrough the use of logical reasoning the human mind can extrapolate along a straight line of development once a pattern is seen and understood. We can also combine things through the use of the faculty of imagination to spin a web of speculation about the future, building on what we already ...
Views: 703 - The Process of the Supramental Manifestation and Its Integration into Life on Earth - by Submitted on Mar 29, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe consciousness of Matter could not anticipate or dream of the manifestation of the Life-principle, and the vital living plant and animal consciousness could not anticipate the advent and impact of the mental consciousness. Similarly, the mental consciousness cannot truly understand nor ...
Views: 589 - The Advent of the Supramental Consciousness and Its Impact on Mind, Life and Body - by Submitted on Mar 28, 2021 from santosh krinskyEvery new evolutionary development of consciousness has brought with it changes in the material forms and activity of those forms to accommodate the new powers that are manifesting. It is therefore expected that as the supramental manifestation takes place, it will also bring about changes in ...
Views: 600 - Is There Any Certitude About the Supramental Manifestation Actually Taking Place? - by Submitted on Mar 27, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe mind of the modern day wants to analyze facts and draw conclusions based on those facts. For centuries, the movement has been away from reliance on belief and faith to a reliance on facts and rational analysis. One need only look at the history of the rise of Western science and the disputes ...
Views: 666 - A Supramental Race as the Next Evolutionary Phase - by Submitted on Mar 26, 2021 from santosh krinskyIf we understand the development of life and life-forms on earth as an expression of the evolution of consciousness, we can easily see the relationship between a new power of consciousness and the need to have forms that can hold, and express, that power effectively. Scientists frequently ...
Views: 716 - The Yoga of the Supermind To Transform Earthly Life - by Submitted on Mar 25, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe integral yoga is not an attempt to abandon this life and achieve some realisation beyond. There is no promise of a heaven of bliss, nor an escape from the difficulties posed by matter, life and mind and their interaction in the world. Even the achievement of any result in the integral yoga ...
Views: 785(1 vote) - Spiritual Liberation and the Transformation of Life on Earth - by Submitted on Mar 24, 2021 from santosh krinskySpiritual seekers have long looked at liberation from the bondage of life in the world, and oneness with the Transcendent, the Absolute, as the key focus to demand their attention. This is of course an essential step in freeing the individual from the current limits of mind, life and body, and ...
Views: 785 - Distinguishing the Supracosmic Reality from the Supramental Consciousness - by Submitted on Mar 23, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe long history of focus by spiritual aspirants on achieving oneness with the Transcendent, the Eternal, while subordinating or outright denying the life of the world, has created substantial confusion about the significance of life, the nature of the manifested universal creation, and the ...
Views: 733 - The Essential Role of Supermind in the Transformation of Mind-Life-Body - by Submitted on Mar 22, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe aspiration and goal of seekers from time immemorial is the Eternal, which represents a status outside of the normal functioning of body-life-mind, that is, outside our normal experience. Through achievement of samadhi, the consciousness enters into the experience of pure existence, ...
Views: 651 - The Transition from Supermind through Overmind to the Consciousness of Body-Life-Mind - by Submitted on Mar 21, 2021 from santosh krinskyWe start in our human way of mental understanding simply accepting what we believe to be the entirety of our existence as we experience it. We see the outer world, we see the interaction and relations between the various beings and vital forces at work in the world, and we experience the mental ...
Views: 732 - Mind ... and Supermind - by Submitted on Mar 20, 2021 from santosh krinskyOr, we may describe this as the parable of the caterpillar and the butterfly. The mind is like the caterpillar, slowly grinding its way along, eating and focusing on its physical being and its circumstances for gaining sustenance. It does not dream that one day it will be transformed into a ...
Views: 680 - The Ladder of Consciousness Above the Mind - by Submitted on Mar 19, 2021 from santosh krinskyIt is difficult, if not impossible, for the mental awareness to understand experiences of consciousness outside of the mind’s normal ranges of operation. Just as we now recognise that our visual perceptions are framed within a range, and that other beings can actually see things we cannot see, ...
Views: 686 - Roadmap for Spiritual Growth and Transformation - by Submitted on Mar 18, 2021 from santosh krinskyA seeker treading the path of spiritual growth and enlightenment is confronted with a confusing mix of experiences and insights, as well as obstacles and setbacks of various kinds. A working knowledge of the various “moving parts” involved in the consciousness of the human being is valuable to ...
Views: 786 - The Realisations of the Self and the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Mar 17, 2021 from santosh krinskyPeople follow different spiritual paths and practices and tend to identify with their own path and the spiritual experiences and realisations that come with it. In some cases, they believe that the experience they have is the preeminent or real experience while others are less authentic. In ...
Views: 646 - The True Soul: the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Mar 16, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe nature of the soul and its function has been a subject of intense interest and debate for thousands of years around the world. Some claim there is no soul and that everything is simply a function of material forces randomly combining to create our existence and sense of intelligence. Others ...
Views: 710 - The Spirit, the Soul and the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Mar 15, 2021 from santosh krinskyThere is considerable confusion about the various terms used to describe the spiritual quest and the reality of our individual existence. Sri Aurobindo distinguishes and defines the different aspects or elements and their role in spiritual practice. There is additional confusion around the term ...
Views: 651 - The Respective Roles of the Jivatman and the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Mar 14, 2021 from santosh krinskyIn the Taittiriya Upanishad, a seeker successively realises the basis of existence, first in the physical sheath, then in the vital or life sheath, and then in the mental sheath, before exceeding each of these as the progression of his realisation went beyond the mind into the “knowledge” and ...
Views: 675 - The Jivatman and the Psychic Being: the Central Being of Man - by Submitted on Mar 13, 2021 from santosh krinskyIs there a purpose or significance to life and the evolution of consciousness? Who is responsible for this process, and how does it take place within the complexity of a unified whole that has innumerable constituent elements interacting with one another to create the world we live in and the ...
Views: 684 - The Aspects of the Mind and Their Modes of Action - by Submitted on Mar 12, 2021 from santosh krinskyFor most people, everything that takes place in the mind is simply mental activity. Psychology as a science in the West has only, in recent years, begun to appreciate there are different types of intelligence that, presumably, arise from different sources. The discussion of “left brain” and ...
Views: 647 - Distinguishing Between the Mind, the Vital Mind and the Physical Mind in the Process of Yogic Sadhana - by Submitted on Mar 11, 2021 from santosh krinskyWe transcribe and filter impulses and feelings that arise from the physical body and the vital action through our minds, and thus, we generally confuse the awareness or the response that arises through this process as a mental functioning. Sri Aurobindo distinguishes between the physical mind, ...
Views: 790 - The Vital Nature and Its Transformation - by Submitted on Mar 10, 2021 from santosh krinskyAs each phase of the evolution of consciousness manifests, it arises from the prior stage and continues to interact with that stage. At the point of meeting, the stages take on characteristics that resemble in many ways both together. Thus, the higher forms of Matter begin to exhibit ...
Views: 655 - The Four Parts of the Vital Being: Their Functions and Their Seats - by Submitted on Mar 09, 2021 from santosh krinskyFor those who focus on liberation from the worldly life, it is not much of a consideration to understand the exact details of the vital nature. If they can find a way to eliminate or reduce its action overall, so that they can concentrate on the process of liberation, that is considered ...
Views: 653 - The Role and Destiny of the Vital Force - by Submitted on Mar 08, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe life-force represents the next evolutionary stage beyond physical Matter. It transforms material energy and channels it for development of perception, feeling, and interaction. It prepares the way for the advent of the subsequent evolutionary phase of the manifestation of Mind. When it first ...
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