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Topics
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What is Yoga?
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"The term 'Yoga' comes from the Sanskrit root 'Yuj' which means 'to join.' In its
spiritual sense, it is the process by which the identity of the Jivatma (individual
self) and Paramatma (God) is realized by the Yogi. Yoga means union with the God.
This is the goal of human life. Yoga is the spiritual science that teaches the method
of joining human spirit (soul) with God. Yoga is the Divine science which disentangles
the Jiva from the phenomenal world of sense-objects and links him with the Absolute"
- Sri Swami Sivananda
Yoga refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines that originated in India
and Hinduism - from the Sanatana Dharma, (Sanatana Dharma or - “The law of Eternal or Universal
Righteousness” is the original name of what is now popularly known as Hinduism.
Sanatana Dharma comprises of spiritual laws which govern the human existence -The
eternal law that sustains, upholds and preserves the universe.)
The word Yoga is associated with meditative practices in Hinduism. Yoga also refers to one of the six orthodox schools
of Hindu philosophy. Yoga was first expounded in the oldest scriptures of Hinduism,
known as the Vedas. Four Vedas are the earliest scriptures known to mankind, extending
back thousands of years. Hindu tradition puts the Vedas as far back as 10,000 years.
Therefore, yoga itself can be considered 10,000 years old.
Today, Yoga is practiced by about 15 million people in the United States and 150
million across the globe. After tremendous popularity of yoga there are efforts
in the western cultures to create a new version of yoga that will be disconnected from
its origin - Hinduism.
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Why is there urgent
need to dissociate Yoga from Hinduism? |
Both Christians and Muslims are good people. Some of them try their best to
convert people to their religion so as to 'save' them. This is a good intention,
but unfortunately it is founded on the wrong belief that 'Only' their religion is
right.
And what about the Preachers and Proselytizers? - Because
of their wrong believes these people have always promoted Hinduism as religion of Pagans and Hindus
as “Satan Worshippers”. (Watch movie 'Indiana Jones' or read some school text books in USA to understand enormous amount of dislike towards Hindu Religion.) Denigrating and Slandering Hinduism is considered
as a holy duty in these religions, guarantying a place in the Heaven for those that perform this holy duty.
The fact is - God IS Fair and Unbiased. God is NOT Unjust, Blind,
Hurting and Favoring-Selective-Religions as some think.
For 2,000 years these two religions have collectively denigrated Hinduism and promoted
Yoga and Idol Worship as 'Satan Worship'. It goes on even today. Fortunately, the
common masses are rejecting the 'Divisive Ideologies' and are adopting 'Inclusiveness
and Freedom of Choice'. With advent of the Internet, people are realizing the difference
between tolerant and intolerant religions. Masses are clearly ignoring and rejecting
fear-mongering from the Church and Mosque and are adopting Yoga as part of their daily life. Promotion of Yoga and Idol worship as a 'Satan Worship' does not work
anymore.
Hence there is an urgent
need to 'Embrace what one cannot get Rid of'. So the need to Promote Yoga as their own creation.
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Dilemma of Christianity: 15 millions
of Satan Worshippers in America!!!
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Hinduism (and most of the eastern religions) are about Acceptance, Unification and
Freedom of Choice that is founded on open faith that can be challenged and criticized
both - and no one will kill you for doing that.
Islam and Christianity, on the other hand, are about Denial, Division and Fear-mongering
that is founded on blind faith that can be never be challenged or criticized.
You challenge it and the doors of burning hell are waiting to welcome you. You don't follow it and
still doors of hell are open for you. The terrorists ('God's believers') will send
you on a fast-track-train-to-hell simply by beheading you on the order of 'their' God
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Unfortunately, for the western world, Surya Namaskar is one of the Yogasanas that
starts with worship of Surya – The Sun – which is a form of 'Satan worship' according to
Christianity. Therefore, Do all 15 million Americans, that perform Surya Namaskar
daily, become Satan worshippers? They do not. This poses a big dilemma for
the Christianity and Islam, thus there is an urgent need to dissociate Yoga from Hinduism and promote
Yoga with new names like 'Christian Yoga', 'American Yoga' or 'Islamic Yoga' and so on.
Therefore, it is in the interest of the western cultures to dissociate Yoga from Hinduism,
and somehow associate Hinduism with the favorite western concept of "Castes, Cows
and Curry"...This is simply because it cannot be tolerated in the western culture
that they are following the basics of the Hinduism - the religion that has been
slandered as "Pagan religion" and the followers of Hinduism as "Devil worshippers"
for two thousand years.
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Hindu Assertion of Yoga
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What is Yoga?
Union with Divine is the goal of human life. Yoga means union with the Divine. Yoga
is spiritual science that ends all pains & miseries and unites our Soul with
the Super-Soul (The Supreme Divine.) Yoga confers immortality, eternal bliss, freedom,
perfection, perennial joy and ever-lasting peace to its practitioner. Yoga
helps the seeker attain THE ONE that is self-luminous, eternal, indivisible, pure,
spotless, desireless, qualityless, timeless, spaceless, changeless, beginningless,
endless, unborn, imperishable, fearless, motionless, nameless and formless - Something
infinite that shines eternally. (It is important to realize that this is a
journey of several lives. Please do not expect ever-lasting peace after practicing
Yoga for few years. It not going to happen!
)
Followers of Yoga are not expected to become Hindu.
At the same time it would be modest to expect that they be aware that yoga is a
wonderful gift of the Hinduism, the most ancient religion of the world.
There might be millions of Christian and Islamic followers of Yoga. But Yoga
in its original form is ABSOLUTELY derived from the basic tenets of Hinduism
and it CANNOT be separated from Hinduism. PERIOD.
Yoga is an immense contribution of Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma) to the humanity and it needs to be acknowledged
as it is. There is absolutely no relation, what-so-ever, between Christianity and Yoga or Islam and Yoga.
Yoga is inclusive - meaning it recognizes that God resides in all of his creation
and God loves each of his creation
EQUALLY
(God does not send anyone to hell or heaven just because of the faith or prophet they follow).
Inclusiveness and Tolerance
are absolutely alien concepts to Abrahamic religions. Therefore, Yoga cannot be related to Abrahamic religions (Christianity or Islam)
in any way.
Let me assure here:
Hinduism is not limited to Yoga !
But Yoga is Hinduism for sure !!!
Also, it is important to understand that the God is not an ownership of any particular
religion. Neither Hinduism, nor Christianity nor Islam. Hinduism accepts that
every individual has equal right to attain the God and that they can attain the God by
adopting various paths (whichever religion the path may belong to.) The Christianity and
Islam, on the other hand, absolutely reject the concept that
someone can achieve the God by not following the path prescribed
by their own religion. These are the
religions that promoted concept of “Mine is the God, Yours the Devil” for 2,000
years. This is absolutely a wrong and most intolerant concept
I have ever seen. This is the primary reason for the religious and cultural intolerance our civilization
has experienced for last 2,000 years (and the terrorism of last several decades).
On the other hand,
Hinduism is God centered (the God that is Universal, Inclusive and Tolerant that
loves all his creation equally). Hinduism is based on principals
that are open for criticism and freedom of choice. Hinduism has millions of different
books that promote freedom of choice and still point to the same "Loving God" in
different forms. Bible and Koran are just two more books added to millions they
already have and understand.
On the other hand Islam and Christianity are prophet centered (that are
Regional, Non-Inclusive and In-Tolerant that send people to Hell if they do not
follow their "prescribed" paths/faiths).
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Yogi
Swami Vivekananda’s view on Religion |
Yogi Swami Vivekananda
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Swami Vivekananda wrote: "If you want to be religious, enter not the gate of any
organised religion. They do a hundred times more evil than good, because they stop
the growth of each one's individual development.... Religion is only between
you and your God, and no third person must come between you. Think
what these organised religions have done! What Nepoleon was more terrible than those
religious persecutions? If you and I organise, we begin to hate every person. It
is better not to love, if loving only means hating others. That is no love. That
is hell! If loving your own people means hating everybody else, it is the quintessence
of selfishness and brutality, and the effect is that it will make you brutes." -The
Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Volume I, Topic 'The Gita III']
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Summary |
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- God is about "Selfless Love" or "The Divine" or "The Absolute".
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Yoga is about losing your "Individual" identity and merging it with the "Universal"
identity - "The Divine" or "The Absolute". This process of union with the God requires conscious efforts of several lives. Forget the religion – Religions
are mental blocks and "Dogmatic" religions are absolute hindrances in the process of merging your "Self" with the universal "Self".
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God loves everyone EQUALLY, even those who may or may not believe in him.
- God is absolutely beyond religion. God does not follow any particular religion nor
does he promote or prescribe any one of them.
- God does not send anyone to heaven or hell based on their faith or belief. Barbaric
are those who believe in such stupid concepts.
- Intolerant and Dogmatic religions can never lead humanity to the God. They are binding
blocks on the path to the God.
- Life is not a Random event. God does not punish and reward his children just by
a "Sweet Will". The God that rewards or punishes someone just by a
"Clueless Will" is NOT a God. Such God needs guidance himself if he is so blind and clueless.
- Entire Universe runs on the Will of the God, at the same time God does not determine or interfere in daily events of your life. It is ONLY the
"Law of Karma" and the "Trigunas" [Sattva
(purity), Raja (Activity) and Tama (Inertia)] that govern the "human
existence" (not any particular Agent or Prophet of the God)
When you get an opportunity, try to get rid of the intolerance from within (little bit at a time) and realize the omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient presence of the divinity in every individual (independent of their religion) and every living being (whether human or otherwise). Give-up all the dogmas if ever you wish to be
human and realize the Divine.
Here is how I see God and here is
my Journey towards the God. My God is not Hurting. He loves all his children
equally without any difference of color, race, nation, religion and ideology. You and I
are exactly the same for
him. We all may have different vehicles, maps and driving directions
but the destination for all is the Same -
The Supreme Consciousness!!!
Thank you
Mahendra Joshi
Believe me, I love Bhagvad Gita and I also love the Bible....I read None of them
and still I am close to the God...Very very close. Everything that we all believe
in here will be proven wrong there...You will realize that when you reach there.
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The image like above can be seen 'Only in the Hindu religion' because this religion
truly believes in 'We All Are Equal'. We may have different paths but we all have
the same destination. Therefore, they never feel the need to convert anyone.
Om Shanti!
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“Asato ma sadgamaya, Tamaso ma jyotirgamaya, Mrtyorma amrtam gamaya” - (Brhadaranyaka
Upanishad)
Meaning - God, Lead me from the asat to the sat, Lead me from darkness to light,
Lead me from death to immortality.
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Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 3, Verse 19
The highest ideal for every Sadhak is `Siddha-Avasthaa' i.e. state of perfection
or `Moksha' i.e. release from the cycle of multiple births and deaths. As a result
of the knowledge of the Self, a Yogi has nothing left in balance, which is yet to
be acquired for anyone including himself. It is all the same to him whether he performs
an action or does not perform it. If such a Yogi has nothing to do gain or lose
from others then as per the modern principle of `the path of the least action',
his logical choice must be inaction and not action; as he has nothing to achieve
for himself as well as for others.....In the rhythm of incessantly beating of heart,
a Sadhak carries out various mundane worldly activities without even noticing every
single beat of his heart. Absence of attachment leads to pacification of mind; thus
work and rest go on as if reflex actions. Mind made calm in this way becomes capable
of grasping the Self. Calmness of mind is the essential pre-requisite for the knowledge
of the Self.
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