BHAGAVAN SRI RAMANA MAHARSHI
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
In our Yoga book club this week, we are discussing ‘Ramana Maharshi and the Path of Self-knowledge’ by Arthur Osborne.
We are indeed blessed that such a great Yogi was born in our age. His life was a reminder that the great paths (marga) of Yoga remain ever fresh. His shrine and ashram under the sacred hill of Arunachala remain a beacon light to all who continue to seek Arunachala in the heart.
In this journal post, Maharshi’s life and teachings are outlined by Yogacharya Michael McCann
Christmas, the Descent of Light
Christmas, the descent of light
In these cold, waning days of the winter, as we move into the season of Advent, it is worth reflecting on the meaning of Christmas in the light of the Yogic concept of the “Avatar”, “the One who descends”. This teaches that at low points in the cycles of history, when forces of darkness and ignorance gather, and Humanity has lost its way, then the Divine incarnates and descends to the world to restore righteousness (Dharma).
Kindness as Heart-Centred Revolution
A Practice Beyond the Mat
While asana trains the body, kindness trains the heart. Each moment offers a choice: to retract into separation or to extend presence. A smile offered to a stranger, a patient breath in the face of irritation, a willingness to listen without agenda,— these are as much yoga as any physical shape. Asana practiced with kindness will also amplify our ability to be kind beyond the mat.
As World Kindness Day invites global reflection, yoga invites daily embodiment. Through sutra, mantra, mudra, and mindful living, kindness moves from concept to way of being. It is, ultimately, the practice through which yoga’s deepest promise — union — is realised.
Trauma-informed Yoga
“When we take a trauma-informed approach to teaching yoga, it is best practice to both learn and then apply the knowledge about the nervous system with the help of the Polyvagal Theory.”
In this article, Bridget Hammill considers how trauma-informed yoga practices can benefit the nervous system when it gets stuck in defensive mode as a result of past trauma.
Samatvam - the yoga of balance
The ancient science of Yoga recognises that we are all in a state of imbalance.
From a philosophical perspective, everything in the universe, including our bodies and mind are subject to the ‘play of the Gunas’, fluctuations in energy that range from stagnation (Tamas) and turbulence (Rajas) to balance and harmony (Sattva).
In this article, Yogacharya Michael McCann (Spandan) explores the roots of imbalance and some yogic practices that bring us into balance again.
The Shining Mirror Of Consciousness
‘Just as it is in the nature of a mirror to shine, so all beings at their origin possess spiritual illumination. When, however, passions obscure the mirror, it becomes covered over, as if with dust. When false thoughts, under the direction of the master, are overcome and destroyed, they cease to proclaim themselves. Then is the Intellect illumined, in accordance with its nature, and noting remains unknown. It is like the polishing of a mirror’.
Tsung-mi
All the paths of Yoga are means of polishing the Buddhi mirror. Yogacharya Michael McCann explores the many ways of polishing the mirror of consciousness.
Reflections on the Sun
The spiritual sun is the source of love, creativity, transformation and our very Consciousness. While the sun’s light makes things visible, the inner light of Awareness is more luminous, because Consciousness is the greatest power of visibility. The sun would simply not exist for us were it not known in the light of Awareness.
IINTERBEING, INTERTREEING, INTERFREEING
When breathing life into our new website, the Yoga Fellowship logo suddenly and subtly shapeshifted. From a lotus of hand-holding humans, it re-emerged as a tree - a tree with many branches, fed by light, caressed by air and anchored through a deep, nascent, intertwined system of roots and soil into a whole underground mycelium network.
The Sun Behind the Sun
“As the One Sun illumines the whole world, so does the in-dweller illumine the whole body-mind field” (Bhagavad Gita).
Yoga has taught me that everything is a symbol, particularly the sun beaming from on high. A symbol can be defined as “that which points towards something higher than itself”. What is the sun communicating in secret language?
The Human Singing Bowl
The singing bowl used in Yoga or Tibetan Buddhism plays on our nadis and chakras to bring us to states of meditation or awareness.
There is something about a resting singing bowl that imparts a sense of receptivity and humility. In turn, it invites us to adopt the same attitude in our lives.
May we all become singing bowls of the Divine and follow the sound that leads to the Silence of the Heart.