Month: November 2023

[Rabindra Sahu, Acharya of Swami Rama Dhyana Gurukulam, taught a class on ‘Attitude of Worship and Surrender in the Practice of Sun Salutation’ at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama on 22 november 2023. You may watch a glimpse of the session by clicking on the video below.]

Hatha yoga is worship with the body, whereby each action and posture becomes a ritual, an offering to the divine light within. How then we approach our yoga meditation practice and offer salutations to the sun—with a sense of purity, with a sense of sacredness.

This is the context within which we practice hatha yoga and we set the intention before we even approach our practice. With what approach we are going to the seat of our meditation or even our hatha yoga practice is something we can bring more awareness to. The quality and depth of our practice is dependent on our approach and intention alone.

Before going to the temple or church in the morning, we don’t just get up from the bed and go. We make sure to cleanse and purify our bodies by brushing our teeth, taking a bath, and wearing nice clothes. Why do we do it? We feel clean, sacred, pure. And only then we enter the sacred chambers of the external temple. In our practice, we can also approach and enter the sacred chambers of the internal temple in the same manner, with a feeling of purity and sacredness.

When was the last time you felt that there is something very sacred within you?

If we allow ourselves to remain in tune with that purity and sacredness within, we cannot do anything that is non-harmonious. Can we say, ‘I feel so pure and sacred that I want to scold you. I feel so pure and sacred that I want to punch you.’? It in itself is impossible. The moment we feel so pure and sacred, the silence and stillness naturally dawns within us and we just want to remain there.

We are not unfamiliar with the sentiment of surrender, as we do surrender and offer ourselves (to whatever degree) in our daily lives towards those from whom we have received something that is of value to us. We then bow down to them in gratitude. It is then natural to have the same feeling of gratitude and surrender towards the life affirming Sun.

As we allow ourselves to surrender and be in tune with something higher, something deeper with us, then we are able to experience this body as a temple of Divinity.

Swami Veda Bharati writes in the Philosophy of Hatha Yoga that “To making the body a fit vessel for God’s worship becomes the purpose of hatha yoga. That was the purpose, the only reason, for which the ancient yogis started the science of hatha yoga.”

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From the end of September to the beginning of October this year, we were happy to hold three workshops and two retreats throughout Japan sharing the ancient and authentic teachings of the Himalayan tradition inviting Rabindra Sahu from Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG), Rishikesh, India.

On the first weekend, we had a two-day workshop in Okayama with the theme of “Preparations for Yoga Nidra”. The participants learned the importance of deepening the understanding of body, breath, mind, and emotions and practices of purifying them as the preparatory practices of Yoga Nidra.  They were also introduced to systematic guided relaxations. Some of the participants were new to Yoga while others had been practicing it for a long time, and each one of them was able to connect with themselves at a deeper level.

On the next day, we were invited to a city in Osaka to share the teachings of Himalayan Yoga Meditation with the mayor and the officers of the city. The theme being “Stress Management”, we introduced the importance of diaphragmatic breathing and of a relaxed forehead. We also shared with them the practice of Makarasana and they did a short experiment on how certain emotions affect breath patterns and vice versa. It was a very practical session, and the managers of each department told us that they would like to share what they learned with their staffs. Not to mention that everyone’s forehead was relaxed at the end of the workshop leaving the room with smiles on their faces.

On the later part of the second week, it was there in a quiet forest area in Karuizawa, Nagano where we had a three-day retreat. The theme of the retreat was “Preparations for Yoga Nidra”, and the participants shared about their understanding and practices of Hatha Yoga, Pranayama and the philosophies behind them. They were given several experiments of reflection and contemplation to observe their body, breath, and mind in different sessions and noted the findings.  We discussed the importance of emotional purification as a preparation of Yoga Nidra. We practiced tension relaxation, and systematic guided relaxations. While doing guided relaxation practices, some of them noticed that they were holding unconscious tensions or movements on their body parts. Others shared that they fell asleep during the practices. Rabindra encouraged them to take mental note on how they felt and what was their experience so that so that they could see the difference or the changes when they practice next time. We learnt the art of relaxation in day-to-day life which helps deepen the practice of Yoga Nidra and how the practice of relaxation could help us to carry the feeling of a relaxed mind to our day-to-day life. At night, we had a Kirtan with a guest teacher Amrita Katha Dasi. She kindly explained the meaning of the mantra and shared the practices in the path of devotion. Though some of the participants were new to Kirtan, we had a beautiful time together chanting the holy names. Many people traveled for a long distance to attend the retreat, and we shared a rich time studying together, cooking together, eating together, and laughing together – while deepening the practices – in the forest cottage surrounded by serene nature.

We also had a one-day retreat in Kofukuji, a Zen temple in Shiga. Sharing a brief history and the teachings of the Himalayan Yoga tradition, the participants learned the philosophy of Hatha Yoga and practiced Asana on the basis of the philosophy. They also studied the proper sitting and the diaphragmatic breathing by checking each other’s posture and breath. At the end of the retreat, the monk of the temple guided everyone’s Zazen practice, which has been taught under the Rinzai sect of Buddhism. After the retreat, some participants said that they were reminded of the importance of going back to the basics and finding balance in their practices of Asana as well as in their daily lives. It was a heartwarming retreat where we shared the same table eating homemade vegetarian cuisines prepared with love.

The last workshop was held in Tokyo on the theme of “Holistic Health”. Rabindra shared the importance of keeping the body and mind a fit instrument and shared ways to live in harmony with nature in our daily lives giving examples of how people live in some parts of rural India where the traditions still remain. One of the participants said that it was an insightful workshop as she was reminded of many things that we take granted that we need to be aware of thereby establishing a deep connection in her everyday life.

Throughout the two weeks, we were given many opportunities to share the teachings of the tradition in different parts of Japan. We appreciate everyone for their time and dedication to come and learn. Last but not least, sincere thanks to Rabindra ji for traveling to Japan to help us spread the teachings of the tradition from his knowledge and experiences. We pay our deepest gratitude to the masters and the tradition, who always watch us and bless us with opportunities to learn and grow in each and every moment.

AHYMSIN Japan
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Full Moon Guided Meditation
9 PM on November 27, 2023 (Japan Standard Time)
The meditation will be guided in both Japanese and English.
Registration: https://forms.gle/sqwdaBxgZ5GKpCjq5

Four months ago, a shocking diagnosis put me face-to-face with my biggest fear. The surprising news cut to my existential core. It stuck my mortality in my face and backed me into a corner. A thought streamed through my mind. Am I the next one to slip through the crack and disappear into the great unknown?

This is how it happened. I went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota (ninety miles south of Minneapolis) for a second opinion on a prostate issue. The urologist called the next day to tell me there were still problems with my prostate, but that treatment had to be postponed. Something else came up. When the radiologist had examined my MRI image, he found a large mass on my left kidney. A CT scan and a meeting with a surgeon were scheduled for the next week.

Everybody feels fear. It protects us from danger. My biggest fear was tomophobia, or fear of general anesthesia. We are all different. What causes fear for me may not be the same for you. The fear overwhelmed me. I didn’t know how I would get through the two-month wait to surgery. At times I found the courage inside of me, but the fear always returned. Rather than push the fear away, I chose to embrace it.

A practice of gratitude was very helpful. Most of all, I was grateful that they found the mass. More good news came when the surgeon told me (and my wife Nikki) that it was contained in the kidney and hadn’t spread to other organs or bones. The surgeon also shared that most likely he could do a partial removal of the kidney using robotic surgery. After some contemplation, I was especially grateful for being presented with a challenge that would push me deeper and farther than I had ever been before. Every time the feeling of fear came into my mind, I reminded myself of all these things.

An even bigger help to me than the gratitude practice was the love, support, and encouragement shown to me by others. A simple ‘How are you doing’ or ‘I’ll be cheering for you’ or ‘I’ll be praying for you’ were extremely powerful in helping me move beyond the fear. It was important for me to know that others cared. That made all the difference in the world.

There is no doubt that the practice of gratitude and the loving support of others helped move me to a place of more courage. But the fear persisted. Then two weeks before the surgery, I had a breakthrough moment. All the fear I had felt over the last several weeks finally pushed me to a point of surrender and acceptance.

The thought I am not the body flowed into my mind. I understood more clearly than ever the impermanent nature of the body. Growing old can’t be stopped and health problems are a part of life. All of us must eventually leave behind everyone we know and everything we own. From that point on, the courage was more available for me to access. By the morning of the surgery, an unexpected calm settled over me.

The post-surgical pathology report confirmed that the mass was malignant and showed that the margins were clear. No further treatment was recommended. We were elated that the surgery was successful.

Thank you to everyone for your support. My hope is that by sharing this experience it may be of benefit to someone else. I wish you all the best in whatever challenges you face.

Editor’s Note

Daniel Hertz, MS, BCB, E-RYT 500 has been on the faculty of The Meditation Center in Minneapolis since 1995. He is the author of a memoir entitled Everything is A Little Bit Alright: yoga, meditation, and a dog named Roy. It is widely available through Amazon and other online booksellers.

If you would like more information on the topic, here is a link to a recent talk Daniel gave at The Meditation Center in Minneapolis.

His portion begins at 33:00. https://vimeo.com/871892513?share=copy