Author: Divya - Administrator

There is a Sanskrit word, sankalpa. The word can be translated as follows:

• sam (सम्) – together, completely, fully
• kalpa (कल्प) – idea, plan, rule, or arrangement

An interpretive translation is a resolve in which the whole mind is aligned toward a goal.

A sankalpa is more than a simple goal. It has determination behind it.

That determination is essential on the path of yoga and, really, on the path of life itself, because it produces the power—the shakti—necessary to reach the goal. Swami Rama says simply: without it, you won’t reach the goal. That’s not meant to be dramatic. It’s just the way things work.

People often think of sankalpa as a vow, and that’s true. But a vow doesn’t magically make something happen. You have to be determined. You must choose and put energy into it. It’s one thing to say, “I will do this,” but we can say that all day long, and nothing will happen if we don’t mean it.

Swami Rama says you have to say: “I will do this. I can do this. I have to do it.”

There are many times when determination is essential.

Take the simple example of cutting down on foods you love that aren’t good for you, like junk foods. Without determination, forget it. It’s not easy to cut down on what we eat. With determination, you can do it.

Similarly, meditating every day takes determination because many things will come up. Some days you won’t want to do it. This is where determination is necessary.

Determination has a profound effect on the mind. We think we’re just setting a goal, but the mind reacts to that. Swami Veda once told me that once you decide, your mind changes.

I experienced this very directly during a forty-day silence retreat. After about ten days, my mind went into total rebellion and said, “Enough of this silence practice. I’m going to quit.” I had a big argument with myself—the part that wanted to quit and the part that said, “Wait a minute, I’m doing this practice.”

What finally made up my mind was a memory from years earlier.

I had set an intention to take a retreat for ten days, but discomfort arose and I abandoned my plan. When I told Dr. Arya what I had done, he looked at me, shook his head, and said, “You missed something by not staying.”

I felt so bad seeing his disappointment and knowing he was disappointed not for himself but for me.

So, years later, during that forty-day silence, when I was in the midst of that crisis, thinking, “I’ve got to leave this retreat,” I remembered that look on his face. I thought, “I don’t want to see that again because of something I’ve done. I must stay and complete this.”

At that moment, I developed determination. I decided: I will do it. I am going to stay here and finish it, no matter what.

With that determination, my whole mind changed. All the complaining and whining stopped, and the resistance went away. For the remaining thirty days of the silence, I was in a state of joy.

Once I made that determination—once I made that sankalpa—everything changed.

True determination means your whole mind is aligned. If something pushes you down, you stand up and keep going.

Gandhi was like that. No matter what they did to him, he kept getting back up. Such was the power of his determination.

Determination means having a strong will.

Eknath Easwaran says our will is like a beaten-up fellow lying in the corner, while our desires are strong and energetic. But the will is what gets you to your goal. So you must strengthen it.

You do that in small ways.

When your alarm rings in the morning, get up. Don’t lie there another half hour.

When you want one extra cookie, pass on it.

Small things like that build the will.

That is what determination is: the focusing of the will so you can reach your goal. Without it, the mind’s resistances will keep coming, and you’ll never get there.

So ask yourself:

What am I here for? What is my goal? What is my sankalpa? What am I determined to do?

Even a simple one—“I will meditate at the same time daily”—can be enough to begin.

Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita by Swami Rama

Chapter 12 The yoga of Devotion pg. 353 – 364

At the request of Swami Ritavan Ji, Himalayan Yoga Meditation Netherlands Society (HYMNS) will facilitate a reading circle, that will be started and hosted by Louise. We will start, as instructed by Swami Ritavan, with Chapter 12 of Swami Rama’s Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita. The group can then decide among themselves about the next book. TTP students can register for these hours for sangha hours. You can send an email to info@yoga-hymns.nl if you would like to attend. If you don’t have the book, we will send you a pdf of the chapter.

Meeting ID: 818 2210 5456 Password: Bharati108

When? Sundays – January 25, 11.00 CET onwards
India 3:30 Pm; Netherlands 11:00 Am CET; Taiwan 18:00 Pm

January 25 – 2026 : Reading the full chapter, Reading and discussing Verse 1 and 2

February 15 – 2026 : Reading and discussing verse 3 – 8

February 18 until March 30 I am in India at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama
Daylight saving time begins March 29 in the Netherlands

April 26 -2026 : Reading and discussing verse 9 – 12, Reading again verse 13 – 20 (Amritashtakam)

Verse 13 – 20 explain the characteristics of the best of devotees. It describes the virtues which an aspirant should acquire on the path of perfection.

May 24 – 2026 : Reading and discussing verse 13 – 20, Summary of the Chapter

Anatomy Support Group – in English

In April, an anatomy support group will start on zoom for TTP level 2 students and others who are interested. Louise will host this group. For more information, email Louise at info@yoga-hymns.nl

Meeting with Spiritual Friends, Satsang with Wolfgang Bischoff

About every 6 to 8 weeks, HYMNS hosts a zoom-satsang with Wolfgang, who is a senior teacher in the Himalaya Tradition. If you are interested in participating, please send an email at info@yoga-hymns.nl

Next date: Thursday 12 February 19.30 CET

In loving service of the Tradition,
Louise

For the second time, millions of people came together in meditation on 21 December 2025, in response to the UN’s call to pause, reflect and reconnect with our inner selves. The sādhakas of the AHYMSIN group of Quatre Bornes, Mauritius also got together on that day for a meditation session as part of the celebrations of World Meditation Day.

We feel deeply blessed that what was once a sacred ancient tradition, revealed only to a select few, has today become a global observance, embraced by the whole planet as a path to inner peace, self-awareness, and holistic well-being. In today’s fast-paced world, the ancient wisdom offers us a simple reminder: peace begins within.

The session was held under the guidance of our spiritual teacher Behenji Sarojini. In her discourse, at the end of the guided meditation, Behenji Sarojini talked about the meditation process as taught by Swami Rama of the Himalayan Yoga Tradition. She emphasized on the fact that meditation is not an escape from life. It is a systematic training of the mind which unfolds through a progressive preparation of the body, breath, and mind in defined stages.

The first step for the preparation of a meditative state begins with the practice of Joints and Glands exercises that gently stretch and limber the body. This releases tensions and energy blockages.

The second step is Hatha Yoga Asanas – the physical postures. Here all asanas are performed meditatively with mindful breathing, relaxation of effort and awareness of body sensations. This preparation trains the mind to pay attention and to turn inward.
The third step is a deep relaxation. This calms the nervous system, releases physical tensions and slows the breath.  From a scientific view of the autonomic nervous system, deep relaxation balances our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Modern life tends to keep the sympathetic system which is responsible for the body’s “fight or flight” response chronically active, even when no real danger is present, resulting in increased heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, heightened alertness, and stress hormone release.

From the perspective of ancient yogic traditions, the state of the nervous system is understood through the flow of prāṇa (vital life force) moving through subtle channels called nāḍīs. When the body and mind are under stress, prāṇa becomes irregular and outward-moving It flows unevenly through the nāḍīs, particularly activating the piṅgalā nāḍi – the right nostril (which continues through the right channel of the spinal cord).

On the other hand, the parasympathetic nervous system, operating through the vagus nerve, restores the body to a calm and composed state with slowed heart rate, deeper breathing, muscle relaxation, healing and emotional calm. Attention is withdrawn, allowing prānā in the idā nāḍi – the left nostril which continues through the left channel of the spinal cord to settle and move smoothly and rhythmically. This makes the body deeply relaxed and the mind naturally calms down. This balanced flow of prāṇā corresponds to parasympathetic dominance.

The fourth step is prānāyāma – yogic breathing. Practices like nādī  śodhanam (alternate nostril breathing)—balances the flow of prāṇa between iḍā and piṅgalā, purifies the nāḍīs, and steadies the mind. With regular practice, prāṇā begins to flow into suśumṇā nāḍī, the central channel of the spinal cord, creating a stable foundation for meditation. The mind becomes one-pointed, attention is drawn inward.

Once the foundation has been laid, meditation arises spontaneously and effortlessly, and the mind rests in stillness and in inner peace. Thus, the Himalayan Yoga Tradition approaches meditation as a gradual inner journey—from body to breath, from breath to mind, and from mind to silence—revealing our natural state of inner peace.

At the conclusion of the session, the sādhakas expressed a felt sense of pervasive inner peace and well-being emerging from the moment of inner stillness. The session closed with silent thanks and deep reverence to the masters who have transmitted the timeless science of meditation.

Meditation transcends religions, cultures and belief systems. It belongs to the inner science of the mind. Its principles are universal and accessible to all who seek self-knowledge, inner peace and collective harmony.

Editor’s Note:

Maya Devi Soonaranne is an initiate in the Himalayan Tradition and an active member in AHYMSIN Mauritius.

When I was planning the topic for our annual retreat in Thailand for 2025, suddenly “Yoga of Action” came to my mind. Perhaps it was because we already had “Yoga of Love,” “Yoga of Wisdom,” and “Yoga of Light” in the previous years as I did not have a particular logic or urge to go with this topic. When we had a discussion among a small group of Thai students, however, there was some resistance to this topic because of the concern that Thai people (mostly Buddhists) may be discouraged to join if they know that the teaching is based upon the “Bhagavat Gita,” a sacred Hindu Scripture. Nonetheless, we decided to go with this topic.

A few months later, I read an AHYMSIN newsletter and surprisingly found that “Perennial Psychology of Bhagavat Gita, by Swami Rama” was mentioned as a recommended book for this year;  the year of Swami Rama’s centennial celebration. I took that as a confirmation for our decision. Then, the challenge came, with a lot fewer (than normal) number of people registering for the retreat. We decided to do commercial advertising to promote our event, which did not help at all, as no single person out of 2,000 people seeing the ad registered, although we received a few inquiries. With the Guru’s blessing, however, during the last two weeks before the retreat began, we had many more people joining, including some who initially could not join because they had other commitments.

The teachings of the “Bhagavat Gita” could be very controversial as they are based upon a story of the war between members of the same family who were fighting to reign the Kingdom. On the surface, it is understandable that many people found it contradictory to spirituality. We were very lucky to have Shi Hong and Pandit Priyadarshana (Pierre Lefebvre), whose sharp insights into this sacred text made it easier for participants to understand the deeper meanings of the teachings, clearing most of their doubts by the end. One participant told us after the retreat that while she is a Buddhist and fully embraces the Buddha’s teachings, she does not see the Bhagavat Gita teaching in contradiction with her mainstream belief after listening to our two teachers.

Those who see Bhagavat Gita as a spiritual message metaphor asked why the story has to be about the killing of one’s own family members and teachers. Shi Hong explained that it has to be extreme in order to create a very strong inner conflict even for a highly evolved human being (like Arjuna), which most of us can relate to in our daily conduct (where so many conflicts arise in the mind). If the war is between two sides that are not closely related, then a sense of conflict would not be there in full. And because of intense conflict, a high degree of non-attachment is required to make a discriminative choice to act. Rooted in ignorance (Avidya), attachment is a starting point of the downward spiral. People with strong attachment live in fear (of losing what they are attached to) and anger, losing mindfulness, coming under delusion, and finally destroying their own lives. Killing enemies who are one’s own family members here means killing attachment and ego that are as close to one’s self as one’s own relatives.

At the higher level of the teachings, the body (that is killed) is not one’s own true nature but only a garment one wears. Atman or Self (one’s own essential nature) can never be killed as it is never born (so it can never die). Self-realization (realizing Atman) will thus remove all ignorance and liberate us from samsara (birth–death cycle). Atman (individual consciousness) is like a drop of Brahman (universal consciousness) wrapped in the body like a drop of water from the ocean put in a bottle. A body or a bottle is formed by each person’s karma. Self-realization means a drop of water is released from the bottle, returns to the ocean, and becomes part of the ocean again permanently.

For people who take Bhagavat Gita as a real story, Pandit Priyadarshana explained that the five Pandavas brothers had done everything possible to avoid the war in the past many decades. However, the Kauravas’ only goal was to completely destroy the Pandavas, forcing the eventual war. So, it is the war between virtue and vice. The Kauravas were given Krishna’s whole army as Arjuna (one of the five Pandavas) chose to have only Krishna as adviser. Yet the Kauravas lost the war and everyone was killed. This reflects the essence of the teaching that if one chooses the Lord of life (represented by Krishna), he/she will attain victory in the end over thousands of enemies (attachment, fears, selfishness, lust, etc.). Panditji also enlightened us with the knowledge of the laws of Karma. Karma means action, which subsequently leads to the fruit, and the fruit motivates one to perform the next action and reap another fruit, and so on. This creates a vicious cycle with no end. The only way one can be free from the bondage of karma is to perform one’s action selflessly, without expecting anything in return. But this requires a high degree of mindfulness, non-attachment, and skill. While nobody can do anything about past karma (either in this life or previous lives), whether they have already produced fruit or not, one can definitely choose to perform future actions that are not binding.

This is where the practices play a vital role. Meditation is the highest form of practice as it is a tool to release the highest level of wisdom hidden very deeply inside each human being. However, successful meditation will be facilitated greatly by the practices of Hatha Yoga, Pranayama, relaxation, and the rules of conduct (Yama and Niyama). During the retreat, participants learned these techniques as taught by our Gurudeva, Swami Rama, and Swami Veda Bharati.

At the end of the retreat, the teachers reminded us to keep the inspiration to practice daily (as they know how hard it is to stick to this discipline). Panditji said that the inner battlefield of the Bhagavat Gita needs not be something extremely dramatic like the Kurukshetra war, but it can be something very subtle in daily life, like whether I should sacrifice my time for practice, etc. Shi Hong wished all the participants that the bottle (which imprisons their own essential nature) will become thinner and thinner until it finally disappears one day, so all of us can rest permanently in our own essential nature (Self) that is one and the same.

The organizing team is deeply grateful to the Guru force, which always guides us silently through all the challenges, to Shi Hong and Pandit Priyadarshana who have selflessly served the tradition for so many years, to all the volunteers (translation, book selling, etc.) who have worked hard to give their services at the highest qualities, and finally to all the participants who have contributed their time and financial support that made this retreat possible and successful.

By Little Student of Himalayan Yoga Meditation Tradition.

God is the first ray of Sun on a misty morning

God is the golden sunset over the ocean quietly glowing

God is the river teaching you to flow

God is the fire burning you until you let go

God is the wind whispering its song

God is the dawn you have been waiting for so long

God is the winter freezing up the night

God is the spring bringing the new light

God becomes love to remind you how it feels

God becomes sorrow to show you what pain means

God becomes the emptiness you feel

God makes you search until you heal

God lifts you up to help you learn to fly

God pull you down so you can reach up again high

God becomes strength when you feel too weak

God becomes tears to help you weep

God becomes silence when you need to hear

God becomes an ending when the time is almost near

God becomes the path when you feel so lost

God becomes direction when you need it the most

When you are truly looking for God, He becomes the search

And when you finally get there, He is that final merge

To reach there takes only a second

One second is all it takes

A gentle blow of the final candle flame

A brief moment for the lifting of the veil

And in that moment, it will all be so clear

Because all the answers will be just right here.

Editor’s Note:

Beatrix Sari is an initiate and was a student at the Swami Rama Dhyana Gurukulam at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama during the academic year 2025-26.

Yesterday evening we spoke about how great masters as Swami Rama are like a living flame of consciousness, living flame of light and love. Today is the culmination of the yajna (fire ritual) that we are offering with the akhanda-mandalakaram mantra dedicating to Gurudeva.

Let us talk more about the fire rituals that are going on at the ashram right now and contemplate upon how we can connect with it at a deeper level, when we sit for the next session together. We can think of the fire ritual as the manifestation of the living flame that is within us, the living flame of the Guru force, the living flame of the Divine, the living flame of love, the living fire of tapas, the fire that purifies, the fire that soothes, the fire that nurtures and nourishes. The external fire (agni) is the manifestation of all that.

The akhanda-mandalakaram mantra acts as the bridge for our connection with the Guru force (Swami Rama and Swami Veda Bharati). When we chant the mantra, it invokes his presence and we connect with that “living flame” within our own hearts through that vibration, through that doorway. Before we go to the yajnashala, let us sit in deep reverence, and take a few deep breaths with eyes softly closed and listen to the mantra as it is being chanted.

Now let us set our own sankalpa (intention) silently, or softly state your intention. For example, one may say:

“With a heart full of reverence, I connect to the living flame of my Guru, Swami Rama/Swami Veda/the Guru force. Through this yajna, I offer my limited self into the fire of awareness, seeking to merge with the silence of the Supreme Self, seeking to merge with the divinity/Guru.”  This where we build an invisible and intangible bridge from our heart to the ritual.

Let us start chanting the Guru Mantra softly and rhythmically…

And now let us chant aloud for a few minutes and then gradually soften your voice…

Finally, continue chanting mentally, letting the sound reverberate inside you.

Visualize a flame as you chant, visualize a brilliant, gentle, luminous flame in your heart center. This is the “living flame” of Swami Rama – his grace, his wisdom, his transformative power. Visualize that this inner flame is growing and glowing brighter with each repetition of the akhanda-mandalakaram mantra…

In your mind’s eye, see this inner flame travel from your heart, down to your arm, and into your hand. Feel your hand becoming charged with this spiritual energy. You are now ready to make offerings not just with physical samagri[i], but with the essence of the Guru’s grace. Now, the external fire in the yajna-kunda becomes the container for your internal devotion.

When we go to the yajnashala and sit facing the yajna-kunda (fire pit), as we place the offering into the fire, let us feel that we are not just offering material substances. We are offering all the 5 kleshas[ii].

And let us allow the fire to purify those aspects of emotions within ourselves. You are offering something external and it is burning. You see that that is being burned. What is it that I wish to be burned in my life through the invocation of the Guru Spirit, the ever-present Guru Spirit? So, do I want to burn my anger? Offer it. Do I want to burn my insecurities? Offer it. Do I want to burn my jealousy, greed, attachments, laziness? Offer them. Offer it to the great fire spirit and that will elevate us. It is for our elevation.

The fire looks like an upward triangle. Fire defies gravity. It is anti-gravity. It moves up. So, when we worship the fire, we are choosing to elevate ourselves from anything that pulls us downwards. We become purified and uplifted. When we do a fire offering, we connect with that. Connect with that light, we connect with that fire, that fire that burns us, that burns our lower self. Am I ready to be burned?

The entire havana then becomes a dialogue between our internal chant and the external fire. We are feeding the external flame with the samagri (matter) and it in turn is feeding our internal flame with light and clarity. With each remembrance of your mantra as an offering to the flame, the flame expands within you, covering your whole being as if you have become that living flame, the fire.

Towards the end, let us make one last, conscious offering, perhaps of a larger portion of samagri, as a symbolic offering of our entire self with a loud “namaha swaha”.

Let the mental repetition of akhanda-mandalakaram mantra become slower and slower, until it dissolves completely into the crackling sound of the fire leading to the stillness of our minds.

We can then choose to simply sit. Looking softly at the flames. Not trying to do anything, Nothing to think, nothing to do, nowhere to go… Just being a witness…

And in that profound silence, the distinction between you (the offerer), the process of offering, and the fire (the receiver) begins to dissolve. Zero and zero becomes infinite. That is yoga. Union of two zeros. That’s what yoga is. Not one and one. The Guru is already the zero. I need to become zero through burning off all my old samskaras etc.

You could choose to remain in this silence for as long as you can, absorbing the peace and purity generated by the ritual. By weaving these elements together, our yajna transforms from a simple ritual into a direct, experiential communion/connection/link with the luminous flame of consciousness of the Guru.

Then we are not just performing a fire ritual ceremony; we are participating in the eternal process of transformation that Gurudeva Swami Rama himself embodied. Am I ready? Am I willing to offer myself at the feet of the Master to be burnt and purified?

The connection with the Guru is not limited to the physical body. It is a connection within that flame of consciousness.

Editor’s Note:

This article is an excerpt from the lecture by Rabindra Sahu during the Guru-Disciple Relationship Retreat conducted at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama from 19-25 October 2025, in celebration of Gurudeva Swami Rama’s birth centenary.

[i] Samagri  in a yajna  is made of a combination of sesame seeds, barley, rice, sugar, nuts, ghee and several aromatic herbs.

[ii] The five kleshas (afflictions) are avidya (ignorance), asmita (i-am-ness), raga (attraction), dvesha (aversion) and abhinivesha (fear of death).  See the commentaries on Sutras I.5, I.8 and II.5 in Swami Veda Bharati’s Yoga-sutras of Patanjali with the Exposition of Vyasa, Volumes One and Two.

“We are creators of our bondage. We are creators of our freedom. We are creators of our slavery. In fact, freedom cannot be created. Bondage is created. Freedom cannot be created. Freedom cannot be accomplished. Freedom cannot be achieved. Freedom is the purity of volition. It is the freedom of will.”

— Swami Veda Bharati, You and Your Emotions, p.98

In October, we held a three-day yoga meditation retreat with Rabindra Sahu, themed “Bondage or Freedom – The Source of True Power.”　The venue, Retreat Dome “OR”, was surrounded by the Yatsugatake mountain ridges, where we were gracefully nourished by the prāṇa of Mother Nature, lovingly prepared Ayurvedic vegetarian meals, and the warm hospitality of the staff.

The venue’s name, “OR”, means “light” in Hebrew. As beautifully expressed on their website, it reminds us that each of us carries a radiant light within. In the peaceful dome house embraced by the Yatsugatake forest, we are invited to pause, reset the heart, and begin the journey toward our own inner light.

We began the retreat with an introduction to the Himalayan tradition and shared the systematic steps of meditation practice. The evening program explored the mind and its functions—how we can learn to use our buddhi, the higher mind, rather than being governed by lower tendencies.  After evening prayers, participants practiced joints and glands exercises and haṭha yoga, followed by a guided meditation the next morning.

Through sessions on “The Essence of Being,” “The Life Force,” and “Liberation and Awareness,” participants gradually deepened their understanding of “Who am I?” — discovering the answer through understanding what we are not and recognizing our true nature.  On the final day, Mt. Fuji revealed its beauty, surrounded by a rare “sea of clouds.”  We embraced the moment as a blessing.

That morning, we meditated together by integrating proper posture, breathing, and breath awareness.  The wave of breath and the sound of mantra gently merged into silence, filling the atmosphere with stillness and peace.  Our final session centered on the source of true power, which is Love — the power that never changes but continues to grow as we rediscover its source within.

Throughout the retreat, we were blessed by the loving beauty of nature and the openness of the participants, which graced the entire gathering.  I offer heartfelt gratitude to the staff who welcomed us so warmly and prepared such nourishing Ayurvedic meals. Above all, I express deep gratitude to the Guru Lineage, for reconnecting us—with one another, and with our own inner essence. These are some of the reflections shared by participants:

“My view of yoga has changed.  Inspired by the teacher’s words that the mind’s flexibility matters more than the body’s, I’ve begun to explore how to bring this understanding into my practice.”

“I was reminded that meditation is not about forcing myself into a particular posture or method, but about allowing the body and mind to be at ease — relaxed and natural.”

“The vague anxiety I used to wake up with has disappeared.  Even the short time I spend preparing for meditation — even just one minute — is now something I look forward to. I’m surprised at how much my life can change simply by working with my mind.  I’ve also become more mindful of my roles, and the desire to fulfill them meaningfully seems to have naturally deepened my patience and tolerance.”

“It was a very meaningful time.  It hasn’t even been a week yet, but I can already feel a clear difference within myself.  I would love to have a follow-up sharing session.”

Following the retreat, we held three one-day workshops in Kanagawa, Nara, and Shiga.  Some were themed “A Practical Guide to Holistic Health,” while others focused on yoga meditation in daily life.  Around fifty participants joined in total, many of whom were new to the Himalayan tradition yet showed genuine interest in self-discovery.

“It became clear to me that the mind and body are distinct from myself.  Emotions and thoughts often feel as if they arise from within the body, yet through practice, I experienced that I can guide my thoughts.  I also noticed how even a slight change in my breathing brought a deep sense of calmness to both mind and body.”

“Spending just one day at the retreat gave me a wonderfully peaceful experience, allowing both my mind and body to fully relax.  I feel enriched by the love I received and wish to share that love with those around me.”

I would like to express sincere gratitude to Midori-san and Sachiko-san, who organized the workshops in Nara and Shiga.  Having both stayed in the ashram, they devoted their time and effort to sharing the teachings of the Himalayan tradition with their students and communities.

On a personal note, I have felt deep love and connection through the people I have met while traveling, translating, and sharing what I have learned.  Rabindra-ji showed us that when we give, we receive — and that when we discover love within, it keeps growing, naturally and endlessly.  Through this reflection, I came to see that it is also our own choice whether to welcome love or to turn away from it.  As Swami Veda wrote, “We are creators of our bondage,” but “freedom cannot be created.”  Our willingness, or Trust and Surrender is what open the inner door to Freedom.

With heartfelt gratitude to the Tradition and the Guru Lineage,

Yuko

3-Day Immersion Course on Purpose, Practice & Inner Peace with Rabindra in Johor Bahru, Malaysia 

We are deeply grateful to welcome Rabindra, a teacher from Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG) of the Himalayan tradition, to The Seeds Iyengar Yoga Johor Bahru. He offered our students a truly unique and heartfelt inner experience.

The connection with the Himalayan tradition of The seeds Iyengar Yoga Studio Johor Bahru began from Dec 2019. We invited teacher Shi Hong to give a mandarin Yoga Sutra learning workshop. From there, the learning started and this year we again received the blessing from Guru, sending Rabindra to here.

The initial invitation was extended in March 2025, when we met at the ashram and shared the wish of one day hosting him in Malaysia. With his warmth and commitment, Rabindra graciously fulfilled that promise and travelled across thousands of miles to be with us this November.

Although the immersion lasted only three days, the clarity and depth of the insights we received will stay with us for a long time.

Day 1 — Introduction to the Himalayan Yoga Tradition

Rabindra began by guiding us into the origins of yoga, its ancient purpose, and its relevance in today’s world—contrasting the essence of traditional practice with contemporary modern yoga.

He opened our eyes to the many dimensions of yoga and expanded our understanding of its true intention.

Day 2 — Introducing the Eight Limbs of Yoga

Through engaging stories and everyday scenarios, he explained profound yogic wisdom in a simple, humorous, and relatable way.

After understanding the philosophy, he showed us how to bring small changes into daily life:

Do we offer gratitude to Mother Earth each morning before stepping onto the floor? “Dear Mother, please forgive me for placing my feet upon you. Thank you for your unconditional support…”

When we shower, do we thank the precious water source? “Thank you for cleansing this body and giving me freshness for a new day…”

These small gestures of gratitude—toward the Earth that supports and sustains us—are also yoga practice. To cherish, to protect, and to appreciate… this is yoga.

Even our food and the prayer before meals can nourish us more deeply. A meal cooked with sincere intention carries the love of the one who prepared it, offering nourishment beyond taste. As the teacher often said, our food contains Vitamin L — Love.

Day 3 — Relaxation & Gentle Meditation Guidance

Rabindra guided students into understanding the layers of preparation needed before meditation: a relaxed body, a steady breath, and a quiet mind. When these elements are present, meditation happens naturally—rather than something we “try hard” to do.

These three days concluded beautifully, filled with laughter, ease, serenity, and heartfelt quietude.

Rabindra led us step by step with the simplest of words, opening the doorway to the methods and wisdom of ancient yoga practice. He reminded us with his own words: “Undigested knowledge is philosophy. Digested knowledge is wisdom.”

The Himalayan Yoga Tradition emphasizes direct experience, and in him we witnessed this truth—nothing superficial, only years of sincere, continuous, and gentle practice woven into lived understanding.

We are deeply grateful for his long journey to be with us. We look forward to learning from him again. On behalf of all students in Malaysia, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to the teacher and to the lineage for their support and blessings.

Namaste.