Inner World of Yoga – Day 30
What I am getting at here is YOGA is at its very foundation a spiritual practice and without spiritual intent and perspective asana for instance, really is just another exercise program instead of a practice or tool that fosters self-awareness and connectedness to all that is. To me, this is to the detriment of humanity and the earth.
In fact, the basic tenets of virtually all major religions that have gained universal appeal expound the same basic universal truths you find in Yama and the same code of personal conduct you find in Niyama. They all ask you to know yourself by using your energy properly, and by knowing yourself you come to know God. They ask us to be stewards of our earth living with respect and harmony for that which gives us life.
This is just my opinion, but what I’ve observed is that the gathering of individuals to create bigger supportive energy (as in church, temple, etc.) for the higher purpose of realizing and embodying meaning and purpose in life beyond basic material needs, has become diluted and distorted in the wake of economic progress.
Politics and religion are both battlefields that divide instead of unite, causing pain and suffering instead of fostering solution, and are more interested in appearance than substance because their true aim is to covertly build “alliances” dealing with wealth and war – who gets killed and who gets wealth and power because of it. There are many who believe there must always be war. I do not. I subscribe to a wider view and a belief that the reality of creation is overwhelmingly positive in nature. I lament those who lean towards what we can call fundamentalist beliefs. These true believers are those who claim we need more religion in the schools and more pure capitalism in our economy, but are really referring to the lack of narrow and strict adherence to rules they believe to be “sacred.” In Rig Veda it is said: “Cosmic Reality is one, but wise perceive it in many ways. Sri Madhuji, self-realized spiritual teacher in Vedic Tradition says: “There should be no discord, but differences must exist.”
