Chapter 4 NiYamas: Private Codes of Conduct.

Niyamas are the private codes of conduct. they are as follows:

Saucha: Purity, Santosha: Contentment, Swadhyaya: Study of Self, Ishvara Pranidhana: Worship of Aum, Tapas: Fiery Determination

There are 5 private codes of conduct in the Niyamas

Saucha: Purity

Purification of your Environment

Cleanliness of Body

Fasting

Cleansing Kriyas

Purification of Energy

Purification of the Mind

Purifying the Mind through Wisdom and Pure Choice

Quality Control

Purifying the Mind through Meditation

Habits and Patterns

• Santosha: Contentment

Experiencing Santosha Through Meditation

Finding Santosha in Difficult Situations

Finding Contentment Following the Death of a Loved One

Santosha And Even-Mindedness

• Swadhyaya: Study of Self

How To Practise Swadhyaya

Applying Buddhi

Read the Book of your Day

Living in the Third Person

Write Journals

Who Am I?

Let Others Do Your Swadhyaya for You

• Ishvara Pranidhana: Worship of Aum

How to Practise Ishvara Pranidhana

Devotion to the Formless God

Sacrifice to the Formless God

Surrender to the Formless God

Respect for the Formless God

Worship of the Formless God

Working for the Formless God

Listening to the Formless God

• Tapas: Fiery Determination

The Sun and Tapas

Redirect Your Energy

Discipline

Development of Determination

Applying Tapas to Meditation

Tapas Burns Away Negative Karma and Samskara

Summary of Tapas

• Saucha: Purity

Purity is the fundamental nature of your soul, untouched, and untainted by anything in

life. Purity describes the best part of yourself. It is similar to innocence: we consider

those who are innocent and childlike to be pure because they are close to their soul.

Purity also gives us access to our intuition, our strongest gut feelings, and our soul’s

voice. The code of saucha describes the pathway back to purity and our subsequent

reconnection with our soul.

There are tangible and subtle ways of looking at purity:

• Purification of your environment, and of your body

• Purification of your energy

• Purity of your mind

Purification of your Environment

Create a clean, pure, and effective space for you and everything that you own. This

includes your bedroom, car, clothing, workspace, and general personal environment.

A principal reason for this is that it unclutters and removes items which take up

unnecessary space. Space which could either be kept open or used more effectively.

Imagine a glass of water filled with two tablespoons of mud stirred inside it: the pure,

clear water is no longer accessible. This applies to anything that you keep messy.

Messiness prevents you from being able to access the purity of what is really there.

Thus, when you set up your yoga classroom, you need to make sure that your

environment is pure from visual distractions. Create a clear, controlled, crisp and

comfortable space: minimise clutter that could divert your students’ attention.

In addition, the state of your environment reflects the state of your mind. In simple

terms, when you reach a state of mental clarity, you will not be able to tolerate

unreasonable amounts of clutter, collection, disorderliness, mess or untidiness. As an

exercise, one should always keep their environment in a clean and orderly condition.

Because the impression of such shipshape surroundings will then prompt the mind

towards clarity, contentment and peace. You will note this subtle feeling after you have

cleaned a room. This is evidence of the relationship between outer and inner

purification.

Purification of your Body

Purifying body habits involves cleaning both the inside and the outside of the body

through washing, diets, fasting, and observing yogic kriyas.

Fasting

Yoga recommends that you give your body (especially your digestive system) a break

by fasting completely once a week. It is also suggested that you do not go to bed with

food in your stomach, i.e., allow time after eating for food to digest before going to bed,

so that you aren’t digesting food while trying to sleep at night.

Even a mini-fast, like having an early evening meal and then not eating until breakfast

time, so you have not eaten for about 11 hours, is beneficial.

Other recommended practices include cleansing your internal organs through monodiets or sattvic diets. This involves taking a simple food (e.g. rice, a grain, fruit, milk)

and remaining on that only for 24 - 48 hours (according to your constitution).

Cleansing Kriyas

Caution: None of these cleansing kriyas should be practised without authorised

supervision. Do not take any of these explanations as methods for practise. They are

merely here to give you an understanding.

Neti: Cleaning of the nasal passage: water goes in one side of the nose through a

tube and comes out of the other.

Bhasti: There are two types of bhasti: one is enema and the other is colonic irrigation.

Enema consists of taking a small amount of liquid into the lower part of the colon and

rectum area. This area will absorb water, herbal oils, coffee, or other liquids and take

it into the bloodstream or liver for a specific function.

A colonic irrigation is taking gallons of water in, to flush out and wash the entire colon.

Some texts even state that Christ did this with a bamboo stick by the river.

Vaman: Vomiting to eject mucus, bile, acids, and food that clog up the upper digestive

system, mainly involving the stomach area. This is sometimes achieved by drinking 8

glasses of warm salt water, 2 glasses at a time, and then proceeding to practise a

yogic stomach pump exercise in a standing position to induce vomiting.

Dhauti: Cloth swallowing to help eliminate residue mucus and bile in the throat and

stomach; this prevents acid accumulating. In some yoga centres, this is achieved by

getting a length of thin muslin cloth and immersing it into warm, sterile, salted water.

The practise is then to remove the cloth and to swallow it as far as one can, to take

the cloth into the stomach. The cloth is then pulled out again after a maximum of 7

minutes (any longer and the stomach will begin processing the cloth). The cloth may

become yellow in colour and may have mucus as a result of the waste products that

have been removed.

Nasal Dhauti: The cleansing of mucus in the ear, nose and throat area may

sometimes be achieved by taking a thread in and up the nose, and out through the

mouth.

Nauli: This is a mechanical process of “stomach churning” in order to clean the colon

and stimulate the movement of old gasses, resulting in the waking up of the digestive

fire (agni). This may be achieved by pulling the stomach around in circles and

practising stomach and abdominal contraction exercises. This churns and stimulates

the digestive system, and any food trapped in the large intestine could move about

and eventually be evacuated.

Trataka: This process translates to, “candle gazing”. A brief look at the method

demonstrates that it is done by keeping the eyes open, without blinking, for certain

extended periods of time. This allows the salts, acids and toxins in the eye ducts, ear,

nose, and throat area to be cleaned, as the eyes well up and tears fall. The eyes are

kept open three times like this, and closed for short periods, whereupon the inner gaze

ought then to be directed towards the third eye. Once these periods are complete,

meditation is recommended.

As well as helping to keep the eyes healthy, trataka can affect the emotional level of

the body too, as emotions can be released through the inducing of tears. As you are

draining salt and acid from the body, the body will become more alkaline: the body

generally is much calmer and more peaceful in an alkaline state.

Purification of Energy

This method purifies the energy of your environment by chanting the Aum vibration.

Stand in the middle of the room, loudly chanting Aum three times towards each corner

with your arms aloft (12 chants in total per room). This sends energy in every direction

of the room: your arms act like amplifiers, sending energy through the fingers, to the

far corners of your physical environment.

Powerful, spiritually concentrated Aum chants can help to clear negative spiritual

presences out of a room. You can do this when you move into a new property.

Purification of the Mind

If you have a mind that is full of mud i.e. impressions of the day, desires, senses,

memories, pain, emotions and thoughts, then you aren’t going to see the clear water

(your soul).

The true purity of your mind and consciousness can only be perceived once you allow

the water to settle. Stop stirring the cup and relax. After a few moments you will notice

the mud settling leaving behind purity and clarity.

All consciousness is in the soul. The “reasoning mind” is defined by soul

consciousness which has been limited to areas like the senses, intellect, inference,

memory, reason, rationale, habits, patterns and so on. The “emotional mind” is defined

by conditional responses at a subtle, ”feeling” level.

Wisdom is higher than both the reasoning and emotional minds. Wisdom observes

what these minds are doing and can help them make better choices for the whole

being, not just the human’s limited capacities. Wisdom influences decisions based on

getting one closer to the soul and to God.

The human being is like a sophisticated animal with the mind instinctively following the

senses, until wisdom steps in and says, “You keep doing the same thing and are

suffering without getting anywhere. Why not listen to your soul instead? Learn about

God, about eternal peace, and discover a joy that is infinite and abundant.”

Eventually, when the mind has suffered enough, it gives up, bows down and allows

the wisdom of the soul to channel through it. It can then become an instrument of the

soul instead of being a slave to the senses. The mind goes from being a wild tiger to

becoming a tame pussycat: it bows down and goes where you take it.

Purifying the Mind through Wisdom and Pure Choice

“Wisdom is the greatest cleanser.” – Swami Sri Yukteswar.

Wisdom clears the mind from dross and leaves you with what’s pure. You need to use

your wisdom / discrimination to make pure choices.

Wisdom is above the mind: it observes and oversees what the mind is doing, checks

whether it is right or wrong, and provides feedback. It directs the mind as to whether

to stop certain actions or to continue them.

Wisdom guides and makes the decisions, whereas the mind works more on instinct.

When we make decisions in our life, they tend to be based on fear, desire, pressure,

greed, envy, or any other egotistical quality. The worst decisions are often made from

fear, e.g., the fear of not looking good, not making enough money, being rejected and

general failure. These decisions are bad because they take you further away from your

true self.

The yogi makes their decisions in life based 100% on pure choice. The choice in every

decision you make must be pure and clear from all associations. The purity of choice

is the exercise of your free will, and your decisions determine your steps and

directions.

For example, if a family member shouts at you when you want to practise yoga, you

must decide how you will react. You can either make a decision based on fear (e.g. to

stop practising yoga so that you will not be mocked) or based on pure choice (where

you do yoga regardless, because you know it is the correct path for you).

Similarly, the yogi develops their viewpoint of people and situations based on personal

observation, not on others' opinions and influence.

If there is a lack of purity of choices, then this could lead to a downward spiral as your

decisions will be based on your ego and not your soul. Align with purity and ask,

"What's the best decision, given the wisdom that I have?"

Quality Control

Watch out for impure influences and apply excellent quality control. This means that

you can be in a negative environment but not let this environment influence you. For

example, you go to see an action movie, the violence could leave an impression and

affect the vulnerable mind. However, as a yogi you exercise quality control and

detachment. Purity prevents you from getting drawn in and helps you detach from

external experiences.

Purifying the Mind through Meditation

Meditation will purify the mind by taking the consciousness even deeper than wisdom

and merging it back into the soul and into the Spirit. Through regular practise of

meditation, the mind is left with a taste, feeling and residue of soul and spiritual

connection. Therefore, after a period of prolonged meditation, or of disciplined regular

practise of meditation, the mind itself begins to behave differently, the main change

being due to its regular proximity to and influence of to the soul.

Deep meditation will also burn away some of the karmas and the samskaras (thought

patterns that have, through frequent repetition, become deeply etched into one’s

consciousness); because meditation is working at such deep, energetic, and subtle

levels of consciousness.

Habits and Patterns

A pure mind is free from habits and patterns - what we might call “compulsions” in

yoga. Habits and patterns represent impurity.

We all distinguish the universe through patterns. You know that you are in creation

when there are patterns, and you know you that are free when there are no patterns.

Everything, from a spider’s web, to DNA, to clocks (time), to the routines of our dayto-day lives, is made up of patterns.

That’s how we develop personalities and habits. Drinking, smoking, eating, and the

way we look, all become habits that form our personalities. We act out of compulsion,

and often we are not even sure why we do certain things anymore.

Purity means that every moment is fresh. Be in the present moment with full

awareness, so that everything you do is a result of a conscious, and as often as

possible, wise decision.

As a yogi, make new decisions every step of the way. You should be walking into

every moment with your eyes wide open. Every day, ask yourself if you really want to

do something. You may decide to perform the same action, but make it a conscious

choice to do so as opposed to a compulsion that you must carry out. Keep asking

yourself every step of the way, “Do I want to do this?”.

Be very aware of creating unconscious patterns, even if they are good ones, like doing

yoga on your mat.

Differentiate between habit/pattern and free choice. For example, if you meditate in

the same place at the same time every day but one day you cannot meditate in that

same place, you should feel free to make the decision to find a new environment in

which to do your meditation without suffering any consequences of disappointment. If

you find yourself unable to make that change, then you are under the constraints of

patterns and habits, and are not exercising true, pure choice.

You know you are free when there are no patterns or attachments. On your path to

spiritual progress, you move from bad patterns and habits, to good patterns and habits,

to no patterns and habits. Eventually you must let go of all attachments and habits,

irrespective of whether they are good or bad.

That’s when you hit the realm of the Spirit, as nothing is needed. Is it good to eat

chocolate every day? No. Is it better to do yoga every day? Yes. But what if you

couldn’t do yoga on a given day - is that okay? Yes!

That’s where you have hit the third level of development, where you are not attached

to anything. A pure mind is neutral, free from the ‘like’ and ‘dislike’ mentality. A state

of purity: where nothing is needed or ‘has to’ happen.

This is what you are aiming for in yoga. When you want to reach samadhi, you cannot

be attached to meditation or even to your Guru. If everything was taken away from

you, you are still pure and content (santosha).

Santosha: Contentment

Santosha means contentment.

Contentment is more than just peace, it is that special feeling that can come from

external factors, such as: after a nice meal, being with the one you love, listening to

music, or upon achieving a target.

However, contentment is an internal feeling that can be brought about without any

external factors. Notice that the good feeling that comes after a nice meal arises from

within yourself when an external condition has been met. However, that condition itself

(whether it was a nice meal or a compliment) did not contain any medium to make you

happy. The medium of happiness came from within you.

Through yoga we learn that finding unconditional contentment within ourselves

eliminates reliance on external conditions being met. This is why meditation is so

important: it is the process through which we can tap into our inner source of

contentment.

Contentment is seeking the joy of the soul as the source of all joy, regardless of

external losses. The yogi seeks to always remain connected to the experience of

contentment.

Contentment is the perfection of the moment and the cessation of desires; where every

moment is deeply satisfying, and you need nothing else.

“Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things shall be added upon you.” –

Matthew 6:33

Having achieved contentment from within, the yogi seeks nothing more from the earth.

The yogi may find that everything comes to them, but they do not develop addiction to

anything.

The real objective of desire is to feel contentment. For example, we work for money to

feel content in our material environment; we want to have the perfect family so that we

can feel content in our home life.

Contentment is a feeling of having enough. If you have ever met anyone who is

content, they are very generous people because they do not need anything. They often

wear a soft contented smile, rarely ask for anything, never seem overly excited, nor

do their emotions fluctuate up and down. These individuals work hard and give a lot;

they reside within the realm of their soul and exhibit a santosha personality.

The opposite of contentment is being demanding. Individuals who are demanding are

often experiencing a great deal of discontentment. They have a mental attitude that

says, “I won’t be content until X/Y/Z condition is met.” But, as soon as they get the

thing that they’re seeking, they soon realise they are still not feeling content and start

chasing the next thing they believe will bring them contentment. They always want

more. There is an absence of the feeling of having enough and this can lead to a

destruction of peace.

Experiencing Santosha Through Meditation

One of the ways you can experience contentment is through the practise of meditation.

When you’re new to this practise, it is likely that the first thing you will feel is peace.

This will feel special because it’s a welcome relief and respite from the non-stop

badgering of life’s daily demands. But the truth is, this is still just the “negative” state

of peace. There is stillness, but it lacks any deeper fulfilment, and will soon leave your

mind wandering again. This is comparable to moving to a highly secluded area, where

peace is found at first, but boredom quickly follows.

However, as you delve deeper into meditation, you begin to reach the positive state of

peace, where contentment lies. The first state of peace is akin to swimming in/on the

ocean of the soul. The second state is when you dive a little deeper, and not only feel

peace, but the warm undercurrents of joy and happiness, which themselves reside

deep within the soul. The waters in-between the surface water and the deeper waters

of the soul are the currents of contentment: a mixture of peace and bliss.

Naturally, the yogi should not stop there, but learn to dive even deeper still, to find the

source of all peace, contentment and joy: God.

Finding Santosha in Difficult Situations

Santosha in practise is about being able to find contentment in all situations. In times

of trouble, when it feels like all peace has gone, the practise of santosha will help

restore it. The ego may question, “How can you be happy when this has happened?”

And the soul responds with, “Use your wisdom, your mercy, your love, and your

perspective.”

So there is an internal battle going on. One part of yourself is saying, “It’s

understandable and reasonable that I am this unhappy.” On the other hand, your soul

is compassionate, but it’s offering an alternative.

Working through this can be challenging. Begin by giving yourself permission to

express your thoughts and feelings in a reasonable manner and allow yourself a

decent amount of time to reflect. Utilise skills such as gratitude, knowledge, wisdom,

forgiveness, and acceptance (accepting things that we cannot change) and make

peace with the situation.

Finding Contentment Following the Death of a Loved One

1. The eventual wisdom which comes through realising that the body is mortal and has

a finite lifespan; and that physical death, though painful, is an inevitable part of life.

2. The eventual wisdom which comes through realising that the soul is eternal,

immortal and in the habit of changing bodies frequently through the process of

reincarnation. And that what we perceive as death could creatively be conceived as

the soul “changing its clothes”.

3. The eventual wisdom which comes through realising that the soul may have left

physical realms, like earth, entirely, and moved on to much higher and better heavens,

and even to an eternal life (or respite) merged into God Himself.

If someone brings the subject of death or bereavement up in class, the first thing you

always do is to tune in with them, where they are. Then, if a natural moment arises,

on either side, you can gently guide them towards the path of wisdom, healing, yoga

and contentment.

Santosha And Even-Mindedness

The practise of santosha is to remain even-minded in all situations; even-mindedness

helps preserve your contentment. A good way to remain stable within yourself is to

level things out, by balancing compliments with criticism. For example, when someone

finds something to credit you with, find something to critique yourself with, and viceversa. This approach prevents disappointment and preserves inner peace.

Avoid labelling things. Take them as they are without getting too excited or

disappointed. At Chi Kri we say, “There is no good news or bad news, there is just

news”.

We also say, “Expect the worst, but welcome the best!” Be ready for a battle but don’t

look for one. Equally, when good things happen, be prepared to welcome them into

your life, but stay level-headed.

It is important, however, to recognise and celebrate your achievements. What matters

is the attitude: if you can handle failures without becoming depressed, it is perfectly

okay to be happy when you have succeeded.

Place the centre of all your consciousness within yourself. You will sometimes have

great days and sometimes have terrible days. Let them just be “days”. Recognise that

the darkest days are often the best because these are the ones that provide

opportunity for growth and learning.

Swadhyaya: Study of Self

Swadhyaya is the study of oneself, to ensure you are living life in alignment with the

desires of your soul. Like Gyana Yoga, it is the yoga of wisdom in practise.

Without engaging in self-study, many people suffer and become like machines, “I am

what I am, this is what I do, and this is how I’ll die”. They resist change and growth,

limiting their personal development.

If you are in the habit of self-study, you can evolve really quickly.

How To Practise Swadhyaya

Swadhyaya practise can involve carrying out a monitoring process, where you check

your actions, words, and thoughts as soon as they occur, or very soon after. It also

involves an evaluation process, where you look back and reflect after some time. The

purpose of this is to apply knowledge, wisdom, and intuition to your behaviour enabling

you to relinquish actions which hinder development, and foster those which are

beneficial to your growth and evolution.

Applying Buddhi

Utilise “buddhi”, wisdom, rather than the mind. The latter could lead to over-analysis,

over-complicating things, and going round in circles.

Unless your head is in the state of buddhi (wisdom), you will not be in a position to

examine your actions and find answers. Calming your mind and attuning it to wisdom

through meditation is essential before practising swadhyaya.

Meditation helps distance you from your ego and moves you towards your soul.

Similarly, practicing swadhyaya after prayer is also beneficial.

Read the Book of your Day

At Chi Kri we recommend that you read spiritual books for guidance, but not

excessively. Reading material from different sources can lead to confusion as they

sometimes contradict each other. Find some good literature and yoga books but

mainly focus on “reading” your own story.

Open your eyes and ears to the information and events around you. The best book

you are ever going to learn from is your own: the book of your day.

The teachings in some books may ring true in your soul and touch you deeply.

However, at Chi Kri, we encourage you to meditate and write more than you read.

Treat books as a reference and work things out yourself; the truth will come to you in

quiet moments of meditation.

Living in the Third Person

At Chi Kri, we encourage you to look at things in the third person. This enables you to

step back from the “you” involved in the world and go into the seat of buddhi. This is

particularly useful amid difficult situations. Step back as often as you can and describe

and evaluate your actions in the third person, for example, “Zac is doing X,Y, or Z”.

An effective way of doing this is to observe your life as if you’re watching it on

television. Imagine you have buttons, giving you the ability to pause the screen and

make a decision in that moment. Step back, press pause, sit in buddhi, have an

internal discussion and self-reflect before you press play and respond. You are under

no obligation to respond to anything at any time, so relax and wait. Taking a moment

to pause and reflect, results in the calmest and most appropriate response, especially

in situations of heightened or negative emotions. It’s important to monitor yourself and

avoid speaking if you don’t feel calm, or if you feel nervous or that you’re losing control.

Write Journals

Writing journals or diaries is also beneficial so you can see the reflection of yourself

and your actions in the mirror of the page. Reflecting on your day and life in this way

is a valuable practice as it gives a sense of separation between yourself and the

events. Re-reading and reflecting upon what you have written will give valuable insight

and clarity.

Who Am I?

Another good technique to practise is the meditation of Sri Ramana Maharishi, the

“Who am I?” technique. This is a simple meditation, where you repeatedly ask yourself,

“Who am I?” First you may answer, “I am Paul”. Then go deeper, “who am I?” “An

Englishman”; “Heather’s husband”; “An electrician”; and so on. You repeat this

process until you eventually get to the truth of who you really are: a soul. Practise this.

It is like peeling back the layers of an onion.

Let Others Do Your Swadhyaya for You

Learn to listen to your gurus, your masters, your teachers, your parents, and your

elders. Listen to those whom you respect. They have observed you and your life, and

they know what you need to work on. They may see where you are going wrong, even

if you cannot. Don’t argue with them, even if you do not like what they are saying. Be

quiet and listen carefully to their advice, as they are doing the swadhyaya for you.

Often the reason why you may feel uncomfortable or angry when you hear these things

is because there is an element of truth. As Neil Patel says, “Anger is often the first

reaction to the Truth.”

Ishvara Pranidhana: Worship of Aum

In the Vedic tradition, from whence yoga came, the term “Ishvara” refers to God in one

of His divine forms. Depending upon which form of God you are most drawn to, Ishvara

may be an avatar of Lord Vishnu, like Adi Purusha (the ever-observing form of God),

the Purush Avatars (elements of Creation) or, if you prefer to work with personas, then

Lord Shiva, Vishnu or Krishna. There is no real issue with determining which form of

God you, as a Chi Kri yogi, feel most comfortable relating to.

However, Chi Kri, as a philosophy, tends to lean towards the least tangible form of

God, as a preference i.e. Brahman. We feel that Brahman can be referred to as Ishvara

(or just Ishvar, or “Ishwar”) as a conscious “form” of God. In this “form” He is the

absolute, almighty, original and supreme source of life and Creation. From Brahman

comes the qualities of Truth, joy and consciousness. From Brahman all souls originate

and return, through the process of love/union/yoga. And from Brahman, Lord Vishnu,

Shiva, Brahma and all other gods manifest themselves.

The only struggle people have with seeing Brahman as Ishvara is that He is without

any form. But, at Chi Kri, we prefer this. It is not wrong to see God in any other way as

well (as there is no conflict at that level – everything flows into everything else); but in

a world which is trying to join together beyond sensory barriers, attachments and

images, and is sometimes triggered by things, we think it is smart to keep our minds

on the feeling of God, a little bit more than His personification and appearance. A

feeling which contains His Truth, joy, awareness, and, of course, the love which

connects us all to one another.

“Pranidhana” is a simpler term. It means being fixed upon something, in devotion.

For Chi Kri, yoga is a human science, not adhering dogmatically to any specific

personification of God, such as Christ or Krishna. This is important as yoga is the

future, and we don’t think it should be seen as aligning to any specific religion (such

as Hinduism). Yoga is a unique spiritual practice available to all.

Ishvara Pranidhana is therefore the worship and the adherence to the Spirit, the

Creator of all souls and all people. It is the worship of the formless God – the God

beyond forms, religions, and avatars (for example, Krishna, Christ, Buddha, Prophet

Mohammed, Mahavir, etc.).

Chi Kri Yoga therefore, sees Ishvara best personified, if at all, as light and energy. As

yogis, you are moving towards the understanding of the formless manifestation of God.

That is not to say that the worship of deities, statues, idols and avatars is wrong. God

takes many forms for many reasons.

How to Practise Ishvara Pranidhana

At Chi Kri, there are seven variations of Ishvara Pranidhana. These are

complementary ways of practising “pranam”: truly loving, bowing, and humbling

yourself to God.

Devotion to the Formless God

Because God is formless, you show love, devotion, and dedication to the God in all

religions, cultures, and people. This shows how deep and beautiful yoga is and links

to Bhakti Yoga: the yoga of devotion.

Sacrifice to the Formless God

This includes fasting (sacrifice of food), donation (sacrifice of income), sacrifice of your

path in life to serve God (Karma Yoga), sacrifice of your time, sacrifice of utility or

commodity (e.g. turning your house into a temple or yoga centre).

Surrender to the Formless God

This encompasses surrendering your ego, releasing attachments, results, and making

yourself an instrument for carrying out God’s work. It also means surrendering both

your good and bad actions to God as well as your negative and positive emotions.

When you feel upset, guilty, or self-blame, for example, you can humbly surrender

these emotions to God. We practise this in savasana when we let go of all our

negativity and emotions and give our body to the mat, trusting Mother Nature to carry

our weight.

Surrender is a beautiful word – it is not the same as giving up or admitting defeat. It

means that although you can carry on yourself, you’ve chosen to hand over to God.

You also do this when you go to confession. You show trust in God to govern your life.

In the guru-disciple relationship, the disciple completely trusts the guru and surrenders

their will to them. When the guru gives an instruction, the disciple follows without

reservation as they know the guru knows what is best for them. We can surrender to

God in the same way. In practice, you can ask God to guide you in a situation where

you are unsure what to do. By doing this, we surrender and give control and

governance back to God.

Respect for the Formless God

Respecting the God in all Gods and in all people.

Worship of the Formless God

Worship is an act of great humility. Through worship we can express our gratitude and

love and seek connection with God. Through worship we acknowledge that there is a

force much greater than us, put ourselves at the feet of God, and recognise that we

need His help and guidance.

Working for the Formless God

This is practising Karma Yoga: performing all actions purely for the good of all, and for

God. This means carrying out your daily actions and doing so without need or desire

for reward. You are not attached to the fruits of your labour.

Listening to the Formless God

The final method involves Japa Yoga. It is the chanting of the Aum Mantra. Aum

contains God Himself. In Christianity, it is referred to as the Holy Ghost or the “Word”

of God. Therefore, one way of adhering to God is by perceiving Him as a holy vibration,

thus allowing His Spirit to reconfigure your cells, consciousness, and energy back to

its divine origin.

Tapas: Fiery Determination

“Tap” means heat, to burn, to cause an action or create transformation through the

force of fire.

Other words to describe tapas are: determination, courage, perseverance, endurance,

relentlessness, wisdom-guided will, discipline, self-control, self-mastery, and authority.

The Sun and Tapas

Heat is the power of the sun. The sun provides the power of movement and

transformation; the energy to make things happen. This energy takes a seed, the soil,

and the atmosphere, and creates a plant.

In the sun we walk and work; in the dark we stop and sleep. Similarly, we must create

tapas and wake up the sun within, which resides in our manipura chakra: hence the

importance of abdominal work in Chi Kri.

Redirect Your Energy

Tapas can also be seen as the by-product of redirected energy. For example, when

someone who likes to eat lots of cakes decides to cut back, they now need to deal

with a build-up of hot energy and frustration. Previously, that energy used to be

released when they satisfied their desire to eat the cake. However, now they have

restricted themselves the energy starts to build up causing frustration and irritability.

But using that energy and redirecting it towards working out on a treadmill, for

example, is tapas. This practice of redirecting energy is transformative for the soul.

Sometimes, it’s through difficulty, pain, and struggles that people find a skill, a passion

or cause to pour their energy into. And they succeed. Once you re-direct your built-up

energy towards God, it becomes a powerful force in yoga and spiritual union.

Discipline

Discipline is linked to tapas and the building up of a force that knocks down barriers.

In asanas, if you stand in the warrior pose for as long as you normally do, and then

make yourself continue to hold for an extra 10-15 seconds after you want to come out

(as long as you’re not in pain), you are starting to draw upon that fire inside you. You

are transforming the asana into determination and the pose into your focus. You are

taking on the warrior spirit. That’s the essence of tapas: the ability to convert a struggle

into something greater. As you continue, you will notice that you have developed a

stronger and more resilient body, and that you have awakened your inner power.

Similarly, fasting for God creates a fiery determination and passion within to seek Him,

and this can be successful. Sitting in meditation, maintaining a steady mind when it

wants to wander, conjures up a force that breaks down barriers.

Development of Determination

In order to gain external things such as jobs or partners, sacrifices must be made.

However, tapas is about inner development. It is the critical factor that burns away the

darkness that surrounds your soul. Without tapas, it’s impossible to find the Spirit.

Tapas comes from the control of the outside forces that have been re-directed towards

spiritual power.

For example, when you practise brahmacharaya, the power you gain by containing

those fluids is transformed into spiritual energy. The energy that was once satisfied by

carrying out the desire can now be redirected towards spiritual discovery. When this

energy is directed towards God, it becomes a tremendous force that is irresistible to

Him.

Applying Tapas to Meditation

Suppose you’re in a state of depression, stress or frustration. At Chi Kri we advise you

to pray and meditate with the same intensity (though not the same essence) as when

you’re angry and frustrated with what your life has given you. By doing so, you won’t

keep repeating the same pattern: you’ll create a new and better path for yourself and

find connection with the Spirit. With courage and determination, wake up early, sit

down and meditate, and say, “I’m going to find you, God!” Like Buddha, sit and

meditate and refuse to come out of that space until you find God: that is tapas

Tapas Burns Away Negative Karma and Samskara

Samskaras are patterns or grooves of thought and behaviour in your consciousness -

they are the sequences of thoughts and actions you will follow if you go on autopilot.

Samskaras have been engrained in you over your previous lifetimes. That is why we

are born with personalities - they are a reflection of our samskaras.

It is written in the scriptures that practicing tapas can burn away negative karmas,

samskaras, and other negative energy, changing the fate of your future.

Summary of Tapas

The Gods look upon tapas very favourably, as this niyama reflects the quality of

determination. It’s not the end result that God judges us on, but on how we conduct

ourselves in the moment. Even though one may not appear to achieve much success

from a human point of view, God may see that this person faced their daily battles with

tapas and the right attitude. And that could make them very successful from a spiritual

point of view.