Controlling thinking through yoga. Hatha yoga as a path to meditation Quality practice – quality result

The philosophy of yoga in the West has been inaccessible and incomprehensible for many centuries. The first one to scientific basis became interested in yoga, there was the great philosopher Schopenhauer. The closest in spirit to him was precisely raja and buddhi yoga, that is, the yoga of the mind and consciousness. Schopenhauer relied on the Upanishads, but many other historical and very ancient documents are available to the modern scientist or student of yoga, which undoubtedly simplifies immersion in the world of yoga and facilitates understanding of its features.

Raja yoga is interpreted by many sources as the queen of yoga, since it is directly related to the practices of mind control. We instinctively consider the mind to be the “king” of our entire body, because it, voluntarily or involuntarily, obeys the orders of the mind and is under its continuous, vigilant attention.

The essence of this direction is yoga

On the Internet you can find some articles in which Raja Yoga is interpreted as a practice for kings, “royal yoga”, almost a way to become an absolute ruler. In fact, this is a completely incorrect explanation of the essence of this direction. By its nature, any type of yoga is directed not outward, at the world around us, but inward, towards achieving internal balance and harmony with oneself, unity with the supreme Absolute of the Spirit.

Raja yoga is aimed at working with the human mind, therefore it is considered one of the most important areas. Since the human body and mind are in constant and inextricable connection, in order to influence the state of mind, you need to learn to control it perfectly own body. At this stage, many beginners in yoga practice make basic mistakes. They focus too much on physical practices while limiting spiritual ones, such as meditation or breathing exercises. In fact, in Raja Yoga, all stages are extremely important. Only by learning to control your body and psycho-emotional manifestations can you hope to move on to controlling your mind. This is why there is a classic technique for beginners.

All lessons are conducted according to a system that includes eight stages, or levels. Because of this, Raja Yoga is often called Ashtanga Yoga (Ashtanga is eight steps):

• Yama - rules of behavior.
• Niyama – immersion in spiritual practices.
• Asana - execution special exercises to harmonize spirit and body.
• , also leading to the unification of the spiritual and physical essence.
• Pratyahara is distraction from external influences.
• Dharana is the concentration of mental faculties.
• Dhyana is a state of meditation.
• Samadhi is complete peace, inner contemplation of one’s unity with the supreme mind.

Only after going through all these eight steps can you truly master Raja Yoga. Moreover, each stage is very important, it cannot be skipped or excluded, since all together they are a single whole, the main condition for mastering yoga of the mind. It is best to work on yourself in order to comprehend Raja Yoga under the guidance of an experienced teacher, however, there are also exercises for beginners that allow you to start learning personally. On this moment The best and perhaps the only guide of this type is Willis Slater’s book “Raja Yoga. Classic technique for beginners." It is also available in Russian. It quite simply and clearly outlines the basic conditions for the practical development of this type of yoga.

Book by V. Slater as a help for beginning yogis

This book will greatly facilitate the assimilation of yogic practices, since it outlines all the techniques based on a large personal experience author. They are adapted to understand representatives of our race with its specific mentality. The entire course is quite simplified and accessible even to those who have never practiced yoga in any form.

The book describes exercises for beginners, designed for ten months of lessons. There are 10 lessons in total, that is, a whole month is allotted for mastering the exercise and transferring it into regular practice. Based on this book, mastering this simplified version of Raja Yoga will be much easier than trying to do it relying on other external sources. In addition, the presence of a competent and well-formulated “textbook” will help to master the practice much easier and faster, and will also help beginners not to make gross and dangerous mistakes.

Brahma Kumaris University

Nowadays, royal yoga is becoming more and more popular, it is not surprising that many different adaptations and variations are appearing. One of the most widely known centers promoting this particular direction is the Brahma Kumaris, or the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University. It is a modern religious movement based on Raja Yoga as one of the meditative practices.

Brahma Kumaris uses a very simplified and adapted for understanding and mastering modern people version of Raja Yoga. Brahma Kumaris borrowed many of his principles from Pantajali's Yoga Sutras.

All members of the Brahma Kumaris refuse sexual intercourse, do not eat meat, and become supporters of a vegetarian diet. Also, supporters of the Brahma Kumaris are characterized by abstinence from drinking alcohol, smoking and using drugs.

The main goal of Brahma Kumaris is to achieve a blissful state of total happiness, complete well-being. To achieve this, Brahma Kumaris uses 4 basic principles:

• Knowledge
• Connection in Thoughts
• Positive traits
• Service

The growing number of fans of this University indicates the high popularity of this type of Raja Yoga.

King of Kings

When translated from Sanskrit, Rajadhiraja is the king of kings. Thus, Rajadhiraja yoga is a practice that allows the yogi to stop identifying himself exclusively physical body, and feel like a soul - part of the universal mind. If we consider the mind to be the king of the human body, then the soul becomes the king of kings - the leader of the mind. This is precisely what is emphasized in the name of this system.

Rajadhiraja yoga has deep roots and an ancient tradition. It actually grew out of the best manifestations of tantra, and in the last century its practices were restored, expanded and developed, and also adapted to the requirements and characteristics of modern people.

The practice of Rajadhiraja yoga is based on the gentle performance of a series of asanas that are designed to balance the body and spirit. They are selected individually by the teacher for each specific student, as well as mantras mentally repeated during the entire set of exercises and each specific asana in particular. This complex helps to harmonize hormonal levels, thereby improving the general condition of the body and contributing to the further process of liberating the mind.

Exercises used

We must always remember that the physical side of exercise, breathing practices(pranayama) and meditation is not a priority, this is only a means to achieve spiritual perfection. However, they all promote health and improve the body, which leads to physical strength and longevity. As a result, the practitioner of Ashtanga yoga receives large stock vitality and mental and physical hardening, as well as a reserve of time to achieve spiritual perfection and the ability to control and manage your mind.

Although Raja Yoga is associated with all the eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga, it mainly uses the last four, that is, Pratyahra, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi. That is why it will not be possible to try to master it completely with the help of only asanas or pranayamas. We must always remember that the main goal is spiritual improvement, therefore, all the emphasis is on meditation, and all other techniques are auxiliary and subordinate.

Some types of exercises may seem very simple to beginners, sometimes even too simple, not bringing any obvious effect. But it should be remembered that “Moscow was not built at once,” so you should not expect any immediate results. However, any gradual impact will definitely lead to success.

“Royal Yoga” does not set a goal for a person to “impudently” master all knowledge. To achieve the goal, the entire path is divided into stages:

• Elimination of negative feelings and manifestations.
• Development of positive qualities, skills and feelings.
• Accumulation of prana.
• Passing through various states of consciousness.
• Samadhi.

Along with the usual exercises, which may seem too simple, there is also practice correct breathing. This is very important stage, which needs to be given enough attention. The ability to control breathing also comes only with experience, but without effort and diligence this cannot be achieved.

1. Starting exercise - holding your breath. It should be twice as long as exhalation and 4 times as long as inhalation.

2. The second stage is the maximum slowdown of thought processes until there is a complete absence of thoughts. At this time, the psyche will rest, but is constantly under control. In the future, this will make it possible to control the unconscious.

3. The third level is meditation. This deep immersion into oneself will help over time to master the art of realizing one’s spiritual essence.

To control the mind, you need to master ways to control your own body. In Raja Yoga, Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, or King of Pigeons Pose, is often practiced. It is distinguished by a strong protrusion of the chest, which is reminiscent of the proud behavior of this bird. Eka pada rajakapotasana pose can have several variations, in which the limbs occupy different positions. During this asana, one takes a sitting position on the floor, most often one leg is tucked under itself, and the other is pulled back, bent at the knee and raised up. Top part the body is stretched upward and pulled towards the raised foot, arching forward. This pose helps to revitalize the blood supply to the brain and “stretch” the spine, helping thought processes.

The practice of royal yoga for a beginner can be both very difficult and enjoyable and accessible. A lot depends on the attitude of the practitioner and his desire to achieve success. Before starting to study Raja Yoga, a person needs to realize for what purpose he is doing it. Only after this will it be much easier for him to go through all stages of training and successfully move along the path of yoga of kings.

The vocabulary of yoga contains probably at least a dozen words that, to varying degrees of approximation, can be interpreted as various forms of meditation: pratyahara - distraction from the senses, identification with sensations, dharana - concentration and retention of attention, ekagrata - one-pointedness of consciousness, manana – reflection, taraka, vichara, etc. However, all these terms are not identical to the word “dhyana”, which, in fact, means meditation. All these are just preliminary practices, exercises, steps on the path to achieving dhyana - “yoga of the mind.”

Today they often try to identify meditation with autogenic training, the practice of various affirmations, trance states, etc. These techniques are also not meditation in the strict sense of the word, but they can become preparation for it. Or not.

Let's keep quiet, let's keep quiet

Meditation, dhyana is the achievement of inner silence, stopping the internal dialogue, silence of the mind, “chitta vritti nirodha” - stopping the vibrations of the mind, according to Patanjali. This is a state of direct experience of reality without “intermediary services” from the mind and senses. The state of meditation lies beyond the boundaries of our ordinary consciousness, beyond the boundaries of known sensations and concepts. Therefore, it is almost impossible to explain it, to describe it in words, just as it is impossible to explain, for example, to a blind person what the color red is. Meditation must be achieved, it must be lived, then the meaning of this word will become clear.

Meditation must blossom within us

The problem is that it is almost impossible to do this of your own free will. We can hold and control our breath. We can disidentify from our sensations, close our eyes, plug our ears, and not pay attention to smells and sounds. We can, if we try, keep all our attention on one chosen object, action or sensation. But we cannot order ourselves to meditate; neither violence nor effort will help here. Meditation occurs on its own when, as a result of practice, consciousness seems to slip into it. Meditation needs to be “grow” within yourself. She should bloom like a flower. The only way to achieve this is regular and conscientious practice.

In almost any spiritual tradition, meditation is the most main practice, no matter what it is called: Hindu jappa (mantra recitation), Christian prayer, Sufi dhikr, Zen zazen, etc. – all this, in essence, should be meditation. C. Castaneda also writes about stopping the internal dialogue - meditation practiced in the tradition of South American Indians. However, the path that is proposed for this is long and thorny. Almost all spiritual traditions require asceticism, hermitage and hours of daily exercise.

We'll go a different way

Hatha yoga offers a different path. She seems to be saying: “Guys, your idea that through meditation you can achieve and comprehend everything is wonderful! But the problem is that we cannot meditate. Because we cannot control our thoughts, our mind. The mind controls us." And hatha yoga offers its own way - influencing the activity of the mind through the body and its physiological mechanisms. As a result, the practice of hatha yoga achieves spontaneous holding of breath, without grueling exercises, and spontaneous stopping of internal dialogue. Hatha yoga reduces the time required to achieve meditation and increases the chances of success. And at the same time, it does not require leaving society.

Let's look at the "stages" of Patanjali's Raja Yoga. What does he recommend? Give up everything. Practice asceticism. Sit in an uncomfortable position. Sit still. Don't breathe! (one breath in 112 seconds!) Is it hard to sit cross-legged? Do not pay attention! Focus! Do not be distracted! Concentrate! Do this day after day, year after year, life after life, and someday, perhaps, you will achieve something! If you don’t achieve it in this incarnation, it doesn’t matter, you will achieve it in the next; you won’t achieve the next one - well, you already understand: there is still a lot of interesting things ahead, there is no need to rush...

Compared to these steep steps, hatha yoga takes the practitioner to the foot of meditation in a comfortable elevator through a practice that is itself enjoyable. Not that this elevator is super-fast, but, nevertheless, the shastras - classical treatises - of yogis claim that perfection in practice is achieved in 12 years. Years, not incarnations!

Quality practice – quality result

It remains only to note that hatha yoga is not asanas. Asanas are only a small part of it. You won’t get far with asanas alone, especially if you practice them exclusively as physical exercise. But holistic, high-quality practice will definitely give high-quality results.

Raja Yoga. Meditation practice. First lessons for beginners.

INTRODUCTION

Here I offer you a series of “mental exercises”, examples of reflections that will allow you to experience the richness and beauty of Raja Yoga, this ancient culture and philosophy, and feel happy, healthy and fulfilled. Life is meaningless if we do not have peace, happiness and good relationships.
The Raja Yoga technique is not related to body position, so it can be practiced by people of any age and physical condition, including those with poor health, and at any time: at work and during rest, in the morning or in the evening, sitting, standing or moving.
The word "meditation" has two meanings: the first is positive thinking, the second is healing. Healing the soul.
The purpose of yoga practice is to make the soul pure and strong. A soul that has lost its purity and spiritual strength must receive them again from the Most High Father.
Some people hold their hands palms up during meditation, believing that this way they will receive energy. But spiritual power cannot be obtained through palms from space.
The first and most important aspect Yoga is the connection of the intellect with God. And if your intellect is not connected with the Supreme Father, and you have concentrated it on some other thought, or it is in a state of vacuum, then this is not yoga. You don't receive spiritual strength from God and you don't close your accounts.
Raja Yoga - intellectual yoga, and the main thing in it is to constantly maintain a light, relaxed and strong state of mind.
So, if you decide to change your life for the better (which is what Raja Yoga teaches), then do not retreat - and success is guaranteed to you!
In order for your efforts to be effective, I recommend the following order of study from the very first topic: read carefully and think through every aspect.
Try to feel every thought. Work on each exercise for at least half an hour before moving on. Spend the whole day without losing sight of any exercise - and you will immediately feel the results. In the process of meditation, old sanskaras are burned (there is no exact translation from Sanskrit of this word, approximately: imprints in memory, habits) and new ones are acquired.
When you sit in meditation, you should not close your eyes, it is better to keep them open. In this world of action we live without closing our eyes, so it would be better to immediately get used to maintaining this state. After all, Raja Yoga is a way of life, not a practice for 1-2 hours. Knowledge leads to understanding. Understanding should be turned into practical experience. Knowledge, understanding and experience are a triad that will do its job: you will transform yourself and get answers to your questions by discovering the source of boundless peace, joy, purity and strength - God, the Most High Father. Dive deep into yourself and play with the jewels of Knowledge.

Become loved by God. Become useful to God. And may the light never go out in your eyes, under any circumstances!

zero cycle -

Raja Yoga is a system of self-improvement and self-education that allows you to take a positive look at life, others and yourself. Raja Yoga also teaches a person to live in harmony with himself, other people, nature and the Creator himself.

Raja Yoga is not a series of exercises designed to develop concentration or to calm the mind by completely stopping the flow of thoughts; to the so-called “meditation technique”, the positive consequences of which are quite fleeting. Then what is Raja Yoga? Raja Yoga is a whole philosophy of life, a personal moral code, the art of gaining freedom from stress and tension.

This holistic education, aimed at the comprehensive development of the individual, sets before a person such a high goal as achieving perfection, freedom from all negative and generating suffering. Raja Yoga also promotes complete cleansing, forms healthy image life, food culture and iron discipline.

Raja Yoga originated in India, and therefore there is an opinion that it is supposedly a kind of Hindu teaching. However, it cannot be classified as a religion in the generally accepted sense of the word. Rather, it is a spiritual science, the principles of which, like the principles of any science, are universal and can be applied everywhere. Although, of course, thanks to Raja Yoga, a person can also receive deep religious experiences in the sense that it helps our “I”, the soul, to feel a connection with the Almighty.

A global worldview is impossible until a person is convinced that all of humanity is a single family, that we are all souls, children of God, the Supreme Father, and therefore brothers. Representing a large family, people strive to help each other more and treat everyone with kindness and humility.

Principles for Teaching Moral Values

At one time, Isaac Newton formulated the Law of Action and Reaction. This law also applies to karma. In our life, whatever we do comes back to us. And it is always worth remembering this, especially before making a decision in a given situation, so that our actions do not come back to haunt us.

The inviolability of the law of karma presupposes the existence of such a phenomenon as reincarnation . The concept of reincarnation is based on the idea that we are all living, conscious entities, that our conscious nature is metaphysical in nature and fundamentally different from the material body. In other words: our soul continues to live after death, being reborn in a new one.

The problems and suffering that people face today are mainly the result of their ignorance of their true identity. Because of the mistaken belief that our body is closely intertwined with our spirit, concepts such as love or friendship lead to hatred, lust, greed, and pride. A person’s awareness of himself and his essence will help him overcome internal limitations.

We can say that moral education and the practice of Raja Yoga is a kind of training of consciousness. It cannot be effective until a person realizes that his true essence is consciousness and conscience. The principles of morality and meditation of Raja Yoga help a person expand the horizons of his thinking and look at things comprehensively.

Raja Yoga Meditation Technique

As with all Hindu practices, great emphasis is placed on breathing in Raja Yoga meditation. The ability to control it comes with experience. After meditation, you should feel tired when you come out of a state of complete relaxation.

Before you can learn to control your mind, you must learn to control your body. You need to sit or lie down (this is not important) in any position that is comfortable for you and observe the sensations. Remember and analyze any inconveniences. After the discomfort, a state of complete relaxation will come. Control the muscles of your limbs. Sit down and extend your arm to the side, at shoulder level, with your palm facing down. Look at your middle finger and don't let it move. Repeat for 1 minute.

The main breathing exercise is to hold it 4 times longer than inhale and 2 times longer than exhale. Then we perform an exercise to slow down our thoughts; we must try to clear our head and practically not think. Then comes the process of meditation itself, when you become completely focused and immersed in yourself.

The information was partially borrowed from the site.

Patanjali brought together teachings that had been transmitted exclusively orally for many centuries before him. He was the first to put the teachings in writing for the benefit of students and is therefore considered the founder of the School of Raja Yoga.

The date of birth of Patanjali is unknown and there is a lot of discussion about this. Most Western authorities are of the opinion that it is between 820 and 300 BC, although one or two place it after the birth of Christ. However, the Hindu authorities, who may be considered to know something on this subject, adhere to a much earlier date, up to 10,000 B.C.

The system, however, was applied from the very beginning of the Aryan race. The Yoga Sutras are the basic teaching of the Trans-Himalayan School, to which many of the Masters of Wisdom belong, and most students believe that the Essene school, like other schools of mystical studies and mystical thought closely associated with the founder of Christianity and the early Christians, is based on the same system itself and that their teachers were trained in the great Trans-Himalayan School.

This first step is one of the most difficult stages of the meditative process and presupposes the ability to constantly, without interruption, return the mind back to the “object” of concentration chosen by the aspirant.

The stages of concentration themselves are clearly demarcated and formulated as follows:

1. Choosing a specific “object” of concentration;
2. Removal of mind-consciousness from the periphery of the body, so that the channels of external perception and contact (the five senses) calm down and consciousness is no longer directed outward;
3. Concentration of consciousness and its retention in the head, at the point between the eyebrows;
4. Engagement of the mind, or the ability to pay close attention to a chosen object of concentration;
5. Visualization of this object, perception of its image and logical thinking about it;
6. Expansion of mental concepts that are formed from specific and particular - to general and universal, or cosmic;
7. An attempt to penetrate to what is hidden behind the form in question, or to comprehend the idea responsible for the existence of this form.

This process gradually expands the consciousness of the aspirant, enabling him to penetrate from the formal to the vital side of manifestation. However, he must begin with the form, or “object.”

There are four types of concentration objects:

1. External objects such as images of deities, paintings, or forms in nature;
2. Internal objects such as the centers of the etheric body;
3. Qualities, such as various virtues, with the intention of awakening the desire to achieve their discovery in order to include them in the content of one's life;
4. Mental concepts, or those ideas which embody the ideals hidden behind all the forms they animate. They can be perceived as symbols or words.

The awareness of the need to have “objects” for concentration is what gives rise to the need for images, sacred sculptures and paintings. All these objects involve the lower concrete mind, which is a necessary preliminary stage. Their use brings the mind into a controlled state in which the aspirant can do only what he has decided to do. The above four kinds of objects gradually lead the aspirant inward, helping him to shift his consciousness from the dense physical plane into the etheric world, from there into the world of desires, or emotions, and further into the world of mental ideas and concepts.

This process occurring in the brain brings the whole lower man into a state of one-pointed, concentrated attention, concentrating all parts of his nature in achieving a fixed attention, or concentration of all mental faculties.

Clear, one-pointed, unbroken, calm perception of an object, when no other objects or thoughts are allowed into the consciousness, is the most difficult of achievements, and when it can last for 12 seconds, true concentration is achieved.

Meditation is simply a prolongation of the state of concentration, and it grows out of the ease that a person achieves by learning to “fix the mind” of his choice on any particular object. Meditation is subject to the same rules and conditions as concentration, and the only difference between them is the time factor.