YOGA FOR BODY🔗

‘We are the creators of our own reality. Whatever is repeated in our mind is projected as our reality.’

Nithyananda

WE ARE THE CREATOR, SUSTAINER AND DESTROYER OF OUR BODY.

By nature, our body is intelligence. It is not just a bio-mechanism or force; however, it is force with intelligence and it has the ability to respond to every single thought produced in our minds. That is why our body is created, maintained and destroyed according to our thoughts. We are Brahma the creator, Vishnu the sustainer and Rudra the destroyer of our body.

‘We are what our perceptions are; as are our perceptions, so become our actions; as are our actions, so becomes our destiny.’

This quote is not from the Brihadaranya Upanishad, but from Dr Bruce Lipton’s classic ‘Biology of Beliefs.’ Bruce Lipton is a celebrated molecular cellular biologist who has rewritten the basic tenets of how cells behave. We have all been taught that we behave the way our genes are designed. Dr Lipton disagrees. He declares that the design of our genes is determined by the way we behave.

Our body-mind system constantly transforms itself. Billions of cells are born, live, die and get reborn. All of us are totally new Beings every one or two years. If our body is constantly going through regeneration and being reborn every couple of years, why is it that we continue to carry the same physical and mental diseases? This problem stems from our mind and our deeply embedded memories, beliefs and values (samskara) that are inscribed in our unconscious zone.

Whatever we believe our past to be, we ultimately believe that it will also represent our future. If we believe that our whole past has been depression, we come to the conclusion that our future, too, will be depressed. If we have suffered with a lot of pain in our body in the past, we draw the conclusion that we will continue to suffer with this pain.

We are the creators of our own reality. Whatever is repeated in our mind is projected as our reality. Whatever we believe we are, that is what we are. If we believe that we are depressed, we will be depressed. If we believe that we are blissful, we will be blissful.

We ultimately have the power to reprogram and rewire ourselves, to transform a cellular structure, to redesign our genes, our body and therefore, our lives. This is a truth that the Eastern sages and mystics who practiced the inner science knew tens of thousands of years ago and they recorded it in the scriptures. What may have been heresy to scientists a decade ago is now the truth that is being slowly accepted.

The reason we have this body is to achieve the 'zone of intelligence', or the space of consciousness, which resides within. This is the goal. Our body is alive and functioning primarily to reach this space in which we can experience a deep and restful awareness. The reason for our very existence is to achieve the ultimate experience of our consciousness and to achieve the ultimate state of bliss. Although our very existence is to experience this consciousness and experience the bliss which is our birthright, we don't. Why?

We accumulate too many negative emotions in our system. Our body is not simply material as it appears to be; again, it is energy and has the capacity to hold thoughts and memories, both negative and positive.

In Tantra, it is beautifully expressed: ‘You cannot continue any thought unless you remember your form.’

In our form, we are complete memory. All of our memories are recorded in our form, in our body. Therefore, if we can't remember our form, we can't proceed to think. We cannot have a single thought unless we remember our form, because in our form we have all of our memories. We store our emotions, whether they are positive or negative, within our Being.

We are now teaching Nithya Yoga, which is what the great sage Patanjali intended Yoga to be. Nithya Yoga is far more than asana and pranayama, postures and breathing control. It is a mind body spirit integration using meditation as the key.

One of the beautiful revelations in Nithya Yoga - ‘Yoga for Eternity', and the effectiveness of it, depends completely on our intention. Many people, especially in the West, practice yoga asana for health. We practice a specific asana (posture) to benefit a particular part of our physical body. We practice this asana to help heal some disease. We practice that asana to address that ailment. This connection between disease and asana has become so prominent in the West.

It is a shocking revelation, however, that if we move our body or bend our body with any particular intention, that memory, that intention will be completely inserted in our body and mind. That intention will be recorded in our body. It becomes a positive engraved memory (samskara) and starts to express in our body.

Whether we believe it or not, we are an expression of self-hypnosis. We are an expression of our own self-hypnosis! Anyway we move the body with the faith that this or that will happen in us, simply it will start expressing in us. The way in which we choose to move our body with this intention is irrelevant. If we wish to practice yoga asana with the intention and belief that we are blissful, this is what will be inscribed in our system and start expressing.

In the practice of Nithya Yoga, we use the simple technique of visualizing our body as a 'bliss bag.' When we get up in the morning, we imagine that our body is a 'bliss bag' and simply we move our body for 10 minutes in whatever way we wish. Whether we bend this way or that way, practice a certain posture or stand on our head, the way in which you move isn't important. What is important is our intention. Simply, we visualize our body as a bliss bag and move it in any fashion for just 10 minutes.

We will see that our body becomes matured and holds that intention, that bliss for a long time. We will remain in that same state of higher consciousness for a remarkably longer time; even ordinary sitting. If we choose to sit on a lounge chair and we believe that by sitting, we will have health and then we sit solely for health, simply we will see the health happening in us.

The purpose of Nithya Yoga is to experience our birthright – which is bliss. We must 'unclutch' from old and negative beliefs and insert positive beliefs into our system; working towards bliss, experiencing bliss and expressing bliss. The capacity to experience bliss will just explode in our inner space and the capacity to radiate bliss will start happening in our body.

We never think we are good enough physically; another major reason that postpones our enjoyment and expression of our true nature of bliss. We all have the idea that we are not enough unto ourselves. We are continuously made to believe by society that we are not beautiful. The moment we start actually believing that we are not beautiful, we start hiding behind cosmetics.

At a more extreme level, some will try to alter their bodies through plastic surgery. This is extreme and is a highly encouraged and popular practice in the modern day. What's even more disgusting is that they have invented reality television shows such as 'Extreme Makeover' and 'Make me Beautiful'. These shows encourage men and women of all ages to list all of the physical things they would like to have changed by surgeons. Basically, the more things they feel need to be changed in regards to their physical body, the better candidate they are for the television program.

There is no scale of beauty; however, we all have an idea, a scale, a certain set of measurements we continuously believe we need to match. If God were an engineer, he would have created moulds of Miss World and Mister World and commenced a mass production. He would have simply made all of us the same, from the same mould. However, God is not an engineer, he is an artist. He carves every one of us. He paints every one of us. We are all unique. Be very clear, we are not equal but unique.

The very idea that everyone is equal is totally wrong.

If we look deeply into ourselves, we can see that we never feel relaxed and never feel comfortable with our own body. When we look at someone else and decide that they are beautiful and we feel we actually want to look like them, immediately we create a gap between ourselves and our bodies. We put a wedge between ourselves and our body. In India, when they break large pieces of wood, they will insert a wedge so that the two pieces won't reunite. Similarly, when we start believing that we are not beautiful, we insert a wedge between ourselves and our body, and there is less chance of us reuniting with our body.

A male feeling attracted towards a female or vice versa is completely normal. However, if a male looks at another male who is a model and immediately feels he would like to look like he does, this is not natural. If a female looks at another female who is a model and immediately feels she would like to look like her, understand, there is something seriously wrong in your Being. Once we can relax with the idea that we are all created differently in our own unique way, we will start to experience a tremendous homely feeling within our body.

If we look deeply into our Being, we constantly feel uneasy with our body and this uneasiness is the root cause for all of our diseases. We avoid the body. All of our pain and disease is nothing but our body asking for our presence, our energy and our attention. If we concentrate on giving attention to our body, naturally there will not be any problems. We all know, if we don't give enough

attention to our home, it will fall apart. Our body is our home, therefore, to prevent it falling to pieces, start giving it some attention, some energy and some love.

Today, we will practice a meditation to allow us to relax into our body, to enter into our home. I am reminded of a beautiful book in Advaita Vedanta. Included in this book is a beautiful concept called Swarjya Siddhi. It says:

> ‘To reclaim your own kingdom, to achieve your own > kingdom, firstly you need to achieve your body.’

However, we are not living inside our body. We are almost living like a ghost. While our body is there, we are somewhere else. Before anything, we need to enter into our own bodies and start living inside. First, we need to be inside our boundary.

Question: Master, how do we pay attention to our body?

Answer: We spend at least 2–3 hours a day with our body. We shower, groom, brush our teeth, dress ourselves, and eat. However, if we observe ourselves closely while undertaking these activities directly related to our bodies, we are never inside our boundary. Essentially, we are never actually in tune with or feeling how our body is responding to these activities.

It is obvious. When we are brushing our teeth, we are thinking about our business. When we are showering, we are thinking about our patients. Surely we cannot examine your patients while we are in the shower! Therefore, while we are doing anything related to our body, simply we should be there inside our boundary. Have no thought about anyone or anything. Nothing else! Just decide we will be inside our own body.

However, most of us don't really want to be with our bodies. If we see our routines, we will do everything possible to avoid looking at our bodies. We avoid looking at them deeply, penetrating them. We find it impossible to relax with our body. Instead, we will bend over backwards in an attempt to change our bodies and as a result end up depressed, upset and frustrated by being unable to meet the high standard of beauty, society has imposed on us.

The moment we actually start accepting our body for what it is, the moment we relax with our body, we achieve something far greater than beauty and that is grace. It is not beauty, it is grace. Beauty comes from make up and plastic surgery. Grace comes from accepting and relaxing with ourselves.

In the Indian epic Ramayana, it is told that when the daughter of Janaka, Sita, walked into the court of Janaka, everyone including the great sages and Janaka himself stood up to pay their respect to her. Sita, the daughter of Janaka, simply exuded such an amazing grace that she was highly admired and respected.

We need to relax within ourselves. Everyday, whenever we find ourselves doing anything related to our body, we should decide to be inside our boundary. We should avoid thinking about anything or anyone else. We should witness what is happening within our body and how our body is responding. When we brush our teeth, we should witness how our mouth is feeling. When we have our shower, we

should become aware of how our body is responding to the sensation of the water. When we dress ourselves, we need to notice how our body is feeling. Understand, our body responds to every single thought created by our mind. We have the ability to restructure our whole body with our mind.

In the East, there is a beautiful philosophy known as samudrika lakshana. The theory encompasses how our entire mind can be studied. A person who has mastered this art can understand the exact nature of a person's mind, simply by visually observing their body; reason being, the body is an expression of our mind. Our body is created by our mind.

Question: Master, would you consider being inside the body as selfishness?

Answer: Selfishness is snatching something away from others. I am not asking you to snatch something from others. I am not telling you to take anything from others or disturb others. I am simply telling you to reclaim what you already have. Unless you are happy with yourself, you can't be selfless. Unless you have achieved bliss, you cannot give bliss to others.

We are constantly taught to disrespect ourselves. By society, we are constantly made to believe that we are not enough unto ourselves. That is why we can never believe that we are God. People come and ask me, ‘Master, are you God?’ I tell them, ‘I am not here to prove I am God, I am here to prove you are God.’ Be very clear that we can all experience this.

I do realize however, that in one corner of your mind you will be thinking, 'Oh, this Master speaks nicely, He speaks of good things, but really, what does he mean that we are God?' We have all created an idea that God is beyond our reach. We actually feel cozy and comfortable with this idea that we cannot be God.

Ultimately, none of us want solutions to our problems. We just want someone to support our problems. People come and tell me, 'Master, my wife has so many troubles and it is disturbing for me. Please can you give me a solution for her?' I tell them, that the wife does not really need a solution given to her, she simply needs support. She really just wants someone to listen. Don't be mistaken, she is not asking for a solution. For that matter, don't even think that you are intelligent enough to give her a solution.

However, I am qualified to give you a solution and that is, meditation. Prayer is support and meditation is the solution. What you want, well you have to decide for yourself.

Question: In early life, every individual male and female passes through a certain stage of development where they love their body. It is known as autoamorphism. After this stage of development, the love that the man or woman has developed for their body suddenly disappears. What is the reason for this?

Answer: Simply, society does not allow us to linger with this love for our body. When a person loves their body, they will be in ecstasy. They will continuously be smiling for no obvious reason. They will be bubbling and dancing.

In Ayurveda, there is a beautiful definition for the word health. Being free of disease is only one clinical aspect included in the definition of health. The definition of health in Ayurveda is having the feeling of wanting to dance. When we wake up in the morning, our steps from the bed to the bathroom should be more like a dance.

The people you can observe that are completely within their boundary, that have a deep connection and love with their body, are the people that constantly look alive, ecstatic and joyful. If they laugh, you will notice that their whole body laughs. If they smile, you we see that their whole body will smile.

Society simply cannot tolerate the type of person described above. Society, cannot handle if someone is naturally happy with themselves. If someone is just laughing, bubbling, dancing, loving and expressing him or herself, it is unacceptable. We feel uneasy, uncomfortable and deeply disturbed. If we notice someone sitting by themselves, looking subdued and depressed, we feel that this person is normal, similar to ourselves.

Children, if you observe them, are constantly expressing love towards their bodies. They put their thumbs inside their mouths and play. You can see kids whirling and spinning, eating with both of their hands, playing with their genitals, playing with their whole body, continuously expressing love towards their body. They constantly express the homeliness and happiness they feel with their body. They are more or less in ecstasy.

However, as adults we ruin this for them. We suppress our kids. When they spin around, do we let them continue? As

an Indian parent, if your child eats with their left hand, do you allow them? No. We continuously suppress their joy. We teach them that their left hand is unclean and they should not touch food with left hand.

As parents, we should encourage our children to express themselves. We should allow them to live with and express their body. If they are having a bath and they jump in the water, allow them. If they spin and spin, just put a mattress down in case they should fall. Never stop them! If they eat with both hands, just ensure that their hands are clean. Allow them to use their left and right sides equally. Additionally, avoid separating the upper half and lower half of their body. When we wear tight clothes we separate the upper body energy from the lower body energy.

TWO MEDITATIONS FOR BODY.

There is a beautiful technique that will help to kindle comfort and love for your own body and it is taken from the Sufi tradition.

All of our skin diseases take root from the hatred of our own bodies. A lady with a severe case of psoriasis, a chronic and often incurable skin disease, came to me for healing. While being healed she confided that she had suffered a traumatic childhood that left her with self hatred as well as self guilt. I told her to practice this meditation for 21 days. She exploded crying: 'How do expect me to love myself the way I am?' I said: 'You have lived in misery for 20 years. Try this just for 21 days.'

In 15 days, the lady was rid of her ailment forever!

Practice this meditation just as you awaken in the morning before you actually get out of bed, when your subtle dream body is still settling into your physical gross body.

Starting from your head, touch each part of your body, one by one, lovingly, down to the soles of your feet. As you touch each part, each limb, say how much you love that part or limb, and express gratitude to the Existence for having blessed you with your body. It does not matter even if you do not believe your body is great, just express the idea that it is great and express your love and gratitude.

Within days you will find a deep love and peace within your self. It is only when you are filled with love you can express love to others.

I often am questioned by people, 'Is it necessary to do meditation only with a Master present?' I tell them no. At least the meditation techniques that I am spreading, my presence is not necessary. Your presence is enough. Let your body have your presence.

This meditation technique is from Kularnava Tantra, an ancient scripture attributed to Siva. From my experience, I can say that this is the oldest book written on yoga and meditation.

This meditation is comprised of three, ten minute parts. Practicing this meditation will result in you resting, relaxing and feeling at home with your body. You will reclaim your body. You will start living inside your system, inside your boundary with full awareness. There are three instructions.

1) For the first ten minutes, inhale and exhale as deeply and as chaotically as possible. It should be deep and quick. It is almost like you will be melting your body. You will be melting your body through Prana Sakti (healing energy). We have a lot of toxins and a lot of unnecessary negative emotions and negative energy inside of our bodies. For the first ten minutes, you will be melting all of the negative emotions and cleaning the system through this particular breathing cycle.

2) For the second ten minutes, completely shake your whole body and mind. Just shake, shake without a pattern, randomly. This shaking will awaken the Kundalini Shakti (existential energy) which is residing within our being. Shake your body. Shake your legs, your arms, your head, everything! To shake your mind, you must hum very mildly. Don't hum too loudly otherwise you will start thinking about it. Hum continuously but mildly. Shake your body and mind together for 10 minutes. Shake your body physically and shake your mind with the humming.

3) For the final 10 minutes, just sit and simply allow yourself to relax into your body. Be with your body. Relax into the body and be in the present moment.