The 'edifice' of Adhyatma stands on the two strong 'pillars' of tapa and yoga. Understanding the meaning and adopting the practices of tapa and yoga in every dimension of life - make possible the transmutation of an ordinary mortal being into a refined, glorious, great personality, equivalent to a divine being in human body. Adhyatma deals with evolution of consciousness and hence has intimate relationship with inner sentiments and spirituality.
If tapa is like washing the 'cloth' of the individual self, yoga may be likened to 'coloring and ironing' it. The present volume describes most of the important Sadhanas - ranging from Chandrayana Vrata to Prana Pratyavartana - which can be performed under adept guidance by every aspirant of righteous development of personality, refinement of talents and overall improvement of life. These Sadhanas, if practised sincerely, can effectively materialize into Kayakalpa. Increased glow of the aura around the body, good health, impressive personality and eminence are some of the easily visible attainments of initial success in these Sadhanas.
The practice of the above Sadhanas is generally three phased : (i) sanyama Sadhana - self- restrain, self-analysis and healing of past sins; (ii) aradhana - altruist service with an optimistic attitude to see the good that dwells everywhere in the world; (iii) upasana - self-realization with devotional faith in the divine origin of the soul. Specific disciplines, modes of refinement and methods of practising sanyama, aradhana and upasana associated with the tapa and yoga sadhanas are devised based on deep realization and understanding of the inner world of activities and subtle variations in the human body and mind.
Confession, in front of an authentic spiritual master, of the sins and misdeeds committed by the Sadhaka and ascetic follow-up of penance and atonement - are also parts of Sadhana.
The Sadhana of Pran Pratyavartan focuses at transmutation of vital energy and refinement of the subtle body with the help of the spiritual energy - extracted from the cosmic centers of divine powers or transmitted by a satgurü (spiritually elevated noble guide).A Satguru guides the righteous path of truth and absolute welfare and helps creative use of the Sadhak's Shraddha and Vishwasa i.e belief . It is very difficult to find such an authentic spiritual master these days. Equally difficult is to find a serene, spiritually charged atmosphere. In ancient times, the places of pilgrimage (tirtha) used to serve this purpose.
The Indian scriptures on emphasize the importance of Satgurü in understanding and adoption of the principles of Adhyatma. A Satguru is the one who has attained substantial knowledge and great success in Adhyatma by dedicated sadhanas and who has the power to adjudge the inner character and personality of a devotee and provide adept guidance for sadhanas suitable to the latter's level. Shraddha and Vishwasa - pure devotion and intrinsic faith in the central theme, ideology and mode of practice of the sadhana are described as essential as the sincerity of endeavor and unperturbed observance of the necessary disciplines for viable success of any experiment in Adhyatma. Presence of the three - Shraddha, Vishwasa and Satguru with availability of pure, peaceful and spiritually charged atmosphere ensures the ultimate success of the dedicated endeavors of the sadhaka.
The treasure of Indian culture is full of invaluable pearls. The philosophy and science of yoga is an ageless jewel of these pearls whose glow has been illuminating, since the times immemorial in human history, the internal and external world of all those who adorned it in the crown of their lives. The yoga sadhanas—- methods of practicing yoga in an orderly and scientific way, have been devised by the seers of yore who had perfected the knowledge of human body and mind and experienced the eternal relationship between the individual consciousness and the omnipresent cosmic consciousness.
The mechanism of yoga works on scientific principles. There is nothing esoteric or imaginary in the development, practices and effects of yoga sadhanas. Positive effects of several practices of yoga on physical, biological and mental health have been verified in the modern laboratories too. Yoga—research is a respectable discipline in the faculties of Medicine, Psychology and Philosophy in many reputed institutions and universities across the globe at present.
However, on the other side of its popularity, practicing some kind of physical fitness exercises in the name of ‘yoga’ has also become a fashionable hobby and business these days. It therefore appears important to make people aware of the fact that—- applications of yoga are not limited to physical fitness, clinical health and behavioral management only., nor is it a discipline of abstract philosophical discussions by intellectuals; rather, it encompasses all activities and works in all dimensions of human life.
The science of yoga is much deeper than any other branch of science. The sadhana procedures designed here work at the level of extrasensory, subtle and astral bodies too. Sincere and disciplined practices of yoga involve maximum use of the power of intrinsic faith, courage, earnest desire and determination. These aim at gradual arousal and activation of the enormous potentials of human body, mind and the inner sentiments.
The nectar of yoga sadhanas helps the tree of life blossom like a Kalpavraksha - the heavenly tree which fructifies all desires of the divine beings.
The philosophy of yoga aims at the "yoga" (literally meaning "conjugation") of the soul with the supreme eternal consciousness. Importance of yoga has been glorified by Lord Krishna in the holy Gita (6| 46) as -
Tapasvibhyo Adhiko Yogi, Jna nibhyo Apimato Adhikah |
Karmibhyashca Adhiko Yogi, Tasmad yogi Bhava Arjuna ||
Meaning: "Yogi—- a devotional expert of all practices and knowledge of yoga, is superior to those who refine the self by adopting ascetic disciplines and penance; much as knowledge is superior to the knowledgeable. The success of a yogï is greater than that of the people engaged in creative activities and dedicated actions aimed at excellent results. Therefore, you (addressing to Arjuna) must try becoming a true yogi".
"Sadhanas is essential for accomplishing righteous success in every walk of life. Be that materialistic progress or spiritual evolution, none could be achieved without sincere endeavors of refinement and escalation of one's abilities and virtues".
In the context of yoga, sadhana procedures are devised focusing at purification and strengthening of the internal world of the body and mind. These endeavors are like those of arduous hunting for hidden treasures; attainment of the treasures of marvelous potentials of the human body and miraculous functions of the human mind indeed makes one rich like Kuber - allegorically described to be the wealthiest and most prosperous being of the heavens.
The ancient rishis had described the inner potentials of a human being as extrasensory sources of divine powers and referred them by different names of God. The successive stages of yoga and the disciplines of sadhanas are devised for gradual purification and strengthening of the body and mind and eventual awakening of inner potentials. These work at the external level of the gross body by way of specific physical exercises and pranayamas and energize every component of the body - from organs to muscles and nerves and from cellular to molecular systems.
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