Ancient types of yoga. Raja Yoga: Evolution Through Service Spiritual Forces Develop

Raja Yoga, sometimes referred to as "Royal Yoga", is the sum total of all yoga styles. Today, the essence of raja yoga goes beyond many areas of yoga.

Raja Yoga highlights the importance of meditation for self-realization and purposeful progress in human consciousness. This direction emphasizes awareness of one's state of mind, therefore raja yoga is also called "Psychic Yoga" or "Yoga of the Mind".

By practicing the state of concentration of the mind, a person learns to calm his mind and focus on one point. In a moment of deep concentration, we turn inward, revealing the true nature of the divine principle.

You can achieve this by following the eight year raja yoga path which includes observing the following:

Yama (abstinence): Ahimsa (no injury), Satya (truth), Aseta (no stealing), Brahmacharya (chastity), Apragraha (no greed);
Niyama (Moral observations): Dryness (purity) Santosha (satisfaction), Tapas (austerity), Svadhaya (study of scriptures), Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender to God);
Asana: steady posture, fixed posture;
Pranayama: control vital energy through breathing and breathing practices;
Pratyahara: withdrawal, distraction of the senses;
Dharana: concentration of the mind;
Dhyana: meditation;
Samadhi: full realization, enlightenment, union with the divine.

These 8 steps of yoga will help a person to comprehend the basics of yoga, achieve harmony and see the picture clearly inner world, realize yourself. Any spiritual path of yoga begins with the first two steps - Yama-Niyama.

Pit - Self-control

Yama means self-control and abstinence. The first step, which preaches the principles and negative qualities that need to get rid of. Consists of 5 principles:

Ahimsa - the principle of non-violence

Ahimsa means that any living being has the right to life and it is not in our power to decide the fate of these living beings. In simple words - do not cause pain, suffering, do not kill at the level of thought, word or action.

This includes the consumption of animal meat, since eating requires killing. According to the principle of ahimsa, yogis become vegetarians. This happens naturally, during practice, purification of consciousness, you feel good and you want everyone to feel this state, even an animal that has grown to become food.

Animals are endowed with a strong instinct, a reflex, the process of which is launched at the moment of awareness of approaching death. Somehow they feel that their death is coming soon and a feeling of wild fear begins. At this point, fear and death hormones are released throughout the animal's body, which remain in the meat after the kill.

By consuming meat, people do not even suspect why they can suddenly feel uncontrollable fear, anxiety outbreaks, neuroses.

Satya - Truth

It is always good and right to tell the truth, but more important is how we convey the truth. We have the ability to “throw” truth at someone like a knife, but we also have the ability to dress that same truth in loving words.

Truth and truth are important, it is important not only to convey the truth, but also to convey the truth with your actions. Sometimes the truth can hurt like a knife, so you need to try to convey it delicately, tactfully and through your example. The teachings say not to violate the principle of non-violence in all available ways.

Heed the advice about the truth:

"Each of your words must fall like flowers from your mouth."

Mahaprabhuji

Truthfulness means openness of feelings, freedom from evasiveness, resourcefulness and excuses. Each person must know within himself his truth and true face. Of course, for some time you can hide who we are from others, but we are clear in front of ourselves. We are witnesses of true personality.

Asteya is not theft

Asteya says about the prohibition of theft. You have no right to take away what does not belong to you, whether it be material values or intellectual property. Asteya also concerns human feelings - one cannot take away joy, happiness or any opportunity from a person. This area also includes a disrespectful attitude towards nature, the destruction of the environment around them.

Brahmacharya - a pure way of life

Brahmacharya is one of the stages of spiritual development, which means sexual abstinence or celibacy. But it is rather not an end in itself. but a consequence of the practice of yoga in life. All our thoughts should be directed towards spiritual development, towards the divine principle. At the same time, it is important to observe harmony in reality, to fulfill duties consciously. Observing brahmacharya, a person also acquires virya (energy and heroism).

Aparigraha - non-attachment of possessions

Hoarding, buying and storing unnecessary things, excessive consumption - all this is not about aparigraha. The practice of aparigraha consists in not accepting gifts, not hoarding. The principle of aparigraha means that you should not have the feeling of longing for immediate gratification, even the simplest desires. A person should be satisfied with exactly what he has at the given moment of life. The more property, the more worries. Less possessions, more freedom.

Niyama - Discipline

Niyama is the second stage of yoga philosophy, which preaches the qualities that you need to include in your life. It also consists of five principles:

Shauka - Purity

Santosh - Satisfaction

Santosh is similar in meaning to aparigraha and means wonder at what we have. Adhering to the principle of satisfaction, a person is humble, satisfied with the circumstances and considers what he has to be the greatest wealth in his life. An inner sense of contentment gives happiness much more than material possessions. In our time of materialism and consumerism, it is necessary to strive for balance.

Tapa - Self-control, Self-discipline

In our opinion, the most difficult rule, since it requires great willpower and discipline. Tapa means keeping the direction of your development path through adversity and obstacles. You must practice with patience, diligently and perseveringly. Sticking to the chosen path, no matter the circumstances, is the path to success.

Svadhaya - Studying the Holy Scriptures

Svadhaya means training, spiritual enlightenment of the traditional scriptures of yoga philosophy: Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, Patanjali Yoga Sutras, etc. These scriptures convey valuable knowledge and provide invaluable assistance on the path to yoga.
Ishvara Pranidhana - Devotion to God

Communicate everything you do with the Divine Self with pure devotion. God protects all who betray with trust and faith.

Asana - steady posture, still posture

Asana is traditionally defined as a "place". Most often it is a sitting posture used for meditation. Generally in yoga, the term is used to refer to any physical posture of hatha yoga. This is the third limb of Patanjali Ashtanga's Eightfold Path following Yama and Niyama.

The practice of asanas is considered important to yogis because it helps keep the physical body healthy, strong and resilient. Considering that the body is a vehicle for the spirit, taking care of the physical body is important for spiritual development. Asana practice can also bring a range of emotional and energetic benefits, increase discipline and concentration, and prepare the mind for meditation.

Pranayama - breathing exercises

This is the fourth stage of yoga, which is the control of the mind is achieved by learning to control the body and breath. Pranayama is performed to improve the movement of prana - living energy in the human subtle body. It is prana that gives a powerful impetus to working with energy and helps to achieve spiritual development.

Pratyahara - withdrawal of feelings

Pratyahara is the ability to abstract, control your feelings and consciousness through the practice of yoga. The teachings say that the constant craving for the satisfaction of momentary desires distracts us from our true goals. It prevents us from being happy and free.

In conditions of constant absorption of unnecessary information, the human mind processes it and becomes restless. All this noise fills the consciousness and prevents us from noticing the reality of what is happening around us.

Pratyahara teaches us to control the state of mind and feelings, to regulate the flow of any information.

Dharana - Concentration

Dharana helps to focus your thoughts and feelings on one object. We usually manage to a short time then other thoughts come and distract us. We become aware of our lack of concentration in just a few minutes. Until we are able to focus on a thought or an object for any length of time, in any situation, we still have not mastered Dharana.

Meditation with candles (Trataka), special Asanas and Pranayamas, as well as the repetition of the Mantra, are very helpful in improving the ability to concentrate.

Dhyana - meditation

Dhyana is realized through preparation through various techniques meditation. Through concentration, meditation and illumination in this sequence, we achieve spiritual perfection and pure consciousness.

What does the practice of meditation give us:

peace of mind and humility;
calm mind and concentration;
knowledge of oneself, one's inner world;
attaining pure consciousness.

We wrote more about meditation.

A person achieves a greater effect in meditation when his mind is calm. The yogi experiences pure being, the boundaries of gross and subtle are erased, and pure light remains that shines in the heart. This unity is capable of providing answers to many fundamental existential questions.

Samadhi - complete realization

The end point, the stop of the path of development and the complete unity of the inner and outer world. This is the place where a person connects with the Divine principle, the Higher consciousness. Samadhi gives the yogi silence, tranquility and eternal bliss.

In this state, all duality dissolves. There is no day, no night, no darkness, no light, no qualities, no color. All is one in the Higher Self. This union of the individual soul with the Cosmic soul is the goal of yoga.

Adhering to all the laws of yoga, a person understands his path of destiny in this world. And the most interesting thing about this is that the world will oppose yoga in every possible way on the way to finding oneself - illnesses, crowd opposition, depression, stress, doubts. Therefore, it is important to accept yourself and understand why all this is being done.

Raja yoga

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Yoga(dev. योग) - (by definition from Wikipedia) is a concept in Indian culture, in a broad sense meaning a set of various spiritual, mental and physical practices developed in different directions of Hinduism and Buddhism and aimed at managing the mental and physiological functions of the body with the aim of achievement by the individual of an elevated spiritual and mental state.

Before reading the article, you can listen to our webinar about the ancient types of yoga:

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These 50 minutes will help you understand why so many different types of yoga arose in antiquity and what they mean.
If you can't watch - welcome to read below.

What is "Yoga"?

In the systematic treatise “Yoga Sutras” written by the sage Patanjali about 2,500 years ago, yoga is defined as “Chitta Vritti Nirodhi”.
The Indian philosopher Vivekananda at the end of the 19th century translated this definition as

Yoga is the retention of the matter of thought (Chitta) from being clothed in various images (Vritti).

Our contemporaries Ostrovskaya and Rudoy translate this definition as

"Yoga - turning off the active programs of consciousness."

Where did the name yoga come from?

The word "Yoga" comes from the Sanskrit "yoj" or "yuj". Over its 9000-year history, this word has acquired many meanings: harness, exercise, curbing, devotion, tension, conjugation, addition, connection, unity, connection, harmony, union, service, combination, etc. But the following meanings most fully reflect the essence: unity, harmony, union. It can be said that yoga is the path to harmony.

Purely technically, yoga is a meditation technique. That is why the yoga sutras say that yoga is CVN ("Cessation of mental activity").
But how to come to this CHVN? There were many ways. And new ones keep appearing. Ancient practitioners invented them regularly. And therefore, there were a lot of ways to this state, as well as the abilities of each. Maybe that's why so many currents and varieties were formed, which for some specific practitioners could lead to the state of "silence of the mind", but for the majority - they might not be methods to achieve this goal. And, often, they brought quite the opposite effect.

But one way or another, Yoga is an indispensable component of all the spiritual traditions of India. Outside of India, the term "yoga" is often associated only with hatha yoga and asanas - physical exercises, which does not reflect the spiritual and mental aspects of yoga.

One who studies and practices yoga is called a yogi or yogi.

For a better understanding, we have divided conditionally ancient yoga into two types: pre-tantric yoga and tantric yoga:
Pre-tantric yoga was relatively simple, mostly practiced by ascetics and using a number of few techniques (without any admixtures).

When such a direction of Indian culture as Tantra began to develop, it began to absorb all kinds of techniques from various cultures, including yoga.

Pre-tantric yoga

Before the advent of Tantra, yoga could (conditionally) be divided into two types:

meditative
Where psychological (philosophical) practices were included - without the physical aspect (ie without work with the body). One of the directions is asceticism.
including physical study of the body
(this type was later transformed into Hatha yoga)

The ancient scriptures "Bhagavad-gita" describe four forms of yoga, in which the considered type of yoga is considered the highest:

karma yoga,
bhakti yoga,
jnana yoga and
raja yoga.

Yogatattva (an ancient Sanskrit text describing the practice of yoga and the obstacles that arise on the way to it) lists for the first time four main varieties of yoga:

laya yoga
raja yoga
hatha yoga, which includes the first two steps of classical raja yoga (asana and pranayama)

This classification has survived to this day.

Consider the first group of yoga practices: MEDITATIVE

mantra yoga

(mentioned in the Upanishads)

Mantra - "true word", "spell", the collective name of verbal formulas or sayings that should be pondered.
Thus, mantra yoga is the systematic use of sound vibration to provoke psychophysiological changes.
Mantra yoga can be compared to the prayer of Christians.

The word mantra comes from the root " mann"- think, believe + tool suffix -" tra", i.e. " tool for the implementation of a mental act»

A mantra is an unusual text, the utterance of which, and often the regular utterance in an undertone or almost silent muttering, many thousands of times, is considered to produce special results, magical or spiritual.

In Vedic culture and early Brahminism, the poetic parts of the Vedas and passages from them were called mantras; the use was mainly ritual so, the most important of the Vedic mantras ( t naz gayatri) chanted daily by righteous Hindus at dawn, contains a self-call to succeed through the good power of the sun. This mantra consists of three eight-syllable verse lines.

In later Hinduism, especially in the tantras, a great variety of mantras of different lengths, purposes, devices, etc. appeared. Very often, mantras, generally understood as Sanskrit texts, contain deviations to varying degrees from the usual commonly understood language; in the limit, this leads to mantras as a sequence of sounds that have no meaning.

There are two main classes of mantras:

The first class includes a mantra that requires a transmission-initiation from a person who has realized the power of the mantra in his practice and experienced its results. Without this, the recitation of the mantra is useless.
The second is considered to produce results regardless of such transmission. In this case, it is important to carefully reproduce the sound. The most important short Hindu mantra is OM

One way or another, through the constant repetition of mantras, there is a slowdown of consciousness, and hence an altered state, which can lead to CVI.

Laya - yoga

(dissolution of consciousness)

The essence of the teachings of Laya Yoga is to maintain a special state of round-the-clock vigilant presence (awareness). Laya yoga is a path beyond method, beyond concepts and efforts, a path of spontaneous self-recognition. In this case, a person ceases to live in the categories of a fixed past and a motivated future. He begins to act not as a result of the commands of his ego, but becomes a conductor of the Higher Divine forces.

The term "Laya" in Sanskrit literally translates as " rhythm" - "dissolution", i.e., a return to the state of undifferentiated existence (non-duality), when the individual consciousness of the yogi unites with the transcendent Being (Brahman).

In this way, Laya - dissolution of "I"- is a universal state and the pinnacle of any sadhana (practice), regardless of the spiritual school in which it is practiced. The state of laya and the path of laya are immanent in any spiritual path and are its secret core. The essence of the teachings of Laya Yoga is to create and constantly maintain a state of awareness, vigilant presence. The yogi practicing this technique follows the path of spontaneous self-recognition, he ceases to live in the categories of a fixed past and a motivated future.

The fundamental difference between Laya Yoga and other practices is the achievement of the state of samadhi not through the method, but through natural contemplation without effort.

Karma yoga

(mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita)

(Skt. कर्म योग "yoga of activity") is also known as buddhi yoga - one of the four main types of yoga, including in the philosophy of Hinduism.

Karma yoga is based on the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita - the sacred Hindu scripture in Sanskrit, and its main meaning is the performance of prescribed duties (dharma) without attachment to the fruits of labor. As a result of such activities, moksha (salvation) becomes possible. The Bhagavad Gita contains a concise description of the process of karma yoga. The Bhagavad Gita is an excerpt from another literary work, the Mahabharata. This is a conversation between Prince Arjuna and the incarnation of God - Krishna, who plays the role of a charioteer, driving Arjuna's war chariot. The conversation takes place on the battlefield, shortly before the start of the bloody Battle of Kurukshetra between the armies of two warring dynasties - the Pandava and Kauravas.

Karma yoga is described as a path of action, thinking and desire in accordance with the duty (dharma) of each person without taking into account personal egoistic desires and tastes, as action without any attachment to the results of one's actions, to the fruits of one's labor. In the Bhagavad Gita, although out of compassion for his relatives and friends who were in the ranks of the enemy, Arjuna did not want to fight, he took part in the battle for the sake of fulfilling his duty as a warrior and fulfilling the divine plan of Krishna. Krishna then explains that Arjuna must dedicate the fruits of his (both bad and good) actions to Him, the Supreme.

In simple words, karma yoga can be described as performance of one's duties (strive for impeccability) without expecting results and fruits. Action for the sake of action.

jnana yoga

Jnana yoga or gyana yoga (Skt. ज्ञान योग, jñānayoga IAST "the path of knowledge") is one of the types of yoga and the philosophy of Hinduism.

An example of the practice of jnana yoga: find internal contradictions in your thinking.

Jnana yoga ("yoga of knowledge") is one of the four main types of yoga in Hindu philosophy. A type of yoga that leads a person to the truth by changing his knowledge of himself and the world around him. (reprogramming) This is the yoga of the people of the intellectual path. It frees the human mind from the shackles of the illusory concept of the world, directs it to true knowledge, and demonstrates the basic laws of the universe. Jnana yoga begins with the education of the mind. A person who wants to know the truth must clear his mind of everything that he previously considered his own. From any stereotypes, habitual judgments, truths heard from others, even holy people, all ideas about God, the universe and similar things. Everything that you just heard, read, absorbed from childhood from your parents, everything should be left as useless.

Now you can’t believe anything just like that, you need to be convinced from your own experience, to feel it. Then it will be really Knowledge capable of producing profound changes in the mind and in the whole being. All other people's conclusions must be discarded, the search begins with a clean slate.

One of the key questions: Who am I?» And this is not your name, profession, nationality, etc. The principle of negation is used here: neti-neti. I am not my body, I am not my mind, I am not my emotions, and so on. Also, the student may be given some saying from the scriptures or a certain symbol, and he meditates on it for a long time, trying to understand the essence. This can go on for quite a long time, sometimes a year or more. Everything that comes during meditation is confided to the teacher, and he decides whether the student is ready to go further.

THREE STAGES OF MASTERING JNANA YOGA

Shravana (hearing)
Manana (contemplation),
Nidhidhyasana (affirmation in true knowledge).

Bhakti - yoga

Bhakti yoga is one of the four main types of yoga in Hindu philosophy. The practice of bhakti yoga is aimed at cultivating love for God through bhakti - serving God with love and devotion. The practice of bhakti yoga is recommended in a number of sacred texts of Hinduism as the easiest and most effective type of yoga (for ordinary people, like us, those who go to church). Thus, the Bhagavad Gita proclaims its superiority over the other three main types of yoga - karma yoga, jnana yoga and raja yoga.

The bhakta begins to realize his every act expressed outwardly, as something done for the sake of God, as a sacrifice to him, which, in turn, contributes to the development of the habit of selfless action, to a distant view of the world

Raja yoga

Raja yoga ("royal yoga") - also known as classical yoga- one of six orthodox schools in the philosophy of Hinduism, which is based on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

Raja yoga is aimed at establishing control over the mind. For the Raja Yoga practitioner, sadhana (practice) begins with learning to control the mind, although certain minimal practices of asanas and pranayama also take place as part of the preparatory process for meditation and concentration. In the practice of Raja Yoga, there are eight steps or levels, which is why it is also called Ashtanga Yoga (from the Sanskrit Ashta - eight):

Pit- norms of behavior - self-restraint
Niyama- adherence to religious rules and regulations - full dedication to spiritual practices
Asana- unification of mind and body through physical activity
Pranayama- breath control leading to unification of body and mind
Pratyahara- distraction of the senses from contact with their objects
Dharana- Purposeful concentration of the mind
Dhyana- meditation (internal activity that gradually leads to samadhi)
Samadhi- a peaceful superconscious state of blissful awareness of one's true nature

Sometimes these eight levels are divided into four lower and four higher. At the same time, the lower levels are associated with hatha yoga (subsequently separated from the yoga sutras), and the higher ones belong to raja yoga. The simultaneous practice of the three higher stages is called samyama.

The second group is yoga, which works with the body.

Hat ha yoga

Initially, Hatha yoga (which was not originally called that) was aimed at achieving higher states of consciousness through the study of the body by performing asanas and pranayamas. She was a preparation for the Raja Yoga meditations.

After a while, Hatha yoga merged with Tantrism and the tantric direction of Hatha yoga appeared, formed in the 10th-11th centuries by Matsyendranath and, to a greater extent, by his student Gorakshanath.

Gorakshanath systematized the practices of working with the body and consciousness that existed in his time, and also supplemented them with tantric elements. He is considered the author of many texts on hatha yoga (Goraksha-paddhati, Goraksha-staka, Jnana-amrita, Aman yoga, Yoga-martanda, Siddha-siddhanta paddhati, etc.

The classic text, which systematizes many practices of hatha yoga, was the work of Swami Swatmarama " Hatha yoga pradipika"(XIV-XV centuries).

Also very important works describing hatha yoga are "Gheranda Samhita" (XVII-XVIII c) and "Shiva Samhita" (XVIII c) - a text that, along with practices, sets out the philosophy of hatha yoga (i.e., the principles of yama and niyama)

In parallel with yoga, Tantra developed, a tradition that absorbed all sorts of techniques and techniques from various cults, religions and superstitions. It included yoga, Vedanta, Buddhism, Sufism, Islam and other technologies.

Tantra can be called a continuously renewing system. Therefore, the emergence of Tantra is not associated with the name of one person, it was formed by many masters. Tantra can be called an experimental system. Many of its methods and methods have lost their original meaning and sometimes carry adverse consequences for the experimenter. And it was Tantra that reshaped Patanjali's yoga system in the most radical way.

According to the most common version, Tantra originated on the Hindustan Peninsula (modern India) among the indigenous population during matriarchy. There are no definite facts about the time of its occurrence. It is believed that Tantra has existed for at least three thousand years. At the same time, the most ancient written sources of Tantra that have survived to this day date from the middle of the first millennium BC. e.

Tantra believes that perfection can only be achieved in the "divine body", and therefore it is necessary to maintain pristine health as long as possible, which will ensure longevity for the individual. So for this purpose two steps or two techniques from Raja Yoga (Patanjali) were taken: asana and pranayama. Over time, these combined two techniques were given the name Hatha Yoga. After Hatha Yoga was filled with additional techniques obtained by Tantra, and this was also collectively called Hatha Yoga.

The popularity of Tantra (as it is now) was that the medieval Tantric texts on Hatha Yoga were written in a simple language that the people could understand - that is why it began to spread rapidly.

Moreover, in these treatises, Tantra promises an easy and quick mastery of various miraculous abilities, and at all times, simple-hearted, narrow-minded people and striving for the unusual to compensate for their feelings of inferiority fall into the bait of these promises.

So, Tantra has expanded the previously existing yoga practices by adding hundreds of new techniques:

more complex pranayama, n
detailed visualization practices and
auku mantras as well
many bodily practices, mainly yoga postures (asanas),
ritual arrangement of the hands (mudras),
activation of energy centers (chakras) in the body.

In addition to yoga, various shamanistic rituals are practiced in Tantrism, releasing sexual energy person. Due to the interest in the body as a vessel of the eternal, the followers of Tantrism are fond of alchemy and various methods of prolonging life. The mystical physiology of the chakras plays a large role in Tantrism.

About Kundalini Yoga

The most popular texts on Hatha Yoga: Gheranda, Shiva Samhita, and Hatha Yoga Pradipika describe ways to raise the so-called Kundalini force, which can give a person quick enlightenment.

According to the research and observations of Carl Gustav Jung, the essence of this process is the deliberate unbalancing of the system and its shift to transcendent modes of operation. The life-support automatics begin to fail, psycho-emotional convulsions arise in it, accompanied by unusual experiences and effects, which Tantra announced as signs of higher transmutation, however, without guaranteeing the safety of the mind.

classical tantra

"Classical" tantra exists within the framework of various schools, among which the main ones are: Shaivas (Shaivites), Shaktas, Vaishnavas, Ganapatya, Kaumars (Skandas), Saurites.

The most famous among them are Shaivas, Shaktas and Vaishnavas.

Traditionally, Tantra is divided into two major areas. Left Hand Tantra and Tantra right hand.

According to one version, the difference between left-handed and right-handed Tantra is the sexual contact of a man and a woman and the use of power plants. In the left hand Tantra they are used naturally, as they are, on the physical and energetic level. In the Tantra of the right hand, interaction is possible only on the mental and energy levels. According to another version, the left-handed Tantra is a preference or worship of the universal feminine and the deification of a woman. Right-handed Tantra favors the masculine principle and the deification of the male. The left hand tantra is the path of rapture and ecstasy. The Tantra of the right hand is the path of silence.

The Buddhist tantra also stands out.

An integral part of the Vajrayana schools (one of the branches of Buddhism), associated with the practice of borderline states, enlightened states, death and intermediate states between death and the next birth (see bardo).

Tantra is understood as the practice of achieving the final result ("fruit") - the state of the Buddha. Tantra actively uses complex symbolism, yidams (images of a bodhisattva), meditation, mudras (special combinations of fingers that affect the physical and emotional state.), yantras (a magic diagram symbolizing the secret nature of a deity), rituals.

The most important prerequisite for practicing tantra is taking the Bodhisattva vows, striving to save all living beings without exception from the suffering of samsara, and becoming a Buddha in order to help sentient beings. Tantra is considered the shortest and at the same time the most dangerous path.

Buddhist yoga (Tibet)

The next line of transformation in yoga is Buddhism.

The Buddha, according to legend, rejected the experience of his three yogic mentors (hatha yoga Bharagva, who expelled the future savior for too quick successes, as well as Vaishala and Arad Kalama, who taught him contemplation), only because he surpassed them in this art. Buddhism never denied yoga as a practice, it assimilated it, resulting in a very specific product.

The ways of salvation taught by the Buddha are based on a purely yogic approach, and to such an extent that famous scholars, for example, E Senar or F and Shcherbatskaya, generally defined early Buddhism as yoga. Buddhism includes the principle of Patanjale meditations and contemplations (described as higher stages of yoga)

Tibetan yoga

This type of yoga came to us - as the name suggests - from Tibet. In Tibetan yoga, elements of Indian Hatha yoga and some elements of qigong were combined, which is understandable: Tibet is located between India and China, and the mutual influence of various schools and directions is affecting. One of the dominant moments is concentration, concentration of attention.

yoga tummo

Tummo (Tib. གཏུམ་མོ་, Wiley gtum-mo; Sanskrit: चण्ड, caṇḍālī IAST) is the yoga of inner Fire or illusory warmth. It is believed that as a result of concentrated work with powerful internal energies Buddhists practicing yoga of internal heat are able to "radiate" heat, to be absolutely immune to cold. In Tibet, yogis practicing tummo are called "repa" (literally - "cotton robe"), because even in the most severe cold they are dressed only in thin cotton clothes, they do without warm woolen clothes.

Tummo involves the concentration of the meditator on the image of fire (drops and bindu) and sensations of warmth, which are associated with the direct feeling of a living flame. Those who have achieved certain results in this direction are tested in several ways: in a cold, a person must dry wet shreds of fabric with the heat of his body, and during meditation on the snow, melt as much snow around him as possible. The main goal of tummo is the conquest of spiritual heights and the rapid achievement of enlightenment,

There have been repeated attempts to explain the effects of tummo from a scientific point of view. For example, in the studies of Harvard University professor Herbert Benson in 1981 and 2000. it has been found that monks can raise the temperature of their fingers and toes by more than eight degrees Celsius.

In Soviet times, Aleksey Katkov studied the limits of the human body. Shortly before his tragic death, he conducted an experiment on volunteers who were able to withstand almost naked for an hour a temperature of -60 ° C in rarefied air, corresponding to an altitude of 7500 m above sea level, blown by an air stream every ten minutes from a two-meter fan.

We have covered the main directions of ancient yoga. For a better understanding of how yoga originated, you can read and listen to its history in various

The report examines the practice of Raja Yoga, which is taught at the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKVDU), founded in 1936 in India.
This practice differs from the well-known classical Raja Yoga, so in the future we will call it Easy Raja Yoga. This name can also be found in the literature on this practice (see the bibliography at the end of the article).

Origins of Easy Raja Yoga
Light Raja Yoga is taught at the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKVDU), which was founded in 1936. BKVDU is an international public charitable organization providing spiritual and moral education.
Brahma Kumaris has over 9,000 centers in 130 countries. Light Raja Yoga is regularly practiced by over 900 thousand students of BKVDU on all continents. The university participates in international projects, actively cooperating with the UN and UNESCO.

Theory and practice Easy Raja Yogi
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the miraculous properties of yoga and said that it can help solve world problems: “Yoga is an invaluable gift from our ancient tradition. It personifies the unity of spirit and body, thoughts and actions, the harmony of people with nature. It helps a person to feel unity with himself, others and with nature.

Light Raja Yoga taught at BKVDU includes a specific daily routine, a vegetarian diet, meditation practice and rules of conduct. This practice is essentially very similar to classical Raja Yoga, which includes eight steps: yama, niyama, asanas, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, samadhi. However, there are also very significant differences.

Practicality, efficiency and accessibility are the main criteria that are seen both in the presentation of the theory and in the very practice of Easy Raja Yoga. The motto of BKVDU students is: “If you want to change the world, start with yourself. If you want to change yourself, start with your thoughts.”

Throughout history, various forms of yoga have arisen and developed. Each focused on certain methods and practices to achieve the goals:
- personal liberation (from illusions and suffering);
- achievement of perfection of consciousness and improvement of character;
- restoration of communication between mind and body;
- a state of inner happiness, based on self-knowledge;
- Restoring an intimate relationship with God that has been lost.

Different types of Yoga in one way or another to some extent lead to these goals.
* Hatha Yoga - a system of physical postures (asanas), the purpose of which is to purify and strengthen the physical body. And also, thanks to the concentration of attention and control of the internal state, the preparation of consciousness for deep self-contemplation (thinking).
* Karma Yoga - selfless selfless service to others with the realization of God as the arbiter.
* Mantra Yoga - concentration of consciousness on sound by repeating certain universal sounds (mantras), which are a representation of a special aspect of the Spirit.
* Bhakti Yoga - a comprehensive devotion, the desire to see and love in every being and in the whole world the divine essence, thus maintaining a constant cult of worship.
* Jnana Yoga - the path of wisdom leading to the awakening of the intellect (opening the third eye) and its subsequent application in practice to achieve spiritual liberation.
* Raja Yoga - the highest, Royal path of Yoga, systematized in the second century BC. the Indian sage Patanjali, who unified the essence of all other paths.

The foundation of the practice of Raja Yoga is spiritual and moral values, and the main goals are self-awareness of one's spiritual essence and spiritual awakening, the development of personal relationships with God and the acquisition of inner harmony and integrity of the individual.

A strong person, free from all negative things, who shows virtues in his actions, becomes an inspiring example for others. The spiritual strength of a person is manifested in how stable and pure, free from negative emotions, we remain during the trials and problems of life, as well as in how much peace, strength, joy, love and support we give to others daily.

Easy Raja Yoga, taught at BKVDU, links the process of spiritual self-improvement with four main subjects (instead of eight steps in classical Raja Yoga):
* Gyan - the study of spiritual knowledge, understanding of spiritual laws;
* Yoga - the practice of meditation;
* Dharna - the assimilation of spirituality in one's practical life, the development of a strong exalted character based on virtues;
* Seva - spiritual service to society.

The spiritual knowledge (Gyan) that must be mastered for the successful practice of Raja Yoga meditation includes four basic lessons. The main ideas of these lessons are as follows.

1. Who am I? Soul Consciousness
What we commonly refer to and recognize as "I" is the conscious energy, the life force that governs the body. In Raja Yoga, "I" is designated as the soul - a conscious being, different from the body. The soul in its qualities and nature is fundamentally different from the physical body and any object of the material world. Each soul is eternal, unique (as a person), a source of pure spiritual energy. It is absolutely positive in its original nature. The shape of the soul is a point, a source of spiritual light, and lives in the body in the center of the forehead between the eyebrows (the area of the third eye).

If the soul forgets itself, then it seems to fall asleep and forget its original spiritual qualities: peace, happiness, love, strength, purity, wisdom. Then weaknesses, shortcomings and sinful inclinations develop in the soul, which, in turn, sooner or later leads to losses and sorrow.

The purpose of this lesson is to develop pure spiritual self-awareness: “I am the soul. I am a source of positive energy. I control my thoughts”, in contrast to the prevailing “consciousness of the body”, when a person considers himself a limited and mortal being.

The soul has three abilities:
* Mind - is responsible for the creation of thoughts and feelings;
* Intelligence - the ability to distinguish, choose and make decisions;
* Samskara - the ability to capture (remember, save) all the experience gained. Habits and qualities of character are formed on the basis of sanskaras.

When a person begins to realize himself exclusively as a soul, then there is the power to control the mind, his thoughts, make accurate decisions with the help of the intellect and form a strong positive character. In the body consciousness, the mind and intellect often come under the influence of acquired alien and harmful samskaras. This creates problems and anxiety.

2. Supreme Soul
All souls have one Father - the Supreme Soul, God. God is one for all: all belong to Him, and He belongs to all. We, souls, inherit all our best qualities from the Highest Father, so it is very important to know Him accurately and establish a relationship with Him.

The Supreme Father is always Incorporeal - in the form of the Soul, the Source of light and power. He is a personality, a Supreme Conscious Energy. God is eternally Pure and Perfect. The powers and virtues of God are limitless. God is the Truth, He never loses his original qualities, as happens with people. God - Eliminating sorrow and Bringing happiness, Cleansing and Giving salvation, Eternal source of all strength and blessings.

3. Yoga and Meditation States
The literal meaning of the word "yoga" is union, union. In spiritual terms, it is the connection of the soul with the Higher Soul with the help of thoughts, communication with God, a loving relationship with the Higher Father.

When such a connection (yoga) is established between the soul and the Higher Soul, the soul is colored with the qualities of God, filled with spiritual powers from the Father. The high and strong energy of God, like fire, cleanses the soul of impurities. Negative qualities, weaknesses and vices are burned in this "fire of Yoga".

The gross material consciousness, the feeling of being a body prevents the soul from feeling the subtle vibrations of God. Therefore, it is important to accurately learn the first lesson: the soul needs to free itself from the bodily consciousness, which blocks yoga with God, and realize itself as a soul, a child of God.

In order to establish a deep and stable connection with God, to achieve unity with Him, the soul goes through four stages:
a) mood - preparation for meditation. You need to relax and calm your mind.
b) meditation - reflection in silence. We create thoughts about the soul, about its original qualities, about the Higher Soul, about the qualities of God. It is important here not only to think (create thoughts), but also to visualize, feel and experience every thought.
c) concentration - comes when the mind stops wandering. There is no longer any need to create thoughts on purpose, the soul becomes the personification, the embodiment of these thoughts: about oneself, about God... Thoughts and feelings merge together.
d) awareness is full realization. Feelings replace thoughts. The soul experiences lightness and freedom, it is belittled by the rays of light, peace, love, purity coming from the Higher Soul.

Beginners have to pay more attention to the first two steps, however, with practice and development, the first steps are passed faster and faster and the yoga practitioner gets everything. more experience concentration and awareness.

4. Philosophy of Karma (actions)
The Spiritual Law of Karma is universal: "What you sow, so shall you reap." Like the law of conservation of energy, it always works. There is a clear relationship between action and result. This is the law of cause and effect.

The law of Karma is the law of supreme justice. If you give happiness to others, you will get happiness. Every action creates a karmic score. And sooner or later, we will have to pay off all such bills. Everything good or bad in our life comes to us precisely on the basis of karmic accounts. That is, we earned it ourselves by our own actions. Everything is fair.

At the same time, the philosophy of karma is very deep. In every birth a soul takes, it interacts with many people and creates a huge karmic web. Some actions influence others: they either inspire the best, or provoke mistakes, and then the fruits of such actions are multiplied.

The seeds of our actions are thoughts. The quality of our thoughts determines the quality of our actions and, as a result, the quality of our lives. Therefore, it is very important to monitor your thoughts: stop negative thoughts and purposefully create strong positive thoughts.

The practice of meditation helps you manage your thoughts and create the right thoughts based on understanding. Thanks to this, we have more ideas and reasons for positive actions that lead to success and give joy to ourselves and those around us. Thus, we strengthen our positive sanskaras and create a positive karmic account.

The theory of Light Raja Yoga creates a holistic worldview that promotes the development of positive thinking and the creation of a strong stable state. The concepts presented here are simple, at first glance, the concepts are deep in their content. Full awareness of spiritual laws and concepts requires practical development. This practical part is contained in the remaining subjects: Yoga, Dharna and Seva.

The practice of meditation (Yoga) helps to deeply understand and assimilate the theory, that is, to gain a state of calmness of mind and inner purity, to practically develop self-awareness by the soul. Dharna is manifested in the fact that we adhere to spiritual principles and follow spiritual laws in our lives. Thanks to this, a person understands more deeply the importance and value of spiritual knowledge.

Service to society (Seva) on the one hand is an exam, as it shows how much we have advanced in our spiritual development. After all, only the one who is filled himself can really help others. But on the other hand, Service is also a powerful tool for further development helping to assimilate many virtues and spiritual powers.

The results of the practice of Light Raja Yoga
People who regularly practice Light Raja Yoga notice many positive changes in their lives. These changes are manifested in almost all areas: health and internal state, self-development and relationships, business activity and material well-being, creativity and self-realization.

The first thing that those who begin to systematically engage in Raja Yoga notice and feel in themselves is the achievement of inner peace and relief from stress. Peace of mind is the first condition necessary for the successful practice of meditation, and the first achievement from practice. Thanks to the strong and pure thoughts about ourselves and others that we assimilate into consciousness during morning meditation, it becomes easy to remain calm throughout the day. Thanks to this, we perceive events clearly, without distortion, free ourselves from internal tension (stress) and make accurate decisions at the right time.

Modern medical statistics show that about 95% of diseases develop precisely because of internal (mental) tension and stress. Therefore, the systematic and long-term practice of meditation has a pronounced positive effect on physical health person. There are several unique examples of the use of Raja Yoga for the healing of serious illnesses.

The medical wing of the BKVDU, based on the definition of Perfect Health proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO), developed the concept of four-dimensional health, in which, in addition to physical, social and mental (mental) health, a spiritual dimension was added. Spiritual health is based on the realization of the true nature of man, his spiritual essence and the practice of positive thinking. As the experience of many Raja Yogis shows, it is spiritual health that becomes a reliable foundation for both good mental and social and physical health.

In 1998-2000, a study began in India on the effect of meditation (positive thinking) on the treatment of moderate and severe coronary atherosclerosis. In the treatment program, except for moderate exercise and a special vegetarian diet, it was suggested that stress management based on Raja Yoga meditation be included as well. The research results showed the high efficiency of the proposed program. In the future, this project was successfully developed under the name "Healthy Heart". For several years, about 2,500 people who suffered from ischemic disease hearts. They were able to noticeably improve their well-being without surgery. After reviewing the results of these studies, the Government of India in January 2008 gave this project the status of a national program for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

In addition, in studies conducted by the Medical Wing of the BKVDU in 1985, it was found that the vast majority of Raja Yoga practitioners quickly and easily get rid of bad habits (smoking and alcohol). After a month of practicing Raja Yoga, out of the studied group of 183 smokers - 135 gave up this unhealthy habit (74%). After one year of doing Raja Yoga, only 5 people out of 183 smokers (2.7%) could not get rid of this addiction. And in a similar study on alcohol addiction, out of a group of 80 people - 78 completely got rid of alcohol addiction by the end of the month. It took 6 months for one person and 1 year for another.

Also, thanks to the positive inner attitude learned in meditation and the release from inner tension, relationships in the family with loved ones and with work colleagues are noticeably improved. These are the main components of social health and well-being.

Business people and heads of organizations practicing Raja Yoga note that the working capacity and efficiency of business activity are noticeably increased. All things generally go easier, there are fewer conflicts and difficulties, but even those problems are now solved faster and easier. Life becomes more harmonious - there is enough time for everything: for business, for communication with family and loved ones, for professional and personal self-development, and for spiritual service to society.

In addition, many noted the following achievements from the practice of Raja Yoga:
- an increase in the power of concentration, which is clearly felt during training: the perception and understanding of new information improves, memorization improves;
- character improves, the habit of noticing in others develops good qualities and features;
- develop creative abilities and talents;
- spiritual forces develop (acceptance, patience, discrimination, cooperation, decision-making, etc.)

Summing up, in general, it can be noted that the practice of Light Raja Yoga, despite its apparent ease and simplicity, shows high efficiency. The methodological approach to teaching harmoniously combines both the "Western approach" to learning: detailing, rational analysis and understanding of information, and the "Eastern (contemplative) approach", based on inner feelings, introspection and self-observation. Thanks to this, the very theory of Raja Yoga is understandable and accessible to most ordinary people.

References
1. Raja Yoga. Method and Purpose, BK Jagdish Chander. BKVDU, Moscow, 1994
2. New Knowledge for the New World. CDR, Moscow, 2011
3. Life without stress. BKVDU, Moscow, 2004
4. Healthy heart. BKVDU, St. Petersburg, 2010
5. Moral values. CDR, Moscow, 2011
6. Business and Yoga. BKVDU, Moscow, 2006
7. How to achieve the goal with the help of eight forces. CDR, Moscow, 2014

Kurganov Sergey Yurievich,
coordinator of the branch of the Interregional public organization

In the modern world, the word "yoga" is most often understood as the so-called hatha yoga, that is, methods for working with the physical body: asanas, pranayamas, less often - shatkarmas, mantras and other practices. And most often at work with your physical body, all yoga ends. But in fact, the preparation of the physical body is only the initial stage of yoga, so to speak, a preface, laying the foundation. The purpose of yoga is not to lose weight. healthy spine or the state of bliss that can be felt after good practice.

Speaking about the ultimate goal of yoga, it is worth considering such a concept as raja yoga. What is raja yoga? In Sanskrit, it means ‘royal yoga’. Why royal? Maybe because it is available only to kings, and not to mere mortals? Not at all. The fact is that Raja Yoga involves working with your mind. And the mind, one might say, is the main driving mechanism of our personality, and everything else - the body and psyche - is already subordinate to it. Raja yoga is so named because it allows you to gain complete control over your mind, and therefore over your personality. And in general - over your life.

Thus, the main instrument of Raja Yoga is the highest form. There is a widespread misconception among yogis that this very dhyana, in fact, is the goal of raja yoga. But here it is important to separate such concepts as “tool” and “goal”. This is the same as with hatha yoga - if a person perceives the health of the body as an end in itself, then his path in yoga will lead nowhere. Setting health as the highest goal (even of hatha yoga) is a big mistake, because such a practice will lead to the fact that a person will spend all his time maintaining his health in perfect condition, and meanwhile life will pass by. Therefore, a healthy body is just a tool for an efficient life.

The same situation is with raja yoga. Dhyana is just a tool for perfecting one's personality. Imagine a straight razor strap. So the belt is our meditation practice, with the help of it we improve and hone our restless mind. The razor is our mind itself, which in the process of “editing” becomes even more perfect every day. Now think - is the process of sharpening a razor an end in itself? It would never occur to anyone to sharpen a razor every day and put it on the shelf, admiring its perfect sharpness. The razor is sharpened in order to use it. It is the same with our mind - we improve it through the practice of meditation not in order to be in serene bliss and enjoy the peace of our mind. This is the same as sharpening a razor, putting it in front of you and enjoying its brilliance.

Raja yoga: what does practice give and what is its purpose

So, we come to the most important question: what is the purpose of Raja Yoga. If peace of mind, as it turned out, is not the end in itself of Raja Yoga, then in which direction should the traveler moving along this path turn his feet?

The traditional definition of raja yoga and its goal as “yogas citta vritti nirodhah” (‘yoga is the cessation of mind’s restlessness’) sounds beautiful, of course, but cannot be an end in itself. Imagine a person who is in a deep comatose state - peace of mind is just perfect. However, is such a person a yogi? The question is rhetorical. Thus, the ultimate goal of Raja Yoga is service. In modern society, the word "service" usually evokes negative associations and is something like a synonym for the word "slavery" or something like that. In fact, service is the highest goal not only of yoga, but of human life in general. To serve people and the world means to fulfill one's destiny on earth or, in terms of yoga, one's dharma.

It is important to understand that not every activity is an adequate form of service. In the modern world, everything is so turned upside down that the generally accepted concept of goodness may well turn into evil. In modern society, there is practically no activity that does not harm either people or animals, or at least the environment. Almost all human activity is aimed at producing goods and services and increasing their consumption. There is no need to say that service is carried out in this way. What is the most appropriate form of service?

The most blissful form of service is the dissemination of knowledge. Satisfaction of any desires, one way or another, eventually leads a person to suffering. And only the desire for liberation from everything that limits us, the desire for Truth, for knowledge - this is what frees us. Therefore, the best thing we can do for this world is to spread knowledge. There is an old saying that it makes no sense to feed a man with fish, it is better to give him a fishing rod. You should not take this proverb literally (it is still recommended to observe ahimsa and leave the unfortunate fish alone), here we are talking about the fact that there is no point in eliminating people's suffering - you need to eliminate the causes of this suffering.

For example, you see that a person has health problems. And you can, of course, advise him a couple of asanas or some other technique in order to eliminate these problems. But what's the point? Any disease manifested in physical level, has its cause in the mind of a person, in his worldview, in relation to the world, in actions, and so on. Therefore, it makes no sense to eliminate suffering itself, it is much more reasonable to eliminate its cause. Because if you do not remove the cause, but only the consequences, then the disease in a person, perhaps, will pass. If he does not eliminate that negative tendency of his mind that caused this illness, the illness will return, or even worse - it will come in a more severe form, or some unpleasant life situation will occur. Because if a person “does not understand in a good way”, the Universe begins to educate him more harshly. And in this case, you will do the person a disservice by helping him fix the problem only on the physical level. Because the disease was a lesson, and if it is not passed, then such a healing will not be a blessing. And the best thing we can do in this situation is to point out to the person the cause of his suffering. Unfortunately, often people are not ready to hear. But this is already a manifestation of their karma. Pointing out to a person the cause of his suffering and giving advice that will help eliminate this cause - this is the most gracious form of service.

One of better ways spreading knowledge is. This will allow you not to look for ways to spread knowledge and people who really need it. It often happens that a person, inspired by success in yoga, tries to "catch up with everyone and do good to everyone." He begins to impose his truth on everyone, thinking that he really helps people. In fact, the effect is often the opposite - people begin to think that a person has lost his mind or got into a sect, and as a result, they begin to feel only disgust for yoga and various philosophical concepts that a person tries to impose on people. And to prevent this from happening, if there is already a desire to spread knowledge, it is better to become a yoga teacher. This will allow not to impose your knowledge on those who do not need it, but to work directly with people who themselves came for knowledge. And this will be the highest form of service.

In Raja Yoga, sometimes there is such an interpretation of service as service to God, higher powers, the Absolute, or some specific gods. And often everything ends with the chanting of the names of God, songs, some strange rituals, eating prasadam around the clock and similar strange things, to put it mildly. As observations show, there is no practical benefit either for the person himself or for the surrounding world from such a form of service. If we talk about serving God, then many religions say that every living being is a manifestation of God. And to be able to see the Divine in everyone is the highest skill. And service to God is, first of all, service to people. The desire to awaken in each person his divine beginning - this is the highest form of service to God.

Everyone who comes into this world has a purpose. No one is born for nothing or to dedicate his life to entertainment. Each of us has our own karmic connections and even karmic disciples, whom only we can “awaken”. Therefore, to realize your destiny and turn it into a real service that will change the world for the better - this is the highest goal of Raja Yoga. And working with our mind and improving it is just a tool for cultivating the main qualities in ourselves: compassion for all living beings and wisdom that will allow us to serve this world as efficiently as possible. And if this is comprehended, then everything else follows from this. This is where the Path of Raja Yoga should lead us.

Most people think that the goal of Raja Yoga is solely to achieve Samadhi, that is, the liberation of the soul from negativity, from what causes pain and suffering. Of course, getting rid of all this is one of the goals of Raja Yoga, but there are other goals that are no less important: for example, achievement in Everyday life states of deep peace and bliss .

Everyone wants not just to live, but to live in peace. And this goal can be realized through meditation.

Every person's life has ups and downs, successes and failures. To maintain mental calmness and self-control in all situations - this, of course, everyone strives for.

In India lotus flower symbol reflects the lifestyle and mental state of the Raja Yogi. The lotus grows in a dirty pond, in a swamp, and yet it always remains unstained by dirt. This remarkable quality has given it a kind of national flower status in India. Similarly, Raja Yogis live among people, in the same social environment, but its negative manifestations do not affect them. They are able to maintain clarity of mind in any situation.

Another symbol representing the yogi lifestyle is turtle . She also has one remarkable quality: while moving on land or in water, she uses her limbs, but she can pull them under her shell. It is believed that thanks to the ability to relax, the turtle lives for a very long time. The same applies to Raja Yogis. They regularly and accurately perform their professional, social and domestic duties, and then mentally return back to themselves, under the shell. For some time, all physical activity is suspended, mental relaxation sets in, complete removal from physical world. Yogi calms the mind and this deep relaxation brings him great benefits.

Another character often mentioned - Swan . The myths say that swans do not eat worms, but only eat pearls. Of course, this should not be taken literally. The meaning of the comparison is that Raja Yogis do not perceive negative sides people's lives; on the contrary, they awaken good feelings in every person and at the same time do not pay attention to the weaknesses and shortcomings of those with whom they come into contact, trying to see only virtuous qualities in them.

There are other principles of life according to Raja Yoga, other ideas about its goals and intentions. However, the most important and urgent task is to achieve perfect purity and peace. Raja Yogis strive for complete inner transformation. They make efforts to purify their habits, acquire divine virtues, without which it is impossible to obtain Liberation and Perfection. Of course, Raja Yogis want to become angels on Earth, but they also know that in order to get rid of sins, it is necessary to replace their bad habits with holy qualities, leave earthly attachments and give their love and humility to the service of humanity.

So, to achieve the ultimate goal of Raja Yoga - the state of Divine Bliss, that is, eternal happiness, perfection and liberation from everything negative - it is necessary: stabilization in the spiritual consciousness, self-enlightenment, assimilation of spiritual wisdom and adherence to the principles of purity. And for this, the yogi must practice meditation and firmly observe the relevant principles in daily life.

The practice of meditation in Raja Yoga is simple and public. For starters, you can sit in any position; the main thing is that it does not cause any inconvenience and physical stress and does not distract attention; that is, so that in this position the yogi feels comfortable and at the same time cheerful. The back should be as straight as possible.

Meditation is a mental process in which the body does not participate. Moreover, the meditator should completely forget about his body. He reflects on his true self, the Conscious Entity that thinks, evaluates, decides, feels, remembers, acts through the brain and body. The brain is the control panel, the switchboard with feedback, and the body is the robot following orders. The inner being that controls them is the one who has his own goals, desires, emotions. It is this entity that is called "I". It is not the physical self when one says "mine", "mine" in relation to the body. "I" is not the body, but "I" is the soul in the body, like a driver in a car. The driver decides where to go, how to go and at what speed. It has a driving force, while the car has only the mechanical ability to realize it.

There are many studies in medicine, psychiatry and philosophy on the subject of reincarnation. One of the researchers - Ian Stevenson - described more than a hundred cases of reincarnation. In India, stories of this kind have also been collected and recorded on video. Some medical professionals have done research on near-death patients and described their out-of-body experiences. Other experiments were carried out with people immersed in hypnotic sleep. Their stories were carefully examined and found to be correct. All these facts give reason to believe in the existence of the soul. Another factor is your own feelings.

Thus, the first step in the practice of meditation is to settle into the thought: "I AM SOUL. CONSCIOUS ESSENCE." Well, what is the soul?

Soul is a point of immaterial light. We cannot see it with our physical vision because the soul is not material. It can be seen with the "third eye", that is, the eye of the mind. When our mind becomes clear and our latent possibilities are awakened, we gain this vision. So the next thought in meditation practice is: "I AM THE POINT OF LIGHT."

In addition, many neuroscientists also argue that there is reason to believe that mind and soul are not the same brain at . One of them is Nobel laureate Sir John Eccles. Some physicists, such as Schrödinger, Eugene Biner, also consider Consciousness to be a separate reality.

From our own experience, from the experience of others, we also know that every living being strives for quiet life, expects love and good behavior from others, that is, the observance of some principles of right behavior and good character. Even if someone is too excited and even furious, he still internally tries to get rid of this state and find peace again. This proves that the true nature of the soul is peaceful and calm. Therefore, the next thought in the practice of meditation is: "IN MY TRUE NATURE, I AM CALM, PURE AND BENEFICIENT."

We know from everyday observation that souls are not equally pure and calm. Some are morally exalted, others too, but to a lesser extent. Some are calm, while others are so calm that even in the most stressful situation they do not lose this state and pass it on to others.

Therefore, among the souls there are great souls and one of the most Great and Perfect - God He is also a point of light, but He is perfect, full of peace, knowledge and love. We can see Him with the "third eye", we can know and feel Him. Just as Newton is called the father of science, the mayor is the father of the city, the liberator of the country is the father of the nation, so we call Him the Father, because He is the founder of purity and peace in the world, and we consider ourselves His children.

"How we think of ourselves - so we become" - one of the basic postulates of psychology. We know from our own experience that when we think about the virtues of a person, we experience peace and good qualities manifest in our mind. When we think about its negative properties, we experience completely opposite feelings. Therefore, realizing God, the Supreme Soul, and His high quality we automatically manifest His divine virtues in ourselves. This practice is called the practice of "soul awareness" or "super consciousness." It allows you to move away from the body, rise to a higher level of consciousness, experience peace and bliss.

So, thoughts for the practice of Raja Yoga meditation can be reduced to the following: "I am a soul, I am a point of light: my true nature is purity and peace; I am a child of God, my beloved Father is perfect, full of peace, love and bliss." When we meditate on this and there are no other thoughts in our mind, we go into a deep experience. It is this that entails inner transformation, changes in behavior, improves health, increases efficiency, fills with vitality, and so on.

Such meditation can be done for a short time, or thirty minutes, or one hour. And you can periodically throughout the day during work. To achieve perfection in this practice, one must follow the principle of non-violence, have contentment and patience.

B. K. Chakradhari,
General Director of Brahma Kumaris branches of the World Spiritual University in Russia and other CIS and Baltic countries,
Museum Director Spiritual Knowledge and Raja Yogi, Delhi,
National Coordinator of the Women's Wing of the Raja Yoga Foundation for Teaching and Research (India)