Yoga Philosophy: Fourteen Lectures on the Path to Harmony of Body and Mind

Author: Compiled by the American Yoga Association, Translated by Qiu Hong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-12-01
Features: When people begin to explore and open their hearts, they become less tormented by fleeting emotions, feelings, or sensations arising from instinctual, intellectual, or spiritual thinking. Instead, they are replaced by a sense of peace and tranquility. Those in this state are very aware of the difference in aura between the open-hearted and the unopened. The aura of the unopened is filled with dark, murky, and heavy colors, shrouded in a halo produced by current emotions, feelings, impulses, and the like. In contrast, the aura of the open-hearted is filled with clear, pure, and bright colors, occasionally disturbed by light interference from emotional or volitional radiance. Yet, even the slightest emotional fluctuations can be controlled and regulated by them. Highly intelligent individuals who practice their hearts well will be surrounded by marvelous yellow light in their aura, indicating extraordinary wisdom.
The true life is a series of lifetimes, an endless cycle of rebirth. Our current lifespan is merely one of many in countless lifetimes. The self of today is merely the result of experiences accumulated from previous lives. Yoga is not a religion; it is a method that anyone can use, a way to seek inner peace in this restless world. The precise definition of "Yoga" in the ancient sage Patanjali's Yoga Sutras is "the control of the mind." It is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj, meaning "to unite, to connect," and refers to the concentration of consciousness for the purpose of meditation. Through yoga practice, the various aspects of human nature can be "united" and harmonized with the highest universal spirit, enabling one to be liberated from suffering and disaster. Yoga is also one of the oldest physical conditioning practices in the East. Through yoga, the seeds of rebirth in the human mind can be extinguished, self-realization can be attained, and all obstacles can be eliminated.
Initially, only a few people practiced yoga, usually in monasteries, rural cottages, caves in the Himalayas, or dense forest centers, where yoga masters taught willing disciples. Over time, yoga gradually spread among the common people in India. Today, yoga has become a scientific practice of the human body, summarized through thousands of years of practical experience in India. Yoga has a complete set of practices that extend from the physical to the spiritual. Today, yoga is not confined to the realms of philosophy and religion but has a broader meaning and a more powerful vitality.
This book is a basic introduction to yoga knowledge and has played an important role in promoting yoga in the West.