I feel I need to take a drastic change and move away from the city to live in nature.

This is a sentence from a letter of my teacher shakti mhi. I will tell her that i am going to india for some time and part of the reason is that i feel so exhausted phisically mentally and spiritually. A city is "one type of forest", but definitely is not the type that yogis need. Yoga teaching is a profession that you have to(at least, i have to) give your energy to support people to lift their spirit and sometimes even to give hope for a worthy life. Then what will happen to the teacher him/herself? Is he or she constently connected to the scourse of energy knowledge and wisdom so that he and she can keep giving and giving and giving without a sense of drying out and mechanism? We are all limited imperfect human beings with different weakness, after all. The best thing we can do is try our best to help each other, forgive each other, accept each other, understand each other, support each other and then we can really love each other, unconditionally.

To manifest the heaven in our heart from inside to the earthly life, this is the work of yoga, this is the work of a true yogi.

再版的《瑜伽经》将随书赠送Yama制作的瑜伽经梵文唱诵CD！四月将由印度大使馆举办发行仪式后正式向全国推出。

摄影：小月(Chandra)

回家的唱诵，本周六（1月27日）晚7点

家不仅是躯体出生的地方，而是它解脱的地方。
家不仅是你的心所习惯的地方，更是它所属的地方，
家是灵魂的极乐之所在，是相爱的生命欢聚的天堂。
在那里
淡忘了对幻象的记忆
消除了对永恒的迷惘

每一句话语都是诗歌，
每一次表达都是音乐
每一丝感觉都是歌唱
每一个步伐都是舞蹈，
每一滴水都是甘露
每一款眼神都是祝福

家是我们从未离开
但都遗忘了很久的地方

让唱诵带你回家！

Home,
is not where the body was born
but where it liberates
Home,
is not where the heart got used to
but where it belongs to
Home,
is where Soul find its ecstasy
and where beloved ones meet each other
Where,
fading is the memory of illusion
Freeing from all confusion
Where,
Every utterance is poetry
Every presentation is music
Every sentiment is singing
Every step is dancing
Every drop of water is nectar
Every glance is a blessing

Home,
Is a place we are always there
But where we all forget

Let's chant and go home!

Location: Jivatma Yoga Center, Room C-D, 28F, Hui Jia Building,
Xujiahui, No41 Cao Xi Bei Rd(behind Gino Italian Restaurant)
Time: 7pm Saturday, Jan 27th
Contact: 13701839401 Yama

Sukhasana/Easy pose/Happy sitting pose

Sukhasana is the basic cross-legged sitting posture which we use to begin each class. In the Iyengar system of nomenclature, Sukhasana and Swastikasana are two names for the same pose.

We sit for a few minutes in Sukhasana at the beginning of class to create a receptive mind before beginning our yoga practice. In Sukhasana, begin the process of involution which you will extend and deepen throughout the class. Begin to observe yourself inwardly rather than extracting information from the external world with your eyes.

For Sukhasana, fold at least one blanket in half from the storage fold to sit on. Cross your legs at the mid-shins, not your ankles as is our common tendency. Your pubic bone and the cross of your shins should be in one line. Keep your ankles flexed a little so that your feet are on their outside edges, perpendicular to the floor, but relax your toes. The soles of your feet face to the sides and your toes will face forward. You should not be able to see your feet since they will be basically under your knees. Do not have your feet under your thighs -- try to bring your feet under your knees or further forward. Balance evenly on your sit bones. With your hands, reach back under your buttocks and manually pull your buttock flesh back and out to sides on your sitting support. As you do that, also separate your sitting bones. After you roll your buttocks outward, roll your thighs inward.

If you place your fingers on your anterior iliac crests (the "hip points") and your thumbs on the tops of your pelvis in back, they should be level. If your thumbs are lower than your fingers, your pelvis is tilting backward. If this is the case, you should sit on more height, such as another folded blanket. Your pelvis should be in a neutral position, not tilting forward or backward. This allows for normal lumbar lordosis, allows your groins to relax, and lessens the effort required to keep your torso erect. Level your pelvis both side to side and from front to back. Make sure your pelvis is upright and not tilting back. Do this every time you sit in this asana. Without this base you cannot build the rest of your spine and torso structure onto it properly. This is the foundation.

Your groins must relax and descend. You may notice a tendency for them to harden and tense to pull your torso forward into an upright position. If that is happening, take more height under your buttocks until you can sit upright with your torso perpendicular to the ground without feeling your groins tense. If you're doing the pose to practice pranayama, you especially want your legs to feel as if they're "flowing away from you" without any tension in your groins whatsoever. This may require even more height under your buttocks than you usually use a the beginning of class. Your knees should not be higher than your hips. This is another sign of needing more sitting height. Also verify that your knees are level with each other.

Take your lumbar spine very slightly and softly inward so that your lower back is concave. Draw your abdomen softly inward and upward. Sit high enough so you find you have a good lift your lower abdomen region. Lengthen the often neglected space between the pubic bone and the navel. From the right and left side floating ribs to the armpit chest, feel yourself ascend.

Lift your spine and your chest upward and also broaden your chest out to the sides. Allow your ribs to spread outward with each inhalation and note how horizontal actions of the body foster a broadening of the mind and consciousness. Move your dorsal (thoracic) spine into your body, but do it without hardening your diaphragm or your throat or eyes. Breathe in from your back body diagonally upward through your sternum and use that action to help you maintain the lift of your chest. Place your fingertips onto the blankets at your sides and press them into the blankets with your elbows flexed a little and use the lifting action of your arms to raise your torso as erect as you can. "Circularize your ampit chest" as discussed under the Tadasana section (moving your rear armpits under and upward toward your front armpits). Lift your chest. Have your front torso energy ascending and your rear torso energy descending. After you have pressed your hands down to lift your chest, also rotate your upper arms outward to broaden your chest from side to side. When you return your hands to your thighs, imagine you still have your two hands pressing down at your sides, keeping your torso just as erect. When your hands are on your thighs, the median line of your upper inner arms should align with the median line of of the sides of your torso.

When you take your hands into Anjali Mudra (Namaskarasana, Namaste position) place them palm to palm with your thumbs and the flesh of your thenar eminences against your lower sternum and your fingers together pointing away from your chest at an angle, not pointing straight up toward the ceiling. Press your palms together and then press them a little harder. Feel the bones of your hands press into each other. Take time to feel each bone press into the corresponding bone on the other side -- experience that awareness. And then after a moment or so, relax the pressure back to the point where only the skin is touching and re-experience that awareness now a little differently.

As in all asanas, soften your face, tongue, eyes, and throat areas. Keep them free from tension Keep your tongue resting on your lower palate. Have the feeling of drawing your inner ears into your head, and relaxing them downward. When you close your eyes, note there is still a tendency for them to continue to try to look outward, to seek for information from the outside. You must relax the eyeballs themselves as well is the muscles that move them in their sockets (extra-ocular muscles). Your upper eyelids close downward to meet your lower eyelids. If that seems like a silly observation, try raising your lower eyelids to your upper ones, or try having the two meet midway at the center of your eye and see how that feels. For chanting (e.g. the invocation), relax your eyes straight back into your head. For pranayama and meditation, turn them downward toward the floor as well. Keep lifting through your inner body, but allow your brain and your face, both, just to melt and descend.

Keep your sense organs relaxed. As your sense organs become quiet, your brain also becomes quieter and quieter. Feel as though your frontal brain is receding into the back of your brain. Allow your brain cells to recede and be quiet in that state. Use the rhythm of your breathing to still the "lake of your mind" and draw your awareness more and more inward.

From The Brad's Iyengar Notebook

苦和涩的瑜伽

> "我欲乘风归去，又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒……”
——苏东坡《水调歌头》

卢梭在他的《忏悔录）中说他在十六岁时，就渴望“离弃”整个世界。如果我们内心从未产生过对物质生活的怀疑、唾弃和过一种“不食人间烟火”的生活渴望，这是由于两个原因：
1）麻木不仁
2）从未看到或有人告诉我们还有一种这样的生活存在

其结果也有两个：
1）我们从不欣赏或在物质生活中感到满足
2）我们失去了理解另一种生活的机会

但除非我们曾经“唾弃、离弃”过世界，或相反，被这个世界“唾弃、离弃”过，我们并没有真正理解过这个世界的生活的意义，也没有真正深刻地欣赏、珍惜或客观地评价人间、尘世或所谓的世俗所包含的一切的能力。和某样东西保持距离，这是你理解它的前提。

如果瑜伽师被认为过的是一种非主流的另类的生活，那么整个印度、韦达的文化就是一种离弃物质世界的文化。如果严格的按照传统、印度、西藏、尼泊儿和泰国等类似文化体系中的男子，生命的第一阶段是“brahmacharya”，即在很小的时候就离开父母成为一个出家的“贞守生”，去修院或庙宇和古茹住在一起，学习经典并过一种苦行、勤奋和弃绝的生活。（这和当今父母对待小孩的方式恰好相反）这种童年经历将给一个人的一生造成深远的影响。这样的人成年后无论表面上卷入物质生活多深，他心里始终知道，有另一种生活存在。而生命的最后一个阶段称为“sannyasi”，即托钵僧，这时一个人可以有资格完全平和地离开世俗活动，只在至尊的喜悦中寻求快乐，而没有丝毫“高处不胜寒”的顾虑。

印度阿育韦达的饮食文化中，健康完整的饮食要包含六种味道即：酸、甜、咸、苦、辣、涩。先上的是苦味和涩味的食品，然后是咸、酸和辣的食品，最后以甜味结束。这和人的一生的味道类似。苦味和涩味对我们的感官具有控制和收敛的作用，也就是说在我们的感官最饥饿、最活跃、最贪婪时候先要用苦味控制住、镇住它们，因为这会让感官变得敏感和有力。相反，感官的放纵是迟钝和软弱的原因。瑜伽师对感官有他自己的”用法“，因为他知道感官是他体验和进入瑜伽境界的工具。一个真正的瑜伽师即使选择生活在世俗中，他过的也不是世俗的生活。因为世俗的生活，无非就是不同层面的“感官的世界”。

但在生活中，有多少人会主动地选择先品尝“苦和涩”的味道呢？我表示怀疑。

关于古茹

古代瑜伽经典中有提及，一个对古茹没有奉献, 而想只靠sadhana，即练习本身进入觉悟的境界的人，就象一个想用沙子在水上搭桥过海的人一样。瑜伽本身不光是一种练习，或达到目标的手段, 而是一种生活和生命的状态. 瑜伽中所有不同的练习只是帮助我们获得那种生命状态的品味，并引导我们进入那种生活。就象婚姻生活意味着找到一个合适你的配偶，瑜伽的生活或灵性的生活是从找到一个真正的导师，或古茹(guru)开始的。这并不是说我们只能有一个老师，我们可以有很多个（我们可以谦卑地向任何人学习），但其中有一个会在我们心中占据特殊的位置而获得我们的信任、尊崇和皈依。这不是一种表面的关系，而是一种私人关系。这种关系和这个人有没有很长的胡子，能不能说出你的前世和未来，能不能治好你的慢性病等等没有关系；和任何头衔、地位或名气等外在的东西也没有直接的关系。这个人要能改变我们对世界和对自己的看法，仿佛从另一世界射入的光芒，但却又另我们觉得是如此的熟习、亲切和激动人心。在他面前，我们的假我、浮躁和惶惑自然而然地得到了控制。他将告诉我们如何练习，而当我们按他的话去做时发现变得比自认为的我更出色。我们会在心里说，“对，就是这样，就是这样！”That’s it! 在这里我很难用语言来表述这种关系，也许可称之为“灵性的亲缘关系或血缘关系”。我们是籍着这种关系而进入我前面所说的生命状态的，缺乏了这种关系，我们就无法进入灵修的圈子。就象打高尔夫球的人有他们的圈子，喜欢户外的人有他们的圈子，用苹果产品的人有他们的圈子。 用梵文来称呼这种灵性关系或圈子叫做“sat sanga”，“sat”的意思是永恒的真理，“sanga”的意思是关系、联谊，亦即那些在你追求永恒的真理的道路上能够帮助和鼓励你的关系。我安排的唱诵冥想以及这个博客的目的之一也是为了逐渐促成和鼓励这种“sat sanga”，它可以有很多表现形式。

你和你的古茹的关系则是sat sanga的精髓，而在我们找到这种sat sanga之前我们还只是灵性上门外汉、孤独者和流浪者。如果你是一个真诚追求觉悟的人，这种流浪也许不无益处。其间所遭遇的挣扎、胆怯、挫折和失望（因为你全得靠自己）会有两个结果，一是我们会放弃灵性上的追求而成为一个怀疑论者，二是当我们超越了第一阶段而找到（更准确的说是遇到）那个guru时我们就会变得非常珍惜、更真诚和认真。这时瑜伽就不再是书本上的神秘理论或是从别人那里听起来玄之又玄的东西，而是成了你的日常生活。除非有一个老师，我们几乎没有一个人有这样的天赋、领悟和毅力自觉地这样去做并且改变自己的生活。 读一读那些大师的传记，比如《一个瑜伽行者的自传》Swami Yogananda，他们一般从小十几岁的时候就对灵性生活有一种强烈的吸引和渴望，我的老师之一shakti mhi也是这样，她十四岁开始她的“寻游”。然后他们大都离开家外出寻找自己心中的老师，其实正是那个“心中的老师”指引他们找到了那个最终站在他们面前的老师。

三种老师

从孔夫子的角度来讲，恐怕我们大多数人都不是“生而知之者”，我们从小就需要有人来传授知识，给予指导、鼓励或启发，并解答学习和生活中的种种疑惑和困难，并自然而然地对在生命中这样帮助我们的人产生尊敬和爱戴之心。这种对老师的尊崇遍及世界上每一种古老的文明，但在瑜伽和印度的文化中这种尊崇被推广到了一个特殊的高度。

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana shalakaya
chakshur unmilitam yena tasmai shri gurave namaha

我因愚昧的黑暗而盲目，但我的古茹用灵性知识的火炬启亮了我的眼睛，我向他致以谦卑的顶拜。

om
gurudevaya vidmahe
brahmanandaya dhimahi
tanno guru pracodayat
om shanti shanti shantihi

让我们冥想神圣的古茹。冥想至尊的喜悦。愿古茹把我们引向他！

在《Jivamukti Yoga》一书中说到：

The teaching of yoga are passed through transmissional lineage. Much of this knowledge cannot be verbalized because it is beyond the body and mind. Because its subtle, secret or even unspeakable nature, this knowledge is only imparted through relationship. Without direct transmission, from someone who has had direct transmission, no connection is established to the knowledge sought.

瑜伽的知识是以师徒关系来传递的。这种知识很大一部分内容是超越躯体和心智的，因而是语言不能函盖的。由于这种知识精微，机密和不可言传的性质，它只能在一种特定的关系中传递。也就是说，除非从传递者那里直接接受----而这个传递者也是以同样方式接受的，我们就无法和这知识的源头建立关系。


书中把瑜伽老师分为三类sattvic，rajasic，tamasic，即善良属性、激情属性和愚昧属性的老师。

1）善良属性的老师唯一的兴趣是灵性的觉悟，并鼓励和帮助他们的学生培养这样的兴趣。他们对别人的痛苦充满慈悲，对学生一视同仁，但同时又能根据他们的特点给予指导。他因为拥有的经典的知识和觉悟而自信、清晰、喜悦、平和。他的生活是自律而专注的。他把教学看作是一种对学生的服务，并从中体验的是给予的快乐。

2）激情属性的老师的兴趣是得到学生的崇拜，并希望从中得到金钱、名誉和情感上的回报。他把教学看成是一种获取的手段。从这个角度他们反而是依赖他们的学生（而善良属性的老师是独立的）。他们很注重以外表吸引别人，并总是希望他们的“表演”或“表现”得到欣赏，如果偶尔有人不欣赏就会很沮丧。他们的注意力是他们自己而不是在学生身上。由于一般他们自身内在的灵性修为较弱，他们会花很多时间和精力包装自己，获取各种头衔、地位等来弥补内在的贫乏以获得安全感。一般他们如果比较成功就会变得目中无人，妄自尊大，并且认为他的学生是他的“私人”财产。

3）愚昧属性的老师没有有关瑜伽的正确理解和完整的知识。他们的兴趣是以“躯体”为核心的，对真正灵性的题旨没有真诚的兴趣。但有意思的是他们仍有可能吸引不少和他们类似的愚昧和没有辨别力的人。

不同属性的老师会吸引相应的学生，因为物以类聚，人以群分。但根据上面的诗节，似乎只有第一种老师才符合或接近“古茹”的含义, 他的纯粹和无私使他具有传递瑜伽知识的资格, 他是经典的要义, 真正的知识和学生之间透明的媒介。

有关瑜伽的问答(三)

问: 我在练习哈塔瑜伽时有感觉你说的身体的稳定、心智的清晰但较少感受到内在的喜悦。你对此有什么看法和建议呢？

答: 我的理解是，原本的hatha yoga并无其本身的独立性，而只是raja yoga或tantra修行的辅助手段，最早的hatha yoga只有kriyas, 清洁法，也就是说在古代瑜伽师用kriya yoga净化身体内外以后，他们就可以直接进入更高的修行和冥想（对超灵的冥想），这些修行是瑜伽正真的内容。古代瑜伽师的品质和能力是我们现代人无法想象的。但后来随着人们的能力的衰退，只做kriya yoga不够了，所以hatha yoga后来又结合了asana,体位pranayama调息等等其他内容，作为补充。当时只有哲学家、出家人和真正的修行者才会练习hatha yoga，而且也不过是用来作为辅助，至少在帕檀加利的时代是这样的。这和现代人做瑜伽只是为了摆出造型和保持身材而练体位完全是两码事情。

《瑜伽经》中对体位的解释完全是心理学上的，即稳定、清晰和（内在的）喜悦。这三种相辅相成的品质包括在体位练习的过程中的感受，也包括了对体位练习的结果的描述。也就是说不管你以什么方式练习体位，只要达成或有助于这三个品质就行了。这里的喜悦是一种生命（身体、语言和思想）被净化以后的轻松和喜悦，这是一个瑜伽师，生理、心理、饮食、生活方式、交往、环境都处于净化的善良属性的结果，也是体验更高的喜乐或samadhi的先决条件。真正的瑜伽师在任何时候都应该有身体的稳定，心智的清晰和内在的喜悦，而不仅仅是在做体位的时候或其他练习的时候。只是练习一些姿势是不够的，我们必须过一种瑜伽师的净化的生活，也就是帕檀加利说的yama niyama，这时我们做任何事都会有内在的喜悦。但从体位练习的角度而言，身体的稳定是心智的清晰的开始，心智的清晰是内在的喜悦的开始。

体位本身可以只是一个身体的造型或姿势（就象舞蹈或体操），也可以是yoga asana瑜伽阿萨那,是什么完全取决于做的人的意向、动机、生活状态和生命境界，即他的目的是不是为了净化自己。一个人可以只是简单的盘腿坐而处于samadhi之中，也可以做出蝎子式而只是一种身体层面的杂技表演。

让我们不断回到经典，并理解经典的内容。namaste!

Opening Mantras 作为前奏的曼佗罗

om om om

Salutation to previous great teachers, acharya and saints for blessing
Invocations for auspicious for teachers and students

lokah samasta sukhino bhavantu
om shanti shanti shantihi

sarvesham svasti bhavatu
sarvesham shantirbhavatu
sarvesham purnam bhavatu
sarvesham mangalam bhavatu
om shanti shanti shantihi

asatoma Sat Gamaya
tamasoma Jyotir Gamaya
mityorma Amritam Gamaya
om shanti shanti shantihi

Translation 译义:

May the entire world know peace happiness and love
Let there be peace peace peace

让所有的生命充满平和、快乐和爱
平和！平和！平和！

May all have good fortune.
May all attain peace.
May all become Whole.
May all be blessed.
Let there be peace peace peace

让所有的生命变得幸运
让所有的生命变得平和
让所有的生命变得完整
让所有的生命获得祝福
平和！平和！平和！

Lead me from the unreal to the Real
Lead me from the darkness to the Light
Lead me from the temporary to the Eternal
Let there be peace peace peace

把我从虚假引向真实
从黑暗引向光明
从死亡引向永恒
平和！平和！平和！

A letter to my frind Chrys and The Rationality of Vegetarainism Part I

Dear Chrys,

i just wrote an article in Chinese on my blog called: The Irrationality of Vegetarianism. i didn't put any logical scientific thing, but just described how a vege diet can be a taste of a new life, coz life doesn't need to be "right" in a scientific way to be worthy or wonderful. People are doing so many crazy things just to make themself happy without considering any consequence, but when they were told to be a vegetarian, they immediately want to be scientific. We are nothing to do with the mechanism of this body. Life is an beginning-less and endless song to be sung by those who dare to be different and musical in their behaviour, because this is what people really afraid of knowingly or unknowingly, behind a diet: a related new life which is challenging to their habits, getting rid of the old, be out of their comfortable zone, isolation, etc, and they will find endless excuses to not listen to the voice and the melody of their heart and soul.

In my mind an article called The Rationality of the Vegetarianism will follow up the first one, and just then you sent your article today. I am sure the Universal Mind (paramatma) told you to do that :-)

i wish you again a happy new year and may the universal music playing beautifully in your heart. Thank you so much!

om shanti

your friend forever
Yama


Singer Sir Paul McCartney:
"If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian."

"If anyone wants to save the planet, all they have to do is just stop eating meat. That's the single most important thing you could do. It's staggering when you think about it. Vegetarianism takes care of so many things in one shot: ecology, famine, cruelty."


Albert Einstein The great scientist Albert Einstein:
"Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival of life of Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet."

The great Russian author Leo Tolstoy:
"This is dreadful! Not only the suffering and death of the animals, but by eating meat man suppresses in himself, unnecessarily, the highest spiritual capacity – that of sympathy and pity towards living creatures like himself – and by violating his own feelings, becomes cruel."









Carl Lewis

Hippocrates, the father of medicine:
"Your food shall be your remedies, and your remedies shall be your food".



Some Famous Vegetarians

Plato, Socrates, Pythagoras, Leonardo da Vinci, Vincent Van Gogh, Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Voltaire, Leo Tolstoy, H.G. Wells, Benjamin Franklin, Mahatma Gandhi, Richard Wagner, Paul McCartney, Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, Alicia Silverstone, Albert Schweitzer, Dalai Lama, Rabindranath Tagore, George Bernard Shaw, Carl Lewis, Martina Navratilova, and the list goes on...

Moon Day Yoga 月亮日瑜伽

首先, 也许需要了解的是, 在传统上, 或至少在古代的印度, 极少有妇女从事瑜伽修炼(至少不是公开的), 并不是她们被禁止,而是当时的社会、习俗和文化状况使妇女从事着和男子相当不同的活动和角色。不象当今的现代社会, 妇女出与自愿或经济的压力或任何其他原因，在职业上工作上差不多被社会象一个男人那样使用着,承担同等的压力和责任. 过去的妇女不练习瑜伽,也许恰好和较少有现代的男子练习瑜伽的原因类似(没有人禁止男子练习瑜伽)。瑜伽由于其原本的严肃性,哲学性,学术性和苦行的性质而属于男性活动范围(和柔韧、减肥、保持苗条、维持身材、帮助产前和产后的问题等等女性语汇没有任何关系，你翻开《瑜伽经》连读一小时而不觉得疲劳和枯燥，也许你就明白些我说的严肃是指什么)。但遗憾的是由于商业的炒作，瑜伽渐渐失去了它的严肃性和哲学性，而变成了一种廉价的时尚，高雅的男士嫌它太大众化，大众化的男士嫌它太女子气，正统的男士嫌它太另类，另类的男子嫌他太类似健身。总之，种种误解，跳进黄河也洗不清。

在印度，妇女称经期为"moon day"，月亮日，是用来内省，隐退，休息，净化和冥想的日子。从生理上讲，由于荷尔蒙分泌的变化在体力和情绪上造成的影响，推荐的是尽量减少外界的激烈繁忙的活动和刺激，转而进入内省和静心的状态。职业妇女也许并没有很大的选择，在必须上班的时候“隐退”，但她们仍可以练习在这些日子里以一种低调和隐退的心态去活动，工作和与人交往，并改变瑜伽练习的方式。

从原则上讲，经期的瑜伽练习应帮助我们消除不适和疲劳，恢复体力，稳定情绪，保持内在的宁静（虽然通常的情况恰好相反）。每个妇女在经期身心受影响的程度各不相同，因此，那些有规律地练习瑜伽的女士应该培养出一种内在的“听觉”，倾听身心所发出的信号，并用你的直觉来判断今天应不应该练习体位，练什么和如何练习等等，除了你自己没有人能替你做决定。你可以选择彻底的休息，停止任何体位练习，也可以选择非常柔和的练习以便更好地放松，如坐在地面上的或用靠垫支撑的仰卧姿势和前曲姿势。这里的关键词是：休息、放松、平和和内省。

基于这一原则，在经期应避免的练习是：
１）避免所有倒置姿势（子宫位置高于心脏的姿势），这会干扰经期身体能量（apana)向下排毒的自然过程
２）过于剧烈的容易造成紧张和疲劳的姿势
３）保持过久的站立或平衡姿势
４）剧烈的后弯动作如弓式，骆驼式，轮式等
５）所有腹部剧烈收缩和运动的姿势如，腹部旋转（jathara parivartanasana）仰卧抬腿（urdhva Prasarita padasana）和船式（navasana）
６）跳跃
７）用手臂支撑全身平衡的动作
８）避免有难度的姿势或学习新的姿势

推荐在月经期做的体位都是缓慢、平静、温和和舒适的，可自己在家中练习的有：
1.坐角式（upavistha konasana）：尾骨靠墙坐直，３～5分钟，闭上眼睛，关注呼吸
2.束角式（baddha konasana）：尾骨靠墙坐直，３～5分钟
3.仰卧英雄式（supta virasana）：背部和头用三四个大枕头垫高，前额高于下巴，5分钟
4.仰卧束角式（supta baddha konasana）：用带子绑住骶骨和双脚，5分钟
5.头至膝盖式（janusirsasana）：用椅子的边缘支撑头部，每边2~3分钟
6.单腿跪伸展式（triang mukhaikapada paschimottanasana）：用椅子的边缘支撑头部，左右各2~3分钟
7.半莲花坐单腿背部伸展式（ardha baddha padma paschimottanasana）：左右各2~3分钟
8.坐角式前曲（upavistha forward）：身体前屈，用三四个枕头支撑胸部和头部
9.坐角式侧弯（upavistha to the sade）：用三四个枕头支撑胸部和头部，左右各2~3分钟
10.双腿背部伸展式（paschimottanasana）：用三四个枕头支撑胸部和头部，5分钟
11.仰卧尸体式放松（savasana）：10分钟

调息：
平静缓慢的Ujjayi pranayama乌佳伊调息5~10分钟
nadi shodhana，纳地净化调息（鼻孔交换呼吸法）５～１０分钟
Bramari pranayama，蜜蜂调息，２～３分钟
然后做仰卧尸体式放松（savasana）５分钟

这里的练习不是注重加强柔韧性和耐力，而是去体验＂无为＂和保持内在的觉醒和平静。经期实际上不但不应该是一个瑜伽练习者的障碍，相反它可以是深化我们瑜伽体验的和开发新的练习领域的机会。你可以找一个安静的地方花更多的时间阅读有关瑜伽的经典或哲学（不要认为这不是瑜伽练习），或只练习平静的调息和冥想，或练习japa，轻柔地重复念诵或唱诵曼佗罗。

另外，给那些在经期仍然必须教课的瑜伽老师的建议是，也许这是一个你练习更多地用语言和心灵，而不是用身体去教课的机会，你的学员也许也会有新鲜的感受。我们要始终记住，瑜伽不受我们的躯体、空间和时间的限制，唯一受限制的是我们对瑜伽狭隘的理解。

How can we escape the negative effects of past karma?

Prashant S. Iyengar
Interviewed by Christine Perre
(Prashant S. Iyengar is the son of B. K. S. Iyengar)

Christine Perre: How can we escape the negative effects of past karma?
Prashant S. Iyengar: You see, if you can escape, it is no destiny. There is no way to escape destiny. If it is escapable, it is no destiny. Why is there spiritualism, if you and me have to suffer, materialistic fellows have to suffer, unscrupulous fellows have to suffer, and saints have to suffer? What is the point in becoming a saint? This is an obvious question. If an unscrupulous materialistic fellow is going to face the fruits of his past actions, then the saint also has to face them. What is the point in taking all that, on going in spiritual path? The point is that, first of all, if it is escapable, it is not destiny. Know that. You can’t escape destiny. But the difference is that an unscrupulous materialistic fellow is going on his track of life, and the saint is also going on the track of life. Both are going on the track of life.

Now, a simple thing. Suppose you are all asked to travel from here to Bombay. There is only one road, you are all going to travel by the same road, but some of you are given bullock-carts and some of you are given Rolls Royce’s. What‘s the difference in the journey? Is there no difference? The track is the same. But one traveller is travelling on a bullock-cart and experiences lots of jerks and jolts, the sun, the heat, the rains, breeze, whatever; and this fellow goes in Rolls-Royce. He has all the windows shut, air conditioning working, super suspensions; he doesn’t feel even a pothole, no rumbles are felt on the road, because he has got super suspensions. Why? It is just because of the “vehicle.” The road is the same. Just because of the vehicle he has the difference. And will he appreciate the difference or no?

Do you say that both are on the same track and therefore both are in the same situation? Can you say that? Because they are travelling on the same track? The unscrupulous brute materialistic fellow and the spiritual saddhaka, the spiritually evolved person, they are all going on the track of life. So, understand the track of life as a road, as I told you, a good example is the Pune-Bombay road. But then the saint is going in a super suspension Rolls Royce, with all the facilities; they don’t even feel the sun, the heat, the rain or whatever. So, they are not escaping destiny, they are also getting the potholes, they are also getting the rains, they are also getting the sun, they are also getting the wind or whatever. But then, spiritualism gives them lots of suspensions, lots of cushions. Thereby, you do not feel the impact of destiny. A bull-cart gets every pothole; imagine his fate, he will break his spine. This Rolls Royce fellow doesn’t even notice, doesn’t even feel it. Why? Because he has got super-suspensions. He doesn’t feel the noise outside. So in spiritualism — the path of spiritualism and the path of yoga—all these things come to you, you’ve lots of protecting gears, you have lots of cushions. You have super-suspensions, shock absorbers, so you don’t have to bother about destiny. That is what spiritualism is, you see, what it has given to humanity. And naturally when your life becomes smoother and smoother, you can go on to higher hierarchies. If you are always getting hardship in your life, obstacles, if you are all the time getting potholes and jerks, well, then you know that you are uncomfortable in life. And you want to progress, but you can’t progress, for all those several reasons. But suppose you are given a Rolls Royce; you will say, “I will travel ten times! I will enjoy it!” Pune-Bombay. Bombay-Pune. Pune-Bombay. Bombay-Pune. The other fellow will say,“Not even once, it is enough!”

You can progress in spite of all the onslaughts that are inescapable, the onslaughts which you don’t escape. The escape is only possible at the highest point, because the vehicle is such that it will be altogether a different track. Until the liberation, you are going to face all those things but you will not suffer, because you will have a Rolls Royce and more than that. Imagine there is something greater than a Rolls Royce, then how is your journey? In spiritualism, you get all those things, the cushions. And ultimately, the last stage, “tatah klesa karma nivrttih”(Yoga Sutra IV, 30: “Then comes the end of afflictions and of karma.”) is the highest stage and you don’t have anything in destiny and even destiny itself is burnt out. Destiny is only destroyed at the highest point. Until then, it is not destroyed. You have to face it. So although I said that destiny is inescapable, it is in relation to all of us. It is only destroyed on the point of liberation(kaivalya). Until then, it is not destroyed; it has to be faced.

But apart from that, there are so many facilities in Karma-siddhanta. The Yoga Sutras say, “you can postpone,” “sometimes, your destiny can be postponed” or “your destiny can be suppressed.” And that’s a great advantage. That also doesn’t come to you and me. But yogis can keep the destiny suspended for some time. Now suppose that destiny is full of sufferings. And suppose you have to eat something very, very pungent. “What to do?” you say, and there are so many sweets you will call for, so that you will not burn your tongue. And there are many sweets: goulab jamoun, shrikhand, laddous, jalebis, and so on. All the sweets are of such a nature that you will also be able to taste pickles, which are hot and pungent and you will relish them. So there is a stage in life—when there are all jalebis and laddous in your life—where you will easily swallow that trauma. You will even call for it. When you are called for a party, you don’t just ask for sweets. You say, “give me some pepper, give me some chutney, give me some pickle. Why? Because you will relish it. But suppose you have whole a bowlful of pickles on your plate, a bowlful of chutney and just a salt pinch of shrikhand, will you appreciate that party?

So that facility is there, adyatma, that you can suppress your destiny, you can postpone it, keep it away for some time and invite it whenever you are in a convenient setting and finish it off. You have got to face the karmas. So, a yogi has an advantage, not you and me. It clearly comes in the second chapter of the Yoga Sutra, which is “karma siddhanta”; you can postpone, you can suppress, which is a great facility — but for you and me, we can’t do those things. But we definitely can have head gears, body gears, all sorts of sheaths, all sorts of bolsters, all sorts of suspensions and then, we can be facing destiny without suffering.

A simple example: Sri Ramana Maharshi had cancer but, to tell you, he did not have cancer; he had a tumour in the armpits, and Ramakrishna Paramahamsa had throat cancer. But suppose that you get a throat cancer, you say, “I have cancer.” Now, actually, cancer is a part of the body, too. But we say, “I have cancer.” Ramakrishna Paramahamsa did not suffer on account of his cancer, because he had the suspensions. As a matter of fact, even without cancer, you can suffer: the doctor comes and says he has diagnosed cancer in you — his diagnosis might be wrong, but still you will suffer. The doctor gives a wrong report, somebody’s report is given on your name, and he says you have got cancer. Now, even without having cancer you will suffer. So we are such people that we can suffer without a real cause of sufferance. It is our fate that we can be suffering without anything to suffer! On the other hand, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa definitely had cancer in the throat, but he did not suffer.

That you have to face your destiny is a fact; it is a reality. You can’t escape. But it doesn’t mean that you have to suffer. If you do yoga, in the authentic way, you’ll have lots of cushions, guards and suspensions. You can face destiny without any trauma, without any apprehension, without any fear, without any threat.

音频谜语 govinda hari gopala hari

"Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood. "

"真正的诗歌在被理解之前就已经和你产生交流了."

-------T. S. Eliot


govinda hari gopala hari
勾文达 哈利 勾帕拉 哈利
he prabhu dina dayala hari
嘿 帕布 地纳 达亚拉 哈利

govinda勾文达： Krishna奎师那的另外一个常用的名字，梵文“go”的意思可以是：母牛、感官、牧牛童或牧牛姑娘。勾文达一般的意思是：给母牛和感官带来快乐的人
hari哈利： 拿走所有不吉祥的事物，带来所有吉祥事物的人
gopala勾帕拉：牧牛童，仍然是指奎师那作为牧牛童的逍遥形象
he嘿：深情的呼唤
prabhu帕布：主人
dina地纳：堕落的人
dayala达亚拉：慈悲

啊！勾文达，勾帕拉，
你驱散了所有不吉祥的一切！
你是对堕落者慈悲的人！
主人啊，我深情地呼唤你！

这段优美的巴赞（bhajan，灵性的赞歌）至少有五千年之久的历史。Bhajan巴赞的唱诵和mantra曼佗罗的唱诵都是为了唤起超然的情愫和灵性的情感。巴赞更注重的是情感和渴望的自然流露和表达，而曼佗罗则强调的是排除知觉上的污染，让唱诵者（或聆听者）停留在一个超然的层面上。曼佗罗的重复唱诵或念诵在开始更象是一种 sadhana 撒达纳，即练习或修持，但在深入和高级阶段，它们既是修习者强烈的情感的表达方式，也是他们情感或渴望获得满足的方式。这种满足带来常人无法体验的内在的平静。超然的爱要以某种超然的方式来表达才能得到满足，这是唱诵不可思议的地方，也就是说，你的申请报告变成了批准许可证；你的渴望转化成了满足；你对爱人的思念变成了和爱人的相聚；分离变成了结合；矛盾变成了统一。你必须实践唱诵才能逐渐领悟我说的是什么意思。

梵文的力量和内涵远远超出文字所能翻译的范围。梵文是一种灵性的音频谜语。除非你能得到谜底，翻译出谜面本身只是个开始罢了。解开谜语的方法就是全然投入和专注的唱诵和聆听。从这个角度，唱诵是最神秘和深入的冥想。文字上的翻译只能解释心智上的内容，但不能解释超越心智层面的内容。瑜伽是从文字和哲学结束的地方开始的。文字和哲学只是地图和旅行手册，瑜伽才是旅行本身。瑜伽是关于如何把文字和哲学变成活生生的体验的过程和科学。文字上的意思只是唱诵时冥想路途上的路标，你在路上所体验到的一切，以及事后唱诵在你生活内外造成的影响才是唱诵正真的力量所在。

已经有很多人对我说：为什么唱诵刚一开始，我还不知道什么意思，就有一种毛发直竖、又仿佛要泪如泉涌的感觉？为什么唱诵给我一种如此深刻而又熟悉的回家的感受？为什么一唱诵，就立刻有一种喜乐？

可以这样回答，在唱诵时曼佗罗的音节所发出的音震形成了一种强烈的灵性能量的共鸣，而当我们的内心和知觉处于某种恰当的状态时（一种单纯和净化的状态），我们便能接收到到这种共鸣，而这是在一个超越思维和心智的层面上进行的。

在这里听和学唱这首巴赞:

http://mp3.baidu.com/m?f=ms&rn=&tn=baidump3&ct=134217728&word=krishna+das&lm=-1