“You do not
have problems-
you are the problem.”
From the archive of Gitananda Yoga Gesellschaft
Deutschland e. V.
19. Juni 2012
Yogacharya Dr. Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani:"Understanding
the Yoga Darshan"
An Exploration of the Yoga Sutra of Maharishi Patanjali
Sadhana Pada Sutra 47
"prayatnasaithilyanantasamapattibhyam":
Relaxation of effort and contemplation of the Infinite
ln order to achieve this state of asana,
Maharishi Pataņjali advises relaxation
of effort (prayatna). This means doing without doing. The key is to work
internally and not externally. This is action in inaction. In verse 18 of Chapter
IV in the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna talks about this concept of ''seeing
inaction in action and action in inaction". This is effortless effort.
It is not the non-doing but is the doing which still appears as non-doing. It
is not the negation of effort but the development of an inner ability to do what is required without manifestation of the effort itself. This sattwica quality is developed through sadhana.
Effort is tension (spanda). By letting go of effort we attain relaxation
(nishpanda). After the initial stage of making the effort one attains the
yogic ideal of balance (samatwam) by
letting go of effort.
The worldly person enjoys making mountains
out of molehills. Yoga is thc science
of making molehills out of mountains! That is prayatna shaithilya. VVhenever I think of Swamiji and Ammaji and
whal they have achieved seemingly without effort, I truly understand what this
is about. Compare this example with the many people who make a big show of even
lifting a pen or paper! The skillful ones always seem to do everything without
any show of effort, whereas the unskillful make only the show of effort and achieve
nothing. Shakespeare put it well: ''Much
ado about nothing".
Maharishi Pataņjali also advises contemplation
on the Infinite (ananta). This sane advice asks one to realize where they
are and who they really are. When we put ourselves in front of that lnfinite we
obtain the answer. Any number next to infinity is zero, no matter how big it is.
This is a practical method which develops the ability to see the bigger picture.
Infinite perspective produces a steady (sthira) ease with ourselves (sukham).
This is the very definition of asana.
The bigger picture reduces ego stubbornness which tries
to be perfect in asana right away. Relax the effort and contemplate the
Infinite. This is the key to attaining stability and ease within ourselves. Practitioners
of asana make all sorts of faces and show off all their effort. They miss
the point completely.
What is happening today in the name of
asana is absolutely the opposite of asana.
Instead of being advised to let go of effort, students are being bullied into
more and more visible effort by the hotshot modern yoga coaches! Push,
push and again push harder seems to be the constant refrain in yoga classes
around the world. These yoga teachers learn a few medical terms and then
start talking about contracting this muscle and stretching that muscle. Due to
their limited vision of asana, not to mention yoga itself, they
trap students in the physical nature of asana instead of helping them expand their consciousness
to realms far above physical concerns. As a result the vision of what asana
itself should be shrunk! We seem to have forgotten that asana is
a tool meant to expand vision and attain to the state of steadiness and ease.
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