Last week there were a few minutes to spare before I was teaching my class. One of my students asked: “What comes first, yoga or meditation?”

I had to think for a moment on how to answer that question. Historically, traditionally the opinion is that the end goal of any type of yoga practice is enlightenment. Enlightenment is the ability to live in a permanently blissful state regardless of what is going on around you. The blissful state arises from the knowledge that there is no separation from the divine (however you define this for you). This is the highest goal of yoga. The word “yoga” actually means “union”. Some argue it is the union of body and mind, or breath, body and mind, others are of the opinion that it is the union with the “source”.

According to the traditional teachings, to reach that enlightened, blissful state, regular meditation practice is required.  Meditation was done sitting cross legged and motionless for long periods of time. It is thought that all the yoga postures were designed to make the body supple and flexible, pain-free and disease free so that the practitioner was able to:

• sit cross legged
• sit upright with a straight spine without slumping
• sit for long periods of time without the body distracting him/her
• have a healthy and undisturbed energy flow along the meridians (energy channels) in his/her body
• stay healthy
• live longer and therefore have more time and more of a chance to reach enlightenment (remember life expectancy a few thousand years ago was not what it is today!)

So, answering the question from a traditional point of view, I would have to say that the physical yoga postures (or hatha yoga as it is commonly referred to) are only a means to facilitate meditation and eventually enlightenment. They are the vehicle to reach that blissful state. They are secondary to the desired goal of enlightenment. My first teacher, Acharya, fully supported that view and tried to live and teach accordingly.  

In our modern times, not many people in the western world are striving to reach enlightenment. Even if they did, it would be a long, hard road. Most people are unable to sit cross legged on the floor with a straight spine for long periods of time. Hip flexibility is at an all time low in the developed world. (more…)

Inner Strength

If you can start the day without caffeine,
If you can get going without pep pills,
If you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,
If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food every day and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time,
If you can take criticism and blame without resentment
If you can ignore a friend’s limited education and never correct him,
If you can resist treating a rich friend better than a poor friend,
If you can conquer tension without medical help,
If you can relax without liquor,
If you can sleep without the aid of drugs,
Then You Are Probably The Family Dog!

A friend sent me this email today. I don’t know who wrote it originally.

It looks like a dog can be a perfect Yogi or Yogini (a female yoga practitioner) much easier than we humans can. Our mind gets in the way! If we only could learn how to just be, without constantly judging and criticising we would be a lot happier.

Try it for 1 hour – make a real effort to suspend judgment for 1 hour of your day today, look at things as they are, not the way you think they are. Share your experiences in the Comments Section.

Connie,

Your Yoga Partner

From http://www.yogainahurry.com

Here is a poem written by a 12 year old girl for her English Exam (I think she is a true yogini, maybe without even knowing it.)

Anonymous Heroes

In this life there’s good and bad
In this life, happy and sad
When sad say, this too shall pass

Happiness and sadness forever don’t last

Not flying ’round with super powers
Maybe buying old ladies flowers
Supporting someone through a rough time
Sending a card to a Valentine

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