By Chander Khanna
The Vedic Centre, Toronto
I amNOTsure at this stage if we will be in a position to attend or join thisyear's 2004 YOGASHOW in Toronto, whichI understand is hoping to attract more 20,000 visitors.
At the Himalayan YogaMeditation Society Ontario, we do want to make information availablein Toronto on the new Ashram facilities in Rishiksh, India.
A very large number of serious teachers andstudents of Yoga from Europe and the Far East have been using the newAshram. However, the Yoga Show, being an excellent forum for the moreglamorous side this phenomena, may be at odds with the quiet,contemplative roots of this ancient tradition. No pun intended, buthow can the ancient "root" ever compete with the modern Roots Yoga.
Or for that matter with Yogatards by Sensa Yoga orAbdominal Deep Breathing with Wrigleys Chicklet Gum Yoga.
I have taken the liberty ofappending a few paragraphs on thecontrarianview.
QUOTE:
Thanks Debashis for the New York Times article onBikram Yoga.
As night follows day, the very popularity of thehigh roller celebrity PopYoga will be, and perhaps already is, thevery cause of its decline amongst the starry eyed New Agers. Butthen, can a 5,000-year tradition containing some of the most originalthoughts in the history of human thought really be threatened by thepromoters of Hoola Hoop.
Unlike the 2001 Times issue featuring ChristyTurlington in yogatards, the good thing about the New York Timesarticle is that while it also neglects to mention Patanjali, at leastit is scornful of the Starbuck type Yoga Centres patented by the Patsand Anjalis. New York Times has published similar articles in thepast about the Americanization of Yoga. If Basmati rice and Neem canby patented how long would it have taken to patent a particular wayof breathing. As Swami Veda, one of the most authentic livingteachers of the Science and Philosophy of the Yoga Sutras brought tous thousands of years ago by sage Patanjali often wonders, how longindeed before an enterprising lawyer patents a particular edition ofthe Holy Bible?
Yoga Sadhana At The VedicCentre: Why We Don't Have A Dress Code
An often-asked question is what type of Yoga do wedo at the Centre. Like is it Kripalu Yoga, Ash-Tang Yoga, Power Yoga,Synergy Yoga, or Yoga For the Busy Executive on the Go. Unfortunatelyit is none of these. Nor are we into Yogic Flying or into Pehelwan orKushti style of Yoga with display of dazzling feats to titillate thesenses. Once in a while we slip into the Ho Ho Hee Hee Best Yoga Clubsing-along routine which prompted a few people to suggest Yogicexercises to Bhangra and Phagwa beat. It's an offshoot of Ravana'slaughter to energize the lungs--it draws giggles--but it is not Yogaeither.
An acquaintance of mine, impressed by supermodelson the cover of Time magazine featuring an "in depth" coverage onYoga, bought designer leotards modeled on the Oprah Winfrey show. Sherefuses to come to our sessions though where Kurta pajama clad geekshave no appreciation of designer Yoga clothes with matching mats andaccessories.
An article in New York Times last year waxedeloquent about how the American civilization is reshaping Yoga.Patanjali is being replaced by retreats with Pat and Anjali toreconnect to the inner self in Spa like settings. Body, Mind andSpirit are buzzwords even in discourses on the Upanishads in fivestar Hotel conference rooms. As if the mind, the finest, subtlestevolute of nature or Prakriti, is one of the three things "I" possessalong with "My Body" and "My Soul" residing somewhere in the pinealgland.
So much so for the power of Amazon.com, Chaptersand, Indigo Inc. But in all fairness, it is not just the BodyBeautiful culture of the American civilization which is to blame intrivializing this ancient science and philosophy--one of the sixDarshanas--or direct visions of the Ultimate Reality. Ourentrepreneurial Desi gurus too are quick to sneeze at theopportunity.
A very prominent medical Doctorof Indian origin who has done more to win the hearts and minds of theAmerican psyche than Swami Vivekanada speaks unabashedly aboutjoining him to form a critical mass to re-awaken the cosmicconsciousness--at a deep discount of US$ 3,500 for advanceregistration or US$ 4,500 at the gate.
Another dispenses Trade Markedpackaged salvation for a few Thousand Dollars by imparting secretsounds in the ear.
Like any phenomena which gains in popularity, Yogatoo appears to be a victim of its own success. But, and it's a majorbut, Yoga which dates back to more than five thousand years can neverbe just a passing fad. Interest at the superficial level may come andgo.
But at the core there is an abiding passion whichwill never let the Rishi Track be forgotten. Earlier this year,immediately after the Kumbh Mela,a few of us were blessed tohave attended a two week study session in Rishikesh whereSwami VedaBharati taught portionsof his 850 page commentary on just the 2nd chapter ofPatanjali's YogaSutras. Swami Veda,regarded as one of the most authentic living teachers of Yoga andMeditation, inaugurated theVedic Centre inToronto in1997.
His 580-page commentary on the 1st chapter iswidely acclaimed as a monumental work. Five of the six teachers whoprepared us during the morning study sessions were of German,English, American, Italian and Korean origins. All of them areSanskrit scholars. One of the most inspiring "teachers" of Meditationis a deaf and mute youth from a remote West African country--BurkinaFaso. No designer clothes there.
The Sadhana practiced at SwamiVeda's Ashram, as well as at other Centers like his, not onlypreserve the Rishi Track but also instill in the minds of theSadhakas an appreciation of what Raja Yoga is all about.Starting with the Yamasand the Niyamas, which may take several life times to adopt, theeight-fold path is nothing short of Samadhi--both as a means and asan end. In itspractice, some are blessed with stillness flowingexternally. Helped by Kriya Yoga, theircalm and reflective minds automatically still the body. For the vastmajority of us however, it is the more difficult inward flowing pathto first still the body through practice of Hatha Yoga in order tostill the mind.
The Thrice weekly Yoga Sadhana sessions at theVedic Centre are modest attempts at sharing these insights of theancient Rishis brought to us by sage Patanjali. To the extentpossible, we learn from different traditions. Over the last fouryears we have held special day long seminars/workshops on SuryaNamaskar by Shri Bhupendra Soneji from the Bihar School of Yoga, Yogaand Ayurveda based on the Charaka Samhitas attended by participantsfrom as far away as Ottawa and New York, Yoga Asanas as Meditationwith focus on the Meditative traditions of different faith groups,and the recent Yoga Adhyatma Workshop of October 8th attended byabout 170 people with presentations by over 13 teachers. Theinterdenominational make-up of the Sadhana group reaffirms the basictenet that Yoga goes beyond religious boundaries. As furtheraffirmation of this principal, a special contemplative walk combiningthe Christian, Buddhist and Vedic traditions will take place at theVedic Centre on Saturday, December 1, 2001. A four day retreat onYoga and Meditation as envisaged by the ancient Rishis is planned forAugust 2002.
A small self-study group meets every Wednesdayevening to help each other with subtle commentaries on Patanjali'sYoga Sutras using several texts including the 1,400 pages ofmonumental work on the first two chapters alone by Swami VedaBharati.
Lectures on all six schools of Indianphilosophy--Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mimansa and Vedantaare generally held on the last Fridays of every second Month at theCentre as part of the Sanskrit Study circle Series.
Chander Khanna
Toronto
Copyright 2004 West-Art, Prometheus 92/2004