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Spirit Vs. Form - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 26, 2009 at 12:30pm

By now the first disciples had gathered around Lord Jesus. The Pharisees on one occasion found Jesus’s disciples plucking corn on Sabbath Day and eating it. When this was brought to the notice of the Lord, He said: “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath; so that the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” This greatly displeased the Pharisees who waited for another opportunity.While Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on a Sabbath Day the Pharisees brought to him a sick man, wi

This creation is the result of Isvara’s Eshana-Matra. Nothing less than or beyond that Eshana can happen....

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 25, 2009 at 6:00pm

Isvara is not ordaining things all the time; else He wouldbe too busy. This means determinism which leaves very little scope for individual effort.The notion that Isvara ordains things only sometimes and not always and that He wouldbe too busy if He ordains things all the time is a puerile one. Isvara can look to everything at onestroke of His Being. There is no such thing as His ‘being too busy’, for He is not like man, usinghis senses for the purpose of acting. Isvara does not act with a chang

The Spiritual Aspect of Jesus’s Miracles - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 25, 2009 at 12:30pm

Jesus, after the period of His seclusion and austerities, came back to his native village, eager to impart His wisdom to his fellow-men. John the Baptist had already declared to the people that the Kingdom of God was at hand and called upon people to repent with a contrite heart and effect a change of heart in themselves in order to be able to enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus, too, began with a repetition of this Message. But, whereas John had painted God as a stern Judge, Lord Jesus spoke of Him

Why is suicide considered a sin?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 24, 2009 at 6:00pm

Pleasure and pain in life are respectively the rewards of the good and the bad actions ofan individual. If a man suffers, it is a reminder to him to ennoble his life and make his futurehappy through the performance of good deeds, self-discipline and right effort.When a person, convicted to a term of imprisonment by the court of law for havingcommitted an offence, escapes from the prison, the law demands that he should be rearrestedand given added punishment, because he had not only committed an

Temptations and Triumph - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 24, 2009 at 12:30pm

After the baptism, Lord Jesus resorted to seclusion in the wilderness and practised extreme austerities and fasted. At the end of 40 days of such fasting He was hungry. Austerities and meditation had, no doubt, earned for Him divine powers to work miracles. And, the Lord did perform miracles to save people and to heal them. “Why not use those powers now, convert stones into bread, and appease your hunger,” tempted Satan, the Evil One. But, Lord Jesus resolutely refused to yield to this temptatio

SIGNIFICANCE OF CHRISTMAS

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 24, 2009 at 10:26am

Christmas is named after Christ. This is the birthday of Lord Jesus, the Saviour Christ, the Yogi of the East. He was born in a stable at Bethlehem, of Mary and Joseph, the obscure village carpenter. Mary and Joseph made the stable a home for Christ, the King, the Prince of Peace. The birth of Jesus is celebrated all over the world as the sacred Christmas.Lord Jesus was an embodiment of mercy, love and humility. He was an apostle of non-violence and peace. His body was crucified, but his voice h

How to develop Bhakti?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 23, 2009 at 6:00pm

By Satsang, by repeating the Lord’s Name, doing Kirtan, hearing Kathas, reading theRamayana, Bhagavata and the lives of Bhaktas - Bhakta Vijayam and Bhakta Lilamrita - VishnuSahasranama, Narada Bhakti Sutras and Sandilya Sutras. You must develop Vairagya. This isimportant. Live amidst Bhaktas. Live in Ayodhya. Respect Rama Nama. You will developRama Bhakti. Live in Brindavan. Study Bhagavata. Do Japa of the Dvadasakshara Mantra,“Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya”. You will develop Krishna Bhakti.From

God-Incarnate Seeks a Guru - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 23, 2009 at 12:30pm

John the Baptist, son of the priest Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth, had, in accordance with angel Gabriel’s prophecy begun to baptize people and to prepare them to receive the Light of the Lord Jesus. Lord Jesus was now about thirty years of age, and sought John to be baptized by him on the banks of the river Jordan. John recognised Jesus’s Divinity and asked: “Dost Thou come to me, when I have need to be baptized by Thee?” But the Lord had determined to set an example to mankind: spiritual il

Holiday~Winter Solstice~Reflection

Posted by Solvei Kristin McKenna on December 23, 2009 at 5:13am

Blessings to you all, my wonderful souls, wherever you are at this very moment reading this, I urge you to look around you. Find something that pleases the eye and flood what ever or whomever it is, with love and appreciation. We never know where we will be tomorrow. Life has many surprises, appreciate when you can, wherever you can. Love, is the word, Love is what this time on this earth requires and hungers for more than anything else. Compassion, understanding... Use your gifts, your talents

El cazador de loros y el ermitaño

Posted by Yoga Vidya on December 22, 2009 at 8:09pm

Un dia, un cazador de loros tendió su red en las proximidades de una ermita. El ermitaño que vivía allí vió cómo el cazador atrapaba más de veinte loros. En tono de reproche le dijo: "¿No escuchas cómo los pobres animales torturados gritan? Ellos están acostumbrados a vivir en libertad! Cómo puedes ser capaz de producirles semejante angustia?” El cazador respondió: "Yo los cazo para venderlos, así gano mi sustento y el de mi familia.” “No puedes ganar tu dinero de otra forma?” “No he aprendido n

We see a very good man suffering too much. Why? The answer may be: “Because of his previous Karma in his previous Janma”. This we can trace back to the day of creation.

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 22, 2009 at 6:00pm

The law of Karma is inexorable. Every one reaps the fruits of his previous births. Agood man only will suffer a lot, because he is hurrying up in the spiritual march. Many of hisevil Karmas have to be worked out and purged out quickly to hasten his salvation in this verybirth. But, God gives him extraordinary power of endurance through His grace. An aspirant or agood man gets many difficulties and sufferings. But he rejoices even in sufferings anddestitution on account of the descent of the Lord

The First Rays of Light - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on December 22, 2009 at 12:30pm

When the Lord was twelve years old, Joseph and Mary took Him to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. Jesus was very much interested in the Temple and the discourses of the priests there. In fact, He was so much engrossed in the thoughts of God and His Divine Law, that when His parents had left the temple and were returning to Nazareth, He returned to the temple and joined a group of religious teachers who were discussing religious questions. Even to these masters of philosophy, His words wer

Blogs of My Yoga Vidya on different Networks

Posted by Sukadev Bretz on December 21, 2009 at 7:47pm

I set up some tools and widgets so that the blog and forum posts here at http://my.yoga-vidya.org are visible on other social networks as well - in that way many can participate at the wonderful forum discussions and blog posts here. If you read this in different networks: Please be aware that you see valuable input from different authors. If you post blogs and forum notes here on my.yoga-vidya : Be aware that many can read this. Many thanks to everybody who contributes to spreading Yoga Wisd

Snow, snow, snow...

Posted by Sukadev Bretz on December 21, 2009 at 7:43pm

We are having lots of snow in Germany, and I just read all over Europe... All the better that by practicing Yoga and Meditation we can warm our hearts.... Her at Yoga Vidya Bad Meinberg it is gorgeous - walking in the snow, enjoying the beauty of nature, feeling the Divine Presence. May Peace Prevail on Earth. I wish everybody a wonderful Holiday Season! Om Shanti, Love Sukadev

A verse on Shiva

Posted by Ajith on December 20, 2009 at 4:30pm

"Samsara roga haram aushadham adwiteeyam pratar bhajami shivamekam anantham aadyam" - a verse on Shiva.I now worship that endless principle of consciousness, that by its undivided nature, is the medicine that destroys the disease of birth and death.

Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord to Thee

Posted by Sukadev Bretz on December 20, 2009 at 12:34pm

A wonderful song of Paramahamsa Yogananda Take my life, and let it be Consecrated, Lord! to Thee; Take my hands, and let them move At the impulse of Thy love. Take my moments and my days, Let them flow in ceaseless praise. Take my feet, and let them be Swift and beautiful for Thee. Take my voice, and let me sing Always, only for my King. Take my lips, and let them be Filled with messages from Thee. Take my silver and my gold; Not a mite would I withhold. Take my intellect, and use Every power as

Kali: The Dark Mother

Posted by Kati Kalipriya Cato on December 19, 2009 at 3:35pm

In Hinduism, Kali is one of the three principle gods alongside Brahma and Shiva. The representations of Kali are generally quite gruesome, usually including a necklace of human heads and holding a sword dripping with blood. She is one of the few deities to whom animal sacrifice is still offered.But to many Hindus, she is revered as a "mother" goddess and the personification of the feminine force in nature.

Kali is the fearful and ferocious form of the mother goddess. She assumed the form of a pow

The Fundamental Waves of the Mind

Posted by Reddy Kilowatt on December 18, 2009 at 7:30pm

A unique interpretation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras is on the Atma Jyoti Blog, in a commentary by Swami Nirmalananda Giri. This article delineates the fundamental vrittis, or waves, of the mind. Here is an excerpt below:

"However, there is a whole other way of looking at these modifications, and that is held by both Vyasa and Shankara. It interprets klishta and aklishta as “tainted by the kleshas” and “untainted by the kleshas.” The kleshas are: ignorance, egotism, attractions and repulsions tow

Being Established in Our Own Essential Nature–and Not

Posted by Reddy Kilowatt on December 7, 2009 at 10:00pm

A commentary on the following verse from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras at the Atma Jyoti Blog:
Yoga Sutra 1:3. Then the Seer [Drashta] is established in his own essential and fundamental nature [Swarupa].

From Swami Nirmalananda's commentary: "Self-forgetfulness is the root of all our problems, the essence of samsara itself. Consciousness (chaitanya) is our essential nature. When asked what the Self is, Sri Ramakrishna simply answered: “The witness of the mind.” We are the seer of our individual life

Paramahansa Yogananda

Posted by Sharon A. Kattke on December 3, 2009 at 10:38pm

I have been practicing kundalini yoga (kriya) for forty years now. I have been guided by an everliving guru, Paramahansa Yogananda. Personally, I feel that one cannot safely practice without the guidance of a true guru such as Paramahansa Yogananda. Namaste, Sharon Kattke

Blog Posts

All Posts (2315)

Spirit Vs. Form - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

This creation is the result of Isvara’s Eshana-Matra. Nothing less than or beyond that Eshana can happen....

The Spiritual Aspect of Jesus’s Miracles - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Why is suicide considered a sin?

Temptations and Triumph - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

SIGNIFICANCE OF CHRISTMAS

How to develop Bhakti?

God-Incarnate Seeks a Guru - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Holiday~Winter Solstice~Reflection

El cazador de loros y el ermitaño

We see a very good man suffering too much. Why? The answer may be: “Because of his previous Karma in his previous Janma”. This we can trace back to the day of creation.

The First Rays of Light - Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus

Blogs of My Yoga Vidya on different Networks

Snow, snow, snow...

A verse on Shiva

Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord to Thee

Kali: The Dark Mother

The Fundamental Waves of the Mind

Being Established in Our Own Essential Nature–and Not

Paramahansa Yogananda

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