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Why is Ganges water regarded so sacred? ...

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 7, 2012 at 6:00pm

What are the scientific or religious reasons for its water being eternally free from any sort of contamination? Is it a fact that all sins are washed away by a dip in the Ganges?

From time immemorial, Mother Ganges has been associated with sages and saints who
had found immense spiritual benefit by bathing in her waters as well as by drinking it.
Fire can burn all other things, but cannot act upon its own self. Flowing down the
Himalayan ranges which contain many a rare herb that possess disinfectan

What are the methods to develop unruffled serenity and mental composure under all conditions of life ? Is absolute serenity possible of attainment?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 6, 2012 at 6:00pm

Yes. By all means. Consider yourself as dead to the world or the world as dead to you.
Develop Atma Vichar Sakti. Identify not with the mind, senses and intellect or with any of the
other modifications of the mind. Always be engaging yourself in the thought of the Divine.
Have no thought of yourself or the surrounding world. Be absolutely indifferent to yourself, as
you ought to be towards the surroundings, the various daily happenings and the worldly
repercussions. Knowledge of the Self, when once a

Essay : On the Meaning of Sin

Posted by Christopher Stewart on February 6, 2012 at 12:30am

View on Issuu

(« Blake's Tarot Liberty Card » by Mary K. Greer)

I spent most of the second half of January writing an essay on the concept of sin, its meaning and its implications.

Actually, this is a matter that has been hovering in and out of my mind since the end of July 2011, but I guess I wasn't ready to tackle it until recently.

Originally, I thought it would take the form of a blog post, albeit a longer than usual one. However, I quickly discovered that I had a lot to say on the subject,

If escape from this world be the goal, where is the incentive for social work?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 5, 2012 at 6:00pm

Escape from the world is not the goal, but freedom from worldliness is what is desired.
Social work has got its own valuable part in life until a certain stage, though after a time it is
transcended by a higher consciousness. The value of social work, however, is purely subjective.
It is not that one makes himself a great reformer or a saviour of mankind, but that he offers his
ego as a sacrifice at the altar of universal love and so obtains purity of mind, which is the basis of
all spiritual progres

Is suicide the logical conclusion for a man who has come to believe that life has no meaning for him?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 4, 2012 at 6:00pm

Suicide is not the logical conclusion of a meaningless life, but the illogical conclusion
arrived at by the thoughtless and non-discriminating mind which has failed to perceive the
meaning that is in life. Suicide does not remove misery or correct defects, but leads to violent
reactions later on. And the reactions will be more painful than the present condition of
dissatisfactory life. Suicide is pure defeatism.

From "May I answer that" by Swami Sivananda (1987-1963). More Informations on Swami Sivan

Observance of Brahmacharya would appear to be meaningless, because scientists, through laboratory tests,...

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 3, 2012 at 6:00pm

have proved that semen cannot be reabsorbed into the system and that the brain has nothing to do with semen.

Semen is a mysterious secretion that is able to create a living body. Semen itself is living
substance. It is life itself. Therefore, when it leaves man, it takes a portion of his own life. A
living thing cannot be put to laboratory tests, without first killing it. The scientist has no
apparatus to test it. God has provided the only test to prove its precious nature, viz., the womb.
The very f

Is not a realized soul selfish as he has sought his emancipation only? Also, if all renounce, what will be the result?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 2, 2012 at 6:00pm

The question is based on a wrong hypothesis. If all the women are barren, if all turn out
to be doctors or lawyers or dacoits, what would become of the world? Only a few with an
accumulated wealth of spiritual Samskaras can have Vairagya and renunciation.
The saint purifies the whole world. He is not selfish. Sankara, Ramanuja and others
worked for the entire mankind. Even he who lives in seclusion or leads an ‘Incognito’ life,
influences the world with his thought-currents. Even a novice in the spir

I have been reading the Upanishads and other scriptures and I find one and the same thing in all of them. ...

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on February 1, 2012 at 6:00pm

They say that everything we come across is unreal, only God
is real and that we have to think and understand the Truth by ourselves. How are we to do
it, Swamiji?

Reading will help you only to a certain extent. Too much reading will land you in
confusion. You should meditate and concentrate on one particular idea. That particular idea
should serve as the eye-opener. Then alone will you get Vairagya; you will be able to understand
the false nature of things. Take, for instance, the life of Sri Swami Sa

Self-Study

Posted by Swami Saradananda on February 1, 2012 at 4:52pm

OM
For me, the new year began with a determined effort to engage in an intensive study of the spiritual teachings of yoga. If you feel that you are ready to take the next step in your inner work, please join me. I will be posting exerpts from my series of talks. And you may feel inspired to take my e-course: www.flyingmountainyoga.org/text/e-course.shtml

"From self-study, you are able to connect with higher Truths".
- Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 2.44

Well-being...Yoga, Pilates und Ballett - der gute Vorsatz für das neue Jahr

Posted by Johanna Fross on February 1, 2012 at 10:34am

Yoga, Pilates, Ballett - der gute Vorsatz für das neue Jahr

Der gute Vorsatz für das neue Jahr ist der Wunsch nach Veränderung. Der Vorsatz Sport zu treiben ist die klassische Idee eine neue Bewegungsform zu erlernen. Dies ist im Menschen verankert. Jeder Mensch bewegt sich. Der Begriff 'Bewegungsapparat' beschreibt seine wesentliche Funktion. Die Physis ist mit der Psyche untrennbar verbunden. Körper und Geist sind eine Einheit und es ist ein angenehmes Gefühl wenn beides in Balance ist. Vor all

Shall I do Japa of “Om Narayana” instead of “Om” in order to make it both Nirguna and Saguna?...

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 31, 2012 at 6:00pm

Japa of the Narayana Mantra keeps the Chaturbhuj Murti of the
Lord before my mental eyes. I, however, have been accustomed to meditate on the Murti of
Lord Krishna and am in search of a Chaturbhuj Murti of Lord Krishna with Arjun at His
feet. Please let me know how I should go on in future.

You have already created a clear mental image, momentum and force by meditating on
Lord Krishna. It is not good to change the form now. Even if you change it, the old form will
come before the mind through force of

Is married life not an obstruction to God-realization? How can a married man please both his wife and God simultaneously?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 30, 2012 at 6:00pm

Married life can never be an obstruction to those who are endowed with dispassion and
detachment to worldly objects and who consider that life is intended to mould one’s own self by
drawing lessons from the university of Nature. Study the lives of saints like Thyagaraja,
Ekanath, Narsi Mehta, Bhadrachalam Ramdas, Tukaram, Namdev, Jayadeva, Chaitanya and
Kabir. Probe deep into the world and the way in which the above-mentioned saints and a host of
others actually led their lives.
It is disgraceful on t

Is woman made for man and to serve him only? Did God create us for the kitchen and for procreation? Why should a woman play a secondary part? Why do you deny equal rights to women?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 29, 2012 at 6:00pm

Woman is in no way inferior to man. The home is a cooperative organization. It
flourishes on the principle of division of labour. If a man earns and the wife stays at home, it
does not mean that the woman is a parasite and a slave. She is indeed the builder of the nation.
To make noble citizens by training their children and to form the character of the whole human
race is undoubtedly a power far greater than that which women could hope to exercise as voters
or law-makers, as presidents, ministers or

Points of Self Respect and Soul Study:

Posted by VISHNU ER on January 29, 2012 at 1:00pm

Points of Self Respect and Soul Study:

1. We, the cheerful souls, like the North Star, do not change our position...with determined thought and determined faith in the intellect, and with a constant and stable stage, we are the multi million times fortunate beads of the rosary...we are full and complete with elevated relationships, elevated connections, true love and all types of wealth and success...we have attainments of all relationships with the One Imperishable, Altruistic Father, the One w

God is all-pervading formless Being. How can He be confined to an idol? What is the use of idol worship?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 28, 2012 at 6:00pm

The divinity of the all-pervading God is vibrant in every atom of creation. There is not a
speck of space where He is not. Why do you then say that He is not the idols?
The idol is a support for the neophyte. It is a prop of his spiritual childhood. A form or
image is necessary for worship in the beginning. It is not possible for all to fix the mind on the
Absolute or the Infinite. A concrete form is necessary for the vast majority for practicing
concentration.
Idols are not the idle fancies of sculpt

Your Holiness advises a man to treat his wife as “World Mother” as soon as a son is born to him....

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 27, 2012 at 6:00pm

In case the son dies after a few months, there will be no heir left to look
after his estate. Under such circumstances, what should he do? Kindly let me have your
advice.

Why should you bother about heir for the estate? Did you bring the estate with you?
Would you take it also when you die? What is estate? Is it not a lump of earth only? Can this
estate and heir give you happiness and peace? Are they not sources of misery and worry? The
desires for property and children will bind a man to the wheel of

I have no desire to leave Grihastha life at this moment and yet I am very, very keen to awaken the Kundalini Sakti. Is this possible? Will Your Holiness help me?

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 25, 2012 at 6:00pm

Yes, you can stick to Grihastha Ashrama. But live as an ideal householder. Support the
other three Ashramas. If the duties of a householder are strictly followed, there is no necessity
for Sannyas.
Become a true Brahmachari and give up sexual intercourse completely. You have enough
children. The practice of Yoga strictly demands this from you if you desire to make real,
substantial, rapid spiritual progress. Train your wife also in the spiritual path. Let her also repeat
the same Mantra you are repeat

The rise and fall of humans

Posted by VISHNU ER on January 25, 2012 at 2:42am

The Rise and Fall of HumansWe will understand this lesson with the help of the adjoiningpicture. It is a wonderful story of how the souls, who once were deities became the devotees and very ordinary human beings. It also explains how they lost the divine virtues, spiritual and moral values and developed devilish tendencies. The illustration shows that originally, human souls had complete purity, peace and prosperity and that they became defiled and peaceless later. Now it is time to again inculc

When I know that this world is not real and I am bound to leave it one day or the other, why should I not renounce it now?...

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 24, 2012 at 6:00pm

Taking Pati Seva as my duty, I am doing it very sincerely and faithfully. But I know that neither Pati nor son nor father nor mothercan help me in achieving the real goal. Did not Mira meet Bhagavan by leaving her husband?

For a lady, her husband is the image of God. She will have to realize God in and through
him alone. She need not go to temples even for worship. Your Vairagya is a momentary
bubbling. It cannot help you in any way in your spiritual progress. You may say, “This world is
unreal”; bu

I am disgusted with the false world. I know fully well that it is no use living in such a world. Everywhere I find misery alone....

Posted by Teachings of Swami Sivananda on January 23, 2012 at 6:00pm

I intend to enter into the life of a
Sannyasin, but I do not know where to find out a Guru. Kindly let me know what I have to
do to become a Sannyasin.

You should not hate the world, but you should hate the worldly life. The world is a
manifestation of the Lord. The world is the best teacher for you. The world cannot stand in the
way of your attainment of Kaivalya. You must change the way of your living and viewing
things. You will have to build a new mind and a new vision. Then the world will appear

Blog Posts

All Posts (2328)

Why is Ganges water regarded so sacred? ...

What are the methods to develop unruffled serenity and mental composure under all conditions of life ? Is absolute serenity possible of attainment?

Essay : On the Meaning of Sin

If escape from this world be the goal, where is the incentive for social work?

Is suicide the logical conclusion for a man who has come to believe that life has no meaning for him?

Observance of Brahmacharya would appear to be meaningless, because scientists, through laboratory tests,...

Is not a realized soul selfish as he has sought his emancipation only? Also, if all renounce, what will be the result?

I have been reading the Upanishads and other scriptures and I find one and the same thing in all of them. ...

Self-Study

Well-being...Yoga, Pilates und Ballett - der gute Vorsatz für das neue Jahr

Shall I do Japa of “Om Narayana” instead of “Om” in order to make it both Nirguna and Saguna?...

Is married life not an obstruction to God-realization? How can a married man please both his wife and God simultaneously?

Is woman made for man and to serve him only? Did God create us for the kitchen and for procreation? Why should a woman play a secondary part? Why do you deny equal rights to women?

Points of Self Respect and Soul Study:

God is all-pervading formless Being. How can He be confined to an idol? What is the use of idol worship?

Your Holiness advises a man to treat his wife as “World Mother” as soon as a son is born to him....

I have no desire to leave Grihastha life at this moment and yet I am very, very keen to awaken the Kundalini Sakti. Is this possible? Will Your Holiness help me?

The rise and fall of humans

When I know that this world is not real and I am bound to leave it one day or the other, why should I not renounce it now?...

I am disgusted with the false world. I know fully well that it is no use living in such a world. Everywhere I find misery alone....

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