The Mirror of Yoga Read online

  “Because of Richard Freeman’s sterling reputation, I often confront tough situations with this question: ‘What would Richard Freeman do?’ His new book affirms that my faith is well-placed. Freeman’s tone and insight open us. Quietly, he finds whole worlds within yoga’s simple acts.”

  —Eric Shaw, Yoga Journal

  “Collectively, these essays form an insightful and oftentimes humorous introduction to the deeper aspects of yoga philosophy, suitable for both the neophyte and the seasoned practitioner. In addition to being quite original, imaginative, and at times almost whimsical, The Mirror of Yoga is also firmly grounded in references to, and excerpts from, those yogic texts most respected by all schools of practice.”

  —Namarupa Magazine Online

  “A delightful read on the aspects of yoga philosophy will provide the beginner and the advanced yogi with a much deeper insight in the wonderful world of yoga.”

  —Organic Spa magazine

  “This thoughtful and beautifully written book . . . will take the average yogi to the next level.”

  —New Age Retailer

  ABOUT THE BOOK

  The world of yoga is astonishingly rich in its array of schools and practices. Yet, as diverse as they seem, they share a common aim: the discovery of the essence of existence that can be found at the core of our being, and the liberation that comes from that discovery. With this worthy goal in mind, Richard Freeman presents an enlightening overview of the many teachings, practices, and scriptures that serve as the basis for all the schools of yoga—hatha, bhakti, jnana, karma, tantra, and others. He shows how the myriad forms are ultimately related, and can even be perceived to make up a vast, interpenetrating matrix, symbolizing the unity, profundity, and beauty of the ancient tradition.

  Richard’s wide-ranging discussion includes the Upanisads and Samkhya philosophies, the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, the eight limbs of astanga yoga, the process and purpose of hatha yoga, and much more. He also explores the role of the guru, chanting, meditation, and the yogic imperative of offering service to others. All of this is applied to the actual practice, giving the reader the tools to digest and apply the wealth of information to daily life. The Mirror of Yoga will be a welcome resource to all yogis who wish to better practice the profound philosophy underlying their practice.

  RICHARD FREEMAN has been a student of yoga since 1968. His background includes studying Ashtanga, Iyengar, bhakti, and traditional hatha yoga; Western and Eastern philosophy; and Sanskrit; all of which he incorporates into the Ashtanga yoga practice as taught by his principal teacher, K. Pattabhi Jois of Mysore, India. Richard teaches at his studio, the Yoga Workshop, in Boulder, Colorado, as well as at studios and conferences throughout the world. He also has a video series, Yoga with Richard Freeman, which has inspired many people to take up yoga. He is also a frequent contributor to Yoga Journal.

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  The Mirror of Yoga

  Awakening the Intelligence of Body and Mind

  Richard Freeman

  Shambhala

  Boston & London

  2011

  Shambhala Publications, Inc.

  Horticultural Hall

  300 Massachusetts Avenue

  Boston, Massachusetts 02115

  www.shambhala.com

  © 2010 by Richard Freeman

  Cover design by Jim Zaccaria

  Cover photo by Larissa Nicole Rogers

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Freeman, Richard, 1950–

  The mirror of yoga: awakening the intelligence of body and mind / Richard Freeman.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  Includes index.

  eISBN 978-0-8348-2487-4

  ISBN 978-1-59030-795-3 (hardcover: alk. paper)

  1. Yoga. I. Title.

  BL1238.52.F74 2010

  613.7′046—dc22

  2010006461

  In loving memory

  Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois, Guruji

  1915–2009

  Contents

  Introduction

  1. Phases of the Practice and Classical Forms of Yoga

  2. The Body and Mind as Fields of Experience

  3. The Process of Haṭha Yoga: Union of Sun and Moon

  4. The Roots of the Practice

  5. Buddhi and Context

  6. The Bhagavad Gītā and the Unfolding of Love

  7. Tantra and the Radiant Earth

  8. The Yoga Sūtra

  9. Cutting Through Fundamentalism

  Acknowledgments

  Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide

  Chanting

  Glossary

  Index

  E-mail Sign-Up

  Introduction

  Yoga begins with listening. When we listen, we are giving space to what is. We are allowing other people to be what they are, and we are sanctioning our own bodies and our own minds to fully manifest. Yoga also begins in the present moment. Many classic texts, such as the Yoga Sūtra by Patañjali, start with the word atha, meaning “now,” which refers to this very notion. In the context of the Yoga Sūtra, the use of the word atha means that we have come to a point in our lives where we are ready to wake up from our conditioned existence and our habitual ways of behaving, thinking, and interacting with the world. It insinuates that we are finally ready to get real and to discover the essence of all existence that lies deep down in the core of our own heart and at the center of our being. It is from this experience of the root of life in the present moment that a yoga practice can actually be generated. Patañjali’s use of the word now implies that we have most likely tried many, many other things in order to wake up and to find happiness. We have probably pursued all different types of pleasures, and perhaps we have explored various philosophical teachings and disciplines and maybe even religious practices in order to give life meaning. But still, something is not quite right. When all of our attempts to find meaning are seen to have been inadequate for the job, then we come into our present situation and this is where the practice of yoga truly begins—right here, right now.

  Yoga is freedom. It is freedom from the fear of not knowing who we are, from presenting a face to the world that is not truly representative of who we feel ourselves to be, and from pretending to believe in things that we do not really know to be true. This is the liberation we find in yoga as we return to the present moment: to our natural mind and to a state of complete happiness. It is unlikely we are drawn to yoga in a conscious search for this freedom, but rather that we find yoga attractive because we imagine that it will make us happy, and there are many ideas about what happiness is that may invite us in. We may begin our practice to benefit the body; to become healthy, strong, flexible, sexy, or vibrant. We may see yoga on a more superficial level as simply an answer to our boredom or as a good way to meet people. Then one day in a yoga class we may experience the mind spontaneously dropping into a state of calm and clarity, a feeling that draws us back again in search of that natural sense of balance. The particulars of why we come to yoga may take on any number of forms, and all of them are honorable starting points for the practice because each doorway that reveals itself is a path into the deep matrix of what yoga truly is, and each entrance reveals that ultimately we have come in search of the mystical experience—a timeless sense of complete freedom and happiness.

  Whatever reason brings us to yoga, it is imperative to start from exactly where we actually a
re, and this requires at least a moment of true honesty. It necessitates that we remove all facades; that we give up pretending to know things that we do not actually know; and that we remove the veils of denial and deception we have draped over the real condition of our circumstance, our mind, and our heart. No matter what your motivation for beginning a practice—even if it is embarrassingly neurotic or selfish—if you can simply see the reality of that motivation, then you have found the proper place for beginning your own practice. Indeed, the ground upon which you are standing as you dive in is the only way to begin a genuine yoga practice. When you can see and accept things as they are, no matter how distorted your idea about what yoga might be or what it might do for you, then everything starts to become quite interesting. Because you have come to the source of all things—the fountainhead, the wish-fulfilling tree of yoga—you will get far more than you ever imagined possible.

  As we work through this book we will explore the profound and mysterious depths of yoga that lie underneath the wide variety of practices and beliefs that are normally associated with it. We will touch on various traditional philosophies that are used as tools in yoga, and we will examine a variety of physical and mental exercises that are parts of the practice of yoga. Through this book we hope to inspire the intelligence, imagination, and heart to open into direct experience, free of philosophy and technique, so that we can simply be here whole and happy.

  Publisher’s Note: This book contains many Sanskrit diacritics and special characters. If you encounter difficulty displaying these characters, please set your e-reader device to publisher defaults (if available) or to an alternate font.

  1

  Phases of the Practice and Classical Forms of Yoga

  There are many different styles of yoga practice: diverse methodologies, and distinct lineages. Though there is no single yoga philosophy, no one methodology, there is an underlying web of similarity that connects all approaches to yoga, and it is this deeply woven interconnectedness—the matrix within the pattern of what we call yoga—that we are going to be exploring in this book. By examining and illuminating different types of practices, philosophies, and methodologies, and by finding the pattern of interconnectedness that lies beneath them, the essence of yoga is revealed and we can truly be who we are.

  Well known for spectacular physical poses, haṭha yoga is actually a system of working the body and breath in order to investigate meditatively deep and subtle feelings, responses, and reflexes in relation to the conditioning of the mind. Insight into the subtle nature of sensation and its relationship to internal breathing patterns is believed to be the key to insight into the true nature of the mind. Haṭha means “sun” (ha) and “moon” (tha), and it can be used to describe any yoga practice that unites opposite patterns within the nervous system in order to open up the core of the body for our observation. A central component of haṭha yoga is āsana, or the practice of yoga postures, in which we work the body; we turn it, twist it, stretch it, and explore its subtleties. Another component is prāṇāyāma, in which we stretch, unfold, refine, and closely observe the breathing. Within these physical practices of haṭha yoga we work the body like we knead dough when making bread, so that it becomes transformed from an amorphous lump of unconscious flesh and bones into something that is vital and full of life. Through this work we find that both the body and the mind begin to wake up; they begin to unite with each other and with our everyday experience of life. As we continue to practice we gradually begin to find that we can extract from the body all of the juice of insight and consciousness that lies within it.

  Another type of yoga is jñāna yoga, which focuses on the intelligence and our ability to deeply inquire into the nature of things. Jñāna means “knowing” or “wisdom.” It is an infinitely refined search into the way the mind works, in combination with how perception and feelings work. It is the yoga of insight into the actual nature of our mind and reality. In jñāna yoga we foster the capacity to discriminate very precisely between that which is true, eternal, joyous, and that which is completely impermanent, superficial, and even delusionary. There are many approaches to jñāna yoga, some teaching instant enlightenment as a leap of understanding into the meaning of life. In this form you have a flash of insight into the meaning of reality, and from that moment on the mind has begun to wake up in such a way that life is merely a continuous unfolding insight. The experience of this form of jñāna yoga is something like when you finally get a joke and there is a sense of comprehension, relief, insight—the “aha!” feeling. Other jñāna yoga schools teach a gradual awakening, applying over time a more rigorous path, a complete study of everything, as a means of recognizing underlying patterns of perception and mind so that the true nature of the self—the true nature of the universe—is revealed. Still other jñāna yoga schools teach both an instant and a gradual awakening, based on how the mind is framing the very questions of time, existence, self, and consciousness. Any approach to jñāna yoga must eventually turn its fine intelligence back on itself to undo all sense of false ego and pride that a practitioner might take in their own partial understanding.

  Aṣṭāṅga yoga, though familiar to some as strictly a series of postures accompanied by specific patterns of breathing and gazing, is actually the broad system of yoga that forms the context for posture and breathing practices. Aṣṭāṅga means “eight limbs,” implying that there are many different interrelated approaches within this school that are used to develop a laserlike focus of the mind. This focus is utilized to explore any and all physical and mental phenomena that arise in order to reveal that they are composites of their backgrounds and not anything separate or eternal. This revelation or insight leads the aṣṭāṅga practitioner on and on to deeper states of insight into the nature of their mind and the world, and eventually to liberation from conditioned existence. The primary ground on which aṣṭāṅga yoga is built is an establishment of the ethical framework from which the other limbs of practice may then flourish. The support built from the first two limbs, the yamas and the niyamas, provides a net of interactive kindness and responsiveness to both oneself and within relationships to others. As part of the framework, the next two limbs—the physical practices of āsana (postures) and prāṇāyāma (breathing practices)—begin to open the body, the breath, and the sense fields, deconditioning the practitioner from the overlay of concepts and memories. This paves the way for the meditative limbs to work easily and with less danger of becoming lost in thought and abstracted away from the body. In the fifth limb, pratyāhāra, the mind is trained to observe the sense fields without identifying with or separating objects from their background. In this way the attention no longer moves about in the sense fields. In the sixth limb, dhāraṇā, the attention is concentrated on a single area. The seventh limb, dhyāna, occurs when concentration flows without conflict or tension. In the eighth limb, samādhi, the mental habit of making a constructed object and subject stops. This allows a free, unobstructed view of whatever is being observed, allowing insight into its true nature. The advantage of aṣṭāṅga yoga’s multiple approaches through various limbs is that it ensures that practitioners do not neglect any aspect of their inner or outer life, and this in turn fosters the ability to stay grounded in reality rather than being swept away by concepts or fantasy.

  Bhakti—the yoga of love and devotion—is another type of yoga in which deep emotion and the primacy of relationship to others and to God are cultivated and examined. Any selfishness arising from a misperception of oneself or the other gradually burns away. Through the bhakti practice, emotions become experienced as essential components of devotion, and they are channeled into ecstatic sensation. Some schools of bhakti have a conception of the beloved as a divine person, while others prefer an open view of the ultimate nature of God, one’s self, and others. The practice of bhakti often includes chanting and visualization, which allow us to viscerally experience a sense of connectedness to the real nature of the other, to God, and to th
e joyous nature of all things. A state of mind that is open to experiencing whatever is arising as being connected to the beloved (or as being the beloved itself) removes the conditioned overlays of emotion, thought, preconception, and other functions of mind that normally distract and distort reality.

  All over the world the schools of tantra have captured attention and interest, often because they are erroneously associated only with their aspects that deal with sexuality. But there is much more to tantric yoga. The word tantra actually means a thread or a weaving of threads, and in the context of yoga this refers to the idea of weaving a net of intelligence within, through, and beyond the body and mind. Tantric yoga is considered by some to be a subset of haṭha yoga, and others would say that haṭha yoga is a specific set of techniques within tantric practice. In fact tantra and haṭha yoga alike are organized around the principle that all things are sacred. Many yoga practices are designed to unplug the normally closed central channel of the body, the suṣumnā nāḍī, which extends from the center of the pelvic floor right up through the crown of the head and which is considered to be the most sacred channel of awareness within the body. Within tantra, which is particularly focused on the sacred nature of everything, deep attention is given to the fine details of all types of experience as a means of reorganizing and balancing the inner processing of experience around and through this central axis of the body. The tantric use of sacred sound and form within the practices has the potential to open the central axis to a flow of focused attention and deep sensation. When the concentration enters the suṣumnā nāḍī in this way, the mind automatically starts to fold in on itself, resting in ecstatic depths of insight through pure awareness. Outwardly, tantra is the practice of realizing that the ordinary world and everything we do in the world are incredibly sacred. Within tantra there are many practices that ritualize our ordinary sense perceptions and our everyday activities in the world, allowing us to eventually enter the inner realm of the suṣumnā nāḍī and become grounded in reality just as it is.