1.4 CULTURAL CORNERSTONES OF YOGA Bhagavad Gita Karma yoga Jana yoga Bhakti yoga Tantra Yoga

2. The Universe is a manifestation of divine energy. Goal: to ritually appropriate that energy, by using prana which flows through the universe to attain purposeful goals. mystical experience is considered essential Guru: necessary as a guide in tantric study & practice Yoga: (including breathwork) is employed to subject the body to control of the will. Yoga is suppression with awareness, tantra is indulgence with awareness (Osho) Tantra 3. the ancient Rishis (seers) of India who developed the science of life organized their wisdom into three bodies of knowledge: Ayurveda is most concerned with the physical basis of life, concentrating on its harmony of mind & spirit. Yoga controls the body and mind to enable them to harmonize with the spirit, and Tantra seeks to use the mind to balance the demands of the body & spirit Robert Svoboda 4. KARMA (Action/Reaction(fala)) SAMSARA (Reincarnation Cycle) MOSHKA (Liberation) Karma (actions) produce Fala (fruit), these accumulate to create Vasanas (habits/desires), and these habits become Samskaras (deep impressions) that shape our character. This ego rooted character is played out in the next life in some form. Moshka, is liberation from this cycledeath (and union with the divine) and at the same time an escape from the normal death which results in continued distance from divine energy. Philosophical Underpinning 5. The pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight. The practices in mysticism nurture this growing awareness Present in many different religious traditions: Judaism: kabbalah Islam: Sufism Hiduism & Buddhism: Love of god, Liberation Christianity: seeing the light MYSTICISM 6. Sufi Mystic in Ecstacy 7. 1750 rise of orientalism and interest in the EAST 1830s rise of resistance to "Anglicization" of India among Indian intelligencia 1850s oriental religions as alternatives rather than simply objects of study 1893-1896 (1893) Chicago Parliament of Religions. Swami Vivekananda rises to popularity as icon of spirituality in India, America and Europe. (1896) "Raja Yoga". Seminal text of modern yoga. 1890s-1920s New Age Religion emerges, along with distinctive TYPES of yoga 1915-1949 newly independent India begins to promote indigenous arts and culture- yoga is part of this REVIVAL. World wars slow down progress elsewhere. 1950s & 1960s practice of modern yoga achieves widespread popularity even though it is believed eccentric. 1990-present modern yoga gains increasing popularity and development in the east and the west along with modern applications of yoga practice. TIMELINE (deMichaelis) 8. Since the 19th century, "orientalist" has been the traditional term for a scholar of Oriental studies During the 20th century the term began to be used in a different way. Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said used the term to describe a pervasive Western tradition, both academic and artistic, of prejudiced outsider interpretations of the East, shaped by the attitudes of European imperialism in the 18th and 19th centuries. Said was critical of both this scholarly tradition and of some modern scholars. In contrast, some modern scholars have used "Orientalism" to refer to writers of the Imperialist era who had pro-Eastern attitudes. More recently, the term is also used in the meaning of "stereotyping of Eastern Culture", both by advocates and academics. EAST=SPIRITUAL WEST=MATERIAL ORIENTALISM 9. Historically related religious movements (Astrology, Alchemy, Christian mysticism, , Theosophy, Illuminism, Mesmerism, magi c, Spiritualism). Common Traits: Inwardness Mystery of the universe Correspondences (spiritual & material) Occultism (secrecy) Called esoteric traditions ESOTERICISM 10. Practice focused on the attempt to change base metals into gold (or any one substance to another). Based on the theory of transmutation Involves the change of the mind & spirit of the practitioner as well as the substances manipulated Inner meaning of alchemical work is the spiritual path (Carl Jung). Jung saw Alchemy as the Yoga of the West. ALCHEMY 11. Gnostics believe in three planes of experience: demiurge-the pure unknown (Prakriti?) The material world of Coitus & Comfort (gunas?) Pure spiritual realm of ascention (purusha?) Form of mysticism All are originated from the godhead although this fact is hidden. If revealed, then one becomes a knower. Quest: to know only available to some: Pneumatics (psychics)--yes Hylics (somatics)no, incapable of perceiving a higher reality, and thereby, liberation GNOSTICISM 12. SAMKHYA PHILOSOPHY 13. A branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world METAPHYSICS 14. Kabbalah Map of Universe 15. Pre-Modern vs Modern Yoga Eastern vs Western Thought Modern yoga derives from 4 intellectual traditions Dharmi Abrahamic Modern Empirical Science Modern Esotericism Pre-Modern Yoga Firmly rooted in the Dharmic Tradition of Karma/Samsara/Moshka 16. Other Features of Modern Yoga PRIVATIZATION OF RELIGION Peter Berger: Process of secularization and the triumph of individuality. In secular milieus, religious authority is usurped by the individual. COMMODIFICATION Because of global capitalism and consumer society, commercialization is unprecedented! Role played by media Exploitation of contemporary spirituality Ambivalence toward renunciation MEDICALIZATION Therapy: psychosomatic (Mind/body medicine) Fitness Complimentary / alternative medicine 17. Timeline & Texts Indus Valley evidence at Mohenjo-Daro? 4000 bp Vedic Brahmins practice of Tapas (austerities)? Katha ,Svetasvatara & maitri Upanishads -(3rd c BCE) Pranayama, pratyahara, dhyana, dharana, tarka, samadhi Mystical teachings (upa=near, ni=down, shad=sit) Bhagavad Gita (karma, jnana, bhakti) 325 CE? Yoga sutras of Patanjali 250 CE? Yama, niyama, asana, prnayama, pratyahara, dhrana, dhyana, samadhi Hatha Yoga (13th-18thc)- Forceful Yoga 18. Hatha Yoga Associated with Naths-defied varna & caste Union of sun & moon Texts: Goroka Samita, Shiva Samita, Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Gheranda Samita, Joga Pradipika Concerned with transmutation of the body (escape mortal decay) Shat karman (6)-purifications Asana: HYP (15), GhS (32), SS (84, but describes 4) Pranayama is MAINSTAY= cleanising Nadis (72,000?), Bhandas (locks), mudras (seals) Raise kundalini energy, joining shiva & shakti 19. Yogis & Colonial British Rule Indians & Europeans defined yogis by perverse sexuality, black magic & alimentary impurity & outlandish austerities Admired the RATIONAL, PHILOSOPHICAL & CONTEMPLATIVE Compared them to occultists in Europe: naked & covered in ashes with long matted hair, twisted nails, sitting under tress engaging in painful austerities vegitative rather than rational beingswho are seduced by a lief of lazy vagrancy by their own vanity (318) vagabonds & pests of the nation they live in (John Fryer) 15th-19th c: organized bands of militarized yogis control trade routes, challenging East India Company control. Threatened economy 20. Naked Yogi-Degenerate 21. Shaiva vs Vaisnava Yoga Practice Vaisnava mercantile & commercial elites were favored Saiva were wandering devotional yogis (bhakti) Illegal to be naked & carry a weapon Bhaktis transformed to buskers-yoga showmen Despised by orthodox Hindus, casteless, ritually impure, savage & backward= pariah of colonial India VASU (BASU) & hatha yogin 1895 Sacred Book of the Hindus those hideous specimens of humanity who parade through our streets bedaubed with dirt & ashes, frightening the children and extorting money from timid & good natured folk (Vasu) Modern yogi should be (rather) SCIENTIFIC (medical?) 22. Vasu the Scientist & Philosopher 23. Popular Portrayals of Yogin The Performing Yogi Bava Lachman Das (1897) 48 postures as part of a sideshow at London Aquarium posture master in royal courts in Europe Yoga Magician: wondrous powers gotten through yoga Fortune telling, healing, miracle workers Victor Dane (white Yogi-1933) bullets, poison, mesmeric powers, also an ardent physical culturalistMODERN FITNESS (1934) 24. Yogi Showmen & Performers 25. Vivekananda: Cleaning Up Yoga Raja Yoga (1896): try to uncouple yoga from its negative associations and make it rational, scientific & philosophical Rejects physical practice: too difficult and do not lead to spiritual growth Real work of mind is Raja Yoga (YSP) not Hatha Yoga Defined yoga as a RELIGION some things do not in the Western mind (magic) 26. Max Muller & Blavatsky Muller: (scholar) Hatha yoga is a tarnish of Wests view of Indian religion Indian thought is philosophically sophisticated Yoga has degenerated in modern times to its most PRACTICAL and least PHILOSOPHICAL (wrong) Blavatsky: (Theosophy Founder) Against image of common ignorant sorcerer Looked to India (East) for spiritual guidance Against exercising the body (exercise the mind) 27. Yogi Philosophers 28. International Physical Culture Movement 1890s-1950s Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture (1950) Independence & national pride entail that we develop our youthful Indians physically as well as mentally, morally & religiously. Reaction against COLONIAL EMASCULATION Modern Olympic & Raja Yoga (1896) (1893) first ever BODYBUILDING display One cannot afford a weak constitution in the industrial world (survival of the fittest) (1857) Muscular Christianity (YMCA & Salvation Army & public schools) Eugenics Movement: improve collective national body Inherited health Anti-intellectual 29. Physical Culture 30. The German Turnverein promoted a system of what became known as "heavy gymnastics", meaning strenuous exercises performed with the use of elaborate equipment such as pommel horses, parallel bars and climbing structures. The Turnverein philosophy combined physical training with intellectual pursuits and with a strong emphasis upon German culture. 31. Nationalism & Physical Culture 32. Physical Culture Goes to India The "Swedish System" founded by Per Henrik Ling promoted "light gymnastics", employing little, if any apparatus and focusing on calisthenics, breathing and stretching exercises as well as massage. (1766-1839) -McClaren Method (British Schools) to Colonial India -Harmonial Gymnastics (Stebbins) in USA -Movement Cure (Tissot)-medical gymnastics- Europe At the turn of the 20th century, bodybuilder and showman Eugen Sandow's system, based upon weight lifting, enjoyed considerable international popularity, while Edmond Desbonnet and George Hebert popularized their own systems within France and French-speaking countries. Bernarr Macfadden's system became especially popular within the USA, via the promotion carried out through his publishing empire. 33. Indian Physical Culture 34. Sandows Guide to Physical Culture 35. American Physical Culturalists 36. Modern Examples: Body Tribe