TV Channel

Part 1: The Path of Purification: Haṭha Yoga in Daily Life Tvam eva mahataḥ japitaḥ, tvam eva. Tvam eva bandhuḥ sakhā, tvam eva. Tvam eva vidyā draviṇaṃ, tvam eva. Tvam eva sarvaṃ mama deva deva. Oṃ Tryambakaṃ yajāmahe sugandhiṃ puṣṭi-vardhanam. Urvārukam iva bandhanān mṛtyor mukṣīya mā’mṛtāt. Bhagavān ke ca Śrī Śrīdhara Viśveśvara Mahādeva ke ca Śrī. Swami Madhavānandajī, Bhagavānakeca Viśvakurumā Maṇḍaleśvarī, Swami Viśvānandajī, kuruteva keca. Good morning, everybody. Also, a good morning to our friends joining via the webcast on Swamiji TV. As we heard in the bhajan from Mahāprabhujī just now: "Gurudev Darśan Dhanahu." This means to meet our Gurudev, our beloved Master, our beloved Swāmījī. In that meeting, our complete being, our consciousness, is immersed in Ānanda. We are so happy. All the holy scriptures, the ṛṣis, the monists, the saints, and the yogīs cannot fully describe what the Gurudev means. We try many things: japa, tapa, yoga, fasting, mauna. Yet we cannot be successful in this pursuit. We place our trust in our Gurudev, our beloved, our Master, our Antaryāmī. As the bhajan by Mahāprabhujī said: "When I met Śrī Devapurījī and when I meet him, then I am completely in ānanda." When we speak about yoga, yoga means union and balance—complete balance, full balance with ourselves, with our inner self, and also with our surroundings. We cannot be in balance when the environment—nature, family life, the area where we live, the air, the arrangement—is not balanced and healthy. Swāmījī said yesterday in his divine satsaṅg that the first point in Āyurveda, the meaning of health, is that the first wealth is good health. Health is not everything, but everything is nothing without health. We also say that a person, a human, has so many wishes. We wish for many things when we are healthy. But if there is illness, pain, and suffering, we reduce everything to only one wish: to find a solution, to become healthy again. Here, yoga, especially yoga in daily life, offers us not only treatment but also prevention—a way to keep our being in balance and healthy. As far as we know, in this time, no living being is 100% healthy. So we must find a way to live life without pain, to live long so we can fulfill our dharma, our duties. Here, Haṭha Yoga offers six kriyās, six possibilities, in a very simple way, with very little effort, using only what we have in nature: water, air, fire, the elements, and salt. This is what we need in Haṭha Yoga. In the Western world, many people think it is practicing āsanas, body exercises, heart exercises, acrobatic exercises. The latest fashion is acro-yoga, performing acrobatic āsanas, but this has nothing to do with yoga, especially not with Haṭha Yoga. This body is made of five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and space. From these, our bones, muscles, flesh, all the liquids, and the empty spaces are created. Of course, cleaning material pollution is easier than cleaning the pollution in our minds and thoughts—pollution that comes from outside through words, creating many vṛttis and kleśas, disturbances. Our whole being is very clearly delineated in the kośas, the layers. There is the physical body, connected with the manomaya kośa via the prāṇa, like a link. From the manomaya kośa to the ānandamaya kośa, the vijñānamaya kośa acts as a bridge. The ānandamaya kośa is what we feel inside here, very near to our inner self. We have pain, desires, longings, feelings—and all living beings have these, not only humans. Our Self is covered by these five kośas. To remove, clean, and purify these layers, as Vāmījī said, we must open one layer after another, letting the light shine through. When windows are cleaned, the sun comes in and the light flows out. Of course, this has to do with eating—what we take in—with liquid, what we drink, how we think, and what we think. It involves how we live, where we live, and with whom we live. These many, many things create our whole phenomenon through many, many lives of evolution. We are sitting here now, and so we have to work. What is to be done? To control the mind is not possible. We can only give it direction—through mantras, positive thinking, and good company. We must nourish our thinking with good influences. With whom are we together? From this part, the practices of Rāja Yoga come: mental and intellectual discipline, concentration. We are doing this now here in the Anuṣṭhān, the Kriyā Anuṣṭhān. The physical body has other techniques. To approach from the physical side, here is where Haṭha Yoga links in. Everything is very well described in the Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā, which gives light on yoga. It is a great help. And only the one who is doing knows. This is the one thing in yoga: it has to be done. We observe that many of us sit for hours in front of a computer, trying to read and learn, but this is only theoretical. Yoga has to be done, and of course, it takes time. But sometimes we have a whole life; we have time. Reduce unnecessary things as much as possible and try to integrate the techniques into daily life. If you do not have two to three hours at once, then put it somewhere in your daily routine. Integrate Haṭha Yoga. As we know, it works from the physical side to purify, because when we purify our physical being, our body, it has a great effect through the prāṇa on our thinking and thoughts. Everything we do with our body affects all our kośas. There is only one thing we need: the willpower to do it, the force to do it. We have to overcome our little Bequemlichkeit—laziness, not lazy, but comfortable, I don't know the exact word—our comfort, and make it our behavior. As Swāmījī gave the example yesterday with walking: they created special glasses so that when you put them on, you see yourself walking on the ceiling. Nearly everybody fell down, and it took time for them to manage it. When they took the glasses off again, they had the same problem. How is it possible? We must make it our behavior, because as we get older and older, our actions and daily life become slower. What we did not practice before in our good times, when we were young, strong, and powerful, when we wanted to change the whole world, we cannot do anymore. It becomes harder. But what is the behavior we are cultivating? True. Many of us are getting older, no? Together with Swāmījī. Swāmījī once said, "We are one family, and together we have lived so many years, so together we will get old." Every age is beautiful in the divine. So, Haṭha—what does Haṭha mean? It means willpower. I see many experts on this subject here, so I am a little ashamed to speak about it, but maybe it is okay. I will try to share what comes and what we learn from Swāmījī to pass on. Haṭha means willpower. It takes willpower to do it. There are these four Haṭhas: the Rājat, the Palhat, the Triyarat, and the Yoghat—the willpower of the yogī, the willpower of the female, the willpower of the child, and the willpower of the leader of the country, the president (in earlier times, the king, the rājā). The yogī has willpower; check this. Last week, we discussed the Maṇipūra cakra. All these Haṭha Yoga kriyās belong very much to the Maṇipūra cakra, the fire element. Willpower, health, self-confidence—everything is there as a pearl, as money. We have it. We use it, or we lose it. "Use it or lose it." Also, there are two main, great forces in our body: the Iḍā Nāḍī and the Piṅgalā Nāḍī. There are 72,000 nāḍīs in the body, like a fine network, but these two are the great main forces. The aim of Haṭha Yoga is to bring them both into harmonious work together, so that one is not dominating the other; they flow together. When these two nāḍīs—sympathetic and parasympathetic, or yin and yang, or material and energy (it is all the same)—are flowing and the energy is flowing without blockages, the third nāḍī will start. This is the suṣumnā nāḍī, the central canal in the spinal column, uniting here in the triveṇī, the ājñā cakra, the shore of the three rivers. That is where Haṭha Yoga leads. So, how to do it? We have the six techniques. First is Netī, cleaning the nose with warm, salty water. We have these Netī pots. They are available, made from copper or brass. We should always choose a Netī pot according to our nostrils, with a hole size that suits us. Jal Netī is mostly done in the morning when we clean our teeth, tongue, mouth, and whole body. The water should not be too cool, otherwise we may get a headache, nor too hot. Some prefer it warmer, some less warm. The quantity of salt should also be adjusted to oneself. Mostly, use one good teaspoon of fine sea salt. Never use coarse salt, as it can burn. If there is too much salt, it is also not pleasant. Never do Netī before going to sleep, as some drops of water always remain inside and you could catch a cold. In the nose, we have many olfactory receptors, endings of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems from Iḍā and Piṅgalā. The nose is a very fine organ. That is why an ox has a ring in its nose, and some ladies also wear a nose ring—it can be pulled, and one reacts very quickly because it is so sensitive. When doing Netī, assume the posture, bending forward. Let the water flow gently, not forcing it too much so it flows out from the other nostril, breathing through the mouth. Do it half for one side, half for the other. It is very pleasant. It relaxes the whole brain, the brain centers, and improves blood circulation. After Netī, we feel more awake in the morning. Even more effective is Sūtra Netī. This is done with a rubber catheter (I'm sorry I didn't bring one; they are available) or a cotton thread with the tip dipped in wax to make it a little harder. Soak it beforehand in warm, salty water. Gently insert it, not upward but downward toward the throat. Then take a sip of salty water in your mouth and spit it out. This has to be practiced; you should see it at least once with a yoga teacher. In the beginning, you may sneeze. If you hold it very near to the nose so the finger touches, you can try to insert it. Do not try more than two to three times at once, otherwise you may feel as if one side of your face is big and the other small, so strong is the effect on the nāḍīs. It is very helpful for those who have polyps in the nose or a deviated septum. It is also good for people who wear glasses, sit a lot in front of a computer, or have conjunctivitis, red eyes, or running eyes. I have heard and experienced that for people who are very emotional or a little depressed, Netī is very, very good because it opens things up. After Netī, we should do Kapālabhātī. So, the first technique is Netī with warm, salty water. Kapālabhātī is even more effective against tiredness. The method: inhale through the mouth, exhale through the nose. As Swāmījī said, it gives a pressure on the Maṇipūra cakra. Do at least 20-30 times after Jal Netī. We can do it together now. Please sit in Vajrāsana if you can. If not, stretch your legs. Place your knees a little apart, as wide as your hips. Sit comfortably. Relax. Let your stomach muscles relax. Take one breath in, and exhale. First, try with only one nostril. Inhale through the mouth and exhale quickly and shortly through the nostril. Once deep in, and exhale. Those with high blood pressure should not do it too strongly; do it gently. Now, close your right nostril. Inhale through the mouth, exhale through the left nostril, and leave the mouth open. Once deep in, and exhale. Do you feel dizzy? Szédültök? A little? Kicsit? Someone? Valaki? This means if you have low blood pressure, it is very helpful; it brings it up a little. That is why you should keep your eyes open. Take a deep breath in afterwards. In the beginning, when doing Kapālabhātī after Netī, you may feel a little dizzy because the brain is being very gently massaged through the cerebrospinal fluid. The whole brain and the spinal cord are placed in this liquid, and the practice gently awakens them. Now we will do it through both nostrils ten times. Leave your mouth open. Deep in, and exhale through the nose. After finishing, please leave your mouth open, especially afterwards. Otherwise, pressure can go into the ear, which is not pleasant. When the mouth is open, because the ear and nose are connected to the trachea, the pressure goes out. It is very important to remember. We can also, when doing it at home, put the head down and gently move it left and right. You will see water dripping out, because many people have problems with the sinuses here or here. Water collects and comes out, purifying the area. It is very, very good for those who have sinus problems, for everything in the head. We have also done it with some people who had tinnitus, a sound in the ear. It is very, very helpful for them. They should try it, but in a proper way: go to a yoga class, learn from a teacher, and then do it. Try it, and when a question comes, ask the teacher, and practice, practice, practice. Part 2: Purification Techniques in Haṭha Yoga: Dhauti and Śaṅkha Prakṣālana In the beginning, it might not be pleasant, especially for those who have dived under the water, but practice makes it easier. This refers to Netī and Kapālabhāti. Dhauti purifies the stomach. Vaman Dhauti or Kuñjal Kriyā—there are two names for it. To purify the stomach, there are many ways, not only going to the hospital to empty the stomach with a catheter and pump. That is not pleasant and is mostly done in emergencies, like poisoning from mushrooms. In yoga, this technique is performed with free will. One must overcome the feeling associated with vomiting. Many of us have vomited in life, with or without free will, due to illness, eating something wrong, or infection. But in yoga, and especially in Haṭha Yoga, we purify voluntarily from time to time, particularly when the seasons change—from winter to spring, spring to summer, and so on—because our biorhythm changes significantly then. A lot of gas, acid, and mucus collects unnecessarily, creating imbalance and illness if it becomes excessive. This is the byproduct of the body's functioning. The Kuñjal Kriyā or Gaja Karṇī—gaja means elephant. Humans learned from the elephant how to do this. The elephant drinks water and blows it out through its trunk. Yogis observed what the elephant was doing. We might think it is playing or showering, but it is cleaning. Cats, especially, eat grass to clean their stomachs. We know this, don't we? Dogs also do it. Animals do this, and humans learn from animals and nature to purify. Especially when we feel something is wrong in the stomach—like a bad smell coming from the mouth, which can originate from the tongue—we use a tongue cleaner. Every morning, we scrape the tongue a little, wash it, and scrape again to remove the layer. We feel better because this layer can culture many bacteria. There are special tongue cleaners available; we have them in our yoga shop, or one can use a spoon with a corner to clean, going back and not just the front. In Kuñjal Kriyā, it is done in the morning before breakfast. Prepare two liters of warm water at forty degrees Celsius. Prepare one liter of water with half a teaspoon of sea salt. Stand in front of your shower tub, bathtub, or outside. Drink, and drink again. If you cannot, then drink one more. And if you think, "I will vomit if I drink this," then drink it, because we want to vomit and relax the stomach. When you do this and feel it coming out, lean forward and apply pressure on the lower part of the stomach. Some people use a finger to start the process. We can do this, but not with too much force or too deep. Some are shocked because it comes right out if you force too much. We are surprised that even when we have not eaten, something is sometimes inside because the stomach is not straight; there is a little hook there, and this curve sometimes collects bacteria. It is not straight; it has wrinkles where things collect. Also, from the bronchial contraction—not only the stomach contracts, but our whole bronchial musculature and bronchi contract—unnecessary mucus comes out. This is very helpful for those with bronchial asthma, as these people have problems with exhaling. The entire Haṭha Yoga kriyā strengthens the apāna prāṇa again. So this is the Kuñjal Kriyā, or Kaca Karṇī Vaman Dhauti, which we do afterwards. We hear of Śaṅkha Prakṣālana. Vaman Dhauti is done after Śaṅkha Prakṣālana. When everything is finished, cleaned, and purified, you also prepare two liters of water, but here without salt, to make everything neutral again. In case something remains, it comes out. You have a very, very good, clean feeling in the stomach. So this is the Kuñjal Kriyā, Vaman Dhauti, or Kaca Karṇī. It purifies the stomach and this upper part. With the Dhauti technique of cleaning, we also come to Śaṅkha Prakṣālana, Nauli, and other different techniques. In ancient times, as I heard from Swamijī—I did not see it myself—and as is typically described in Haṭha Yoga, it was done in a river. Using the Vajrolī technique, one would go into the water up to the hips, suck the water inside into the intestine, hold it, come out, and release it to clean the lower part, the colon. It goes, I would say, up to the colon, the thick part here. We cannot do it now; the water is not suitable. We have other techniques. We have Śaṅkha Prakṣālana. We can imagine: śaṅkha means the shell, the mussel. Prakṣālana means purifying. To clean the shell, it needs to be moved to put water inside; otherwise, we cannot put the water in. It has to be moved. Our intestine is formed like a shell. When we imagine this long, seven- to ten-meter part inside, to clean and purify it... There was once a joke I don't remember from whom: Maria Theresa, the empress of the ancient Austro-Hungarian monarchy, had a house doctor who was really exhausted and did not know what to do anymore. She was ill, had many diseases, and kept eating and eating so many things. Then he had an idea. At one meal, they were sitting at a big table with many dishes. He took everything that was there, put it in one basket, one pot, one bucket, mixed it, showed it to her, and said, "Your Highness, please look. What is this? This is the condition of your stomach, because we eat what we like, what our tongue desires, and do not think about what will happen afterwards. This is the problem." Swamijī always says the tongue is the problem. It is really not easy to control the tongue. It is not easy for me either; it is not easy for anybody. But we have to think about what is good and what is not, and not think about it too late. To repair is harder than to prevent. So this seven- to ten-meter intestine is inside, nicely folded with curves, like a terry cloth hand towel. Inside, it is not straight; it is like a terry cloth hand towel with many, many wrinkles. From time to time, it has to be purified if you have the feeling. We have the Śiva consciousness, the conscience to be healthy and feel good, and to know how to purify. With water, it is the best, with a little salt inside—very, very cleaning. This is a perfect technique. Nothing can be changed in this technique of Śaṅkha Prakṣālana; it is so perfect. I always admire how perfect it is when we do it. It is unbelievable. Of course, if we do it for the first time, we must learn it in a group with a good teacher who knows how to do it and who practices it themselves, with their experience. Then, after three, four, or five times, gaining experience, half done, we try it alone at home. Śaṅkha Prakṣālana can be done, let's say, by everybody. The contraindications are: not under 15 years of age, and not for pregnant women. During menstruation, it is the lady's own decision; I would not do it. Also, for those who have an active, painful ulcer in the stomach or intestine, I would not do it. And for those who have a hernia here, a big foramen, a big hole that is squeezing—those who have this know it—I would not do it. It is very helpful for those who have diabetes, high blood pressure, lack of digestion, laziness, tiredness, and weakness. There are many, many indications for who is doing, who can do, and who should do it. Especially when we start to practice yoga or some spiritual path, it has to be done: two times a year, four times a year, once a year. It has to be done on an empty stomach, of course, early in the morning. The intestines are working between 5 and 10 o'clock in the morning. After ten, it is very hard work. When you do it at home, the best time is five-thirty or six. Get up and prepare. It is good. I don't know; our time is gone; it went so quickly. It is one hour. Should we continue? I don't know the time given. To finish the Śrī Praśānta... You prepare five to six liters of warm water, good warm water. Take care that the water temperature does not change while you are doing the technique. Six liters, with every liter having half a teaspoon of sea salt inside. When you do it alone at home, put it on a small flame or warm it from time to time. It should not change. When the temperature changes, the stomach does not accept it, and you feel unwell; you have the feeling to vomit. No eating, empty stomach. You slept well, and the evening before also not such heavy eating. No chocolate for two days before. No cocoa for two days before. Bread and cheese beforehand is like a sponge inside. Eat sauerkraut before vegetables. Eat the bread and cheese a little bit. Do Śaṅkha Prakṣālana only with cotton trousers and cotton underwear, or natural material. I always see people coming with outdoor trousers, 100% plastic. It is like a pelt, blocked, everything. Do not wear these plastic things. Natural material, natural. Then it goes by itself. We just drink the water and start: 250 milliliters at least. You have a big thirst like this, standing. Who has a big stomach? Who is a big person who drinks a lot, always drinking two at once? Otherwise, it does not recognize. But in the beginning, it is warm, a little bit salty, like a soup that is not properly spiced. Then we start to practice. The āsanas, the exercises, are exactly in such a way that the water flows from up to down, and not from down to up, with no other exercises in between. No margin in between. Nothing in between. Only exactly those exercises. Then, doing them dynamically must be so precise, like in your yoga class, but in that way. Finish, drink the next glass, exercise, exercise, and so on. The exact technique will be given when we do the Śaṅkha Prakṣālana. We try to avoid what people try to do from television. Once a person in Salzburg tried it—he heard it very well; I will not tell the name now, but he knows—and he started to drink five, six, seven liters of salty water. He was drinking and had such a big stomach already, not feeling good. His wife called the emergency: "Quickly, quickly come, my husband! What he did, he's drinking salty water!" They said, "There's a stupid man who wants to kill himself with salty water." They quickly came, and meanwhile, they came, and he went to the bathroom. So, please, no experiments at home. One should know how to do the technique. The technique is easy, but how? This is always the know-how: what we should know, to know how. Until everything is purified—there are no parts inside anymore—you have to check. Many have anatomic bathrooms, so we can see until it is not clean. Yellow water comes out; it will not be white. Thanks to God, if it is white, then you have icterus, the closure of the ductus—I don't know the word in English—but then you have some hepatitis also. It will always be yellow, light yellow. Then we say, okay, practice one round more, just in case. Layers of indigestible solids, like a potato peel or a tomato peel, come out. Through the movement, through the drinking, through the practicing, it is like brushing and working inside. Then it is okay now; I am finished. Kuñjal Kriyā Vaman Dhauti purifies here. If you want, you can do it. Clean Kapālabhāti. Change your dress, wash yourself, and prepare your kicharī, your eating, after Śaṅkha Prakṣālana. There is special eating afterwards, and do not drink after eating for one or two hours. No drinking. Let it sit down and rest. The whole day, when we do Śaṅkha Prakṣālana, we do not eat anything except kicharī and herbal tea. We omit honey because it can cause acid. Do your garden work, do your things, do your homework, and it has a great, great effect. One feels a little tired afterwards. Some feel a little cold; that is also normal. If we are strong coffee drinkers, it detoxifies the body, and we may have a little headache afterwards. This means the trace of the coffee is missing; the inn is missing. So one week, no coffee, no black tea, and there is a special diet coming, a very good diet. After Śaṅkha Prakṣālana, we have such good digestion that we even do not need to wash or use toilet paper. You do not need this; it is completely clean, with no smelling. We do not need deodorant; we are not smelling. Many diseases disappear, many pains disappear, many things disappear. You even do not remember if you had that. It was very good. We have been doing it now for 30 years in groups—not 72, 27 years in groups. And what we had: when women have problems during their days, cramps, it disappears; it goes away. It relaxes. So this is Śaṅkha Prakṣālana, the cleaning: Apañc, Netī, Kapālabhāti, and Dhauti. Two techniques are missing, and maybe we will hear about them next time. So, thank you for listening, everybody. Thank you. I hope everybody got inspiration again to do it. It gives the inspiration from itself; we need not force it. This is the help from Haṭha Yoga, because this tiredness, the tamas guṇa, goes away, and it itself comes to practice more, to eat better. It comes from itself, especially for those who would like to do it, are still not vegetarian, would like to do it, but power is missing. So this Haṭha Yoga gives a little push forward, and our body finds its own way. You need not force so much. We need only the discipline to start it on a Saturday or Sunday morning. Instead of drinking coffee and toast or muesli, drink a glass of salty water and go to the yoga center. This is only this. The rest will come from itself. This is, of course, an Überwindung—what does this mean? Überwindung: overcome. We have to overcome this. Better is to do it with a friend, so let's do it. We try it. We will see what comes. Then we are waiting there. Come in, let's start. It is good; it is very, very good. And afterwards, those who have done it and those who are doing it regularly... Swamijī always says, "If you want to describe someone who tastes the butter, you cannot describe." Once described, you can look: it is fat, it is little, yellow or white. But how it tastes? We have to eat butter and taste how it is. We have to taste how it tastes. Thank you, thank you. God bless you, God bless you... God bless you.