--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "BillyG." <wg...@...> wrote: > > If you read MMY's Bhagavad Gita Appendix on Yoga you will find this > comment, quote: "With the continuous practice of all these limbs, or > means, simultaneously, the state of Yoga grows simultaneously in all > the eight spheres of life...." MMY HB pg363 > > Notice he uses the term *means*, this is very significant as he is > suggesting here that each limb is a method in and of itself (as > recommended by Maharishi Patanjali) to gain the state of Yoga.
I always thought that he meant that, yes, practise of any of the 8 limbs leads to enlightenment but the 8th limb -- samadhi -- is the one to go to first. And by practising TM, you get the benefit of simultaneous practise of all 8 limbs. Now, whether that prescription works or not, I cannot say because I am neither yet enlightened nor a Vedic scholar. But it does make sense to me, that capturing the fort first thing. You know, I practise hatha yoga (more than just the set we're taught as part of the TM rounding program). To do JUST hatha yoga, for me, would not be a very effective way to go to enlightenment. But I cannot imagine NOT doing it. I think it's value is to smooth out the stress release (the karma-burning) that is the result of the TM practise. But there are people I run into that wholeheartedly believe that hatha yoga is a path unto itself. Well, who am I to tell them it isn't? But it isn't for me. > > I think this proves that TM, as taught today, is *Yoga-lite for > modernity*, in spite of his later remarks where he sugar-coated, IMO, > what he was teaching, saying only samyama or TM was necessary. > > I think MMY kind of felt the ends justified the means, and teaching a > little Yoga in a simple manner would be more popular than teaching the > complete Yoga as defined by Maharishi Patanjali. Unfortunately, this > adulterated Patanjali's teachings and left them somewhat diminished > in their effectiveness. > > Perhaps MMY thought he could incorporate the other important limbs (or > means) later when people would be more receptive.......who knows? >
