--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Richard M" <compost...@...> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "BillyG." <wgm4u@> wrote: > > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Richard M" <compost1uk@> wrote: > > > Well - may well be so. But my point is that to assert with great > > > authority that "The Yogic Tradition" asserts such and such of these > > > thingies is a con (i.e. a claim to some privileged *insight* > > > into the tradition). After all, if these angas are too arcane a > > > subject for Wikipedia, it is hardly sensible to imply that there > > > can be no ambiguity of interpretation hanging over them. > > > > > > In other words it is an instance, to go by flavour of the day, of a > "thought stopper". > > > > > > What, when you think about, IS "The Yoga Tradition" (singular)? > > > > Probably Maharishi Patanjali, considered by some to be the Father of > Yoga. > > > > I think that's like saying "THE Christian tradition is the Bible". > That's obviosly true- but there are many alternative "traditions" of > interpreting the Bible, as we all know. > > > MMY defaulted the other limbs to one's own Religion (or didn't you > know?), unfortunately for many, if not most, TM has become 'TM in lieu > of Religion', a big mistake IMO. > > > > Yes I know you're hot on this Billy. And I sometimes wonder if you may > be on to something. However I can't quite see how MMY "defaulted" limb > 3, for example (posture/asanas) to religion!
Sorry, didn't mean to include that one, he of course teaches that, I have a bad knee to prove it! :-) > Interestingly, my 'Concordance' does not have an entry for angas. Ashtanga is a sanskrit compound word made by joining together ashta (aSTa) or "eight" with anga (aMga) or "limb". Wiki > MMY seems to say that ANY limb will do (not just dhyana/meditation). > All roads lead to Rome, but you don't need to toil on all of them: True, he clearly mentions in one lecture in particular that TM is all you need, but I think what he 'wrote' is more authoritative to me, than what he said in front of thousands of people promoting TM. > "A close scrutiny of Patanjali's exposition of Yoga reveals that the > actual process of attaining the state of Yoga belongs not only to > dhyana, or meditation...but to all the other limbs of his eightfold > Yoga....these different limbs have been mistakenly regarded as > different steps...whereas in truth each limb is designed to create the > state of Yoga in the sphere of life to which it relates" (BG p.486). Yes, but this comment is relevant primarily to the 'step' question and not the necessity of practicing all of them *simultaneously*. Remember MMY uses the word *means* to describe Patanjali's 8 limbs. Each one is a *means* to Yoga......shouldn't we be practicing them all? as Patanjali recommended? PS You can row a boat with one paddle but two are better...and eight?, well, you get the idea. :-)
