On Jun 12, 2007, at 6:47 PM, Marek Reavis wrote:
Vaj, I've never heard how Maharishi received (or appropriated) the "Yogi" suffix, but do you believe that it is only correctly accorded a Hatha Yogi?
Not necessarily a hatha yogi, but a practitioner of yoga-darshana (which includes hatha-yoga).
Certainly, Guru Dev was spoken of as a Siddha Yogi although no account I've read says anything about whether he did or did not do Hatha Yoga.
When I say "yogi" I don't usually mean it to refer to a hatha-yogi, although asana and even hatha-yoga may be practiced.
And if memory serves, Cenkner's Ph.D. thesis on the development of the SRM mentions that at Guru Dev's ashrams meditation and pranayama was emphasized/practiced more than asanas. If so, then Maharishi's own lack of expertise might be why he enlisted the help of a more formal practitioner.
An interesting thought.
