Results From Kriya - www.ezboard.com

SRF Walrus

Mt. Washington, Ca

Open discussions about SRF

SRF Walrus > SRF Teachings and Ideals > Results From Kriya
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7	<< Prev Topic \| Next Topic >>

Author	Comment
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/19/04 11:46 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Good reply. Anyone else?
etzchaim Registered User (1/20/04 6:49 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya My understanding of the 'breathless state' has two parts. First, there are the pauses between the breaths. Our breath is affected by our mental states, which can be seen in extreme times, when our breathing patterns change from fear, lust, anxiety, etc. In more peaceful states, our breathing becomes calmer. One of the principles of Pranayama is that just as the mind affects the breath, the breath can affect the mind. So, if we slow the breath down, the fluctuations of mind with follow, slow down, and we will become calmer. During meditation, our minds slow down (hopefully!) and in the pauses between the breath, we get a glimpse of an even calmer pool. If we are calming the mind purposely (or actually, calming it without the stress of 'trying'), and there is a temporary period where the breath isn't bringing it's own 'movement' to the mind, we can, if alert to it, catch a deeper, calmer feeling that we may be able to 'fall into' so to speak. The second factor with 'breathlessness' is that as we bring more Life Force into our systems (Prana is the Life Force), and become more able to incorporate it into our systems, we actually need less of it. We all know that if we are stressed out we become less healthy and need to go on a vacation. If you magnify that calmness and added health with the Kriya techniques, there is a steady, or at least progressive, decrease in the need to replenish the system with 'substances' like food and oxygen - because less is being wasted and more is being incorporated. I've actually been told by a doctor that my heart is beating slower than most peoples. I think it's wise to forget about the 'glorious claims' used to market Yoga, and to focus on what is actually working to make you happier and calmer, better able to live your current life or make the changes that you wish to make (while working on being content, of course!) to make your life better. Flogging people over the head with spiritual superiority is clearly not the thing to do either! Who took the gentleness and love out of Yoga? I'm gonna go flogg them... well, mabe that wouldn't work...
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/20/04 7:44 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Ive found that when I m aware that the breathing has stopped I get an eletric charge from back of neck to whole of spine and chest area this is pleasant but nothing special now its happened a few times,what i do like to do is concentrate on back of neck and send shivers down my spine,I remember it was a game of mine when i was a kid
etzchaim Registered User (1/20/04 7:54 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya So, you are getting reaquainted with your Astral body! Watch the enthusiasm with the neato stuff, though... I'll tell you more when I write up something about your birth chart. The downward cycle is the manifesting cycle, like climbing up the mountain and then being able to climb back down again with all the experiences that you got on top. The cycling around is what increases the level of consciousness and allows us to learn how to transform the physical, rather than just have interesting experiences. In other words, going along the downward cycle bring Holiness down to the earth, going along the upward cycle brings the earth up to Holiness. It's important to do both, but people usually tend to need to do more of one or the other. Balance is the key.
redpurusha Registered User (1/20/04 11:09 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya ugizralrite, Christianity teaches that a "friend of this world is an enemy of God." Turtles and other animals with slow breathing rates live far longer than most other animals. Back in 1952 if you died at the age Yogananda did, that was probably about normal if not a longer than normal life expectancy. Going breathless by the force of natural death and going breathless deliberately are two different things. People who have entered breathless states and come back have said they were beautiful experiences that have had a most beneficial effect on them, so maybe this is why some would want to die consciously or "die daily in God" as the bible reads. I have never had this experience, so I am only telling you what I've heard and read. This is pretty much the intention of most yoga techniques, as it's explained in abundance in the autobiography.
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/20/04 2:27 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya This is pretty much the intention of most yoga techniques, as it's explained in abundance in the autobiography. Precisely my point .
ugizralrite Registered User (1/20/04 7:08 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya www.factmonster.com/year/1952.html Life expectancy was 68.6 years in 1952, but I don't want to nitpick this too much. There is more than enough right here right now in this world to give us an overwhelming appreciation for our spiritual roots. Here is an example of what I mean. Compare the spiritual quest to a jigsaw puzzle. This one is different, because on the cover there is a picture of a golden palace. So we open the box and there are all these gold jigsaw pieces, but there are also about ten times as many non-glittery pieces. So we commence with the assembly of the puzzle, and every free thinking moment we bring the glittery pieces to mind. But a funny thing happens as the puzzle begins to take shape. There is no golden palace. The glittery pieces are scattered throughout the assembled puzzle as highlights and reflections on various objects. We have been tricked. The puzzle turns out to be a scene of our ordinary existence. The promise was amazing experiences through breathlessness, the reality was amazing experiences through natural breathing while keeping a reverent attitude toward ordinary life and what it can teach. The latter is within the grasp of well intentioned people of normal ability. The utility of the big lie is not lost to me, and like I said before, God is the author of this jigsaw puzzle and every piece is precious to me, even the ones that trick us in the beginning. The God game is the biggest venue in creation I would assume, and I don't think that the solution is going to be quick and easy. More like slow, steady, manageable, and on a human scale. Edited by: ugizralrite at: 1/20/04 7:13 pm
etzchaim Registered User (1/21/04 6:34 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Ugiz, nice post.
redpurusha Registered User (1/21/04 7:00 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya I see what you're saying, ugiz. You seem to be taking a more realistic down to earth approach to life, than the ideal perfect picture we have been shown. This is a more healthy approach. I've found the healthiest way (for me) is to balance things out (social life, work, physical/pleasurable needs, and the spiritual quest). So the life expectancy was about 9 years older than the age of Yogananda's death, still in the vicinity. Regardless, if you have mastered the breath, the theory is that you master and control life and death, so you can live as long as you want or leave the body at will when you are ready to. So if Yogananda did have complete mastery of the breath, he could have chosen to leave when he wished. I've found it true that life is a never-ending cycle of ups and downs. I go through a couple of weeks of feeling great and positive about life, than all the sudden come down and be negative. One week I'm productive and get all kinds of things accomplished, next week I have no intiative to do anything. The teachings tell us that once we are not satisfied or have grown tired of this eventually we must rise above this dual nature of the world. The theory goes that only by finding God's kingdom within, or the discovery of the Self, this can be accomplished. But this does not happen over night, but over many lifetimes, many lofty desires and pursuits, ups and downs -a steady battle in which eventually we will see the light of evelasting life and that light is us.
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/21/04 7:17 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya reading Zen and the brain www.csp.org/chrestomathy/zen_and.html in it he reveals an 1982 study on Tm meditators who stopped breathing for up to 30 secs at same time as reporting lucid conciousness etc.interesting book
ugizralrite Registered User (1/21/04 2:13 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Interesting link, also chela20 /20 had a couple of good links on siddhis under core issues. I just started web surfing about three years ago and prior to that it was bookstores and libraries for comparative spiritual literature. These links and discussions here on walrus point to the number of really smart people who take seriously the same kinds of things I was more or less discovering for myself in relative isolation over the years. So it is very rewarding to be on the same page and talking the same language after so many years of pretty thin feedback and support for my self discoveries.
chuckle chela Registered User (1/22/04 2:45 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Snake, you asked for others' input. If I may, I'd like to link this thread back over to the thread progressing now in the "The Real Question" thread of the "Core Issues" section. In that thread, Punk Yogi is suggesting that we not limit ourselves to the confines of our own idiosyncratic, mental boxes, and that we make the effort to "think outside the box," as it were. I think this is a good idea, and I think it may have some applicability to this thread. Etzchaim has been giving some wonderful info about kriya and its possible effects. The point I would add is that there may be many other effects--physical, mental, emotional, moral, and spiritual--that may arise. And when I refer to kriya, I refer to a sort of systemic practice that includes the other techniques (like Hong Sau) and is framed within a sort of systemic system known as Raja Yoga. And I wouldn't even stop there. That practice, that system is part of an even larger praxis of "spiritual" effort or personal growth. I mention all this only because I think it might be worth remembering that things don't occur in isolation. I remember someone once saying, in answer to the question "What does this practice do?": "What is it that you are seeking?" I thought that was a pretty neat answer, the point being that one's wishes, goals, hopes, and dreams are inevitably going to shape how the journey unfolds. Furthermore, as the journey unfolds the wishes, goals, hopes, and dreams may (inevitably will?) change. Welcome to the wonderful world of chaos theory! A world wherein God's grace and your will dance together to produce--who knows? (And if you want to leave God out of the equation, I don't have any problem with that). (I recognize, too, that some parts of the dance may not be so wonderful, and you might encounter some less than ideal dance partners sometimes). As a sort of simple example, and at the risk of oversimplying the matter, I'm willing to suggest that my "practice of kriya" led me to the Walrus and the community here. For me, it might have been inevitable; certainly I am comfortable with the fact that I'm here, discussing and listening to others discuss issues that I think need discussion. Now, this is hardly what one might expect as an answer to the questions"what does kriya do for you,?" or "what have your "spiritual" efforts done for you,?" but it may be one of possibly thousands of answers. Just a thought. I'm certainly not trying to re-direct this thread so feel free to ignore this rambling and carry on.
chrisparis Registered User (1/23/04 7:27 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya You know, I think that a chick starts to peck its way out of the shell when it has reached the level of developement that it needs to be outside of the shell. The pecking out of the shell is the result of that level of developement, not the cause of it. In the same way, I think we start to pick up on techniques of spiritual developement because of a level of developement. I'm not sure to what extent they are the cause of that level of developement. It is true without doubt that there are many spiritual giants of the past and present who never practiced the kriya technique nor anything like it, so it must be true that other techniques are as effective as kriya. This makes perfect sense if the adoptaion of a spiritual discipline is a response to spiritual developement, rather than a cause of it. Just a thought.
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/23/04 8:28 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya good reply
jyotirmoy Registered User (1/23/04 8:43 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Still learning, which maybe is one of the best things about Kriya. We Americans are tempted by the idea that the right technique will give short-term results, and that if I work hard enough, I'll succeed. Against this, the teaching of the BG about nishkama karma, working without attachment to fruits. But then again, we have to put our heart's desire into practice. The lessons and Mokshananda said, "Do Hong-Sau and cry from the depths of your being, God, reveal Thyself to me!" (Bro.M also said, in a sermon at the old Long Beach temple, "This is a do-it-yourself religion." I have pondered this all these years: I do my all, and God is the only Doer.) About breathlessness: this is my main problem. I ask God to take my breath if S/He wants, but I am still breathing. But the last three years, brief, spontaneous suspensions of breathing have come upon me. I just sit there, and don't think much about it. No forcing. Then breathing starts again, and it's almost always with Hong-Sau. Is this it? It often comes while listening to Bible readings, or sometimes BG and Upanishad. Or bhajans (when in India).
SsSsSnake Registered User (1/23/04 10:41 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya J I find the breathless state more and more ,used to be just with Hong Sau but now with Kriya ie sometimes whilst im in the middle of doing it . Also I find even if I just do the TM tecnique it is happeneing so I guess any concentrated /relaxed practice may bring it about although I'm still experimenting on that . thanks for your input
etzchaim Registered User (1/23/04 10:54 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya "I think we start to pick up on techniques of spiritual developement because of a level of developement." That really made me think. I wonder if that's why teachers will give an exalted experience to a student who is not at that level yet. It plants a seed, so to speak, or creates a pathway, so there is a way to 'catch on' when the student is approaching? Also, it shows the error of relying on the techniques alone for the growth process to occur. I've even found that the Walrus stimulates personal growth...
kolorado22 Registered User (1/23/04 7:27 pm) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya jyotirmoy: I really appreciate your posts, and also etz and ugiz and the rest here. Mokshananda did not initiate me, Dharmananda did, but Mokshananda has been my inspiration on this path since I got to know him in the 70s when he used to come to Denver on Center Tours. He was a soul that radiated light. Anyway, back to Kriya, I totally agree that the SRF and other yoga gurus' propaganda about getting liberated if you practise techniques is misleading. Not that Kriya doesn't work, because it does completely. But wanting to be liberated in the future is a stupid idea that can only bring you great sadness. You have to believe that you are liberated in order to become liberated. I think Ramana Maharshi and some Buddhists have the right idea on that score. I did not realize the value of Kriya and Hong Sau until I started to realize that I never really made any progress in meditation until I decided to not get up until I saw or felt God. It takes quite a few hours and then all you get is some kind of sensory confirmation of the vast energy and force of Prana. To someone who is not a mystic it is a lot of trouble for nothing. But true mystics will immerse themselves in it immediately just like a gambling man enjoys betting on the horses or video game player can spend days playing without moving except to grab the chips and dip. After 20 or 30 years you are hooked and cannot stop even if you want to. Kriya is a total physical addiction just like alcohol. The only really bad part about being a mystic first of all and a Kriyaban secondly is that you have to be really resourceful to do this and lead a normal life in the world. You need lots of tricks up your sleeve, lots of herbal potions, dietary skill, mentor friends, and super willpower. Making the transition between worlds can be horribly depressing. Living in 21st century America and being a mystic are like mixing oil and water, especially if you work for a corporation and sit in a cubicle or sweat over a computer all day. That's why most drop one or the other. kolorado
etzchaim Registered User (1/24/04 9:41 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya Kolorodo, This really hits home: "Kriya is a total physical addiction just like alcohol. The only really bad part about being a mystic first of all and a Kriyaban secondly is that you have to be really resourceful to do this and lead a normal life in the world. You need lots of tricks up your sleeve, lots of herbal potions, dietary skill, mentor friends, and super willpower. Making the transition between worlds can be horribly depressing. Living in 21st century America and being a mystic are like mixing oil and water, especially if you work for a corporation and sit in a cubicle or sweat over a computer all day. That's why most drop one or the other." I have found that mysticism and yoga can be both 'positive' and 'negative', as all things seem to fall into a dichotomy here on earth... On the one, the effects of Kriya, or the use of 'spirituality' of any kind, can be used as an escape - whatever it is that a person wants to escape from - whether it is external issues or internal issues. Some people use it to escape from themselves. On the other hand, mysticism and techniques can be used to discover the self and then the Self, and can lead to true freedom. I've also experienced the difficulty of being naturally 'mystical' in the very middle class, suburban American world I grew up in, and in the efforts I've made to balance out living in this world and progressing on a spiritual path. There wasn't much positive reinforcement for me growing up. In what I can now recognize as a pattern of getting up in the morning and meditating, as a child, my mother would scold me for spacing out and not getting ready for school. When I would try to talk about God and things I was experiencing, I was told "We don't talk about that", "You think too much about religion" "You're a lier and delusional" and "You're too much of dreamer". It wasn't until I was older that I came across people that were doing the same kind of spiritual stuff I was doing (it doesn't matter what 'path' anyone is in). As an adult, though, while I have more choices about who to be around, there is also the problem of 'making money' work, and 'making spirit' work. The two are very difficult to combine in a way that doesn't make me feel I'm 'selling out', or losing a fundamental sense of my self worth. I've avoided the 'Corporation' thing, and work for a University, but the pay drops when the environment mellows, I've found, and self-employment requires it's own kind of ruthlessness and self-promotion.
kolorado22 Registered User (1/24/04 9:54 am) Reply	Re: Results From Kriya etz: Great Post!! I know I have been bringing up this subject of transitioning between the American corporate culture and the mystic world for many, many years. No one wants to talk about this. I live in both. I don't know how I can keep this up for very long, and I am convinced every year that I will drop my work, but alas I owe, I owe, so off to work I go! I would like to write a book about how to make this transition between worlds. Jesus said, "It is easier for an elephant to pass thru the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven" or something like that. I feel the same difficulty is there for a mystic to function in the modern manic workplace. Got to run. Thank you very much for posting, you made my day. kolorado

Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

<< Prev Topic | Next Topic >>

Email This To a Friend
Topic Control Image

Topic Commands

Click to receive email notification of replies

Click to stop receiving email notification of replies

jump to:

- SRF Walrus - SRF Teachings and Ideals -

Powered By ezboard� Ver. 7.32
Copyright �1999-2005 ezboard, Inc.