Tag Archives: yogananda

Animal skins for a meditation mat

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Have you noticed pictures of Yogis of olden times meditating on animal skins, like deer or tiger?  Paramahansa Yogananda told his followers to meditate sitting on a wool blanket. The reason is that it insulates you from the the downward pull of subtle earth currents.  You seldom hear about this being mentioned in modern day yoga classes. I wonder if rubber yoga mats have the same effect as an animal skin?   

I’ve also read that if you are celibate you can meditate on a tiger skin, because you have conquered your lower nature. Otherwise you would use a deer skin which helps keep the ants and snakes off (if your in the forest) and keeps you warmer in cold weather .

In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often depicted wearing a tiger skin and sitting on one. Symbolically this means that he is the beyond all powers and controls all powers.

In kundalini yoga, Yogi Bhajan also recommends a sheepskin for meditating. He says it insulate the yogi from the magnetic pull of the earth.

All of the above animal should have transitioned of natural causes.  I myself will meditate on a wool blanket.

 I love these paintings. They date back to between 1811 to 1868. Maybe 200 years from now people will look at my yoga paintings with my cats and think you are supposed to practice yoga with cats . Haha

 

A Smile is prettier than a frown.

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I ran around like a crazy woman today and didn’t feel very grounded, but I feel really good about what I got accomplished.  Now the trick is remain present while accomplishing the days assignments in a state of serene joy.

My routine is to meditate when I wake up and before I go to bed.  Tonight I decided to meditate before writing this because my energy was all over the place. Yogananda says to never say you are tired. I’ve been searching for the exact quote and the reasons why but I haven’t found them yet.  My thoughts are that words are powerful and Source energy is flowing threw us in a powerful way.  Hence saying “I am tired” puts a kink in the flow of energy. He said you can say, my body needs a rest. This is ok to say because we are not the body. We are the spirit soul incased in a body suit of flesh and bones. 

When I was searching for Paramahnsa Yogananda’s quote on tiredness. I found some of these other great quotes from him about energy.

 “A genuine smile distributes the cosmic current, Prana to every body cell.  The happy man is less subject to disease, for happiness actually attracts into the body a greater supply of the Universal life energy.”

 “Incredible amounts of energy are hidden in your brain; enough in a gram of flesh to run the city of Chicago for 2 days.  And you say you are tired?”

 “Conserve the vital energy, follow a balanced diet, and always smile and be happy. He who finds joy within himself discovers that his body is charged with electric current, life energy, not from food but from God. If you feel that you can’t smile, stand before a mirror and with your fingers pull your mouth into a smile. It is that important!”

 “He who finds joy within himself discovers that his body is charged with electric current, life energy, not from food but from God.”

 “The greater the will, the greater the flow of energy.”

I love these. They inspire me to remember to be joyous. Not only does it feel good, it makes me healthier and more ready for Universal energy to flow threw me.  I always want to search for the most positive angle of every situation.  If nothing else works, I can use my fingers to pull my mouth into a smile.  And a smile is prettier than a frown.

 Favorite pictures of the day

East Coast Sunset  (What?) and Ranunculus they are ridiculously beautiful

Ever New Bliss is the reality

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Check : I did a yoga asana practice today.  I said I would do it in yesterday’s post. It makes me feel good to do what I say. It builds will power. If you always tell the truth then everything you say comes true.  I’m working on it.  Also I’m practicing kindness. I want to always look for and see the best in everyone.  You get what you look for. I’m setting my goals and focusing on them. To be the best me I can be, I will surround myself with good beings. Fill myself with good thoughts and input. Read high minded books or listen to them. For my spiritual community, I surround myself with thoughts of God and the great Saints and Gurus. They are with me always.  I listen to Wisdom of the Sages podcast and read the Gita and lessons from Paramahansa Yogananda. I aspire to eat healthy and clean.  I’m trying to set myself up for the highest living that I can allow in.  I can do my best in joy and release the results because by the Grace of God is the way everything happening. There is Karmic law but by meditation and God’s Grace anything is possible. Keep your mind on God, chant japa, focus your gaze on your third eye (the Christ or Krishna consciousness center (your choice of Divinity)), meditate, do everything in service to the Lord in joy. Joy is so important. If we do our actions in anger, we are leaving anger stink bombs in the atmosphere. To paraphrase Yogananda.  A Saint who is sad is a sad Saint. But for real, have you ever seen a sad spiritual leader.  Look how joyous the Dali Lama is. When you connect with source in meditation you experience ever new bliss. That is the reality. Our day to day life is the dream.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/xgc-FIoLcXQ