I’ve been fasting today. I do it four times a month and am seldom bothered by hunger (I’ll explain why later). But today was different and in the afternoon at around 5.00 PM I had “demon hunger” and couldn’t concentrate on some computer work that I was doing. I really felt like eating something!

I contemplated taking some fruit, which is generally a good idea whenever you are in this kind of predicament. For example, suppose you are trying to lose weight by cutting down on high calorie snacks in-between meals, and all of a sudden you get the “munchies” well if you eat an apple or some other fruit it sometimes does the trick and your hunger is gone.

But instead of grabbing an apple, I resorted to a “yogi trick,” I drank two glasses of lemon water. I made it by squeezing lemon into the glass and adding a bit of salt and water. This lemon water drink is great for giving strength and it also works to allay the hunger. I drank and then went back to work (which includes typing this blog entry). So if you really want to stick to your fast, before you to for fruit, try the lemon water.

And remember one thing: you will not go to hell if you take some lemon water or eat a fruit. Fasting is not a “religious” act (though it has value if you use the time that you save from shopping, cooking and cleaning and do something spiritual during the gained time). Fasting will help you to maintain your health, so do your best to do it regularly (twice a month is great).

Now, I promised to tell you how I usually avoid hunger altogether on the fasting day, so I will do it. Before you begin a fast you have to prepare yourself physically, and most important mentally.

Let’s start with mental preparation. The night before the day when you will be fasting you have to remember that tomorrow is the fasting day and set your mind to it. It’s final, tomorrow you are fasting. If you have this kind of determination, then your desire to eat will not even start working on the day of fasting. It just shuts down. It is amazing but it is true.

If you don’t make this kind of mental preparation then when you wake up you will be thinking of breakfast or of eating sometime. If you decide to fast right then, on the spot, you will also think about why it might be good to eat (you can always find a reason!). And in the midst of this quivering mind-set hunger usually wins the day! So make up your mind the night before and you will be surprised at how helpful it is.

Second, and this is why I was hungry today, prepare yourself physically. The day before the fast make sure that you get enough liquids and also enough calories. My meals yesterday must have been too skimpy and that is why I got hungry. In any case the day is almost over and tomorrow I will dig into some yogurt and fruit!

It is not easy to follow a spiritual path in an age of materialism. You may be trying to improve yourself with yoga and meditation, but your neighbors, friends and even family members may be moving in a different direction.

One of the ways you can gain the strength needed to stick to your path is by associating with like-minded people.  When I first began yoga there were some days when I didn’t feel like doing it, but I was with some friends who were also into yoga and they said, “come on let’s do our yoga postures together.” So that really helped. Imagine if I had had friends who would have said,”yeah, yoga is for sissies, come on let’s go and drink some beer.” I wouldn’t be here now writing this yoga blog!

So, if you want to remain consistent and strong in your yoga practice hang out with like-minded people. Find some friends who also wish to move on the spiritual path. Good company in Sanskrit is called Satsaunga (sometimes written, satsanga). Sat signifies the unchangeable supreme truth and saunga means company.

Here is what my guru, Shrii Shrii Anandamurti has to say about satsaunga:

“Even a golden vessel needs polishing occasionally. Unmaintained it gathers dust and dirt and loses its lustre. Similarly, even a good person or a sádhaka needs proper maintenance, for in a world of constant change, care must be taken that the change be always towards the better or the higher. Keeping good company is essential for this positive development. While bad company strengthens the bondage of the soul, good company is conducive to liberation and salvation. The keeping of good company is conducive to liberation and is known as satsauṋga in Sanskrit. When satsauṋga is followed, either physically or mentally or both, the subconscious mind, and thus the conscious mind, are charged with better and higher influences. This change will move the follower forward towards higher and better goals.”

You can find out more about this approach to yoga at www.anandamarga.org 

India is the home of yoga and I am visiting here for the next month. I hope to share some insights with you during this trip and show you some pictures soon. So come back in the next few days

In India one of the most famous prayers is the Gayatrii Mantra or Gayatrii Rk. Here is what my Guru, Shrii Shrii Anandamurti has to say about it:

By meditating on this divine effulgence we get the inspiration to move along the path of blessedness. That is why we meditate and that is why we are to meditate. We must meditate. This prayer is of the cardinal type, hence it is a necessity. We should do it, we must do it. Prayers like, “Oh God, give us food, give us drink” are all non-cardinal; hence they are useless and should always be discouraged. I told you that your requirements are better known to Him. You do not know what you actual requirements are. He knows. In several portions of the Yajurveda also, prayers are like this “guide our intellect unto the path of blessedness.” 

by Dada Vedaprajinananda

The practice of yoga and meditation has become increasingly popular in the past few years, but I am sure that there are many people who are still asking themselves, “What’s in it for me?” So, if you have been wondering whether it would be worth your time to start practicing yoga and meditation, I would like to give you five good reasons why it would be a very worthwhile activity for you. (more…)

Usually on New Year’s eve many people make resolutions to improve their lives during the coming year. This is a good thing because firm determination is the first secret of spiritual success.

However it is not enough to stop there. After you make a determination to do something, you have to follow up with action. So, if you have resolved to become regular in your practice of yoga and meditation, then now is the time to act on this resolution. It is already the new year, so if you skipped your yoga session this morning, then do it this evening. Don’t wait till tomorrow or the next day to start, or you may never get going.

In any case I don’t want to give a lecture about this, I would just like to wish you a Happy New Year and lots of success in the coming months.

Lots of people make resolutions on or before New Year’s day, but not so many people carry them out successfully. But that doesn’t mean that we should not try. The mayor of Oklahoma City has taken on a great resolution to try to help his obese city (they are ninth in the USA) to lose one million pounds collectively. I have given some suggestions on how individuals can lose weight, and you can read about them.

Similarly if you want to give up smoking, then now is also a good time to do it. I wrote a book about this subject and you can look a the introduction to it on the web.

So, it is a New Year, it is time to open up a new chapter in our lives. I hope we are all successful in this endeavor.

In the West this is a hot topic of debate among philosophers and among common people. Can we influence our destiny or is everything decided before hand by a higher power?

I have already written extensively on the matter and you can go and read about it, but now I want to present it from the another angle. There is an old saying “Man proposes and God disposes.” So often our best laid plans do not come to fruition, despite hard work and good intentions.

In the field of devotional yoga (bhakti yoga) there is an important concept that deals with this. It is called Prapatti, and it means that whatever happens, happens according to the will of God. Not even a blade of grass can move without having the backing of the Cosmic will.

Understanding this, then the best way to be successful is to align your will with the cosmic will. Instead of swimming against a river learn how to find the cosmic flow and go with it. And that is what spiritual practice (yoga, meditation) is all about, getting in tune with that Cosmic flow.

We have been asked whether someone can get liberation using a simple mantra such as Baba Nam Kevalam, and what to do if you are not near one of our meditation centers.

Many years ago our Guru, Shrii Shrii Anandamurti answered the first part of the question directly He said that “In meditation there must always be the feeling that you want to serve Him. If this is the feeling, immediately the mind gets concentrated. If in meditation there is the culmination of service, everything will be achieved. Even through the preliminary lessons of meditation a spiritual aspirant can get salvation, but even one practicing higher meditation cannot attain it if there is no feeling of service.”

So, if your approach is correct you can get liberation with the simplest form of meditation. However, whenever possible it is also good to learn more advanced lessons of meditation because they will help you in your practice.

If you are not near a center, you can still request a visit from one of our traveling teachers. And if that doesn’t bring immediate results there is one more thing you can do. Make yourself “ready.” Practice whatever you can in the most sincere manner possible and cultivate your yearning for liberation. Again the words of the Guru are instructive. He said “when the vehement desire for liberation arises in a person, that person attains the Sadguru on the strength of that desire.”

This is similar to famous phrase “when the student is ready, the teacher appears.” So make yourself ready, prepare yourself, and before you know it you will be face to face with a spiritual teacher. You don’t have to travel anywhere!

By Dada Vedaprajinananda

A lot of people think that yoga is just a system of stretching exercises. However, yoga is in fact an all-out system of improving the human condition, turning an ordinary human being into an extraordinary human being. The foundation of yoga is good conduct. That is, we should live our life in way that puts us in harmony with our society and with our own inner self.

One of the principles of good conduct is known in Sanskrit as “Sayta.” There is no English synonym for Satya, but the yoga master Shrii Shrii Anandamurti has defined it as “proper action of mind and the right use of words with the spirit of welfare.” (more…)

by Dada Vedaprajinananda

(this another article in our Yama-Niyama series)

Many years back when I was just beginning the practice of yoga, someone came to me and asked how he could begin yoga. As I was not a teacher at that time, I recommended a popular book with yoga postures. My friend looked at me and in all seriousness said, “Where can I steal it.”

Well, you can’t begin your practice of yoga with an act of theft as good conduct is the base for all yoga practice. It is impossible to attain harmony with others and inner peace if you ignore the fundamental principles of morality. In yoga, as in many other traditions, non-stealing is an important element of proper living. Let’s take a look at Asteya (non-stealing) as seen by yoga. (more…)