PDF - Himalayan Academy

222 Pages·2015·11.36 MB·English

by  Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

ivasma&tama< yaaegasya maUlama<
First Edition
Copyright © 2004
by Himalayan Academy
Yoga’s Forgotten Foundation, Twenty Timeless Keys to Your
Divine Destiny is published by Himalayan Academy. All
rights are reserved. Th is book may be used to share the
Hindu Dharma with others on the spiritual path, but
reproduced only with the publisher’s prior written consent.
Designed, typeset and edited by the sannyâsin swâmîs of the
Saiva Siddhanta Yoga Order, 107 Kalolalele Road, Kapaa,
Hawaii, 96746-9304, USA.
Published by
Himalayan Academy
USA • India
printed in malaysia by sampoorna printers sdn bhd
by arrangement with uma publications
Library of Congress Control Number 2003110985
ISBN 0-945497-91-1
Art Descriptions
Chapter Art: The art opening each chapter is the work of A. Manivelu.
Cover Art: Artist S. Rajam depicts Lord Íiva embracing the restraints
and observances with ten pairs of seekers, one yama and one niyama as
described in the text.
Dakshi∫âmûrti: Opposite the half-title page is a photo of the twelve-
foot-tall black granite statue of Lord Íiva as the silent sage, teacher of
teachers. The statue is situated at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery at the north
perimeter of Iraivan Temple.
Half-title page: S. Rajam paints each of the twenty yamas and niyamas
being practiced under a giant forest tree.
Twenty Timeless Keys
To Your Divine Destiny
ivasma&tama< yaaegasya maUlama<
DyaanaaTa*\ saaEBaagyada:
iva\xaita-k[alaaitata-saUktaya:
Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniyaswami

CONTENTS v
Contents
Vishayasûchî ivaSayasaUcaI
Foreword—Upakrama˙ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vii
Author’s Introduction—Granthakâra Bhûmikâ . . . . . . . . xi
1. Th e First Restraint, Noninjury . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
2. Th e Second Restraint, Truthfulness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
3. Th e Th ird Restraint, Nonstealing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4. Th e Fourth Restraint, Sexual Purity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5. Th e Fift h Restraint, Patience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
6. Th e Sixth Restraint, Steadfastness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
7. Th e Seventh Restraint, Compassion . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
8. Th e Eighth Restraint, Honesty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
9. Th e Ninth Restraint, Moderate Diet . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
10. Th e Tenth Restraint, Purity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
11. Th e First Observance, Remorse and Modesty . . . . .57
12. Th e Second Observance, Contentment. . . . . . . . . . .67
13. Th e Th ird Observance, Giving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
14. Th e Fourth Observance, Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
15. Th e Fift h Observance, Worship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
16. Th e Sixth Observance, Scriptural Study . . . . . . . . . 101
17. Th e Seventh Observance, Cognition. . . . . . . . . . . .109
18. Th e Eighth Observance, Sacred Vows . . . . . . . . . . . 119
19. Th e Ninth Observance, Recitation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
20. Th e Tenth Observance, Austerity and Sacrifi ce . . . 131
Conclusion—Samâpanam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Glossary—Íabda Koßa˙ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Sanskrit Pronunciation—Ucchâra∫am Saμsk®ita. . . . . .167
Index—Anukrama∫ikâ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169
Colophon—Antyavachanam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

FOREWORD vii
Foreword
Upakrama˙ opak==[ma:
URUDEVA TRAVELED BY AIR OFTEN, AND FROM
TIME TO TIME COMMENTED ON HOW PRO
FESSIONALLY THE FLIGHT CREW HAD CON
DUCTED THEMSELVES. HE WOULD ASK, “HOW
oft en do you see a professional team of people misbehave on
the job? You’re on a fl ight from San Francisco to Singapore.
Do the stewardesses bicker in the aisle? Of course not. People
at this level of business have control of their minds and emo-
tions. If they didn’t, they would soon be replaced. When they
are on the job, at least, they follow a code of conduct spelled
out in detail by the corporation.” He would go on to say
that it’s not unlike the moral code of any religion, outlining
sound ethics for respect and harmony among humans. Th ose
seeking to be successful in life strive to fulfi ll a moral code
whether “on the job” or off . Does Hinduism and its scriptures
on yoga have such a code? Yes: twenty ethical guidelines
called yamas and niyamas, “restraints and observances.”
Th ese “do’s” and “don’ts” are a common-sense code
recorded in the Upanishads, the fi nal section of the 6,000-
to 8,000-year-old Vedas, mankind’s oldest body of scripture,
and in other holy texts expounding the path of yoga. Th e
yamas and niyamas have been preserved through the cen-
turies as the foundation, the fi rst and second stages, of the
eight-staged practice of yoga. Yet, they are fundamental to all
beings, expected aims of everyone in society, and assumed
to be fully intact for anyone seeking life’s highest aim in the
pursuit called yoga. Sage Patanjali (ca 200 bce), raja yoga’s
foremost propounder, told us, “Th ese yamas are not limited
by class, country, time (past, present or future) or situation.
Hence they are called the universal great vows.” Yogic scholar
vviiiiii YOGA’S FORGOTTEN FOUNDATION
Swami Brahmananda Saraswati revealed the inner science
of yama and niyama. Th ey are the means, he said, to control
the vitarkas, the cruel mental waves or thoughts, that when
acted upon result in injury to others, untruthfulness, hoard-
ing, discontent, indolence or selfi shness. He stated, “For each
vitarka you have, you can create its opposite through yama
and niyama, and make your life successful.”
Today’s popular concept of yoga equates it with ha†ha
yoga and the practice of the ha†ha yoga âsanas, or postures.
Many who practice yoga do so solely for health benefi ts. How-
ever, others pursue it in hopes of reaping the spiritual benefi ts
it off ers. It is to these spiritual seekers who have higher con-
sciousness as the goal of their yoga that this book is directed.
Yoga is also known as ash†âˆga yoga because it consists
of eight stages: yama, restraint; niyama, observance; âsana,
seat or posture; prâ∫âyâma, mastering life force; pratyâhâra,
withdrawal; dhara∫â, concentration; dhyâna, meditation;
and samâdhi, God Realization. Th ese two vital stages—yama,
the restraints; and niyama, the observances—traditionally
precede âsana, but they are omitted in most yoga classes
today. We can liken these eight limbs to a tall building. Th e
yamas are the fi rst part of the foundation, like the cement,
and the niyamas are the second part, like the steel. Together
they provide the support a skyscraper needs to stand. Åsana,
prâ∫âyâma and pratyâhâra are like the lower fl oors, dhâra∫a,
dhyâna, the middle ones, and samâdhi is the top fl oor.
I remember years ago watching the Transamerica Build-
ing in San Francisco being erected. First the construction
crew dug down quite a depth with huge equipment. Th en
massive steel pilings were driven, inches at a time, hundreds
of feet into the earth. Th en thousands of yards of concrete
were poured. Th e long lineup of cement trucks created a traf-
fi c jam in the well-traffi cked business district. From the con-
crete, the steel rose upward as a framework for the rest of the
structure. Th is massive foundation was needed to keep this