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Thursday, March 15, 2007

Are Yoga, Samadhi, and Universal Tolerance, Dangerous?


By Paul Jerard

Would you believe that someone could claim that Samadhi is dangerous, unholy, and counter productive? Samadhi is the eighth limb of Yoga. There are different degrees and types of Samadhi, but all of them require a state of meditative absorption.

It never ceases to amaze me how often meditation has been perceived as an evil practice, when meditation has been practiced by religious leaders of every faith. Meditation has also been practiced within every corner of the earth.

To quote Swami Krishnananda: “The temptation from the evil one comes, first, in the form of unsettled thinking, which makes one immediately forget the Presence of God. This is at once followed by the implementation of the evil move, whether in the shape of passion or anger.”

Swami Krishnananda says this so well that you may have to read his words many times before complete realization. Unsettled thinking does make one forget the Presence of God.

Look at the cruelty man inflicts on his fellow man. Do you think an oppressor is considering the Presence of God, or meditating, during his “off hours?”

So, where does this concept of “evil meditation” and “bad Yoga” come from? It originates from people who would rather keep the world divided. World peace could take their power away. Some of them pretend to be holy men, and some pretend to be peace-loving politicians.

Rudolph Hess spoke of world peace in a speech he gave on July 8, 1934. Some people, who heard or read it, believed his words. Unfortunately, the world “paid the price,” for believing his words, during World War II.

There are many good and kind politicians, but absolute power is very hard for the human mind, and the ego, to handle. There are so many hidden agendas, that a well-meaning politician could be smothered by them. It has been this way since democracy was created in Athens.

True, and noble religious leaders, should never incite violence or endorse any elitist philosophy. Inciting violence, in the name of God, is morally wrong.

Should we really be concerned with how our neighbors pray to God? Since God is all around us, what is wrong with praying to him as often as possible? At a time when this world, and its families, need to be more connected to God - religions should show much more mutual respect toward each other.

Back to Yoga: Yoga is for mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional health. Who would deny the obvious, and why should anyone worry about it? Why should Yoga practitioners be at odds with any organized religion? In fact, they are not.

© Copyright 2007 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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