Aura Yoga World Peace Project

Do Yoga Postures for a Peaceful Planet - Sustaining the Earth by Reducing Stress

2008-05-23T03:28:00.000-07:00

Written By K. Lee Kappmeier

Yoga is often translated as "union" or "connection". As we practice postures to balance our body-mind-spirit we cannot help but be concerned with the planet our feet (or hands) are on when we are in those poses/asanas. When we nurture the soil of our planet we are also nurturing the soil of our soul (some people even believe that the Earth has or is a spirit itself).

Also, by having a connection with the Earth you are in fact practicing parts of Yoga lifestyle. There are many ways in which you giving and or receiving yoga therapy contributes to Earth sustainability but here is just a brief overview of the concept with practical examples of yoga therapy :

The Concept (the need):

Real Peace is healing and connection first for yourself and from your heart;then by taking care of yourself and being a part of your community you realize how far and connected you are to not only a global community but a timeless one.

We all have ancestors rooted in our family tree and during time immortal there were teachers along the way that contributed to a lineage of beliefs, behaviors and experiences towards our environment. Some of us have had great examples to follow while others of us have had more "grist for the mill".

We, who practice Yoga may feel odd or maybe even righteous at times when we look around and see so many others of the mainstream (and of our own blood relations, maybe even our spouses) not partaking in what we feel vital to survival. Yet, regardless of who these "other people" are we do have common ground literally as the same speck of dust and the same molecule of air we will touch then goes on to touch our offspring/future generations. In Yoga the infamous greeting "namaste" is really an affirmation of connecting to another person beyond that person's intention and to the deeper existence and oneness of our spirits.

I have a good friend who's salutation is oftentimes "how goes the battle". This has been his "hello, how are you" so to speak for years, decades. It has nothing to do with any war of nations but rather it is an inquiry to how the internal battle inside of you is going at the moment.

Remember that classic book Way of the Peaceful Warrior ? It was Dan Millman's story of how gymnastics was his mystic art form and healing journey as he gave a refreshing insight into what they call in Yoga; being "actively calm & calmly active". Weather you're meditating or competing in an athletic event (or even going to the grocery store, eating, etc.) you can integrate the warrior archetype in a peacefully connected way that Tibetan Buddhist's refer to as "ferocious compassion". Having a deep cultivated peace from within is to align your action with a higher cause instead of achieving your daily grind to get through the day without hassle or incident. It is a way of transforming stress into sustainability.

A major obstacle we face is the conflict and therefore tremendous stress over how we want to live and how we are currently living. Some of us have spiraling layers of this going on; we are stressed because we want to eat/exercise better but we find it channeling to change so in the meantime we get stressed that we are getting stressed (start worrying we might have a cancerous tumor perhaps and we can't decide it it's from the lack of perfect diet/exercise or the stress of our imperfect diet/exercise, and it can just escalate, etc.) The list of examples are endless; we all have our demons. Suffice to say Yoga Therapy is one wondrous way to express a healing of conflicts and become a peaceful warrior.

I have heard way too often from my students/clients, family, friends and I admit from my own lips and certainly inside my head more then I care tines I can count-- "I'm too busy to do more for the environment as I'm too busy to take better care of myself ". I say now that the "more better" way is to do more for the environment by first taking better care of yourself.

When you take time to take care of yourself enough to recharge then you have more energy to recycle, research better products to purchase and enjoy your awareness instead of being stressed about the responsibility you feel a certain lack of control of.

The great Mother Theresa was known for her service to the poor. The only way she had the energy to carry out that service was by making sure she took care of herself enough to be as worthy as she was willing to take action. She had to battle the delicate balance of healing time and energy for herself and others. Mother Theresa like any mother (including the Earth) gives and nurtures so much but also needs sustaining.

During airplane flights parents are instructed that in the event of an accident they need to use the oxygen mask first and then apply attend to their children. It is ideal that we take care of ourselves so we think clearly as possible and can then have better and more resources to carry out our actions, our connections.

The first of Yoga's aphorisms (the first of the Yamas in Patangali's Sutras); "do no harm applies to oneself as well as the Earth and other people. To have and sustain peace on Earth we start practicing peace in our mind and body and then that expands and connects to a world mind and body but if we don't take the time to sustain our own emotional and physical health what do we have to contribute?

If there was a blazing fire in front of you and you have a bucket in your hand, would you throw the contents of that bucket on the fire if you wanted to help ? What if you really wanted to help but were too busy to be aware that the bucket was full of gasoline ? You would be giving what you had but because you didn't take the time to get a bucket of water then your contribution would do more harm then good despite your good intentions. This sounds silly of course, who would throw fuel to a fire but many of us are so busy and or stressed that we are so concerned about "doing something" we neglect being "actively calm/calmly active".

When you don't make the time to cultivate your thoughts into calm waters but instead have your mind filled with unchecked emotions of volatile fuel then your personal health as well as planetary health are at jeopardy.

Yoga Therapy in general is a process that can facilitate someone uniting the integrity of inner and outer worlds in a healthy way. No wonder many Native American healing or Shamanic practices included what they call "soul retrieval". If and when peoples psyches are fragmented by stepping off the path of their heart, then how can we not have a fragmented unity of the planet ? As Carolyn Myss would say "your energy is where your heart is".

The human form and psyche is a microcosm of the larger macrocosms (the planet, the universe). We all may be a connected and united yet since we are all individuals like the cells in our body--we are separate and diverse yet of the same body in that same host body. We can all use yoga therapy but it might well be in a variety of forms.

Examples of Yoga Therapy:

A regular practice of Hatha Yoga (asana + pranayama) in order to maintain holistic health.
Engaging in a prescribed yogic postures that are restoring a health imbalance (physical or mental).

Adhering to an Ayurvedic diet and or taking herbs for above reasons.

Practicing mantras, chanting, meditations.

Inspirational reading.

Massage, assisted postures (Thai Yoga Massage or other methods in this realm).

Yoga retreats (especially an "Eco-tour")

Variations and or combinations of all the above.

In Conclusion: Please take care of yourself with yoga therapy in order to take care of our planet better by making a sustainable versus a stressful contribution.

K. Lee Kappmeier is the founder of YogaWell and the Institute of Progressive Therapies located in San Diego, CA. She has degrees in physical therapy and psychology, is a licensed Holistic Health practitioner, and a registered yoga teacher.

For more information on Yoga Therapy, Yoga Teacher Certifications, Complimentary Medicine offered at the Institute of Progressive Therapies visit http://www.yogawell.com/ or email k.lee@yogawell.com

Yoga in Practice: Projecting Happiness

2008-05-17T04:37:00.000-07:00

Written By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

We are all human, living life with its many “ups and downs,” but how can we keep our spirits up in difficult times? There are many types of Yoga, and not all are physical styles, like the many popular Hatha Yoga sub-styles.

To name one that is not Hatha, and classified as one of the nine main Indian Yoga styles, there is Bhakti Yoga - the union of love, devotion, and worship.

The principle of Bhakti Yoga is universal to all people of all religions. A person who sings, prays, worships, and helps another person is practicing this form of Yoga - whether they have heard of Bhakti Yoga or not. It does not matter what religion you are because singing, praying, worshiping, forgiving, and helping are morally right.

To quote one of the most enlightened men of the 20th century, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” - Mahatma Gandhi

Therefore, life is a daily Yoga practice, even if you do not attend a Yoga class. When you help others, you are practicing Yoga. It could be argued that you are practicing other forms of Yoga, but that is not the purpose of this article. It is more important to understand that you can help others in many ways, and it does not have to cost you a fortune.

Projecting happiness is free and does not require a lot of money. Here are some ideas that will help you to be happier, and hopefully, more worry free. Whether you are a beginner, Yoga practitioner, Yoga teacher, or Master teacher of Yoga, you should spread happiness to everyone you meet.

Listen to everyone, regardless of his, or her, social status. Let go of judgment; it makes fools of all of us. Pre-judgment is prejudice, and this is the one thing that prevents world peace. To some degree, we all have felt it, but you must discard it, suppress it, and never teach it.

You cannot listen if you are talking at the same time. The wisest and most educated person has learned that the purpose of listening is to understand; understanding is knowledge, and knowledge is power. There are times, when you cannot listen. This could be due to time restraints, the fact that you may have heard it all before, or possibly you do not consider this person’s opinion to be important.

My grandfather had a saying, “Even the court jester can teach you something about life.” Sometimes, we take the help, or opinions of others, for granted. How many times do we seek more information in order to make the best decision? The final decisions you make, in any given situation are entirely up to you, but when you can sit back and listen, that is time for learning.

Try to avoid arguments and stay the course of peaceful co-existence. You may not always be able to do this, but you should try to improve. You could keep a log of daily situations that end peacefully and those that did not.

This is not meant to make you feel guilty, but it is a course in self-improvement.

You will then see your daily shortcomings and your success. Learn to develop your power of influence for the common good.

It does not matter who is right, especially, if your intention is to proliferate happiness. Related to this, I share one more quote by Mahatma Gandhi.

“What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?” - Mahatma Gandhi

Think about these words, and how you can make the world around you a happier place. This concept is contagious, but it has to come from within and spread worldwide.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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Water Blessings: An Exercise in World Peace

2008-05-14T12:45:00.000-07:00

Written By Daniella Breen

An increasing number of people around the world, have come to the realisation that each of us is all powerful. Each of us has the profound ability to create the life experience we choose. This is not about having control over others, it is about the power to choose and experience peace, love, joy and prosperity in our own personal lives.

As with any experience, as an increasing number of people realise and practice this in their lives, the joyous awareness spreads to others. In such an atmosphere, the concept of World Peace is an idea whose time has come.

The World Peace exercise offered in this article, was created by the author in a sudden rush of inspiration on the 7th of November, 2005. As soon as it was publicised, it began gathering supporters around the globe. This is something that each one of us can do. For us to have world peace, there needs to be enough of us that resonate world peace. This is a wonderful start! It is with much joy, that I present to you The World Peace Exercise.

1. Fill a glass jug or carafe with water - preferably rainwater or bottled water,

2. On a piece of paper the size of a large coaster, write 'World Peace' - you can design it as you like with sacred geometry (I use the star of David - two triangles one on top of the other - one turned upside down),

3. Place the coaster on your altar - then the carafe on top of that,

4. Also place on your altar a glass goblet,

5. Every day - meditate for a few minutes, then put your hands around the carafe of water and focus lovingly on world peace,

6. Once you've done that, pour a goblet of the water and drink it.

7. Please note that you can put your own phrases into the water instead, personal peace is the start of world peace.

The programming of water has been around for a long time. Water, like glass and quartz is wonderful at taking on the vibrations around it. In more recent times, Dr Masaru Emoto has worked extensively with studying and even photographing the effects of focusing different intentions into water. He has shown that all is needed is to 'show' the water a picture or words overnight, and the water literally changes form. Dr Emoto travels the world lecturing about his findings.

It is well worth trying this exercise for two weeks, to see for yourself the effect it has on your life.

Daniella Breen has been working with metaphysical concepts for well over 20 years. She has a forum for the World Peace Exercise and invites any interested and respectful parties to participate. Go to the forum at this site. Shaman Goddess

The Change We Wish to See

2008-05-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

By Paul Jerard

One common thread among Yogis is the desire to make the world around us a better place to live on all levels. Many Yoga teachers volunteer community time in selfless service or contribute to local charities.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi once said, “We must be the change we wish to see.” What are the deeper implications and universal meanings of these words? You could spend years analyzing the words of Mahatma Gandhi. In a Yoga class, he is often mentioned as the “shining example” of a Karma Yogi.

Now let’s reflect on his inspiring words and apply them to the present. We live at a time when change must be accepted, but some of us resist change, even in the face of disaster.

As one example: Look at the lack of human action, with the inevitable consequences of global warming right in our path. We cannot leave the responsibility of changing our planet up to governments, corporate empires, or somebody else.

Global warming, tolerance, poverty, world peace, and hunger concern all of us, but we have to focus on these issues at the “grass roots” level, for change to happen. One person alone cannot make a significant impact on these problems, but a collective human intelligence, in the form of a charitable organization, can make huge progress.

Therefore, seek out a charity, which contributes to the benefit of humanity, animals, or the planet. You do not have to give money, when you have none, but you can volunteer your services. When it comes to giving to charity, you give only what you can realistically afford to share.

Some people say, “I will give some day, when I have enough money.” This is a conditional relationship toward humanity. Imagine placing this condition on friendship: “I will be your friend, but you must make the first move.” If all of us thought this way, we would have no friends, and it would be a very hostile world.

Luckily, most people are inherently good, but cruelty always makes the headlines of newspapers, radio, television, and the Internet. Be careful not to be swept up in a polarization of issues, when you watch the news. Life is not so clear that we can define it simply as a struggle between good and evil.

Sometimes, good people fight each other on the battlefield, because they have been polarized into a conflict based on an idea, philosophy, or dogma, which defines the other side as less than human or inferior.

When you listen to a story about a conflict of any kind, do not be in a hurry to judge, pick sides, or jump to conclusions. When you choose a charity, to help or support, make sure it does contribute to the common good of humanity.

One of the changes we wish to see is a better world for our children and grandchildren. Yoga, and Yoga meditation, develop steadiness of mind, which will result in seeing clearly under stressful conditions.

Perhaps, the knowledge of Yoga, the positive results it brings, and its growth, on a global scale, is the most important change we have seen because Yoga can create a better world for our descendants.

The World Peace Religion - The Solution for the Middle East Crisis

2008-05-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

Written By Karen Fish

The Temple of Love – The World Peace Religion makes peace among and unites Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Everyone else and the countries they all live in by tying them all together with their common threads and resolving all of their differences once and for all.

The World Peace Religion is the blueprint for World Peace handed down by God of Mount Sinai, aka God the Father, Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, Allah, Adonai, Elohim, Hashem etc. millennia ago to every single Biblical Prophet including Moses, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Malachi, Jesus Christ and the Prophet Muhammad. The problem is, you can lead a horse dying of thirst to water but you can’t make it drink. The people of Earth are the horse dying of thirst, The Temple of Love – The World Peace Religion is the water, but you can’t make it drink. Why is that?

Let us start at the beginning. Let us look for the root cause of the world’s problems. The root cause of the world’s problems are the Earthlings aka the Human Beings aka the Homo sapiens. If not for Earthlings the Earth would be a pristine Garden of Eden. The air, water and earth would all be crystal clear and clean.

There would be no war, no pollution, no global warming, no melting polar ice caps, no oceans rising 50 feet and submerging most of the earth’s land, and no nuclear cloud from the impending Nuclear World War 3 encircling the tiny ball called earth for 1 year, which will eat away all of the ozone, which will make lead melt on the surface of the earth as it does on Venus, where there is no ozone layer to protect from the nuclear rays of the sun. Life on earth is about to go extinct forever at human hands.

Human beings have already killed off thousands of species and now are on the verge of killing off the rest including themselves. In actuality viewed from the viewpoint of every other species, the root cause of the world’s problems are the human beings.

The dramatic irony of the play being acted out upon the earth is that the human beings believe that the members of their religious group are righteous Angels. In fact Satan Himself couldn’t do a better job of wiping out all life on Earth forevermore in the impending world wide nuclear fire and its aftermath nuclear winter then ultraviolet summer.

Perhaps notions of world peace for human beings are just delusions. Perhaps it is like trying to train great white sharks not to eat smaller weaker fish. The real solution for the Middle East Crisis would be the removal of our species from planet earth. One is faced with the very real question, “Are there humans in Heaven?”

Karen Fish is a writer currently living in Los Angeles California. The Temple of Love - The World Peace Religion http://www.thetempleoflove.com/

How to Keep World Peace and Your Peace of Mind

2008-05-09T17:32:00.000-07:00

Written By Christina Sponias

You need a guide to learn how to translate dream symbols into words that you can understand. However, this is a knowledge you will have for life. Your dreams are produced as long as you live and they work like psychotherapy for you from the wise unconscious that is responsible not only for the dreams but it also regulates the functioning of your body. This is a superior mind that constantly tries to help you-this is why you must learn how to decipher its messages.

They are mysterious because your anti-conscience would be able to understand them if they were comprehensible for your conscience and thus, the anti-conscience would distort them and you would have no protection against craziness.

You need these messages to find peace in life because you are crazy from birth, since the anti-conscience that is totally absurd is inherent you and in all of us and it influences you all the time.
I continued Carl Jung's research in the unknown region of the psyche through dream interpretation from where he abandoned it and saw the anti-conscience that causes all mental illnesses to the human being.

The unique solution we have is to prevent craziness and save the new generations. Secondly, we must urgently save our population that is suffering in despair without knowing what to do, by curing their psyche with dedication and patience, indispensable when we face the worse mental illnesses like schizophrenia and psychosis.

The existence of such a violent conscience inside our psyche could only provoke many damages to our psyche and life since it influences our behaviour and it has a magnetic power: it attracts what is bad.

This is a tragic reality, but it was finally discovered by the human being and now one can finally put an end to terrorism, wars, violence, immorality and all the horrors of one's life thanks to the comprehension one experiences through the psychotherapy that is indispensable for learning how to be peaceful by taming the anti-conscience.

We also have to completely develop our personalities and capacities, so that we may become geniuses instead of using only a tiny fraction of our intelligence as we do from birth. We may also transform this world into a paradise for everyone, instead of suffering because of poverty, wars, crimes, etc. and living in fear of everyone.

Prevent Depression and Craziness through the scientific method of Dream Interpretation discovered by Carl Jung and simplified by Christina Sponias, a writer who continued Jung's research in the unknown region of the human psychic sphere.

Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/ and http://www.booksirecommend.com/

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Beating Depression and Craziness

The Rational For Establishing World Peace

2007-11-14T16:49:00.000-08:00

By Brian Ankner

We can logically assume that World Peace is something that 99.9% of the 6.5 billion People in this world would want and support if there was a way to achieve that World Peace that was practical, logical, morally right, non-violent and serves the good of All People and their governmental structures equally.

Achieving World Peace would be nothing more then civilizing this world by establishing a system of international law and order. Lets face it; we cannot realistically expect to live in a peaceful world until it becomes a civilized world.

A civilized world would be one that functions within a system of International Law and Order that provides guidelines for how all governmental structures and others including religions and corporate structures operate within that international system. A civilized world would be a world that holds the value of all human life up to the highest of standards and would have the means and legal authority to prosecute anyone that took a human life for any reason.

By no means does a civilized world create a perfect world, but living in a civilized world that is functioning within a system of international law and order would be more natural, peaceful, and humane way to exist for All People and their governments.

Civilizing is something the human race has instinctively done since the beginning of time because The People have always understood that if they were going to live together there was going to have be some rules to live by.

Today, all societies have functioning systems of law and order from the local, state, and federal levels and have systems of government to enforce the laws and maintain the civil order. There would be no need for governmental structures if The People choose not to live in civilized systems.

The big problem the world faces today is the fact that it has evolved to a multicultural globalized society that does not function in a totally civilized manner. To correct that problem, it is essential that a system of international or global law and order be established that sets the guidelines for how our governmental structures or other structures that operate on an international level function, therefore, the human race has one more civilizing job to do before it can be totally civilized and peaceful.

The natural instinct to survive in a peaceful manner is the main reason humans have developed the theories of being civilized.

What you are witnessing in the world today in regard to all of the dissension and anger by The People all over this world that is directed towards those who cause the wars, atrocities, death, destruction, and violence in this world is the natural human response to the uncivilized acts carried out by uncivilized governmental, religious, and corporate structures or individuals that threaten the natural human desire of All People to survive in a peaceful and civilized manner.

This worldwide outrage by The People will continue to grow until The People find a way to institute a system of international law and order that civilizes this world. This worldwide outrage that The People are feeling is a natural part of the normal evolutionary process, which is making The People all over this world become more and more aware that the present dysfunctional and unregulated system of global order does not work, and changes are needed.

We Want World Peace Organization is GIVING AWAY $100,000.00 to any indivual or group that can come up with a better plan for World Peace than ours! Check out the challenge at ==> http://www.wewantworldpeace.com/ <== Go there, enter the contest, try to win the $100,000.00 prize! There is no cost to enter the challenge, but it could cost the World if you don't!

Are Yoga, Samadhi, and Universal Tolerance, Dangerous?

2007-03-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

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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Yoga in Practice: World Peace

2007-03-14T10:13:00.000-07:00

By Paul Jerard

How can Yogis and Yoginis help the movement for world peace? Should world peace ever be discussed in an Ashram? What can Yoga practitioners do about conflict on a larger scale?

Most of us feel helpless when we turn on the news. Crime, warfare, disease, and starvation rule the media, but what can any of us do about it? Let’s look at the source: The reason the media shows us negative images of life is because it sells. If we tell the media different, it will cause change.

The media feels they would go out of business if they displayed a balanced view of humanity. “Feel good” stories are not front page news. Look at the number of people who waste their time watching nonsensical television programs. Who is to blame for this?

We have to share the blame together, without pointing fingers; then take action to get balanced entertainment, innocence back in childhood, religion back into the family, and learn to get along with our neighbors. In other words, you do not have to picket outside the White House to make progress. Just by taking small actions together - we can make a big difference.

Discussing politics in a Yoga class is not in popular demand; most Yoga students want to leave the world outside the ashram, but meditating on world peace is acceptable. If Yoga students think of world peace, they might also envision complete freedom from ignorance. Interestingly, this is what many of us think heaven will be like.

We may not be able to create heaven on earth, but we can make small improvements. Therefore, world peace must start on the small scale within our homes, at work, in the ashram, and everywhere we go. Always help others and support groups that seek peaceful resolutions to violent conflict.

Yoga practitioners from all over the world can be found on Internet forums. This is the beginning of many fruitful cultural exchanges that take place on a daily basis. People tend to fear what they do not know, or understand, so the Internet is a useful way to understand other people from different cultures.

Traditionally, non-violence has been a path full of sacrifice, marches, and protests. This is still true in some instances, but it is also true that showing courtesy, teaching courtesy, acts of loving kindness, giving, listening, praying, meditating, and mindfulness make a difference when encouraging peaceful resolutions to conflict.

Interestingly, all of the above approaches and methods for non-violence are from Yogic principles.

© Copyright 2007 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Yoga Meditation for World Peace

2007-03-14T09:56:00.000-07:00

By Paul Jerard

Does world peace seem like a fantasy? What is the number one obstruction to world peace? How can we overcome such a powerful obstruction, with Yoga? Does Yoga meditation give us the answer?

The ego is the largest obstruction to world peace. One person’s ego can affect the collective consciousness of an entire country and the world. Consider history’s most famous conquerors and tyrants; their personal ambitions became an excuse to justify sacrifice, cruelty, and warfare.

What starts out as a personal matter can become a social dilemma, if one person has the influence, and an ego, which is out of control. Each of us has an ego, but we often ask others to put their egos aside before we do. We are right and they are wrong. We imply that they should listen to our side of the debate first.

How is it possible to restrain the ego? How can Yoga help control the Ego?
Yoga is designed to take care of the health of a single person. In many ways, Yoga travels to the core of the human mind, body, and spirit. One method allows an individual’s mind to be isolated through Yoga meditation practice. Yoga meditation allows the mind to withdraw from the “pains and aches of society.”

What do I mean by the pains and aches of society? Unfortunately, no society is perfect. Speak to any social worker about poverty and injustice. Each social worker receives a “bird’s eye” view of social injustice. Over the years, I have taught many social workers in my Yoga classes. It is apparent that they came to Yoga class as a sanctuary.
Why would social workers need a Yoga class for sanctuary? Social workers feel empathy, without ego, and they want to make a positive difference in modern society. They clearly see social illness, and inadequacy, on a daily basis.

How else could Yoga meditation overcome the ego? The mind withdraws from society, distractions, and multi-tasking, which forces the mind to look at itself. Yoga meditation is a systematic healing process for the individual and a remedy for society’s short comings.
In a recent conversation with a Yoga teacher, he mentioned how Yoga meditation is considered, by the public, to be “time spent doing nothing.” He completely understood the deeper value and benefits of meditation, but was concerned about how to reach his Yoga students, with overactive minds. After all, most of them would rather perform asanas than spend time meditating in a Yoga class.

The answer is: We will have to educate them, wait for them to age, or wait for the time, when they can appreciate the meditative aspects of Yoga. If Yoga students were trained to meditate as children, they would appreciate the many benefits of Yoga meditation at this moment. However, we cannot force a person to instantly meditate and “see the light.”
In order for meditation to take place, the mind must be willing to look at itself. When the collective consciousness of a society meditates on a regular basis, it will be reflected by peaceful behavior.

Yoga Meditation is a wonderful resource for mankind because it can bring the mind to a state of peace with itself. A global society, which has an addiction to multi-tasking, needs time to “unplug” itself, and Yoga meditation offers realistic solutions.

© Copyright 2007 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA. http://www.riyoga.com

He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995.

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