प्रण तेजस ओजस Prana Tejas Ojas

स्थिरासुखामासनाम

sthirasuhkamasanam

Asana is the perfect balanace between firmness and ease.

The depth of this sutra can be talked about and contemplated for years and still can change into new meanings over the course of its examination. Whether you're sitting in padmasana, savasana corpse pose or sitting in the drivers seat this sutra applies. Prana is the pure essence of vata dosha, the energetic life force, the electric current which is taken from our external environment and brought within our organism in order to continue the walk of life. Tejas is the essence of pitta dosha, the shinning light of our intellect, the pure aspect of inner transformation and the energy that converts all sensory input into knowledge. Ojas is not only the essence of kapha dosha but the essence of all bodily tissue, the substance that creates new life and protect life as our immune system.

Ojas follows prana and when the senses are directed outward our ojas leaves with it. This dilemma is a result of our conditioning and a disconnection from the great source of energy and immunity within. The fifth limb of Patanjali's ashtanga yoga system is pratyahara, sense withdrawal, the answer for proper cultivation of prana, tejas, and ojas and the door for the great journey inside the body, mind, soul trinity. Pranayama cultivates prana, meditation kindles tejas, and samadhi grows ojas. Now the sutra from above becomes vital to the health and natural development of a well functioning body, mind, spirit trinity. When your posture becomes cleansed and purified while upholding a firm foundation in strength and a spirit of ease fills the cells the body becomes inwardly driven. Prana looses its outward momentum and keeps ojas from leaking and oozing while the brilliance of tejas is kindled, all strengthening the vitality and vigour of the organism.

So much philosophy for such a terse and simple sutra. The beginning is observation and the observation is posture. The posture is the balance of being grounded and free. The balance brings the movement to the inner phenomenon. The inner world is where your prana, tejas, and ojas gives you the essence needed to do your dharma, your purpose on this planet.

Mental Ama

View of the Sandia Mountains from my neighborhood here in Alburquerque.


इर्षा क्रोध भय शोक मनास्यामा प्रवर्तते




When ama is in the mind there will be fear, anger, and grief





According to Ayurveda ama is a raw, undigested, morbid, toxic substance that is a result from a previously disturbed dosha or the inability to completly digest food and experience. This substance further leads the body into lethargy, confusion, and the preliminary stages of disease. Having a sluggish digestive system is in many ways the root cause of the numerous problems our body comes into contact with, which can be avoided by a balancing diet and lifestyle. On a more subtle level, slow mental digestion is the root cause of many unresolved emotions and psychological disorders. In the sutra above, the unresolved emotions or sensory experiences will breed fear for the vata individual, anger for the pitta individual, and grief for the kapha all accumulating in their relative organs. A thought needs to be digested and processed just as food needs to be metabolized and utilized for energy and nourishment. When this fails to happen the undigested experience manifest as ama in areas of the body where the immune system is weak, which is known as a khavaigunya. How is this problem approached and how is it resolved? Awareness. Pain, sadness, heartbreak, anger, fear, grief as well as happiness, pleasure, excitement are to be experienced in the light of awareness. To watch emotions rise and fall, to be fully present within your suffering and sorrow is the challenge but healing grace of ayurveda. Be the silent watcher of emotions, not reacting with attachment to a feeling but to fully experience it for what it is and let it leave on its own accord. The exhalation needs to be fully utilized, just as one wouldn't urinate half the amount of urine one should let all digested experience leave with the out breath. By this awareness a new reality dawns and the anger, fear, and grief of emotion looses its grip and can just be seen as the passing clouds within the clarity of the sky.

Karma

Our bodies are truly a unique expression of the universal consciousness which is known as Purusha and our existence as a person is the highest expression of this Divine reality. Thus our past actions and desires become the reason we're all here in this present moment and the understanding of karma will expand our consciousness to better navigate within this current situation.

The are three main types of karma that should be realized and understood which are Sanchita, Prarabdha, and Kriyamana. Sanchita karma is the accumulation of all past actions within this life and all lives previous that are stored in our causal body, asthi dahtu, or our skeleton. These karmas are both known and unknown and are in essence fated to be experienced, which may be painful or non-painful. Prarabdha are the karmas which are ripe and ready to be expressed in this lifetime. Just as Newton's law of physics states that every action has an equal and positive reaction Prarabdha karma is the result or reaction according to our past action(s). Kriyamana are the karma(s) presently being created. The illustration of the rice harvest brought to the storehouse is Sanchita Karma and the portion of that rice which is used to cook and eat is Prarabdha while Kriyamana is that which is being planted for a future harvest.

People that come into our lives for what ever reason(s) is the fructification of Prarabdha karma. We ask ourselves, "why do I feel like I've know this person my whole life" when in reality they have just entered your current life for the first time? Our karmic relationship to our surrounding is a reaction to something that occurred previous to this life. A relationship may ease the intensity of your current state of suffering or unfortunately add to it but in essence when paths cross with other people it was meant and needed to happen. The crossing of paths at times last longer than other relationships and when an encounter with an individual comes to its inevitable end notice any attachment to that situation and let the river of reality take it away. The yogi doesn't try to change the present expression of karma but flows with the current of reality. Our karmas need to be experienced in one way or another and by letting them run their course in our life without fighting is a closer step towards greater freedom. Being aware of our actions, understanding our environment, and staying calm within the storm of our karma is the practice of yoga. Embrace your suffering, know it as karma and let true awareness become the teacher.