Swami Shivapadananda

Danger of excessive Pranayama [yoga breathing]

 

[Pictured: A sadhaka practising pranayama or yoga breathing]

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

[2nd President and Spiritual Head: the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa]

[now a Centre of the international Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission]

DAILY READINGS

Selected from Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji.

Day 951

Some people get agitated when their system heats up through doing too much pranayama [yoga breathing]. So they start doing even more pranayama to remove the heat. [Swamiji chuckles] They think it's like Homoeopathy – all the disease is coming out. So they do more pranayama and get even more heated. And in a while they'll get burnt.

You may think this is not important or not dangerous. It's very dangerous. I'll tell you how dangerous it is. How many of you understand electricity? [Swamiji asks devotees – one raises hand]. Now – if I tell you to fix something on that [electrical] distribution board, that thing won't waste time for two seconds if you touch it in the wrong way. So a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. [Swamiji chuckling again] You may find yourself jumping, huh? That's how dangerous it is. But that [distribution board] is nothing compared to how dangerous it [inappropriate pranayama practice] is, because if you destroy that board you can replace it. But if you destroy these nerves [spiritual nadis or pathways] it may ruin this whole birth. These nerves were composed by God to give us the highest realisation. You can destroy them by your carelessness in two seconds [Swamiji clicks his fingers to demonstrate]. [Swamiji once also cautioned against people using so-called 'recreational' drugs for exactly the same reason. Swamiji's analogy was putting a very high voltage through wires not designed to carry such power. They would burn out]

That's why many sadhakas [spiritual aspirants or practitioners] break [damage, burn out their nervous systems] their health. Why does their health break? Because they're thinking, 'Oh to do spirituality and sadhana [spiritual practice] is the greatest,' and they go off their head [become mentally ill or deranged]. Because side by side with spirituality you must watch how the body is reacting to that [practice]. When the body reacts excessively, then take it a little easy. Make it stronger [build up the body] and then go on.

But you're thinking that spirituality is such a divine thing that you can just carry on [doing excessive practice] and you go off your head. I've seen many people go off their head. [The great Swami Vivekananda, spiritual heir to Sri Ramakrishna described this as a risk in intense sadhana]. And then they blame the guru [spiritual preceptor].

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time. 

 2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. 

Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

For more about the Holy Trinity, and also the founding Swamis of the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa, please mouse over their names below:

Sri Ramakrishna    Sri Sarada Devi     Swami Vivekananda  

Swami Nischalananda  Swami Shivapadananda 

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna - read online

Reference websites - please mouse over the name and click to connect:

Ramakrishna Math and Mission    Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa    Ramakrishna Dham

 

Pranayama vs. mantra

 

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

[2nd President and Spiritual Head: the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa]

[now a Centre of the international Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission]

DAILY READINGS

Selected from Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji.

Day 819

   

A lot of people say, "Swamiji, must I do pranayama [controlled Yoga breathing, pictured above]?" I say, "Don't worry with pranayama just repeat this mantra [sacred sound syllable or one of the many names attributed to God]." As you start telling the mantra, the breath readjusts itself. So you must do it. There is only one dangerous part: you mustn't get depressed. When it doesn't come you mustn't get depressed. Don't feel, "Oh, it's not coming." Treat it as lila - as a game of God.

Devotee: But we will get upset, Swamiji.

Swamiji: Yes that's what I'm trying to say. Try not to get upset. For instance, I get angry and then quickly I say I mustn't get angry and withdraw myself. It's sheer will. In the beginning I may get angry, but then [through abhyasa - practice] I must pull it back again and say "No, no, not like that." It's human, nothing else.

The greatest person that awakened all the mantras was Ravana. Ravana had the stars, the sun and the moon under control. He had everything under control but he wanted to see God, he wanted God to come to him. It's not easy - that God comes to you. If Ravana didn't have purity why would God go to him? He must have had a great deal of purity for God to go to him.

Devotee: During meditation, sometimes you don't see your own Deity [Ishta Deva] but you see another Deity taking its seat. What do you do?

Swamiji: That's very easy. If you see another Deity then let that Deity be there for a little while. Think your Deity has taken that form - and slowly that Deity must go and your own Deity must take its place.

This happens for two reasons. One reason is that during the day when people speak very highly about another Deity you get caught in it. Supposing I speak a lot about Lord Shiva and you are a worshipper of Sri Rama. Then, when you're sitting for meditation, because I spoke so highly and I've got such an intense feeling for Lord Shiva, my Lord Shiva's form comes into you. Both are God's forms, so allow it to be there for a little while and then let it go, and take Sri Rama's form again. Or you can mentally merge Lord Shiva's form into Sri Rama's form. It is written in the Upanishads [Hindu philosophical treatises] that all names and forms are God's, so do not hate it [any form or manifestation].

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time. 

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. 

Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

For more about the Holy Trinity, and also the founding Swamis of the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa, please mouse over their names below:

Sri Ramakrishna    Sri Sarada Devi     Swami Vivekananda  

Swami Nischalananda  Swami Shivapadananda 

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna - read online

Reference websites - please mouse over the name and click to connect:

Ramakrishna Math and Mission    Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa    Ramakrishna Dham

 

   

 

Swami Shivapadananda on the therapeutic power of pranayama

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

569

   

Beginners in meditation have to practise [sadhana] at given times. It is good to meditate when nature is calmest. Do you think that you could meditate if there was a storm with lightning and thunder outside? You would be thinking, 'Oh no, when will the lightning strike me? Will I become a lightning-conductor?' But when everything is calm and quiet, look how beautiful it is. Then, when you close your eyes you have no fear without and no fear within.

Our Rishis [Sage-Seer-Saints] found four times each day when nature goes into perfect balance. At these times the sadhaka [spiritual aspirant or practitioner] can breathe equally through both nostrils and the mind is said to be at its calmest and the sushumna nadi [in the spinal column] is in operation. Breathing through the left nostril is tamasic and breathing through the right nostril is rajasic. Breathing through the middle one or both nostrils is sattvic.

So, if you want a lot of activity, adjust your breath. Press hard under the left armpit and you will start breathing through the right nostril. If you press under the right armpit you will start breathing through the left nostril.

You can also regulate your breath by pranayama. Pranayama cools you, pranayama calms you and pranayama equalises the currents of negative and positive in your body. Thus your mind becomes calm.

The four times for worship given to us by the Rishis are called sandhyas: These are: early morning, midday, sunset and midnight. Sri Ramakrishna used to take advantage of the midnight sandhya. He actually used to awaken his disciples at midnight and say, 'Come on, meditate.' The next morning if the disciples were sleeping late others would say, 'Look at those lazy young boys, Master is spoiling them.' They did not know that the whole night these boys had been meditating while they themselves had been fast asleep. And Master would say, 'Let them sleep, let them have a rest.' At the time when the whole world is asleep the yogi is awake.

Where else would you get such a wonderful guru like Master? He would send someone miles to call one of his chelas. He would say, 'Go and bring him here, go and bring him here.' When the chela came, the Master would say, 'Oh I was thinking about you.'

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.