Gurus of Modern Yoga by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 2013-10-17T00:00:00+00:00

NOTES

1. In 2010, an earlier version of this chapter appeared in Religions of South Asia 4 (1): 67–88. Since 1994, Amrit Desai is no longer associated with the Kripalu center. However, their current Website claims that it has welcomed over one million visitors since it opened its door in the early 1970s, and it boasts a roster of high profile patrons and international teachers. As stated, in 2011 the Kripalu center reported revenues totaling over $30.6 million dollars under its charitable, tax-exempt status, making it one of the largest and most successful spiritual organizations in North America (see IRS public tax return, http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2009/231/718/2009-231718197-065128bd-9.pdf (accessed June 24, 2013)).

2. In 1989 I conducted field research on various sites relevant to Kripalu’s life including the Brahmeshwar Mandir in Kayavarohan, his mahāsamādhi in Malov, and the Munimandal Ashram of the Udasin lineage in Haridwar. In 2002 I stayed at Kripalu Muni Mandal Ashram in Pransali located near the well-known Śiva temple at Somnath.

3. The heritage of yoga scriptures in India is vast. Kripalu was selective and focused primarily on medieval Nāth haṭhayoga texts such as Haṭhayogapradīpikā (HYP); Haṭhapradīpā (HD); Gorakṣa Saṁhitā; Gorakṣa Paddhati; Gorakṣaśataka (GŚ); Gheraṇḍa Saṁhitā (GS); Khecarīvidyā (KV); Yoga Bīja; Śiva Saṁhitā (ŚS); and Haṭharatnāvalī, to name just a few. This genre of Sanskrit literature concentrates primarily on a prescriptive regimen of corporeal practices that facilitate samādhi and longevity. Goraknāth of the Nāth yoga sampradāya first used the technical term haṭha in the Haṭhadīpikā (HD). See also Reddy (1982) for more details on two unpublished manuscripts of the HD in the Darbar Library, Nepal and Government Manuscript Library Bhubaneswar, Orissa. See also White (1996) for an excellent study of Nāth tradition in India.

4. Kripalu’s pravṛtti mārga for non-renouncers emphasizes c itta over prāṇa meaning that āsanas and prāṇāyāma (breathing practices) are learned and practiced voluntarily. The practice remains steady, and the energy is restrained. In more advanced or adept stages, āsanas and other kriyās arise spontaneously (sahaja), involuntarily, or naturally through the intense force of awakened kuṇḍalinī.

5. The Mahālakṣmī Temple was completed in Bombay c. 1785. Considering Kripalu’s own visionary experiences at Kayavarohan, the temple has an interesting story. The chief engineer of the Hornby Vellard named Ramji Shivji was having a difficult time building the exterior sea wall. It had collapsed on more than one occasion. However, the goddess Lakṣmī came to him in a dream and told him to look under the sea for three buried statues (of Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī, and Kālī). He led a search, found the three statues, and built a temple to house them.

6. Kripalu claims if a guru gives śaktipāt it does not necessarily mean that he is a perfect yogi (mahātma. For example, Amrit Desai, as a householder or lay disciple, bestowed śaktipāt). Tibetan lamas also employ a variant of śaktipāt during certain ritual initiation ceremonies or wongkurs.

7. After returning from a field trip to the Amarnath caves in 1989, I traveled this particular pilgrimage route with Swami Vinit Muni, Kripalu’s principle disciple, and visited

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.