Yoga: The Alpha and the Omega, Vol 2

Discourses on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, During the early 1980’s it was planned to publish the “Yoga: The Alpha and the Omega” volumes as “Yoga: The Science of the Soul”. Only the first three volumes were actually published, the title stayed as “Alpha and Omega” for the other seven volumes.

Talks given from 01/01/75 am to 10/01/75 am English Discourse series

1 The Meaning of Samadhi 2 Attraction to the Difficult 3 Total Effort or Surrender 4 Find the Ever-Present Flower 5 The Master of Masters 6 The Beginning of a New Path 7 The Obstacles to Meditation 8 From Chaos to Chaos with Aum 9 Cultivating Right Attitudes 10 The Alpha is the Omega

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1 The Meaning of Samadhi

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 1 The Meaning of Samadhi 1 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall SAMPRAJNATA SAMADHI IS THE SAMADHI THAT IS ACCOMPANIED BY REASONING, REFLECTION, BLISS AND A SENSE OF PURE BEING. IN ASAMPRAJNATA SAMADHI THERE IS A CESSATION OF ALL MENTAL ACTIVITY, AND THE MIND ONLY RETAINS UNMANIFESTED IMPRESSIONS. VIDEHAS AND PRAKRITI-LAYAS ATTAIN ASAMPRAJNATA SAMADHI BECAUSE THEY CEASED TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES WITH THEIR BODIES IN THEIR PREVIOUS LIFE....

10 The Alpha is the Omega

< Previous | Contents ‌CHAPTER 10 The Alpha is the Omega 10 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall The first question: Question 1 DO POSITIVE THOUGHTS BRING HAPPENINGS TOO? – LIKE WISHING FOR ENLIGHTENMENT. THAT IS TOO MUCH ASKING from positive thoughts because enlightenment is beyond duality: it is neither negative nor positive. When both the polarities are dropped, it happens. With positive thoughts many things are possible – not enlightenment....

2 Attraction to the Difficult

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 2 Attraction to the Difficult 2 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall The first question: Question 1 WHAT YOU HAVE BEEN SAYING ABOUT HERACLITUS, CHRIST AND ZEN SEEMS LIKE KINDERGARTEN TEACHINGS COMPARED TO PATANJALI. HERACLITUS, CHRIST AND ZEN MAKE THE FINAL STEP SEEM CLOSE; PATANJALI MAKES EVEN THE FIRST STEP SEEM ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE. IT SEEMS LIKE US WESTERNERS HAVE HARDLY BEGUN TO REALIZE THE AMOUNT OF WORK THAT HAS TO BE DONE....

3 Total Effort or Surrender

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 3 Total Effort or Surrender 3 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall SUCCESS IS NEAREST TO THOSE WHOSE EFFORTS ARE INTENSE AND SINCERE. THE CHANCES OF SUCCESS VARY ACCORDING TO THE DEGREE OF EFFORT. SUCCESS IS ALSO ATTAINED BY THOSE WHO SURRENDER TO GOD. GOD IS THE SUPREME RULER. HE IS AN INDIVIDUAL UNIT OF DIVINE CONSCIOUSNESS. HE IS UNTOUCHED BY THE AFFLICTIONS OF LIFE, ACTION AND ITS RESULT....

4 Find the Ever-Present Flower

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 4 Find the Ever-Present Flower 4 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall The first question: Question 1 PLEASE EXPLAIN HOW A SEED CAN FLOWER WITHOUT THE BIT IN BETWEEN. THE SEED CAN FLOWER without the gap, without the time gap in between, because the seed is already flowering. You are already that which you can become. If it was not so, then the seed cannot flower right now....

5 The Master of Masters

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 5 The Master of Masters 5 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall BEING BEYOND THE LIMITS OF TIME HE IS THE MASTER OF MASTERS. HE IS KNOWN AS AUM. REPEAT AND MEDITATE ON AUM. REPEATING AND MEDITATING ON AUM BRINGS ABOUT THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ALL OBSTACLES AND AN AWAKENING OF A NEW CONSCIOUSNESS. Patanjali is talking about the phenomenon of God. God is not the creator....

6 The Beginning of a New Path

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 6 The Beginning of a New Path 6 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall The first question: Question 1 DO YOU RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS FROM ANY MASTER OF MASTERS? I AM NOT ON ANY ANCIENT path, so few things have to be understood. I am not like Mahavira who was the end of a long series of teerthankaras, twenty-four – he was the twenty-fourth....

7 The Obstacles to Meditation

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 7 The Obstacles to Meditation 7 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall DISEASE, LANGUOR, DOUBT, CARELESSNESS, LAZINESS, SENSUALITY, DELUSION, IMPOTENCY AND INSTABILITY ARE THE OBSTACLES THAT DISTRACT THE MIND. ANGUISH, DESPAIR, TREMORS AND IRREGULAR BREATHING ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF A DISTRACTED MIND. TO REMOVE THESE, MEDITATE ON ONE PRINCIPLE. PATANJALI BELIEVES – and not only believes, he knows also – that sound is the basic element of existence....

8 From Chaos to Chaos with Aum

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 8 From Chaos to Chaos with Aum 8 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall The first question: Question 1 THE WAY SEEMS TO BE TOWARDS PEACE AND AWARENESS. WHY THEN IS EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING AROUND YOU IN SUCH A CHAOS? BECAUSE I AM A CHAOS! And only out of a chaos a cosmos is born; there is no other way. You are like old, very old, ancient buildings; you cannot be renovated....

9 Cultivating Right Attitudes

< Previous | Contents | Next > ‌CHAPTER 9 Cultivating Right Attitudes 9 January 1975 am in Buddha Hall THE MIND BECOMES TRANQUIL BY CULTIVATING ATTITUDES OF FRIENDLINESS TOWARDS THE HAPPY, COMPASSION TOWARDS THE MISERABLE, JOY TOWARDS THE VIRTUOUS AND INDIFFERENCE TOWARDS THE EVIL. THE MIND ALSO BECOMES TRANQUIL BY ALTERNATELY EXPELLING AND RETAINING THE BREATH. WHEN MEDITATION PRODUCES EXTRAORDINARY SENSE PERCEPTIONS, THE MIND GAINS CONFIDENCE AND THIS HELPS PERSEVERANCE....