LET'S GET PHYSICAL

THE FIFTH BODY - TONIGHT AT 7 - PHYSICAL BODY

It is such a blessing that we are in a physical body. Many of us take it for granted, but it is a real gift on so many different levels. Each of our physical bodies is different and teaches us the lessons we have to learn. It's a vehicle for our spiritual growth and it enables us to do good deeds to uplift humanity. That being said, why do so many of us abuse our physical bodies and ignore them as if they didn't matter?

Just ask anyone who has had a grave illness and has survived, how precious is the human body. Many individuals who have endured physical hardship and pain know the true gift of the human spirit and even more so, the blessing of the physical body.

According to Yogi Bhajan, (the yogic point of view) to get here in this physical form, you have had to have had at least 8.4 million incarnations. Imagine....8.4 million incarnations equals one light year and in order to be a physical body capable of self-realization, you would have had to travel 100,000 light years. That's a long, long time.

So from a purely practical point of view, its a big deal to be here in the physical body. The physical body is the TEMPLE where all the other bodies play out their parts. One of the big jobs of the physical body is the POWER TO SACRIFICE. Another big job is that it give you the POWER TO TEACH, to uplift. It enables you to take esoteric abstract concepts and break them down for others so that they are understood. Having the POWER TO SACRIFICE means that you use this body in this lifetime to work out your incarnation as well as serving those around you. To sacrifice is also to teach because when you sacrifice, you are going outside of yourself to assist others.

Work out this incarnation....what does this mean? Well, here we have to discuss Karma and Dharma...because with the Fifth Body, you have the strength and discipline to choose Dharma over Karma.

"In Kundalini Yoga we don't worry about the effect, we worry about the cause, because cause has an effect. Effect can never happen without cause; consequences shall never happen without sequence. If a person can be aware enough to know the trend of the sequences, he can control the consequences".- Yogi Bhajan

Karma is almost a household word yet not everybody knows what it means. The Law of Karma means that every action has a reaction and this is an absolute rule of nature. (It is Newton's third law of motion "Every action has a reaction, equal and opposite"). It does not mean "fate".

The idea is not to perform tasks that have a negative effect or backlash. Everything we do or say is a seed planted for the future. Sometimes we inherit the karmic energy of the past and we have to work it out in our incarnation so we can be liberated. If we are slaves to the ego attachments to objects, feelings, and thoughts, then we are biased toward certain behavior. We aim to balance these tendencies through the practice of Kundalini Yoga and the karmas are the conditions required in order to complete these tendencies.

Dharma is the path of life ABOVE the wheel of karma. It is a life aligned with our souls and destiny. It is a life of action without reaction because all actions are aimed toward the Infinate. If Karma is having a balance that you owe, Dharma is having the account cleared. WHEN YOU LIVE A DHARMIC LIFE, YOU ARE POSITIVE AND GRACEFUL AND YOU UPLIFT ALL THOSE AROUND YOU.

Your physical body can teach you a lot. If you experience an emotional stress, maybe you're the kind of person who tightens up your neck. And every time you have a similar emotional stress, even if its just a "hint" of the issue, your neck does the same thing. Your body is signaling you to pay attention to the source of the emotional pain so that you can resolve those issues. Your body is what it is today because it's a representation of all that you are; all your experiences and everything stored in your muscles and nervous system. What you did in the past not only has shaped who you are now but it informs where you are going in the future.

If you find that you are greedy, angry, jealous, competitive, or ungrateful or that you have trouble expressing yourself verbally, then balancing the physical body is your key to happiness and free expression. If you want to create a healthy environment in which your spirit can dwell, then working on the physical body can give you an advantage. If you want to serve humanity, teach and uplift others, then developing the FIFTH BODY will give you the strength and endurance to SACRIFICE and to mentor others.

Tonight's 7:00 pm class will be all about this PHYSICAL BODY. Please bring a mat, a cushion, a blanket or anything else you need to do yoga and relax deeply. If you eat, please eat something light before class as we will be doing a fairly physical set. A powerful PROSPERITY meditation will follow the yoga set as will a deep relaxation with the Gong. Tea served after class and you are all welcome to stay and enjoy the company of like souls. For more information, visit the website. Class by donation only ($15 recommended).

See you later!

Sat Nam,

Raghubir Kaur

How do you get to the Neutral Mind? Meditate, Meditate, Meditate!

Thursday March 22

The Fourth Body

The Neutral Mind

How do you balance the Neutral Mind? Plain and simple.....meditate! That's why it's called the Meditative Mind. It is the place from which you want to live. You might divide people's predominant mind (negative vs. positive) as glasses either being "Half-empty" or "Half-full" but the the Neutral Mind is neither of those things....its a FULL GLASS!

You can see by this analogy that this is THE place to be! As a person who operates from the neutral mind, you will tend to be a good listener as well as a person who can interact in a natural and flowing way. When you are in the presence of someone who in in the neutral mind you WANT to be with them; its very easy. They generally have good timing, good intuition, and an even disposition. You can criticize such a person and they won't freak out on you....and if they are criticizing you, their comments tend to be wise and intelligent.

When we speak of strength in Kundalini Yoga, we not only mean physical strength; we mean mental strength. We mean the ability to confront your demons, your demoting habits, and resisting the temptation to go on auto-pilot. Staying conscious. Keeping up in spite of the circumstances or obstacles that fall in your path. We do this through meditation which strengthens and balances the neutral mind.

The neutral mind is also the HEART SPACE. A place of compassion and inner wisdom. Guru Ram Das resides in this energetic place in us which is why his picture sits on the top of this blog. He is the 4th Sikh Guru and in Kundalini Yoga we all connect with Guru Ram Das every time we tune into the Golden Chain with the Adi Mantra (Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo).

Tonight's class is all about balancing the Neutral Mind...the combination of the negative and positive mental processes. Do you have a hard time making decisions? Do you ever feel victimized by life and not know how to integrate your experiences into your own personal education? Do you have difficulty tuning into the great cosmic flow? Well then....this is the CLASS FOR YOU!

We'll be working on balancing the heart and the head, opening the heart with breath and mantra....and of course, MEDITATING! Bring a blanket, mat, cushion, a friend, and anything else you might need for yoga practice. Donation only (and $15 recommended). All proceeds go back into the teachings. Yogi tea always served...and long Gong relaxation concludes every class. For more info visit the website. See you at 7:00pm

Sat Nam,

Raghubir

ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE

Tonight's class is all about the POSITIVE MIND aka THE THIRD BODY. If you are new to this blog/class, just so you know, we are working on the TEN BODIES one by one. What are the ten bodies? The human body is made up of ten bodies---the physical body, three mental bodies (we're working on them right now) and six energy bodies.

"If you understand that you are Ten Bodies, and you are aware of those Ten Bodies, and you keep them in balance, the whole universe will be in balance with you." ~ Yogi Bhajan

If you want to turn on your THIRD BODY, the positive or projective mind, you need to eliminate the negative. We all have an easy time of it when it comes to negative thinking....having negative self imaging, excuses for why we CAN'T do something, and falling back into old self-sabotaging patterns of behavior. What is challenging is rewriting your script so that you have a hopeful and cheerful attitude about almost everything. It doesn't mean you're a blind optimist either. It means that you employ a sense of humor about your life and have a fearlessness about proceeding into the future. It means that you are calculating the risk of any given situation (thank you negative/protective mind!) and using your intuition and intelligence to guide you.

A strong third body will provide you with that sense of humor and hope. A weak third body will guide you into troublesome situations or throw you into the pit of despair and hopelessness. Either way, it's not a good place to be. Strengthening and balancing the THIRD BODY (POSITIVE/PROJECTIVE MIND) does double duty because it will, in turn, balance your second body (NEGATIVE/PROTECTIVE MIND).

The "key phrase" of the third body is DEVIL or DIVINE. What does that mean? The Devil part means that if you don't calculate the risks, you'll end up in trouble. If you are only seeing the PROs in a given situation and not the CONs...it means to look deeper. Be your own devil's advocate...especially when someone is trying to sell you a bill of goods. Whether its a product or in a personal relationship, be sure to pay attention to the red flags and to what is NOT being presented. The Divine part of the equation is when you PROJECT your will into the DIVINE will at the right place and at the right time, only good can come of it. And mastery of the third body will give you a strong will.

What are some ways we can balance and strengthen the Third Body? One way is to strengthen the navel center (third chakra). Another way is to use positive affirmations and replace negative thinking with positive thinking. If you positive mind is overdeveloped (can't see the whole picture, ignoring red flags, blind optimism) then you can work on strengthening the Negative Mind for balance.

So in tonight's class, we will be working primarily on an area of the brain that helps you to hold on to negative self imaging and over protectiveness. We're going to listen to mantras for protection that will lift your spirits and make you feel very light and positive. In our exercises, we'll be working a lot with the nervous system. We'll also be doing a short rebirthing meditation that will burn out negativity from the past.

Please come with a mat, a blanket or cushion and feel free to bring a friend! Our class is by donation only ($15 recommended). All proceeds go back into the teachings. Gong relaxation always....and yogi tea served afterwards. See you later at 7:00pm. For more information visit the website.

Sat Nam,

Raghubir

MARCH 8 CANCELLED

Sat Nam Everyone....I think I have a bit of the flu and I am down for the count. So.....tonight's class is cancelled. I look forward to seeing everyone next week, March 15th for an exploration into the POSITIVE MIND....the third body.

much love,

Raghubir