SAIEN

I come to you with the grime of an ancient past So sticky that the waters of your grace Alone can dissolve it. I ask to be cleansed first so that then you can hold me. You embrace me as I am and in doing so cleanse. Strange is your magic that makes every bit of grime  I offer you into gleaming gold And dims my own reflection in the mirror, Ushering me towards that longed for return to innocence When nothing of me is left to be reflected. When the mirror everywhere blossoms into only one face: The face of  the beloved. - Anahita Sanjana (India)  

Integral Yoga and its Practice [1] Sri Aurobindo's "Integral Yoga" is a spiritual practice that aims to achieve a holistic transformation of the individual. In simple terms, it seeks to integrate all aspects of life—physical, emotional, mental and spiritual—into a unified experience of higher consciousness akin to divinity. Sri Aurobindo envisioned a   'Triple Transformation' : the Psychic, the Spiritual and the Supramental. Key elements include: Unity of Existence: Recognizing that everything is interconnected and part of a greater whole. Transformation: Not just seeking personal enlightenment but transforming the entire being to embody divine consciousness. Practice: Involves meditation, self-discipline, and surrender to a higher power to cultivate inner strength and awareness. Life and Spirit: Emphasizes that spiritual life should not be separate from daily life; instead, everyday activities can be a means of spiritual growth. Sri Aurobindo’s thoughts on Integr...

When we consider the ‘awakening of the Kundalini Shakti’ at the base of the spine, we frequently imagine some kind of dramatic experience, some palpable energy, some noticeable force operating and moving up through the experiential body. And in some cases, this actually does occur this way. For the most part, however, the awakening of the Yoga-Force is more subtle. As a chakra 'opens' it becomes receptive to energies that vibrate at the frequency that it is able to receive, similar to a radio receiver tuned to a specific channel. In some cases, the development of the energies occurs quite naturally as a process of maturation of the being. The individual simply grows into it. In other cases, there is some prod or impetus that touches something deep inside and awakens the individual to a new thought, a new emotion, a new energy, a new way of being. Then there are the dramatic instances where an individual undergoes some kind of intense, life-changing experience, possibly a near d...

The other day as I read the following lines from Sri Aurobindo’s  Savitri , I felt such a deep relief. Or was it a release? For though a dress of blind and devious chance Is laid upon the work of all-wise Fate, Our acts interpret an omniscient Force That dwells in the compelling stuff of things, And nothing happens in the cosmic play But at its time and in its foreseen place.  (Book V, Canto I, p. 389) Our acts interpret an omniscient Force… nothing happens in the cosmic play, but at its time and in its foreseen place. To this day I find myself unable to express why that feeling came on so strongly after reading these lines. I had read these lines several times before. But this time the experience was different. Maybe the mind does not know the reason or maybe it does, but does it really matter? What matters is what was experienced, what was felt. Even if such experiences of release are for a few moments, perhaps their value lies in the way they leave their imprint drop by dro...