Namaskar July 2010

Dristi Tapas
Tan
antr
tra on Tap
apas
as
Yogesvara Sarasvati
GRATITUDE TO MY GURU’S GURU, PARAMAHAMSA SATYANANDA SARASVATI
(“Swamiji”) who recently took Mahasamadhi [the act of consciously and intentionally
leaving one’s body at the time of death] and is largely responsible for re-invigorating the
tradition of classical Tantra and Hatha Yoga in our modern context.
In Swamiji we find the expression of a real
tried and true yogi – fully established in the
view, methods and ultimate fruit of
authentic yoga practice. In his authoritative
commentary on the seminal text, the Hatha
Yoga Pradipika by Swami Swatmarama,
Swamiji deals adeptly with the topics of
tapas, yama and niyama – subjects that have
become associated with so much of
modern commercial yoga.
Swamiji writes, “The beauty of the Hatha
Yoga Pradipika is that it solves a very great
problem faced by every aspirant.
Swatmarama completely eliminated the
yama (moral codes) and niyama (selfrestraints)
which are the starting points in
the Buddhist and Jain systems, as well as in
Patanjali’s raja yoga” (and the majority of
commercial yoga today). Swamiji continues,
“the contention is that you have to first
When one tries to impose lofty codes of moral
conduct on a body in disharmony, one’s practice
actually becomes a hindrance
perfect yama and niyama, otherwise asana
and pranayama may fail to give desirable
results.” But, yogis have long been aware
of the “practical difficulties every person
faces in relation to yama and niyama.
Moreover, yama and niyama have more to
do with religion than with a person’s
spiritual life.”
He continues, “often we observe that when
we try to practice self-control and discipline,
we create more mental problems in our
mind and personality… Therefore, before
you practice self-discipline and self-control,
you must also prepare yourself.”
The non-dual Tantrik perspective is amoral
and cares only about desirable results
(freedom) and appropriate responses. We
do not judge aberrant behavior because we
know it is simply the result of imbalanced
chemistry in the body/mind/spirit. We
understand one cannot practice yama and
niyama to be able to practice hatha yoga and
pranayama, but rather one must practice
hatha yoga and pranayama to be able to
express appropriate behavior in response to
one’s environment.
wrestle with the mind, yet you wrestle with
it, thereby creating a pattern of animosity
towards yourself.” When one’s desires and
impulses are at odds with their moral ideas
of how things should be, “there are not
two minds, there is one mind trying to
split itself into two. One mind wants to
break the discipline and the other mind
wants to maintain the discipline. You can
find this split in everybody. When this
split becomes greater, then we call it
schizophrenia.”
It is said the mind is most difficult to
tame, and the body is more accessible for
practitioners to work with. When one tries
to impose lofty codes of moral conduct or
harsh disciplines on a body that is in a state
of disharmony then one’s practice actually
becomes a hindrance rather than the tool
of liberation yoga is intended to be.
Swamiji says, “this danger was clearly
realized by the authorities and masters of
hatha yoga. Therefore, they said, first
discipline the body,” then, one will
effortlessly express the inherent human
virtues of compassion, wisdom,
unconditional love and respect – the yama
and niyama will take care of themselves.
Otherwise, when one tries to force
discipline and control on the mind through
codes like yama/niyama, the ten
commandments – the result is what
Swamiji calls “spiritual schizophrenia.”
This is obviously a far cry from the original
intention of hatha yoga, which is “for
those who wish to ascend to the highest
stage of yoga, raja yoga (i.e. total
enlightenment).”
Yogi is the co-founder of Energy of Mind
Therapy (www.energyofmindtherapy.com ),
the practice of
psychotherapy that draws
on Tantra, Yoga and
Aryuveda. He lives in a
community of Tantrik
yogins, along with his wife
and child, at the rural Thai
retreat center: Kailash
Akhara - home of Adi
Yoga (www.adiyoga.com )
Swamiji questions, “Why do you fight with
the mind first? You have no power to
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