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- Experience and Signs of Spiritual Development in the Consciousness - by Submitted on Jul 22, 2021 from santosh krinskyWhen we experience something in the physical body, it is a sensation that carries a nervous impulse to the brain, which interprets whether it is cold or hot, dry or wet, painful or pleasurable, etc. Similarly, vital reactions and emotions are experienced through the release of various hormones ...
Views: 557 - Experience of the Divine and the Forms of the Divine - by Submitted on Apr 05, 2021 from santosh krinskyWhile a spiritual experience is a subjective event, we can reference the accumulated reports from around the world and throughout human history to provide an accurate picture of the types of experiences and the reality of the experience. Sometimes these experiences come after undertaking various ...
Views: 674 - Experiencing and Understanding Infinite Worlds of Experience - by Submitted on Jun 12, 2024 from santosh krinskyScientists nowadays are speaking of infinite numbers of parallel universes, each one carrying out some different ‘choice’ that can be worked out. Not every world is based on the same set of factors and choices as the world we currently inhabit. There are also realms that are not physical in the ...
Views: 289 - Experiencing the Higher and Subtler Levels of Consciousness - by Submitted on Feb 17, 2024 from santosh krinskyWhen we are rooted in the body consciousness, we experience intensely the reactions of the physical body to circumstances and events. We may experience a feeling of pleasure, or pain, and as the intensity of that experience captures our focus, we are generally unable to pay attention to vital ...
Views: 287 - Experiencing the Shift of Consciousness from the Outer Being to the Inner Being - by Submitted on Mar 03, 2021 from santosh krinskyThere is a complete reversal of consciousness that occurs when the inner being opens and the awareness shifts inward. It may be experienced as a separation of an observer watching all the actions and events in the outer world, including the thoughts, feelings, perceptions and outer stimuli that ...
Views: 711 - Experiencing the Wideness of the Consciousness - by Submitted on Oct 12, 2022 from santosh krinskyThe Vedic Rishis sought the Truth, the Right, the Vast. (satyam, rtam, brihat). They understood that the awareness limited to the ego-personality, the individual body-life-mind complex, was incomplete and could not comprehend the truth or meaning of existence. They sought to identify with the ...
Views: 471 - Exploring Rebirth of the Soul into New Bodies and New Lives - by Submitted on May 05, 2023 from santosh krinskyWhile a segment of humanity does not accept the idea of rebirth, choosing instead to either suggest that this one lifetime is the entire frame and limit of an individual’s existence, or else, that after death they will be resurrected to go before a seat of judgment and either be assigned to ...
Views: 434 - Exploring the Nature of the Dream State - by Submitted on Aug 26, 2021 from santosh krinskyDreams have kept researchers awake for the entire history of mankind. Where do dreams come from? Of what substance are they made? What significance do they have? The ancient Greek culture had oracles who interpreted dreams. The Old Testament of the Bible recounts the rise of Joseph in the land ...
Views: 567 - Exploring the Stages and Phases of Inner Growth of the Human Individual - by Submitted on Nov 19, 2022 from santosh krinskyWhen we read Sri Aurobindo’s aphorism noted below, we tend to focus on the second part of the equation, the “bar” to achieving the higher result. There is an implication thereby that we have already achieved the first part and that we are thus ready to proceed to the next phase or stage of inner ...
Views: 488 - Extending a Measure of Validity to Reports of Supra-Physical Perceptions and Experiences - by Submitted on Jul 01, 2024 from santosh krinskySri Aurobindo makes an important point. Various aspects of reports about subtle senses and supraphysical realities as they impact our external world, have been documented, and in some cases, extensively studied and verified. Once we accept the fact that there is a real and solid basis for these ...
Views: 304 - External and Internal Conditions for the Practice of Meditation - by Submitted on Jun 14, 2021 from santosh krinskySwami Vivekananda, in his lectures on Raja Yoga, describes what we may call the “mind stuff”, citta, which tends to be always disturbed as impressions, perceptions, thoughts, feelings, emotions create ripples, as a breeze will create ripples on the surface of a lake. He goes on to describe the ...
Views: 677 - External Forms of Worship and Spiritual Growth in the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Jul 10, 2021 from santosh krinskyPractitioners of mainstream religions are very familiar with ritual worship. Much of the activity of religion is scripted around a set formula of external worship that has developed from perhaps an initial experience or, over time, as a result of habitual action. The intended purpose of this ...
Views: 523 - External Interactions Provide the Seeker a Mirror to His Inner Characteristics and Traits - by Submitted on Apr 02, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhat we see in others in many cases is a mirror to what we contain within ourselves. We understand what is taking place because we are able to receive the vibration and internalize it and translate it into something that resonates in our being. In Western psychology there is a concept called ...
Views: 109 - External Worship and the Practice of Bhakti Yoga - by Submitted on Mar 09, 2023 from santosh krinskyMany people are abandoning formalized religions while saying that the external rituals are simply missing any inner spirit or force, that they are simply empty and do not get to the heart of the matter. There is a keen insight here that is useful for those who wish to practice the yoga of ...
Views: 429 - Face and Conquer the Difficulties in This Life and in This Body - by Submitted on Dec 15, 2025 from santosh krinskyA human birth is prized as it is the gateway to evoution and development. In the Indian tradition, even the gods need to take a human birth if they want to achieve any new form of development or progress. The gods reside normally in a static world which does not have the impetus for ...
Views: 26 - Facing and Overcoming Self-Doubt and Internal Criticism - by Submitted on Jun 03, 2021 from santosh krinskyAs the spiritual seeker develops the internal witness awareness, viewing the actions and reactions of the various parts of the being, it is frequently noted that the closeness of the view leads the aspirant to become overly critical of one’s own flaws, weaknesses, habits etc. This same type of ...
Views: 563 - Facing and Overcoming the Dangers of an Opening to Forces of the Vital Plane Without Sufficient Foundation in Peace and Calm in the Being - by Submitted on Oct 05, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere are sound reasons to establish calm, peace and equality in the being as the foundation for the spiritual practice. When an individual takes up some form of concentrated practice, tapasya, it can lead to the uprising of powerful energies, as well as an influx of thoughts, emotions, feelings ...
Views: 75 - Facing Difficulties and Transforming Them at Their Source Is the Path of Integral Yoga - by Submitted on May 11, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere are implications for anyone accepting the mission to work toward the evolutionary change of human nature, speeded up by the yogic process. We think we should somehow have amazing spiritual experiences, and live in a world of peace, sunshine and joy. The reality is likely to be far ...
Views: 105 - Facing One’s Difficulties - by Submitted on Jun 05, 2025 from santosh krinskyIn the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna asked Sri Krishna to place him between the two armies ready to engage in a civil war, with massive numbers of troops on each side, so that he could view the scene before the actual fighting started. At that moment he was struck by the magnitude of what was about to ...
Views: 98 - Faith and Confidence - by Submitted on Oct 21, 2024 from santosh krinskyThere are countless stories of what may be called the “placebo effect” for confidence in action. Athletes sometimes believe they will perform better if they are wearing a specific shirt or pair of socks. People have their ‘lucky charms’ that they believe provide them success in certain ...
Views: 231 - Faith and Courage Represent the True Attitude For Facing Life and for Spiritual Progress - by Submitted on Jul 19, 2025 from santosh krinskyOne of the qualities that Swami Vivekananda emphasized as ‘fearlessness’. We may wonder why courage and fearlessness are such important elements in living our lives, if we live a relatively ‘safe’ external life and don’t engage in extremely risky behaviour. We may also wonder why they are ...
Views: 91 - Faith and Personal Effort - by Submitted on Oct 24, 2024 from santosh krinskyThere is a tendency in the human mind to create an artificial division between faith, based in the divine Grace, and effort, based in the mental, vital and physical being of the individual. Thus, if we have faith, we tend not to ‘worry’ about specific actions we can or should take. It is a type ...
Views: 237 - Faith In and Receptivity to the Guru - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2023 from santosh krinskyIn Essays on the Gita, Sri Aurobindo notes that every scripture has both a ‘temporal’ and an ‘eternal’ aspect. The temporal aspect is transitory, changes from time to time and from culture to culture, based on the societal background within which the scripture has been produced. The knowledge ...
Views: 561 - Faithfulness to the Divine Light and the Divine Call - by Submitted on Dec 19, 2025 from santosh krinskySpiritual seekers face a long and difficult road trying to sort out what thoughts, emotions, feelings, movements, actions and responses are expressive of and related to their spiritual calling, and which ones are part of the old ways of the external nature and the vital ego. They frequently ...
Views: 23 - Faithfulness to the Light and the Divine Call - by Submitted on Jun 03, 2025 from santosh krinskyPeople have an inner ‘commentary’ and ‘sound track’ going on virtually constantly in their heads. The ‘sound track’ may be a piece of music they heard which keeps repeating in their minds, what is colloquially called an ‘ear worm’. It may also be something of far less enjoyment such as a ...
Views: 98 - Fasting and the Practice of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Jan 26, 2022 from santosh krinskyAt some point in their spiritual quest, seekers are generally confronted with the question of ‘fasting’. Some paths recommend fasting as a method to lighten the heaviness of the ‘earth consciousness’ and make the being more receptive to higher vibrational energies. Some point out that fasting ...
Views: 514 - Fasting in the Sadhana of the Integral Yoga: Impact on Vital Energy and Physical Body - by Submitted on Jan 02, 2026 from santosh krinskyFasting has often been utilized by spiritual and religious practitioners as a way of gaining some measure of control over the vital desires, cravings and urges, as well as a means for increasing the vital and mental energy available to them. In some cases, it has been used to induce altered ...
Views: 16 - Fear and Fearlessness in Life and in Yoga - by Submitted on Jan 15, 2022 from santosh krinskyFear arises in the lower vital, in some instances, as a direct vital response to an energy that threatens health and safety of the individual; in other words, it is part of the survival instinct. But it also arises through social acculturation, such as in issues of stage fright, or through ...
Views: 528 - Fear Is Based in the Limitations of Ignorance and Unconsciousness - by Submitted on Jun 29, 2022 from santosh krinskyIn The Life Divine, Sri Aurobindo describes the sevenhold ignorance which limits the human being. We live in a world about which we know very little, and we lack a complete understanding of the significance of our lives, the meaning of existence, or the processes of Time. As a result, we act as ...
Views: 648 - Fear: Its Effect on the Vital Sheath and As a Cause of Illness - by Submitted on May 01, 2024 from santosh krinskySeveral years ago there was a world-wide pandemic that affected many tens of millions of people, which was called the covid-19 pandemic. It provided us a clear opportunity to see the impact of fear on the reactions of people. Panic ensued. Stores closed, public access was shut down in many ...
Views: 268 - Finding a Solution that Provides Peace Without Sacrificing Progress in the Universal Manifestation - by Submitted on Jun 22, 2022 from santosh krinskyIf the drive towards progress is fueled by dissatisfaction and anxiety felt by the individual, we are left with the concern that achieving peace must come at the cost of giving up the active life and the development of consciousness in the world. We either have to sink back to the level of the ...
Views: 486 - Finding the Balance Between Activity and Rest - by Submitted on May 03, 2025 from santosh krinskyWith the advent of modern society, the instantaneous technological experience, and an external life that puts a value on being active, being productive, we see the increased pressure for people to stay in motion without taking into account the factor of fatigue and the need for rest. People tend ...
Views: 135 - Finding the Balance Between Individual Effort and Surrender in the Practice of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Apr 30, 2021 from santosh krinskyPractitioners of the integral yoga are confronted daily with the task of balancing between the individual effort required, and the call to surrender to the divine force that actually is undertaking the changes in the nature that are required. We all start with the ego-consciousness and all of ...
Views: 547 - Finding the Inner Balance of Non-Attachment While Living in the World - by Submitted on Aug 28, 2025 from santosh krinskyIn his epic poem, Savitri: A Legend and a Symbol, Sri Aurobindo writes: “He who would save himself lives bare and calm; He who would save the race must share its pain: Renunciation of the world, avoidance of interacting with the objects, actions, events and needs of the external life, is ...
Views: 80 - Finding the Poise of the Consciousness Needed for the Practice of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Nov 10, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe spiritual seeker, starting from the ego-consciousness, wants to identify progress and success in the sadhana. The operation of the 3 Gunas, the qualities of Nature, impact the seeker’s view and orientation towards the process. There is a distinct difference between a psychic aspiration and ...
Views: 48 - Finding the Right Balance and Spirit in Management - by Submitted on Apr 10, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere is an art to management of people within a company, department or section. Those who are tasked with undertaking this responsibility frequently find it challenging to get the exact right balance to both motivate their team members and keep things moving smoothly forward. If they are too ...
Views: 146 - First Foundations for the Practitioner of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Jan 18, 2023 from santosh krinskyPatanjali’s Raja Yoga outlines a series of steps or stages in the development of that particular path. The first two are Yama and Niyama, which outline certain purification actions to prepare the practitioner for the later activities and experiences in the yogic practice. These two ‘limbs’, ...
Views: 477 - First Steps in the Practice of Yoga - by Submitted on Jan 23, 2021 from santosh krinskyThe transformation of the individual is not something that occurs magically overnight. Even if someone is awakened out of their habitual routines by some extraordinary experience, such as a sudden spiritual opening, or even a near death experience, the ongoing effort is still required to bring ...
Views: 685 - Focusing on the Dedicated Action, Not the Immediately Visible Results - by Submitted on Jan 16, 2023 from santosh krinskyIn the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna teaches Arjuna that he has the right to action, but not to attachment to the fruits of the action, i.e. the results. In our world today we are fixated on the destination, not the ‘journey’ and we measure everything by the immediate results we obtain. This ...
Views: 437 - Focusing on the Signal While Eliminating the Noise: Concentration and Purification - by Submitted on Jan 26, 2023 from santosh krinskyConsider briefly that you have a television set that receives all the available channels, but you cannot tune the set, so that all picture and sound from the entire frequency range come in at the same time and mix up with each other, along with the static that occurs between various station ...
Views: 412 - Focusing One’s Attention on the Forces One Wants to Manifest - by Submitted on Jul 16, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe human being receives vibrations from the universe. They are either accepted and allowed to act upon the individual, or rejected at some level of the being, with minimal impact other than the pressure on the sheath or aura that feels the vibration. If the vibration is accepted, it can not ...
Views: 96 - Focusing the Will on the Physical Body and its Development - by Submitted on Oct 12, 2024 from santosh krinskyThe mind has a tremendous power to influence the physical body, for good or ill. In some cases, mental ideas can lead to extraordinary imbalances in the body, which can lead to weakness, illness and even the death of the body. Many times we will push the body beyond its limits without concern ...
Views: 221 - Following the Right Path to Divine Realisation - by Submitted on Nov 13, 2022 from santosh krinskyWe very easily fall into the mistaken idea that the path we follow is the best way to approach the Divine or achieve spiritual realisation and that other paths are either less effective or do not provide the complete liberation from the ego-personality. We also tend to accept the idea that ...
Views: 447 - Following the Unique Path of One’s Deepest Aspiration to Spiritual Realisation - by Submitted on Oct 20, 2022 from santosh krinskyIt is a somewhat difficult concept for most people to accept: that each individual has his own spiritual path and realisation before him, and that it is therefore neither appropriate nor fruitful to spend time trying to either criticise or convert others to one’s own path or view, or to attempt ...
Views: 474 - Food, Fasting and Spiritual Development - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2025 from santosh krinskyIt is tempting for a spiritual seeker to undertake some form of extreme fasting. The practice of fasting has been used since time immemorial all around the world to increase the vital force by reducing the ‘drag’ of the physical body and its operations around acquiring, preparing, eating and ...
Views: 16 - Forces at Work In Human Affairs Behind the External Causes - by Submitted on Feb 26, 2024 from santosh krinskyThe study of human history is one of externalities generally. We memorize dates of important events and try to lay the responsibility for certain subsequent actions at the door of those events. To hear historians tell it, the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand was the trigger that set off ...
Views: 352 - Four Common Forms of Resistance by the Lower Vital to the Transformation Required - by Submitted on Nov 01, 2021 from santosh krinskySri Aurobindo considers yoga to be, in a certain sense, applied psychology. The review and understanding of one’s own actions and deeper motives and motivations is essential if one is going to overcome the limitations and habits of the lower nature and eventually receive and manifest new ways of ...
Views: 529 - Four Instruments for Attaining the Perfection of the Practice of Yoga - by Submitted on Dec 13, 2022 from santosh krinskyPeople frequently seek for a very specific, directed form of practice which will provide liberation and spiritual perfection. They ask ‘what is the best form of practice’? Sri Aurobindo takes a much more flexible approach which is based on the need and development of the individual practitioner, ...
Views: 398 - Four Steps to Avoid Suffering - by Submitted on Jun 16, 2022 from santosh krinskyMany people suppose that it is impossible to avoid suffering, as it is an inherent aspect of life on earth. Their strategies for dealing with suffering may vary, but they all believe that suffering is inevitable. When we consider, therefore, the idea of avoiding suffering, we are either met ...
Views: 518 - Free Will, Determinism and Random Chance as Factors in Life Outcomes - by Submitted on Feb 28, 2024 from santosh krinskyThere is a third factor that intervenes in the debate about free will and determinism and that is ‘random chance’. In that concept, there is basically no plan, no framework and no way to manage or control events, which thus can occur through random occurrences with no predetermined end. Both the ...
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