For the Love of Yoga with Nish the Fish

Since 2020, we've given quite a few lectures on the Guru Tattva (Guru Principle) since this is indeed of the main features of the Tantrik tradition.But what exactly is lineage based transmission? Some people feel,  because of the influence of modernism and individualism, that they don't need a Guru and because of this they get into trouble or waste time in spiritual life going around in circles. Others on the other end of the spectrum become too attached to their guru's physical form and personality and as such end up making a cult-figure out of their human gurus, become too dependent and as a result, fail to make appreciable spiritual progress!As you can see, Guru-Yoga, the art of practicing spirituality under the guidance of a human teacher, is a rather subtle and delicate art with many nuances! Anyway, over the years, most of the material I've presented in my lectures on the subject have been drawn from a series of lectures by Swami Vivekananda which appear in Volume III of his Complete Works. In this talk, in celebration of the Guru Purnima that just happened, I read out these talks to you so we can hear Swamiji's own thoughts on Guru-Yoga, in his own words!We first open with a philosophically nuanced reflection on God and just what that means. You can watch all our previous lectures on the Guru here:https://www.patreon.com/collection/666741Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Many people feel down in the dumps and lethargic often. This is to me particularly tragic because in each and every moment we are each of us swimming in a veritable ocean of energy and enlivenment! Only, most of us don't know how to tap into it and be charged by it! You see, this entire universe, this magical display of phenomena that you experience within and without is nothing but a manifestation of Prāna, nothing but so many different forms of one and the same field of energy called Prāna. This body and mind that you experience is also a manifestation of Prāna.Tantra then is a kind of "prāna-śāshtra": the science of working with the energies of embodied existence but within and without. In this class, we explore 8 or so ways you can increase and refine the prāna (i.e energy) that flows through this body-mind so that you can experience deeper levels of enlivenment and fullfilment!May all of this be an offering to Prāna-śakti!Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This is our special Guru Purnima talk, this time on the subject: How To Choose A GuruOf course we’ll discuss just what the Guru Tattva (Guru Principle) is and why it is absolutely necessary in spiritual life but more importantly we’ll focus on the question of how to find a guru and evaluate them to protect yourself from charlatans and cults etc.!At the end of the talk, we’ll discuss a very powerful practice you can do right now even if you don’t have a living teacher as of yet!On behalf of the auspicious occasions of Veda Vyāsa (Guru) Pūrnimā and alas Shrāvan Mas (the sacred month of Shiva which began the day we gave this lecture (July 22nd and goes till August 19th), let us all remember always that God alone is the Guru. As it says in the Guru Gītā:ब्रह्मानन्दं परमसुखदं केवलं ज्ञानमूर्तिंद्वन्द्वातीतं गगनसदृशं तत्वमस्यादिलक्ष्यम्एकं नित्यं विमलमचलं सर्वधीसाक्षिभूतंभावातीतं त्रिगुणरहितं सद्गुरुं तं नमामि“Brahmānandam Paramasukhadam kevalam jñāna murtim…bhāvatītam trigunarahitam sad gurum tam namami”:That true guru is the bliss of Brahman, the transcendent joy of non-dual knowledge, that reality beyond all name and form, beyond the touch of the three gunas. To That we bow!ईश्वरो गुरुरात्मेति मूर्तिभेदविभागिने ।व्योमवद् व्याप्तदेहाय दक्षिणामूर्तये नमः ॥७॥I salute that Dakshinamurthy Shiva, the sky of Consciousness which appears in the form of teacher, student and transmission!May He bless us all with knowledge and devotion!We honor all teachers of all traditions who through their perfect discipleship have each of them embodied what it means to be spiritual in this world. I bow to the servants heart in all teachers who are each of them God’s grace personified!Let us never forget the teaching from the Kaula Sutra:avicchinam ovalli-kramāyāta-marīci-saṅkramaṇam evaiko guruḥ  (1)tad-upalabdham eva tattvam eko devaḥ  (2)tasyaikā sahajāhambhāva-bhūmiś cicchaktiḥ  (3)There is only one Guru: the unbroken ray of transmission that flows through the lineage.There is only one God: the Reality to which one awakens (as a result of that transmission)There is only one Power: the Power of Consciousness which is the ground of the spontaneous and natural “I-sense”You can watch all our previous lectures on the Guru here:https://www.patreon.com/collection/666741Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Two weeks ago, we discussed how sādhanā works in a non-dual Shaiva Tanttra context, providing a few foundational practices you can do right away (you can watch that lecture here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-to-get-with-106871859?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link).And then the week after, we discussed how sādhanā is an expression of your innate freedom and not some desperate attempt to attain it! We then offered a few ways to keep spiritual life fun, engaging and interesting so you can become increasingly absorbed in the joy of the life divine. (you can watch this lecture here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-to-enjoy-107896090?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link).Now, in this lecture, I want to continue last week's discussion on diversity and variety in spiritual life by discussing whether its better to worship one deity or many, better to practice with one mantra or many, better to do one practice or many different ones. Naturally, I'm going to make a case for the latter by arguing for non-duality, i.e all mantras are just names of the same Being and that Being is You! This will help folks who are torn between two or more deities, two more traditions etc. mostly but it is for every sincere sadhaka and sadhvi who wishes to understanding something deeper about the unity behind seeming diversity. In my opinion, tonight's discussion is at the very heart of Tantra and Ramakrishna's theology.Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

In this talk, we take up Swami Vivekananda's very powerful reflections on Bhakti Yoga, the practice of Devotion from the talk "Definition of Bhakti" which appears in Volume III of the Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Then, after making a few comments about it, we plunge into a Q&A session exploring broader themes in spiritual life. But first we open with some remarks about the three types of Navarātri or Goddess festivals in the calendar year!Enjoy! Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Sādhanā, spiritual practie is an expression of your innate freedom and not some desperate attempt to attain it! Many people have such a sour face when they are sitting for meditation. How strange! Are you not meditating on the Divine Effulgence within? Are you not meditating on Bliss Itself embodied as your Ishta Devī, your chosen form of God? Shouldn't your face then be beaming with joy?! For many, spiritual life is a bitter struggle but that's only because we often approach things in the wrong way, founded upon a misunderstanding about why we are doing spiritual practice in the first place. In this talk, we offer a few ways to keep spiritual life fun, engaging and interesting so you can become increasingly absorbed in the endless joy of the life divine!PS: we gave this talk in Jayanti and Jayanta's beautiful home shrine in Zurich. Behind me you can seen Sarvesvarī Kālī who was awakened on the new moon (mahālaya) of the recent Chaitra Navaratri. May this talk be an offering at Her Lotus Feet.Jai Mā Sarveshvarī Kālī ki Jai!Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMIf you'd like to support us, you can do so here:https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/jaimakaliSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This lecture was given on the exceedingly special day of Gāyatrī Jayanti, the day we celebrate not only the most important Goddess of the ancient Vedic tradition but also the most famous mantra to have ever come out of India. In this video, we make a few comments about caste in the Vedic world, the "twice-born" dīkshā into the Gāyatrī, the democratization and popularization of the mantra by reformers and of course gloss the mantra and its meaning along non-dual lines and make some Tantrik interpolations about it. ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वःतत्स॑वि॒तुर्वरे॑ण्यं॒भर्गो॑ दे॒वस्य॑ धमह।धियो॒ यो नः परचो॒दया॑त्॥oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥtat savitur vareṇyaṃbhargo devasya dhīmahidhiyo yo naḥ pracodayātṚgveda 03.062.10"OM I dissolve my intellect in my own Self, that Supreme Light, the splendour of all the gods in Whom arises the three worlds! May She guide me from within!"Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This morning I saw this little clip from the black and white Bengali movie "Sadhak Kamalakanta" on YouTube and it inspired me to say a few words on the Tantrik approach to meditation. Here is the mantra that was chanted in the video and that we used for the meditation:dhyānamoṁ krīṁ karālavadanāṁ ghorāṁ muktakeśīṁ caturbhujām।kālikāṁ dakṣiṇāṁ divyāṁ muṇḍamālāvibhūṣitām॥1॥sadyaśchinnaśiraḥkhaḍgavāmādhordhvakarāmbujām।abhayaṁ varadaṁ caiva dakṣiṇordhvādhaḥ pāṇikām॥2॥mahāmeghaprabhāṁ śyāmāṁ tathā caiva digambarīm। kaṇṭhāvasaktamuṇḍālīgaladrudhiracarcitām॥3॥karṇāvataṁsatānītaśavayugmabhayānakām।ghoradaṁṣṭrāṁ karālāsyāṁ pīnonnatapayodharām॥4॥śavānāṁ karasaṅghātaiḥ kṛtakāñcīṁ hasanmukhīm।sṛkkadvayagaladraktadhārāvisphuritānanām॥5॥ghorarāvāṁ mahāraudrīṁ śmaśānālayavāsinīm। bālārkamaṇḍalākāra-locanatritayānvitām॥6॥ danturāṁ dakṣiṇavyāpimuktālambikacoccayām।śavarūpamahādevahṛdayoparisaṁsthitām॥7॥śivābhirghorarāvābhiścaturdikṣu samanvitām। mahākālena ca samaṁ viparītaratāturām॥8॥ sukhaprasannavadanāṁ smerānanasaroruhām।evaṁ sañcintayet kālīṁ dharmakāmārthamokṣadām॥9॥(siddhidām)Support the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This is a very important discussion regarding our backstory as Kali worshippers in the West. How is it that we are all of us in this room right now, hearing this lecture and resonating with its ideas? How did we come to worship Kali and practice Tantra, especially those of us who grew up in the West? Isn't this a profound mystery and blessing that we find ourselves here in this place at this time? How did this strange and miraculous phenomena come to be? Who brought Kālī to us? In answering this question, I'd like to trace the current upsurgence of Kali worship in the world all the way back to a moment on 31st May 1855. Since this lecture was given on Snān Yatra, the anniversary of this significant day, we say a few words about Rani Rasmani, Ramakrishna, Vivekananda and of course Mā Bhavatārini Kālī of Dakshineshwar. Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

About a month ago, we celebrated Dhūmāvatī Jayanti. Of the 10 esoteric forms of Kālī known as the Daśamahavidyās, Dhūmāvati, the widow is perhaps the most mysterious, misunderstood and feared of all the Tantrik Goddesses.She bears a striking resemblance to the Morrigan and the Cailleach in Gaelic/Celtic traditions and her dhyāna mantra (presented below) might remind you of the (albeit often somewhat cartoonish) caricature of the "witch" you find at department stores around Hallowe'en. No coincidence there!In this video, we talk all about this and more! Also: Before we gave our lecture on just who this mysterious Tantrik Goddess is and what she represents, we first went and performed her worship using her dhyāna mantra (presented below) in a guided meditation.You can practice that here. विवर्णकुन्तला रूक्षा विधवा विरलद्विजा ॥काकध्वजरथारूढा विलम्बितपयोधरा ।शूर्पहस्तातिरूक्षाक्षी धृतहस्ता वरान्विता ॥प्रवृद्धघोणा तु भृशं कुटिला कुटिलेक्षणा ।क्षुत्पिपासार्दिता नित्यं भयदा कलहप्रिया ॥Pale and restless, irritable and oldClad in soiled garmentsPale-haired, dry-skinnedA widow with few teethMounted atop a chariot whose flag is a crowWith drooping breasts and surpassingly cruel eyesWho holds a winnowing basketWho shows the boon bestowing gestureA crone with crooked nose and crooked eyesWho is always hungry and thirsty, quarrelsome and fearsome.Lectures happen live on zoom every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and Friday at 6pm PST.  There's Q&A right after the lectures. It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815Our hatha yoga class is Monday 5pm PST with Amrita and Wednesdays at 11am PST and again at Friday 5pm PST with me via this same link also.For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM