YOGA

The word yoga presently popularized by Westerners who learnt it from India. Yoga is a science that aims at uniting the soul with the body to attain the final liberation known as Moksha.The final state wherein the soul blends with the Supreme Being known by various names.

Yoga  is a collection of physical exercises, but the original Yoga sutras Handed down by patanjali concentrates on Physical, mental and Spiritual aspects. There are various schools of Yoga propagated by various religions in various times, the famous one being of the Hinduism, whose scholars have extensively compiled and practiced the literatures for this beautiful art to be handed down to generations and to make sure the future generations received the same amount of wellbeing  and spiritual happiness that they received

The broader aspect of Yoga is divided into:

1.Raja Yoga

2.Hatha Yoga

RAJA YOGA:

The raja yoga is ancient philosophy of Hinduism that concentrates on the overall well-being of the person practicing it as specified in the first para.

When writing about Raja Yoga the article will be incomplete if there is no mention of Patanjali.The rishi who is considered as the father of Raja Yoga practice.In Tamil shaivaite tradition a verse is found in Tirumoolar’s Tirumandiram as follows:

Nandhi arulPetra Nadharai Naadinom
Nandhigal Nalvar Siva Yoga MaaMuni
Mandru thozhuda Patañjali Vyakramar
Endrivar Ennodu (Thirumoolar) Enmarumaame

நந்தி அருள் பெற்ற நாதரை நாடினோம்

நந்திகள் நால்வர் சிவ யோக மாமுனி

மன்று தொழுத பதஞ்சலி வியாக்ரமர்

என்றிவர் என்னோடு என்மருமாமே

This translates as:

We went to the lord who graced nandhi

Four nandhis,siva Yoga Maamuni,patanjali,vyagramar and me,the eight

Thus it is said that Patanjali and others learnt Yoga and other siddhis from the first siddha,Lord Ishwara.

Thus he is revered as the authority on Yoga, true to it he has compiled the Patanjali Yoga sutra,that describes the rules for Liberation

Patanjali Yoga sutras are the considered to be authority in Raja Yoga.It starts with the following note:

योग: चित्त-वृत्ति निरोध:

Translating as: Yoga is the inhibition of Modifications of the Mind.(Swami Vivekananda translated this)

This is considered to be the state that is close to the Samadhi State of mind where in the mind of the practitioner is free from all modifications and is aware of only itself and consequently unaware of anything external to it, which means a state of being unconscious to the outside world.

Patanjali Outlines 8 limbs or अङ्ग of Raja Yoga as follows:

•         Yama
•          Niyama
•          Asana
•          Pranayama
•          Pratyahara
•          Dharana
•          Dhyana
•          Samadhi

YAMA:

The Yamas outlines the restraints to be followed compulsorily by a person who wished to practice Raja Yoga. These are not only needed to practice Raja Yoga but are essential ethical qualities a human being should follow to lead a happy life. These are five in number

1.   Ahimsa:The most important and the most difficult Yama is ahimsa.Ahimsa not only means physical injury to human and non-human forms but also include mental and wordly deeds.It is to be understood the practitioner of Raja Yoga must practice ahimsa of all forms,the use of force or the method to get a deed done through should definitely be the last resort and even if it is the case,the deed must virtuous enough.
2. Satya:This is another important Yama to be followed,which is becoming increasingly difficult in this present world.Satya or truthfulness is a virtue which should be followed strictly,even when the life hangs with uncertainity,this is what is expected by a raja yoga practitioner.Thus the above two virtues give Human beings the most ethical and complete life when followed with utmost discipline.
3.  Asteya:On a narrow sense asteya means not to steal,but in a broader sense asteya requires one not to be desired of others properties even in thoughts.Satya and asteya go hand in hand in practicing, a person who is Satyavan will automatically follow Asteya, since if he has to steal or be desirous of other people’s properties, he cannot lie as he is practicing Satya
4.  Brahmacharya:The next Yama speaks of a stage of life which every human being goes through in his initial years.It generally means to search for Brahman(The supreme God),and takes a contextual meaning depending upon the practitioner. For a grihastha or a married one  it is essentially to remain truthful and faithful to his married partner and for an unmarried it means essentially to pursue Celibacy of the highest form i.e.Not to wander his minds into unwanted pleasures(here unwanted pleasures means pleasures that are not right for his maturity).
5.  Aparigraha:Aparigraha is the thought of non-possessiveness or non-greediness, It is an result of asteya in a sense that you should first practice asteya,i.e should not be desirous of other properties and then slowly transform to practice aparigraha or non-desirous of one’s own property. It follows that only Consciousness is one’s own and other external things are not.

NIYAMA:

The Niyamas are observances that are to be followed virtuously in Raja Yoga.Yamas and Niyamas may be sometimes taken to be same but are not so,essentially Yamas give solutions for the Don’ts in Raja Yoga and Niyamas are taken to be habits that result out Yamas

Niyamas are again five in number:

1.  Shaucha:Shaucha refers to the overall purity of the mind and body.Shaucha is to practiced through speech, Deeds and thought
2.  Santosha:This is the second Niyama of contemptness,which requires people to be able to accept the circumstances as it is and then try to find a solution to it. When we are contempt only with Our Atman(Consciousness) the need to change circumstances does not arise.
3.   Tapas:Tapas does not only mean meditation, it means persistence, which requires one to constantly search for the Brahman, without being demotivated, this ends with self-realization that Brahman is within us and there is no need to search for it outside
4.  Svadhyaya:Svadhyaya essentially means self-introspection ,which requires one to do tapas until self-realization is achieved, the whole process is termed as svadhyaya
5.  Ishvara-Pranidhana:Ishvara pranidhana essentially means concentrating on the supreme brahman,without any doubts. Complete faith on Supreme Brahman.

ASANA:

This remains to be the most famous practiced angha of Raja Yoga,Asana,for the physical wellbeing.Practiced by everybody,the real meaning of Asana is actually being in a inanimate-posture for a certain amount of time in a relaxed state of body,i.e with ease.Thus any asana which stresses the body for the time is not an asana, initially this is very difficult to achieve but by the right amount of practice and the right Yoga Teacher who can sense the stress,it is easier to achieve.Patanjali after specifying famous asanas such as Padmasana suggests that sthirasukasana- an asana which is a comfortable for individual to practice provided it follows the above constraints. Thus Asana is a supplement to Yoga and not the complete Yoga itself

PRANAYAMA:

According to the Siddhas of Tamilnadu,Pranayama or breath control is an essential way to increase one’s lifetime. It is told that there is an certain number  of breaths per day (one breath=inhaling once and exhaling once) for one to live 120 years in earth. The number should not exceed or be less than the specified one. But it is not practically possible to have a less number of breaths than specified one because in the present world we are plagued by stress and other factors that increase the number of breaths which subsequently reduces our lifespan. Thus Pranayama which is an inherent practice is to be done in the morning preferably. Pranayama also leads to concentration where the consciousness is the only true thing which is sensed and all things external to it are ignored

 PRATYAHARA:

Pratyahara means bringing one’s own belief to oneself. Here oneself refers to the Atman or the consciousness. Thus essentially it means to withdraw oneself from outside world to the inner world or Consciousness and ultimately to attain Samadhi state

DHARANA:

Single-minded,focused,concentration call it anything which says to think of only one thing, that is Dharana.Dharana is one of the basic steps in meditation which at the highest level concentrates on the Atman. It is practiced by concentrating on one’s own common mind, or on one’s own breath. With practice one can concentrate on his atman in the advanced stages

DHYANA:

If dharana is focusing on a subject then Dhyana is contemplation of the subject. Deep thoughtful reflections on the subject of Dharana is essential so that one knows on what, why he has to concentrate on the subject.Dhyana always leads to better insights, such as the number of breaths during meditation and whether it follows the rules of pranayama or not.

SAMADHI:

The final stage of Raja Yoga is the Samadhi,it is the state of being one, being blissful. Bliss is attained when one following all the above methods and then doing dhyana on the subject and getting engrossed so much that one is not aware of anything other than the subject he is contemplating on. Such a state when attained gives the utmost Bliss for Humans

Thus Raja Yoga according to Yoga’s father does not merely concentrate on the physical aspects of but concentrates on making atman, body in resonance with Brahman(Supreme Self).

The other Arm Hatha Yoga concentrates more on the physical readiness of the body to do Dharana,brahmacharya,Dhyana and Samadhi. Will write about Hatha Yoga in another time.

सधशिवसमारंभां शङ्कराचामाधयमां अस्मदचार्य पर्यन्ताम् वन्धे गुरुपरंपरां

I invoke the blessings of Goddess Sharadhambha, Lord Chandramowleeshwara and that of the Present Jagadguru ananthasri vibhushitha Sri Sri Bharathi Teertha Mahaswamiji(here after referred to as Mahasannidhanam in reverence) to write about the Historcial Shishya sweekara Ceremony that took place recently in Sringeri-The Abode of Goddess Saradhamba

GURU PARAMPARA

                                   The Gururparampara in Sringeri is the kind which very few other mathas of the World. It is a “अविचिन्न”Guru Parampara, meaning one whose lineage has been unbroken. It dates back to 820 A.D when Sureshwaracharya succeeded Sri Adi Shankara as the Peethadhipadhi of the Dakshinamnaya Sringeri Sharadha Peetham , one of the four mathas Established by Sri Adi Shankara to spread Sanathana Dharma across India.

                                                                     Jagadgurus having impeccable knowledge have adorned the peetham and carried out the administration of the Matha, for nearly 1200 Years and have imparted valuable knowledge and suggestion and have blessed the people of the World with their Teachings

THE SHISHYA SWEEKARA ANNOUNCEMENT:

                                                                             To continue this unbroken lineage of Guru Parampara, The Mahasannidhanam with the blessings and permission from Goddess Sharadhamba announced the successor,to the Dakshinamnaya Sringeri Sharadha Peetham in his Anugraha Bhashana on Jan 4^th.

The Jagadguru announced the successor (as was done by his Guru His Holiness Sri Sri Abhinava Vidya Teertha Mahaswamigal )without consulting any horoscope of the successor designate and further added that it was all Divine Grace that permitted him to select the Worthy successor designate and said that the Shishya Sweekara will take place on Jan 23^rd and Jan 24^th marked by pompous Ceremony,which includes appointing the Sannidhanam(The successor designate is fondly called as Sannidhanam) as uttradhikari of the math

POORVASRAMA OF THE SANNIDHANAM:

Brahmachari Sri Kuppa Venkateshwara Prasada Sharma

                                                                      Sri Sannnidhanam’s family is all the more illustrious and pious also has been living by the Vedic conduct of Life besides the Sannidhanam Himself. 

Brahmachari Kuppa Venkateswara Prasada Sharma with father and mother

Sannidhanam’s poorvasrama name was Kuppa Venkateshwara Prasada Sharma, He was born to Sri Kuppa Shiva subramania Avadhani  and Smt.Seethangalakshmi  on auspicious  Naga Panchami Day(July 23 1993) at Tirupathi, Andhra Pradesh. He is a native of Anantavram in Guntur Andhra Pradesh.His Grandfather

Sri Kuppa Ramagopala Vaajapeya yaji  is an eminent Vedic Pundit and has performed the Shrautha Yaga of Vaajpeya. In 1961 when His Holiness Sri Sri Abhinava Vidya Teertha Mahaswamigal  visited the native village of Sannidhanam it was vaajpeya yaaji’s elder brother Sri Bhairagi Shastri welcomed the then Mahasannidhanam  and offered the Pada Puja to him.In 2002 Another elder brother of Vaajpeya Yaaji  by name Kuppa Venkatachalapathy Yaaji has embraced Sanyasa with the blessings of present Mahasannidhanam.

Sri Sannidhanam’s father and Grandfather have since long time been attending the vedic ceremonies that were held in Sringeri Matha. Sri Sannidhanam’s father has studied at Sri Abhinava Vidya Teertha  Shastra Samvardhini Paathshala in Hyderabad started by the Mahasannidhanam. He became well versed in Vedas and Upanishads and is presently the principal at the TTD vedavijnana peetham.Thus this medha vilasam(Knowledge) has rightly passed on to the Sannidhanam

The Sannidhanam from a tender age showed devotion to Lord Krishna and used to regularly visit the Krishna Temple near his home. He was performed the upanayana in the age of five and started learning the initial part of Krishna Yajur veda from his grandfather Sri Ramagopala Vaja Peya Yaaji. He grew up an environment of Devotion and accompanied his father on various pilgrimages across India

In 2006, at the age of 13 when the Sannidhanam first accompanied his father rand Grandfather to Sringeri for various events and when he had the Darshan of Mahasannidhanam it had a profound impact on him and in his visit in 2009 he expressed his desire to study shashtras under the tutelage of Mahasannidhanam. The Mahasannidhanam impressed by his devotion and Intelligence accepted to teach him. Thus Sannidhanam came to Sringeri and rapidly mastered written and spoken Sanskrit.

He learnt the Sanskrit poetry and literature from Pandit Shivkumar Sharma and the basics of Vyakarana from Sri Krishna Raja Bhatt. The Mahasannidhanam all these time observed the boy and finally impressed again by his Sincerity accepted to Personally teach him Shastras which is a very rare phenomenon. Mahasannidhanam Started to teach him Tarka Sastra which was the best foray of the Jagadgurus of Sringeri. Sannidhanam Grasped the teachings rapidly and the teaching progressed in a fierce manner where in Mahasannidhanam Taught the Sannidhanam  without missing even a single day even during his Vijaya Yatra in the years 2012-2013.

Sannidhanam regularly attended the nightly Chandramoulishwara Puja performed by the Jagadguru. During this Puja, he also chanted the entire Krishna Yajur Veda Moola and the entire Yajur Veda Krama.

By this time the Mahasannidhanam started teaching the Sannidhanam Mimamsa Sastra an subsequently Vedantha .Sannidhanam excelled in studies all through these years and began teaching his fellow students, this is right given two things

1.       Sannidhanam’s own intelligence his grasping power and his devotion to Guru,Vedas and Shastras

2.       He was taught by None other than the Mahasannidhanam,what more of an authority can teach more than him

Finally due to the ordained will of Goddess Sharadambha, the intelligence,devotion,sincerity,Guru Bhakthi has culminated in Selecting Brahmachari Sri Kuppa Venkateswara Prasad Sharma as the Uttradhikari and the Shishya of the Mahasannidhanam to lead this Illustrious math in the path of Glory.

PREPARATION FOR  SHISHYA SWEEKARA CEREMONY

                                  Though the anointing of the successor to Dakshinamnaya Sringeri Sharadha Peetham was slated for January 23^rd the dawn of previous day saw the Brahmachari  Kuppa Venkateshwara Sharma was readied to be ordained as the Sannidhanam and the Uttradhikari of the mutt from the previous day January 22^nd. At morning 8am he went straight to Guru Kripa in Narasimhavan,the place where all the Gurus of Sringeri reside and had the first Dharshan of Mahasannidhanam. He then proceeded towards the Northern Banks of Tunga river and offered his prayers to Goddess Sharadhamba. There he participated in the Poornahuthi of Mahaganapathi Homam.He then accompanied by senior devotees and the Administrator and CEO of Sringeri Math Guruseva dhurina Shri.V.R.Gowrishankar then prayed to all other deities of the Math to aptly guide him and the Matha under him towards path of ever increasing Glory.He then returned to Narasimha Vana again and prayed to all the Gurus starting from 33^rd Jagadguru Sri Sri Sachchinthananda Shivabhinava Narasimha bharath Mahaswamiji,34^th  Jaadguru Sri Sri Chandrashekara Bharathi Mahaswamiji and the 35^th Jagadguru Sri Sri Abhinava Vidya Teertha Mahaswamiji to shower their blessings on him so that his Guru Bhakthi will never wane off even a bit.He then performed the Krichraacharana  in which he made sacrifices of Vastra(clothes),Hiranya(Gold),Dhanya(Grain)and Aajyam(sacrifices to fire).He then performed the Ashta Shraddha Ceremony which is the one which frees every soul from his 3 Debts in Life. Namely Deva,rishi,pitru. The Brahmachari takes up this ceremony to say that he has finished all his 3 debts and now sees the people of the world as Jivatmans and none makes a difference(a friend,father or even mother).As with any other shraddha ceremony involving pitrus the Brahmachari made offerings towards 18 Vaidika Brahmanas in the form of pitrus and sought their blessings.The Brahmachari then should spend the day in Upavasam(fasting) and Jagarane(staying awake through night) symbolically saying the Sanyasi will do his duty nevertheless of the time of a day.

SHISHYA SWEEKARA CEREMONY DAY

The giving of Kashaya vastram,kamandalu and dandam to the Sannidhanam by Mahasannidhanam  

The previous day the Brahmachari readied him by all means both physically and mentally to ordain the role of a Sanyasin from that of a Brahmachari to take forward the peetham to new heights and to bask the Guru Parampara and the Matha in Glory.The Brahmachari who was awake the previous day started by 7:30 AM to do the Purusha Sooktha Homa and the Viraaja Homa on the Samadhi Shrines of previous Jagadgurus.At  9 am he crossed the Tunga river and went to the Other Bank symbolically crossing the Samsara Sagara and entering the aesthetic life.Then “ “Presocharana” is performed with swa-pinda pradana.Also he took the Vow of Non-violence by name “Sarva bhootha Abhaya Pradhana” which loosely translates to sanctuary for all the living beings. The Brahmachari then discarded all his normal clothes,his yagnopaveetham,his shikha(tuft), and then accepted the Kaashaya Vastra,the danda and the Kamandalu from the Mahasannidhanam,his revered Guru,Mother,Father and Brahman,to sum it up his Guru is Everybody to him. 

The pranavopadesha and Mahavakyopadesha to Sannidhanam by Mahasannidhanam

Then The Sannidhanam and Mahasannidhanam proceeded towards Samadhi of Sri Sri Abhinava Vidya Teertha Mahaswamiji where the Mahasannidhanam Gave his Sishya the Pranavopadesha and the Mahavakhya Upadesha, which are central in a shishya performing his duties towards the Peetham and His guru.Essentially Pranavopadesha was done by Lord Muruga to his Father explaining him the meaning of Pranava Manthra “OM”,the place where this incident took place stands the present day Swamimalai.

It is interesting to note that during the pranavopadesha the Mahasannidhanam went near Sri Sannidhanam like his own father and did the Upadesha.

Then the Mahasannidhanam did the Paryanka Saucha ceremony and  both proceeded towards Goddess Sharadhamba Temple to get the Blessings of Divine God Mother.

Sri Sannidhanam as vishnu swaroopa

At the temple The Mahasannidhanam seated the Sannidhanam on the Vyaakhyana Simhasana(seat of transcendental wisdom),here he is personified as Maha Vishnu Swaroopa  by placing a Saligrama(one of purest substance in the earth) on the Sannidhana’s head and pooja is offered by the Mahasannidhanam

Sannidhanam Performing the pada pooja to Mahasannidhanam

Then Sannidhanam duly seated his guru the Mahasannidhanam on the Vyaakhyana Simhasana and performed the Padha Pooja to him seeking his blessings.The Mahasannidhanam then announced the Yoga Patta or the name of the Sanyasin as he is considered to be born again. The Yoga Patta bestowed upon Sri Kuppa Venkateswara Prasada Sharma was Sri Sri Vidhushekara Bharathi,which was selected by the Jagadguru himself after having a detailed discussion with the Sastraians of the Mutt.

After this the “kaanikkai” or the offerings from various Devasthanams starting with theTirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam and then followed by various temples,Kings and also people of various places were placed on the Lotus feet of The Mahasannidhanam and The Sannidhanam and then the morning ended by both praying to Goddess Sharadhamba

As the evening set in Both the Mahasannidhanam and the Sannidhanam sat on the Hall and then Gave an Anugraha Bashanama.Which gave us a very small insight into the Ocean of Knowledge which both the Guru and The Sishya possessed.Here the Mahasannidhanam revealed  the reason for naming his Sishya “Vidhushekara Bharathi”. He first ordained to keep his Sishya the name of his Parama Guru Jagadguru Sri Sri Chandrashekara Bharathi Mahaswamiji. But then the Mahasannidhanam thought calling his Sishya by his Parama guru’s name will not be appropriate,so he chose a name that was synonymous with his Parama Guru’s Name,where Vidhu is the synonym of Chandra menaing Moon.

The Anugraha Bashana of the Sannidhanam was very lucid and thought provoking and gave us the idea why the Vidwans in the Ganapathi Vaakyartha Sabha has been astonished by the Sannidhana’s  mastery and intelligence for the past 5 YEARS.Followed by Anugraha Bhashana the PALLAKI Utsav took place where the Mahasannidhanam and the Sannidhanam were taken on a procession through the Streets of Sringeri after which the Programs of the Day Concluded.

Thus the next successor to the “avichinna” Guru Parampara has been selected according to the Divine Ordained Will of Goddess Shradamba and By the blessings of all the Jagadgurus of the past and the Present Mahasannidhanam and the Math has entered a new era which will result in propagation of Sanathana Dharma throughout the world.

SOURCES:

1.The major source is the press release of Dakshinamnaya Sringeri Sharadha Peetham

2.Various Internet Links

P.S:1.I have used Math and Mutt interchangeably in many places,since it was a big article I was not sure about the previous usage

2.I have not elaborately explained many of the Sanyasa Ashrama cerenmonies for two reasons,one was I couldn’t not get elaborate information about certain ceremonies and the second one being the Length of the Article