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A Year of Divine Pilgrimage
What is a divine pilgrimage? Are you ready to make a pilgrimage to your divine self? On the 40th anniversary of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, Yogacharya O’Brian discusses the importance and role of spiritual pilgrimage using the examples from Autobiography of a Yogi.
Yogacharya O’Brian is the founder of the Yoga Hour. She is an acclaimed teacher, poet, award-winning author, and minister who has served seekers of spiritual enlightenment from all walks of life for over forty years. She is the recent recipient of the 2021 New Thought Walden Award for Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding. She has published several books including her latest book, The Jewel of Abundance: Finding Prosperity Through the Ancient Wisdom of Yoga. A teacher in the tradition of Kriya Yoga, Yogacharya O’Brian serves people from all faith backgrounds who are seeking what is known as Self- or God-realization, or awakening and is the spiritual director of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, a meditation center in San Jose, CA.
WEBSITES: EllenGraceOBrian.com CSECenter.org
YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Today's conversation with Yogacharya was deep and soul felt. She started with the idea of time being evanescence - unreal. That set the tone - sharing that it is important to know what is essential about what we do in this life and what will remain. For her, the essence of pilgrimage is defined by the intention one brings to opening to Divine grace, opening up to what you have not known and opening to the transformation that brings. Yogacharya's invitation to us to commit to a year of Yoga Yatra (Yoga pilgrimage) calls for the intention to journey from the self to the Self in our ordinary life. I was particularly moved by the Kabir poem she shared that started with "Don't go outside your house to see the flowers". I now have a much deeper understanding and appreciation of pilgrimages. Listening to Yogacharya share about her own pilgrimages and those of Paramahansa Yogananda from Autobiography of a Yogi was a call to deepen my own practice.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: What a joy to have a conversation with Yogacharya O’Brian about Yoga Yatra, pilgrimage to the Divine Self. It was so supportive to me personally to discuss this with you, the idea of being able to take a pilgrimage to our own deepest Self. I loved the questions she asked at the beginning of the conversation, prompted by her 40th anniversary of ministry: What is eternal? What is essential? What will remain? She discussed that one of the things that distinguishes pilgrimage from other activity is the intentionality we bring to it, the willingness to open ourselves to Divine Grace and to be transformed. I look forward to the 2022 New Years Retreat with her as a way to launch this year of Yoga Yatra. Listeners can find out more about the retreat at csecenter.org.
The Legacy of Paramahansa Yogananda
Countless people have been inspired by Paramahansa Yogananda’s book Autobiography of a Yogi. Philip Goldberg, author of The Life of Yogananda shares insights on the legacy of this great spiritual teacher as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the publishing this seminal book.
Philip Goldberg’s book, American Veda documents how Indian spirituality changed the West and his book The Life of Yogananda:The Story of the Yogi Who Became the First Modern Guru is a biography that sheds new light on the life of this great spiritual teacher. Phil Goldberg has been studying the world’s spiritual traditions for more than 50 years. He is an illuminating and entertaining public speaker and workshop leader, meditation teacher, and an ordained Interfaith Minister. Phil’s most recent book is Spiritual Practice for Crazy Times. He contributes regularly to The Huffington Post, Elephant Journal and Spirituality & Health magazine online. Phil is the co-host of the Spirit Matters Talk podcast and he also leads American Veda Tours of India.
Websites: SpiritMattersTalk.com; PhilipGoldberg.com
LINK TO PHIL GOLDBERG’S UPCOMING CLASS THROUGH THE HINDU UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA:
AN IMMERSIVE EXPLORATION OF THE ICONIC "AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Phil has so much information and insight about Yogananda as a person and as a great spiritual teacher. It was fun to hear about the Beatles, especially George Harrison and their influence on really popularizing these teachings from India. I was also interested in hearing that Phil recommends that if we haven't read Autobiography of a Yogi, we should. He said "If Yogananda wasn’t the most influential yogic teacher who came to America he was in the top three. mainly because of the institutions he established that continue the teachings, including the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and because Yogananda's writing has endured to this day, 70 years after he passed. He literally has affected millions of lives. There is no way to calculate how many books have been sold since 1946, but Autobiography still sells thousands of copies each year. One of the reasons it endures is that mixed in with all the stories about people is a primer on yoga philosophy." Phil reminded us that Yogananda was a renunciant-a monk but a great example of someone who could live in the world, not shirking any of his worldly duties, but keeping his spiritual life as the priority of his life. I am inspired to pick up Autobiography of a Yogi again, and find new nuggets of learning and delight that I haven't noticed before, just as Phil said he has done.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I really enjoyed having Phil Goldberg on The Yoga Hour to discuss the legacy of Yogananda and to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the publication of his book Autobiography of a Yogi. It’s always a joy to have him on the show. He was the perfect guest to have when discussing these topics. I love the way he can fill in information about what is known about Yogananda’s life from books like Autobiography of a Yogi with so many additional details from his extensive research including how Yogananda’s photo ended up on the cover of the Beatle’s album Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was great to review the impact of Autobiography of a Yogi on western culture with him.
LINKS TO PREVIOUS YOGA HOUR EPISODES WITH PHIL GOLDBERG:
DIVINE ALCHEMY: HOW YOGA AND AMERICA ARE CHANGING EACH OTHER
THE GREAT EAST WEST TRANSMISSION: YOGA AND AMERICAN LIFE
CELEBRATING PARAMAHANSA YOGANANDA
CULTIVATE CALM, CLARITY AND COURAGE IN CRAZY TIMES
LIVING THE FOUR AIMS: PARAMAHANSA YOGANANDA’S INSPIRED LIFE
PARAMAHANSA YOGANANDA: A SPIRITUAL TEACHER FOR THE AGES
DHARMA: DON’T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT
NAVIGATING PARADOXES ON THE SPIRITUAL PATH
THE DAWN OF YOGA IN THE WEST AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE
Mantra: Diving Deep Into Meditation
How does the use of mantra support spiritual awakening? Stella Wuttke, Ph.D., and Marty Wuttke, Kriya Yoga teachers, share how mantra is used to develop a more profound meditation practice and how its vibrational power supports healing of the mind and body and deepens spiritual awareness.
Marty Wuttke is an ordained minister for the Center for Spiritual Awareness. He is a pioneer in the field of bio and neuro-feedback with over 35 years of experience and is the founder of the Wuttke Method of Neurotherapy, now the Infinite Potential Institute. He consults and teach neurotherapy nationally and internationally, as well as meditation and the yogic science of consciousness.
Dr. Stella Wuttke is a psychologist, neuro-scientist, and sound therapist. She acted as a principal investigator for a state-funded EEG project on brainwave patterns associated with visual perception and was lab-director of the neurofeedback laboratory at the University of Jena, Germany. Stella taught at the undergraduate and graduate level at universities in Austria, Germany and the UK. She co-founded, with her husband Marty, the Wuttke Infinite Potential Institute in Santa Barbara, California which offers the neuroscientific, non-invasive methods of neurofeedback, energy medicine, sound therapy and meditation training
Website: IPI.Global
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: The program today about the last four limbs of yoga, dharana, dhyana, meditation, and samadhi and how mantra supports the deepening of our meditation experience was very in-depth but also easily accessible . Marty and Stella's long time study with with Roy Eugene Davis, their deep knowledge of Kriya Yoga and their study and knowledge of what is happening in the brain with meditation really helped me understand how mantra works. My other take-away was the reminder of the importance of a regular practice of meditation. With an intermittent practice, we won't get the positive, physical changes in the brain.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I really enjoyed being able to discuss mantra, as well as the inner limbs of concentration, meditation, and samadhi with Marty and Stella. I appreciated the strong science background that each of them have, and how they brought it into our discussion. The Max Planck quote about how physical matter is really composed of energy was inspiring, and helped me to understand more about the power of mantra, sound vibration, since our bodies are actually made of vibrating energy, like all matter. The information about the physical changes of thickening in the frontal cortex of the brain that occur over time in meditators is an inspiration for my continued meditation practice.
Connect with the Deeper Wisdom of Yoga
Are you ready to deepen and enliven your yoga practice beyond the mat? Pamela Seelig, yoga practitioner, teacher and author of Threads of Yoga shares how the profound spiritual philosophy and enriching practices of yoga can enhance our daily lives
Pamela Seelig is a yoga and meditation teacher based in New Jersey. She began her yoga journey in 1991 when an illness interrupted her Wall Street career. The practice of yoga helped with recovery and led to a lifelong pursuit of perceiving and sharing yogic wisdom. Pamela’s roots are with the Integral Yoga Institute, and she is a certified Hatha, Raja, and Meditation teacher. She is author of the recently released book, Threads of Yoga, Themes, Reflections, and Meditations to Weave Into Your Practice.
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: The discussion today with Pamela Seelig was stimulating. I appreciated that it began and stayed focused on the basic wisdom of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras Book I, sutras 2 and 3.
Yoga citta vrtti nirodha:
"Yoga is the quieting of the mind
And then the seer abides in her true nature"
Pamela defined Yoga as quieting the mind, one fundamental aspect of yoga that we are not our thoughts. Once we quiet our thoughts and learn to observe them, we can experience who we really are, then direct life from this inner connection. The practice you had her share, "Observe the Inner Thought Stream", was a wonderful example of the quotes, practices, and postures she provides in each chapter of her book to bring an experiential wisdom of the yoga thread of the chapter.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: It was a pleasure to discuss your book, Threads of Yoga, with Pamela Seelig. I appreciate how grounded our conversation and her book are in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. It was a treat to be able to begin our discussion with Yoga Sutra 1.2, how yoga is the cessation of mental modifications, and 1.3, when mental modifications cease, we rest in our essential nature. I enjoyed her description that “When we see the twinkle in someone’s eye, we’re “seeing” prana.” Our discussion of prana was informative: how to build it, what depletes it, and that we each have an energy sheath underlying the physical body that is important to our health, as was our discussion of the third chakra, manipura.
Living Your Spiritual Practice
What is it to live this human life in a spiritual way? Zoketsu Norman Fischer, Zen teacher, author and poet shares stories and reflections that offer insights and teaching, helping us define what is really spiritual practice and what supports us in living our best life. This program focuses on his latest book When You Greet Me I Bow, Notes and Reflections From a Life in Zen.
Zoketsu Norman Fischer is a poet, an author and Zen Buddhist priest. For many years he has taught at the San Francisco Zen Center, the oldest and largest of the new Buddhist organizations in the West, where he served as Co-abbot from 1995-2000. He is presently a Senior Dharma Teacher there as well as the founder and spiritual director of the Everyday Zen Foundation, an organization dedicated to adapting Zen Buddhist teachings to Western culture. Norman’s recent book is When You Greet Me I Bow, Notes and Reflections From a Life in Zen.
You can find out more about Zoketsu Norman Fischer, his teaching and books at the websites normanfischer.org and everydayzen.org. You can also find previous conversations with Norman Fischer in our archive at unityonlineradio.org/yoga-hour.
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: There were many deep spiritual teachings in this program. Even though Norman Fischer is a Zen Buddhist priest and told his stories from a Buddhist perspective, Dr. Trujillo brings in the connection between the practice of Buddhism and Yoga. He reiterated how at the mystical core of all the great religions, there is connection, which is what is taught by the Kriya Yoga masters. I loved Zoketsu’s story, which he says is a canonical story, of the Buddha's wife, but not told very often. The learning from this story is that we can have a spiritual life but we don't have to be a monastic to do that. Dr. Trujillo brought up the teachers in our lineage who were householders and monastics, so we have the same example in the Yogic teachings. I also appreciated his teaching about relationship and that everything in this manifest realm is about relationship. He says "Relationship isn't about what happens or doesn't happen in this life but relationship is life. In Yoga remembering our relationship to our Self is the highest relationship. These were just a couple of my take-aways from this program.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: Norman Fischer’s book is delightful, and I felt privileged to have been able to discuss it with him. I enjoyed seeing the parallels between Buddhism and Yoga in our discussion of the separate self as illusory, the importance of relationship on the spiritual path, and in our discussion of suffering and the need for equanimity. His closing comments about the importance of our individual practice, not only for ourselves but for the world, and the importance of sharing kindness with all whom we meet were timely and a wonderful way to close the show.
Sri Yukteswar, The Incarnation of Wisdom
Swami Sri Yukteswar
Paramahansa Yogananda recognized Sri Yukteswar as his guru the moment he saw him. Sri Yukteswar was humble, learned, and a tough but loving spiritual teacher. Yogacharya O’Brian shares how we can learn, even in modern times, from the wise teachings of this great Kriya Yoga master.
Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian is the founder of the Yoga Hour. She is an acclaimed teacher, poet, award-winning author, and minister who has served seekers of spiritual enlightenment from all walks of life for over forty years. She is the recent recipient of the 2021 New Thought Walden Award for Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding. She has published several books including her latest book, The Jewel of Abundance: Finding Prosperity Through the Ancient Wisdom of Yoga. A teacher in the tradition of Kriya Yoga, Yogacharya O’Brian serves people from all faith backgrounds who are seeking what is known as Self- or God-realization, or awakening and is the spiritual director of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, a meditation center in San Jose, CA.
WEBSITES: ELLENGRACEOBRIAN.COM CENTER FOR SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT
YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Yogacharya O’Brian offers us deep teachings from the tradition of Kriya Yoga in just this short hour. Her comments about attunement with the guru offered insight into the connection between the spiritual teacher and their student. She told us that when one has a guru who is steeped in the higher states of consciousness and you are in their presence, you get the experience or soul memory of their consciousness, they share their higher states of consciousness and which creates imprints in our own consciousness. We then take that with us and can draw on that. This is evidence of the importance of being in the physical presence of the guru whenever we can be. Her quote from Sri Yukteswar saying that Kriya Yoga is karma yoga is very important to understand. Kriya Yoga is a path of service. Our devotion, our study, our inner work all leads to serving others, to serving the world around us.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I learned a lot from this discussion of the great Kriya Yoga teacher, Swami Sri Yukteswar. I appreciated the opportunity to discuss why it is important to study the “states of consciousness and virtuous attitudes and behaviors of spiritually enlightened saints and sages” (as Roy Eugene Davis translated from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra #1.37) which can provide guidance and inspiration for us on our own spiritual journey. I also welcomed her comments about Swami Sri Yukteswar’s focus that Kriya Yoga is a life of service, and that the culmination of mystical experience lies in serving others. I found the discussion of the yugas, or ages, as outlined in Swami Sri Yukteswar’s book The Holy Science to be hopeful and reassuring. We are in an ascending cycle of our spiritually awakening world, and even thought we see chaos and negativity we are on an upward trajectory for this world becoming more spiritually awake.
Lessons from Lahiri Mahasaya, the Bliss-Filled Father of Kriya Yoga
Yogacharya O’Brian returns to The Yoga Hour to celebrate the life and teachings of Lahiri Mahasaya who revealed where the practical and mystical aspects of our life meet in harmonious accord. Discover how where you are right now is most auspicious for spiritual awakening.
Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian is the founder and spiritual director of the Yoga Hour. She is a spiritual teacher, writer, poet, and the founder and spiritual director of Center for Spiritual Enlightenment—a Kriya Yoga Meditation Center with headquarters in San Jose, California. She teaches nationally and internationally and has received several community service awards, including the Mahatma Gandhi Award for the Promotion of Religious Pluralism and, most recently, the 2021 New Thought Walden Award for Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding. Her latest award-winning bestseller The Jewel of Abundance: Finding Prosperity through the Ancient Wisdom of Yoga was published by New World Library and is available through her website and on Amazon.
Websites: EllenGraceOBrian.com, and the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment CSEcenter.org
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: A really amazing program today. I learned so much more about Lahiri Mahasaya and how the stories that we have been told about him can be seen as spiritual teaching stories to guide us on our own spiritual journey. There was so much in this episode but one thing that stood out for me was that I loved how Yogacharya O’Brian described the guru. It seemed like she could have gone on and on. Here are a few that she mentioned:
At the simplest level the guru is the teacher. The guru is the matchmaker who introduces you to the love of your life, The guru is everything. The guru is the anchor. The guru is the light that dispels the darkness. The guru means heavy as in profound. The guru is a window to see the vision of the world as holy. The guru is a key unlocking the wisdom of the soul.
Lahiri set an example of living an exemplary spiritual life in the world with a wife, 5 children and a fulltime job. He saw no strata, gender or culture in the soul. He welcomed all who were ready. He is the solid foundation of our Kriya Yoga lineage. Initiation is our link to the lineage and promises guidance on the path. It is reassuring to me that he taught that there is too much to learn in a lifetime, most important is to concentrate on the essence of the teachings. Aum - God and guru's voice within us and Kriya - breath and Vital Force.
There is so much more inspiring content in this interview. I plan to listen to this podcast again.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS:It seems that there is always something new to discuss when we talk about Lahiri Mahasaya, and today was no exception. I particularly enjoyed Yogacharya’s discussion of how we can examine the story of Lahiri’s meeting with his guru Babaji, and how we can look for those same elements when we examine our own spiritual journey. I also enjoyed Yogacharya’s comments about how the world is a holy place, and that when we remember this it helps us to live a dharmic life. Lastly, I love Lahiri Mahasaya’s quote: “Keep on keeping on, behold one day the goal.”
Finding the Path to Inner Bravery
How do we find the inner courage to face ourselves, others, and the unknown? Poet and spiritual leader Mark Nepo, author of Finding Inner Courage, reflects on how the power of honest inquiry in times of loss and uncertainty can ignite deep reflection and motivate action.
Mark Nepo has moved and inspired readers and seekers all over the world with his #1 New York Timesbest seller The Book of Awakening. He has published 22 books including Drinking from the River of Light and has recorded 15 audio projects. In 2015, he was given a Life Achievement Award by AgeNation. In 2016, he was named by Watkins: Mind Body Spirit as one of the 100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People, and he was also chosen as one of OWN’s SuperSoul 100, a group of inspired leaders using their gifts and voices to elevate humanity. In 2017 Mark became a regular columnist for Spirituality and Health magazine. In this episode we are discussing Mark’s most recent book Finding Inner Courage.
Mark Nepo’s Websites are MarkNepo.com ThreeIntentions.com For more information and to sign up for Mark’s upcoming webinar, THE FIRE OF ALIVENESS: COMING BACK INTO THE WORLD go to live.marknepo.com
Mark Nepo’s books are available at Amazon.com
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Courage: to stand by one's core. This is definitely a powerful and timely discussion. There is so much to contemplate here. If we want to overcome violence of the world, we need to face what is ours to face - feel what is ours to feel. Rather than running from suffering, we must help each other through it. The heart breathes by feeling and receiving, then exhales by expressing and emptying. You don't want to miss this life changing and a heart opening conversation.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: Although Finding Inner Courage is one of is one of Mark’s older books, I thought the topic was so helpful and so relevant to the challenges we are facing today. I loved how he shared the meaning of the word courage as coming from the Latin word cor, which means heart. He further described that when we stand by our core, we stand by the core of all being, which as I mentioned is the essence of yoga. I also particularly liked his four learnings “to explore the art of feeling (inhaling our experience) and emptying (exhaling our experience), which when leaned into can help us live.” These were: letting what is lead the way; expressing what remains unexpressed; acknowledging and forgiving our unconscious participation in life; keeping our mind open. Such wonderful teachings to share with our listeners!