Maladihalli Swamy - A Man of Difference

In a sleepy hamlet Malladihalli, resided a renowned person called Shri Raghavendra Swamiji, more popularly known as ‘Malladihalli Swamiji.

He was born in Kerala in 1890 and his original name was Kumaraswamy.
When he died he was 106 years old.
Due to intense pressure of his devotees, he wrote his autobiography “Jolige Pawada” in 1993, in which he has documented his life history from memory of the last over hundred years.
He was clean shaved person with a slight bent and he wore small grey shorts.
He walked so briskly, that many had to run to catch up with him.
He would start his day at 3 a.m.and needed just four hours of sleep everyday.

Swamiji says:
"Yoga is not doing a few postures.
I have seen some people who have a wonderful body, which can bend in so many ways, but they cannot bend so many vices in their life. They can hold their breath until eternity, but they cannot hold their greed, arrogance even to a small degree! If you can inculcate the good habits, even if you do not regularly practice Yoga, you are a winner in life after all. Keep smiling as you always do! "

Swamiji had done all his schooling in Kundapur.
His association with Dr. K. Shivaram Karanth, a Mangalorean, at Amba Prasaditha Nataka (Drama) Company at Tumkur (east of Mangalore)got him a clerical job in the Drama Company itself.
He was entrusted with the ticket sales and disbursement of salaries/wages to the Company’s staff.
As a school boy he participated and acted in many Dramas, Yakshagana and Thala Maddale.

Maladihalli Swamy and SadhGuru

Sri Raghavendra Swamiji of Malladihalli popularly known as "Malladihalli Swamiji", was a founder of Anatha Sevashrama Trust, Malladihalli.
He taught Yoga to more than 4.5 million people all over the world keeping his base as Malladihalli Chitradurga District, a tiny village in Karnataka,

Raghavendra Swamiji was born in Kerala.
This Yoga and Ayurvedic Guru treated more than 3 million people for various diseases through his Ayurvedic medicines, and Yoga without any operations.

His main concern was to educate the poor people and teach Yoga to all cross sections of the society for maintaining good health.
He always says "You should not exhibit Yoga", in other words, Yoga is not for exhibition purposes or competition purposes.

Based on his 70 years of experience in Yoga and Ayurveda, and his various theories in Yoga teaching, as per him, the number of Yoga postures is equal to the number of animals and birds living in the world.

He called himself "Thiruka" (Beggar) and urged the people to donate freely to his projects, and thus succeeded in collecting funds and implementing his projects effectively during his tenure.

Sadguru about Maladihalli Swamiji:


"Maladihalli Swami,first taught me yoga.
He used to do 4008 Surya Namaskars per day.
Just like me he got into yoga for the wrong reasons.
Right from his infancy, he had been a chronic asthmatic. He was just wheezing day and night. In those days, there was no proper medicine or treatment, and even if there had been, his parents would not have been able to afford it. They did whatever they could, but the boy was just wasting away.

When he was about 11 or 12 years of age, a yogi came by and the parents asked him to heal the boy. The yogi said, “Anyway this boy is not going to be of any use to you. If you keep him with you, he will die. Give him to me; I will take him with me.” He didn’t belong to the kind of people who are recruiting disciples. He wanted to walk alone; generally, he didn’t take anybody. But he took compassion upon this boy because he had his mission. This yogi was Palani Swamy – that’s my Guru too. So he took this young boy and trained him in the ways of yoga. The boy not only grew out of his ailment, he grew into a physically almost superhuman person – and he came and reminded me of yoga. [Laughs]"

Cucumber Pineapple salad

Ingredients :
Cucumber - 1 cup
Pineapple - 1 cup
pepper and salt.
Cut Cucumber and Pineapple and add pepper - salt and serve.

Satvik Food - Jack Fruit Halwa

JACK FRUIT HALWA

Ingredients
1 kg sweet jackfruit
1kg jaggery
2 coconuts, grated
1/2 cup ghee
For the garnish
1/2 cup roasted cashew nuts
1/2 cup raisins

Method
Deseed the jackfruit and cut into 3-inch strips. Put aside.Place jaggery in a pan. Add enough water to barely cover. Heat until the jaggery dissolves completely stirring frequently. Then strain. To this, add the jackfruit strips and grated coconuts and cook over medium heat stirring continuously. Add the ghee and continue stirring until it reaches a jam consistency. Remove from heat. Place in a bowl. Garnish with roasted cashew nuts and raisins.

Food Served in Isha centre

Stress on uncooked food in the form of salads is pronounced.
A rare variety of porridges with nutritive value are a way of eating. Served on banana leaves is good.
Food In Isha centre
The bland food is structured to generate a satwik mood.

Twice a day at 10 am and 7 pm, the meditators are offered sukku (dry ginger powder), coffee and tea.

Lemon and honey tea is served during the post noon session with a bowl of fruits. The day, however, begins with the consumption of neem leaf balls and turmeric balls with a glass of hot water for cleansing the system.
The food inevitably is cooked sans garlic and onions, as the ashram considers them as negative influences.
Rice and wheat are also served in turns and sprouts, soaked grams, cut vegetables, fruits and nuts are included on a daily basis.
On an average, at least fifty per cent of the meals served are uncooked.
A bountiful vegetable garden nurtured by the ashram supplies vegetables for the kitchen on a daily basis but on special occasions .

Aum Chanting

OM or AUM is the most important and significant word of Mantra tradition.
It is considered as the root mantra of all mantra.
In a majority of Mantra, you will find OM.

HOW TO DO IT ?
Sit in Artha Sidhaasana with Chin Mudra and say "AAA-UUU-EmEmEm.."- 21 times.
When you say AA you can notice the vibrations in your belly area ,uuu vibrates in your chest area and EmEm.. in your throat area.

OM is the most often chanted sound among all the sacred sounds on earth.
This sound is considered as the sound of the existence.
It is believed that the whole universe, in its fundamental form, is made up of vibrating, pulsating energy.
Om is considered as the humming sound of this cosmic energy.

It is also known as the 'Anahat Nada', the "Unstruck Sound". This means the sound that is not made by two things striking together.

If you observe the nature of sound you'll find that all ordinary audible sound are produced by the striking of two objects : bow and strings, drum and stick, two vocal cords, waves against the shore, winds against the leaves, bat against the ball, tyers against the road etc.
In short all sounds within our range of listening are produces by things visible or invisible, striking each other or vibrating together, resulting in pulsating waves of air molecules which we interprets as sound.

SADGURU'S BACKGROUND

Sadhguru was a rebel, always questioning what was normally accepted by society.
For example, as a boy when he was dragged into a temple he asked of his parents:

why was it necessary to pray before idols?
What good would it do?
He would get beaten up for that.

In ten years he changed ten schools in and around Shimoga where he was born.
It was also because his father, an ophthalmologist with the Railways, was shunted him from place to place.

When the time came to join college, Sadhguru refused.
Instead he spent a whole year reading all kinds of books.
Finally, because of parental pressures, he enrolled for the B.A. course and just about managed enough examination questions to pass.”

After college, Sadhguru wanted to make a lot of money because he craved to travel the world.
He started poultry farming as that was a thriving business in those days. He succeeded, and his father was thrilled.
But Sadhguru disappointed him by winding up the farm. “He was bored of chickens.

Sadhguru then teamed up with a partner to enter the construction business in Mysore. It did very well. Once again his father was thrilled.
And once again he was in store for disappointment.

“One afternoon,while sitting on a rock on nearby Chamundi Hills, Sadhguru experienced something mysterious yet ecstatic.
He was left crying and smiling for several hours.

From then on the experience repeated frequently.
It endowed him with a deep insight into life and people, an insight that proved to be an unfair advantage over competitors in the construction business.
He wound up the business and set about finding what exactly it was that he had experienced.
In the ensuing months, he was able to remember experiences in a previous life with a sage called Palaniswamy.

Sadhguru was already equipped with various aspects of yoga learnt during his youth from Malladihalli Swamy, a reputed yogi in Karnataka.
This knowledge together with memories of life with Palaniswamy helped Sadhguru design specific practices for the yoga of gnana (intelligence), bhakti (emotions), karma (action), and kriya (energy).
This method of ‘inner engineering’ that Sadhguru designed was to align these four ‘wheels’ in such a way that one could travel smoothly.

SadhGuru about Anger

Sadhuguru says , that it does not matter how much people preach "don't get angry";
when certain situations arise, you get angry.
It does not matter what kind of human being you become;
even if you become superhuman, you will never have absolute control over the external world.
Whether it is with the company you work for, your family or the world, you will never have total control over external situations.

But you can have total control over your internal situation.
Emotional states like anger, hate, lust, compassion or love -- from the lowest states to the highest -- are certain types of expression of the same energy.
People often ask, "Can we exist without anger?"
This is generally because anger is the most intense emotion people have experienced in their lives.
People want intensity, but the only way they know how to be intense is through physical action, anger or pain.
The very reason why drugs and sex have become such a big thing in the world is, somehow, people want to experience some intensity, at least for a few moments -- it is the intensity that draws them.
I am always talking about intensity because intensity is the only thing man is seeking, and it is the only thing that will liberate man from his present bondages.

But unfortunately, for most people, their fear, anger and hatred are the most intense situations in their lives. Their love is never so intense.
Their peace is never so intense. Their joy is never so intense. Instead, their negativities are intense, so they experience power in negative circumstances.

Anger is enormous intensity;
it is an intensity that hurts you.
It is an intensity that can get you into a lot of trouble.
It is an intensity that can destroy people around you and yourself in so many ways.

But if you transform your energy in a certain way, it naturally becomes love and compassion. Then, slowly, as the process goes further, you reach the pinnacle of self-awareness and experience a unity with all life. The whole process of yoga is based on this.

For many people, "yoga" just means twisting yourself into some impossible postures. But that is not what we are referring to as yoga.

"Yoga" means to be in perfect tune, when your body, mind, spirit and the existence are in absolute harmony.
When you fine-tune yourself to such a point where everything functions so beautifully within you, the best of your abilities will naturally flow out of you. So yoga is the science of activating your inner energies in such a way that your body, mind and emotions function at their highest peak.

Suppose you start experiencing everyone around you as part of yourself.
After that, no one needs to teach you to be good, not to harm others.
And once you are experientially a part of everything, then nobody needs to teach you morality.
Then you can do something about any given situation that may be unpleasant, but without anger. What you have to do, you do; but when you do it with anger and hatred, it is of no value.
A day can come when, even if you are put into the most extreme situation, your energies will remain very calm.
When you act out of unity with all life, you act without identity. Only then can you function out of your intelligence.

Yoga means to cultivate your energy in such a way that gradually it breaks the physical limitations and elevates you to the highest level of awareness, the flowering of human potential.

Heart Rate Dynamics during Shambhavi Mahamudra- A Practice of Isha Yoga

The Heart Rate VariabilityT test is a simple, non-invasive, fully automated computer-based system designed for quantitative assessment of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)To put it simply it measures your ability to heal and adapt to stressors. It compares your current level of health to the excellent level maintained by an olympic athlete. It is a great way to measure your success in health--you can do the test in the beginnning of your health improvement program and then again in several weeks to see how you are progressing

A study was designed to quantify and compare the instantaneous changes of heart rate variability (HRV) during Shambhavi Mahamudra, a practice of Isha yoga.
It includes major stages viz. Sukha pranayam, 'AUM' chanting, rapid breathing, and relaxed sitting.
The standard lead II electrocardiogram (ECG) signals were acquired from eight healthy, yoga practitioners while performing various stages of Shambhavi Mahamudra. The short-term HRV were extracted from ECG, and analyzed using time, frequency-domain and Poincaré plot methods.
The results showed a combination of increased sympathetic tone and withdrawal of vagal tone during Sukha pranayam, an increased sympathetic tone during `AUM' chanting, and withdrawal of vagal tone during rapid breathing.\
The HRV descriptors were not significantly different during relaxed sitting

Rudraksha

Botanically known as Elaecarpus Ganitrus Roxb, Rudraksh are the dried seeds of a tree, which grows in a select locations of South East Asia, predominantly in the upper Himalayan mountain range of the Indian subcontinent bordering Nepal. A few Rudraksh trees have also been sighted in parts of the Velliangiri Mountains, in the Western Ghats.

The word Rudraksh literally means “tears of Shiva”. There are many legends in Indian scriptures and mythology that describe the divine origin of the Rudraksh tree. According to one legend, Shiva sat in meditation for many millennia with his eyes closed. Upon opening his eyes, he shed tears of ecstasy, which fell to the earth and became the holy Rudraksh tree. Rudraksh beads were Shiva’s gift to the world.

Benefits of Rudraksh

1.Rudraksh’s curative properties have been utilized worldwide for a number of physical, mental and psychosomatic illnesses.
2.They are very supportive for maintaining physical and mental balance.
3.They aid in creating an atmosphere conductive for restful sleep in unfamiliar environments.
4.For spiritual seekers, Rudraksh plays a supportive role in enhancing one’s spiritual growth.
5.Some of the esoteric benefits ascribed to Rudraksh include enhancement of intuition, infusion of tranquility of the mind, assistance in meditation, purification of the aura, cleansing of the seven chakras, formation of a protective sheath around a person, providing protection against injury or negative and distorted energies, and development of dispassion and detachment.

Who can wear a Rudraksh ?

Anyone, irrespective of gender, cultural, ethnic, geographical, or religious background can wear Rudraksh.
Rudraksh can be worn by children, students, the elderly, ill etc. for special benefits. They are intended for persons at any stage in life irrespective of mental and/or physical condition.

Selecting a Rudraksh

Rudraksh in their natural state have their own energies that are very beneficial to the wearer.
However, Rudraksh can also be specially consecrated to enhance the impact upon the wearer.
In the tradition, Rudraksh are usually received from a Guru - a spiritual Master.

Rudraksh offered by Isha Yoga Center are carefully selected and checked for their quality and authenticity and undergo a special process of consecration by Sadhguru. Assisting the seeker in many ways, they are potent aids for one’s physical, mental wellbeing and one’s spiritual sadhana (spiritual practice).

The following is a list of Rudraksh available through the Isha Yoga Center, which have been selected by Sadhguru for use by the common man, with the corresponding attributable properties:

Panchmukhi : These are five-faced Rudraksh which can be worn by anyone above 14 years of age. It helps cultivate inner freedom and purity.

Dwimukhi : These are two-faced Rudraksh intended for married persons. It is supportive for marital relationships and should be worn by both husband and wife.

Shanmukhi : These are six-faced Rudraksh intended for children below 14 years of age. This Rudraksh aids in proper physical and mental development and draws qualities of motherly love toward the child.

Gowrishankar : These are beads which look like two beads fused together and can be worn by anyone above 14 years of age. It aids in prosperity and balancing the Ida and Pingala nadis (energy channels) and activates the seven chakras.

Conditioning of Rudraksh

To condition new Rudraksh beads, immerse them in Ghee (clarified butter) for 24 hours and then soak them in full fat milk for an additional 24 hours. Wipe the beads with a clean cloth, but do not wash them with soap. Conditioning should take place every six months.

Proper Care of Rudraksh

Rudraksh can be worn at all times, including during sleep and while doing one’s spiritual practices.
Rudraksh can be worn during bathing times.
However, care must be taken that the Rudraksh do not come in contact with hot water or soap.
Rudraksh should not come in contact with metal, therefore it is advisable not to place them in metal containers.
However, Rudraksh can be cast in gold or silver if one chooses to do so.
Extreme care should be taken when fashioning Rudraksh in this manner, as damage may occur through improper handling.

The energies of broken, cracked, damaged and defective Rudraksh beads are distorted and should not be worn.

Not freedom but Bondage

Sadguru says, “”I can do what I like”… is freedom and “I can only do what I like” is not freedom but bondage”

Bondage with Coffee: If you are addicted to coffee and one fine day when you are about to sip your coffee someone takes it away from you and you scream, “Don’t I have the freedom to drink my cup of coffee?” Is this freedom or bondage? See for yourself…


Waking Up:Let us say, you wake up regularly at 8 am and one day someone asks you to wake up at 7.30 am you would say, “No, I wake up only at 8 pm”…Is this freedom? Freedom means you can do anything you like. If you need to get up at 7 am you have to get up at 7 am and not say that 8 pm is my only time to get up

Man’s Freedom:

Once Shankaran Pillai went to the bar with his friends and when the clock struck 8 pm, he put down his half-full glass and started walking towards the door.

All his friends were asking him to at least finish the glass and go, but he kept walking. His friends said, “We know why you are walking out, you are afraid of your wife. What are you? Are you a man or mouse?”

Shankaran Pillai turned back, kept his hands on his hips, stared at them and said, “I am the Man in my house, if I was a Mouse my wife would be afraid of me” )

He walked slowly thinking of what to say to his wife and when he reached home, his wife was waiting for him at the door steps with a roller-pin.

She shouted, “You fool, can’t you come on time before 8 pm, you have started drinking again…”. Shankaran Pillai went slowly and closer to her and took a sudden leap over her and started running inside the house.

He is a small and fragile guy, he had lots of hope that she could not catch her. He started running all over the house and went to the bedroom. He went under the bed and there he lied down with his hands at the back of the head.

His wife is a bit hefty so she can’t get under the bed. She said, “You fool come out of the bed, you coward…”.

Shankaran Pillai replied, “I am the Man of the House and I can lie down wherever I wish” )

This is his freedom and that is the same way how Man is behaving now…

Freedom is not living without rules but freedom is living by following rules

Thought Bubbles from Isha

I love the stories said in Isha classes.
To explain a concept ,the teachers tell us a story and small incidents.One Popular story was the Akbar Birbal story.It says the effect of our actions.
One day Akbar was simply chatting with his friends. He had around him the very best, wisest, most creative people chosen from every part of the country. They were speaking, Akbar all of the sudden slapped Birbal for no apparent reason. No one could slap the Emperor back, but the slap had to go somewhere.So Birbal slapped the person who was standing right next to him.
Everybody thought, "This is strange!"
There was no reason in the first place for Akbar's slap.
Suddenly, as if some madness had seized Akbar, he has slapped poor Birbal. And the victim also reacted strangely. Rather than asking, "Why have you slapped me?" he simply slapped the man by his side! and that man, thinking perhaps this was the norm at the Court, slapped the next person. In a chain reaction, the slap went all around the Court.That night, Akbar's wife slapped him! and he asked, "Why are you slapping me?"She said," What a question - a Game is a Game."
He asked, "Who told you that this is a game?"
We have been hearing the whole day long that a great game has begun in the Court. The only rule is that you cannot hit the person back, you have to find somebody else to slap. And somebody has slapped me, so your slap has come back to you. The game is now complete!"

Sweet and Salt

1. Sweet Aval :
Ingredients: Pre-soaked Aval , Jaggery , Coconut scrapes and powdered Elachi.
Mix everything and serve.

2.Spicy Aval
Ingredients: Thick Pre-soaked Aval , Coriander , Coconut scrapes , tamarin pulp, and curry leaves.
Mix everything and serve.

Pumpkin with Yoghurt
Ingredients : Grated white pumpkin , ginger , pepper- salt , coriander and curry leaves.Splutter mustard and urad dhal and mix everything ,finally add curd .

Vegetable Juice
Mix the juices of below mentioned vegetable , white pumpkin and lemon with sugar and serve immediatly.

Groundnut porridge
Mix soaked groundnuts ,banana , elachi powder , sugar with water. Blend in mixy and serve.

Coriander Coffee
Take equal amount of pepper,zeera , coriander , small pinch of Dry ginger and powder it. Take 200ml water and add 2 tsp of the above powder and boil it.Then filter it and add sugar or jaggery and serve.You can add Lime juice for extra taste

Isha Food Recepies - SALADS

1. Beetroot Salad
Ingredients: Grated beetroot , ginger and coconut , soaked groundnuts , pepper powder,salt ,lemon ,coriander leaves and curry leaves .

2.Carrot Salad
Ingredients : Grated carrot , coconut and ginger with moong sprouts , pepper ,salt and lemon juice. Add curry and coriander leaves. Mix and serve immediatly.

3.Cucumber Salad
Ingredients : Chopped cucumber and capsicum , grated ginger and coconut, lemon juice ,pepper and salt.Season with fried mustard seeds , curry leaves and urad dhal in little oil . Garnish with coriander leaves. Mix and serve.

4.Snake Gourd salad :
Peel the skin of snake gourd and chop them to small pieces .
Do just like Cucumber Salad. Add chopped tomatoes.
Mix and serve.