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When people in the western world speak of yoga, they mostly refer to ashtanga-yoga or hatha-yoga. But there are actually many, many different yoga processes, which can be compared with the different steps of a ladder. They do not compete with each other, but are just different rungs on the way to ONE reality... This page will inform you about:
The Goal of Ashtanga-Yoga...To understand the process of ashtanga-yoga, we have to know the general objective of yoga. In this way we will easily be able to appreciate each particular bona fide yoga process as an authorized part of the overall vision. A short recap: What is Yoga? Yoga means connection. Every living entity is involved in innumerable relationships. Nature is a complex and sensitive cooperation of countless factors, where everything is related to everything else. Often people come to realize this fact, not until they have to endure the consequences of improper interventions into nature, without taking into account its interdependent complexity. The common ground for all these relationships is found in the laws of reality. Without them, secondary relations between different parts of reality would not exist. Therefore we can conclude, that our connection with reality and its laws forms the basis for all other realtionships. Let's, for example, take the pieces of chess... They all have particular realtionships to each other, because they all share a common relationship to the chessboard and to the rules of the game. So the next question will be: What is this reality, the basis of all relationships? No sane living being will claim to be the original creator of himself or reality. In all our actions and relations we are fully dependent on the laws of reality. We did not create them. They were created by the original lawmaker, who presents the center of total reality, which is incessantly emanating from Him. A legislator is of course a person. The actual basis and center of total existence is therefore called the Supreme Person. He/She is absolute, i.e. completely independent from everything else. Let's take another graphic example: If you throw a stone into the water, waves arise as concentric circles. All this waves interrelate with each other, but the center is the origin of all this relationships... Conclusion: All living entites have a direct connenction to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As soon as this realtionship is denied, all other relationships are bereft of their foundation. They deteriorate, becoming superficial and artificial. The main characteristics of such insubstantial relationships are envy, intense competion, hatred, exploitation and unlimited suffering. So... We started with this question: What is yoga? Now, here is the answer... The objective of any yoga process is to reestablish one's relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the source of all existence. As part of the whole system ashtanga-yoga serves exactly that same goal, too. Although commonly unknown in the modern world ashtanga-yoga is much more than just a process to keep good health or to reduce fat.These are just side effects... The actual goal of ashtanga yoga therefore includes three aspects:
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