Edgar Cayce and the Yoga Sutras. Istvan Fazekas
sexual impulses into spiritual fuel, we can ascend in consciousness sooner rather than later.
Man may not live by bread alone. Man may not live by the gratifying of appetites in the material world. For man is not made for this world alone. There is a longing for those experiences which the soul . . . has experienced. And without spirituality the earth is indeed a hell, an individual soul do what it will or may. Such longing may not be gratified from without [externally] or in the . . . experiences that pertain to, the forces and influences without [outside of] self. For the body is indeed the temple of the living God. Act like it! Keep it clean. Don’t desecrate it ever, but keep it such that it may be the place where you would meet [your] own better self, [your] own God-self. As [you] do this, there may be brought harmony, peace, joy. As in everything else, if [you] would have joy [you] must make others happy! Bring joy to others. If [you] would have love, [you] must show [yourself] lovely! If [you] would have friends, show [yourself] friendly! If [you] would know God, search for Him, for He is within [your] own self! And as [you] express Him in the fruits of spirit; love, grace, mercy, peace, longsuffering, patience, kindness, gentleness; [you] will find such within [yourself] . . . This is the source of life, the source of love, the source of peace, the source of harmony, and as [you] give expression to same, it may come indeed to [you].
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V. Aparigraha:
Watch and be on your guard against avarice of any kind, for life does not consist in possessions, even when someone has more than he needs.
Jesus; Luke 12:15 [author’s paraphrase]
You bemoan not having what others have. You don’t know what it is to be free. The contrast of the happiness within your soul outbalances all the pleasure that you can get from your senses. So don’t spend too much time seeking and caring for possessions.
Paramahansa Yogananda10
Aparigrana means “nonavarice” and recommends keeping to a simple life. It is the old adage not to let your possessions possess you. This teaching is especially poignant in countries that have abundant material resources. This yama entreats us to “simplify, simplify, simplify,” in the words of Thoreau, keeping our material needs to a minimum and our spiritual connection at full depth.
Since the post-World War I era, America has been on a track of progressive, some might contend reckless, consumption. We are now seeing the various effects of our excessive appetites in social and environmental imbalances. Other countries, in an attempt to keep up with the Joneses, are mimicking this behavior and reaping the detriments. If aparigraha were to be applied personally and globally, these present imbalances could be soon rectified. It is a precept that needs implementation in the wealthiest countries. However, we should all start with ourselves first—wherever we live.
Do not gather . . . and store for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal; But gather . . . and store for yourselves treasures in heaven [God consciousness], where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal.
Matthew 6:19-20
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Niyamas: Guidelines for Effective Self-Transformation
In the next series of yogic teachings, the adherences (niyamas) are presented for the aspirant to incorporate. After integrating the rules for psychosocial propriety (yamas), one then works on transforming one’s ego by faithful dedication to these following five tenets.
I. Shauca:
First clean the inside of the cup and of the plate, so that the outside may be clean also.
Jesus; Matthew 23:26
[L]et us cleanse ourselves from everything that contaminates and defiles body and spirit, and bring [our] consecration to completeness in the [reverence] of God.
Paul; 2 Corinthians 7:1 [final brackets author’s]
[P]urity of purpose, of mind, of body, must be kept if there would be the mental or the spiritual urge that will bring peace and harmony in the experience in this sojourn.
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[I]n entering into the silence . . . in meditation, with a clean hand, a clean body, a clean mind, we may receive that strength and power that fits each individual, each soul, for a greater activity in this material world.
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As the body-physical is purified, as the mental body is made wholly at-one with purification or purity, with the life and light within itself, healing comes, strength comes, power comes.
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Be spotless within. Make your inner self a temple of God.
Paramahansa Yogananda11
One who is physically clean and is also rid of the mental taints of uncontrollable desires and restless thoughts indeed invites the Lord to manifest Himself in the purified temple of his life.
Paramahansa Yogananda12
Shauca means “cleanliness” and includes both external and internal cleansings.
External shauca consists of physical cleanliness in proper hygiene, foods devoid of chemicals and synthetic processing, vegetarian diets, therapeutic baths, refraining from alcohol or drug use, hatha yoga (physical) asanas, massage therapy, and medicinal herbal or botanical treatments. For external or physical shauca, colon hydrotherapy, sweating, vigorous exercise and breathing, and cleansing foods are also commonly recommended in various wellness traditions. Common-sense fasting, too, is a common shauca. (Refer to The Alkalizing Diet, chapter ten, “The Seven Types of Fasts.”)
Internal shauca consists of avoiding negative, destructive emotions: arrogance, pride, conceit, malice, vengefulness, greed, lust, anger, despair, and apathy are among the most commonly noted. All of these are symptoms of the disease of spiritual rebellion. This emotional pollution is a considerable roadblock to spiritual awareness.
The yogic masters put forth their version of cleanliness is next to godliness, but not to a neurotic extreme. Many religions require cleansing with water as a precursor to prayer or as an important symbolic ritual. What is paramount as a regular part of psychospiritual attunement is to cleanse the mind of negative thoughts and images. This helps reinforce the benefits of consistent meditation. Besides being a sensible and beneficial public health protocol, shauca is required to increase one’s spiritual vibration. In the spiritual yogic traditions, shauca is critical for proper development in the beginning and intermediate stages for all aspirants.
The masters prioritize inner cleanliness over the external, but common sense would dictate incorporating both.
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus dispossesses a young boy of an “unclean spirit,” whereas the disciples could not:
And when He had gone indoors His disciples asked him privately, Why could not we drive it out?
And He replied to them, This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.
Mark 9:28-29
The combination of prayer (attunement) and fasting (shauca) is a frequently employed combination in many spiritual cultures. This should empower the aspirant to rely less on physical means and more on spiritual ones.
[P]urity of purpose, of mind, of body, must be kept if there would be the mental or the spiritual urge that will bring peace and harmony in the experience in this sojourn.
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