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The beginning, middle, and end of yoga texts is the Yoga Darshan (Yoga Sutras) of Patanjali. It has not only never been superseded, it has never been equalled. It stands alone as the sole authority on yoga outside the Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita.

Because of the importance of Patanjali’s classic text, we have added a new section on the Yoga Sutras to our website. Included are articles by Swami Nirmalananda Giri and Raghavan Iyer on various aspects of Yoga and the Yoga Sutras. And there are two translations of the Yoga Sutras, including Dr. I. K. Taimni’s translation and masterly exposition, The Science of Yoga. These articles will help any student of yoga to gain a clear understanding of the principles which form the basis of this important subject.

Visit An Introduction to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. For more spiritual reading, we also suggest the Introduction to the Bhagavad Gita, and the Introduction to the Upanishads.

The revised version of Om Yoga–Its Theory and Practice is now available as a free PDF download and for viewing online.

In the preface of this newly revised eBook on meditation, Swami Nirmalananda Giri explains what yoga is truly about:

Yoga is all about freedom. Only a fraction of the world’s population is formally imprisoned, but the entire human race is imprisoned in the earth itself. None are free from the inevitability of sickness, age, and death, however free of them they may be at the moment. The human condition is subject to innumerable limitations. Who really controls his life fully, attains all his goals, and knows no setbacks of any kind? No one.

“Om Yoga is the way to freedom from suffering and limitation.”

Our real self, the spirit, is ever perfect and free. But it has forgotten that. So it identifies with its present experience of bondage and consequently suffers in countless ways. Our situation is like someone who is asleep and dreaming that he is being tortured and beaten. In reality he is not being touched at all; yet he is experiencing pain and fear. He need not placate, overpower, or escape his torturers. He needs only to wake up. Yoga is the procedure of self-awakening.

Om Yoga is the way to freedom from suffering and limitation. “What world does he who meditates on Om until the end of his life, win by That? If he meditates on the Supreme Being with the Syllable Om, he becomes one with the Light, he is led to the world of Brahman [the Absolute Being] Who is higher than the highest life, That Which is tranquil, unaging, immortal, fearless, and supreme.” (Prashna Upanishad)

How this freedom is accomplished is related in detail in Om Yoga–Its Theory and Practice. The chapters include the following:

• Why Yoga?
• The Word That Is God–what Om is and why it is used in meditation.
• Om Yoga Medition–the technique of meditation.
• Breath and Sound in Meditation
• Pointers For Successful Meditation
• Om Yoga–Ashtanga Yoga–the eight limbs of yoga as outlined by Patanjali.
• The Foundations of Yoga–about Yama and Niyama, the essential moral precepts of spiritual life.

Discover the rationale and practical aspects of this classical method of yoga and mediation in this comprehensive, free eBook. (113 pages, 2.4 mb.)

Download your free PDF eBook,
Om Yoga–Its Theory and Practice, by Swami Nirmalananda Giri

Or you can view the chapters of the book online.

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The state motto for New Mexico is “Land of Enchantment.” Since our Ashram has moved to its new location on the slope of the Sandia mountains, we have had many opportunities to be enchanted. Whether awed by the spectacular sunrises and sunsets, the stunning thunderheads during the late summer monsoons, or simply the beautiful vistas on a clear, sunny day, we are thoroughly enjoying our new locale. Yesterday we were treated to brief thunderstorm, followed by a series of rainbow displays. Below is a photo of one of the scenes we enjoyed.

View more rainbow photos

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