Sadvidya Foundation Newsletter
Dear Well Wishers,
We are grateful for your continued heartfelt support as well as generous donations. It is through these that we continue to share, the wisdom of yoga throughout the world.
For Information Regarding the Oct 16th – 27th 2016 Retreat in India
Please contact: [email protected]
We invite you to explore the new offerings on the Sadvidya Foundation site. You will find a new section devoted to chanting the Yoga Sutra. Ganapati Bhat is chanting these sutras from Patanjali to enlighten us about the yogic science. This section includes:
- Yoga Sutra Videos
- Stanza by Stanza Recordings
- Sanskrit Text
- Transliteration
- Printouts and mp3s
Additionally we have begun a series of Ayurvedic Cooking Recipes. These time tested dishes are delicious, and designed to supporting health and well-being.
Letter from Acharya:
Introduction to Ayurvedic Cooking
Food is the fuel for the human body, for growth, for life, for survival. A tiny body of 10 pounds will grow, due to food, becoming a 150 pound body.
The word used for food in both Ayurveda and Yoga is āhara. Āhara is derived from the Samskrit root, hru, which has a wide meaning, it includes the earth, water, heat or fire, air and space, all of the five elements of this universe which support and benefit our growth.
The ancient Indian medical science of Ayurveda guides us in how to keep the body and its systems in a healthy condition in order to support Liberation. Yoga guides us in how to support the inner system, the mind, in direct support for our Liberation. Thus, both Ayurveda and Yoga are supplementary towards each other. Indian cooking has evolved out of the principles of these two sciences. This is why it contributes to the perfection of our health as a whole.
Different Environments
Humans live in varied places on this earth with different properties, vegetation, climates, etc., and because of this, foods also vary. Certain basics foods are common to all human beings, so this traditional way of Indian cooking may be developed anywhere with minor changes. As an example, there are some vegetables with identical basic properties, and these may be interchanged.
Food Combinations
Each meal should have some cereal or grain, vegetables and fruits. One of the most important features of a meal should be the variety of tastes and vegetables used. It is recommended to use the foods which are grown in the area in which we live.
Forming new food combinations is a great responsibility due to the difficulty in knowing the properties created in new combinations. In India, many of the traditional dishes have been established and approved by yogis since ancient times. New combinations accepted by established yogis may become part of this tradition. Carrot is an example of a new food being introduced to Ayurvedic cooking that has been cross checked by yogis.
The right combination of dishes in a meal is no less important than the foods chosen. A meal should support our constitution for proper growth as well as the maintenance of our whole system. Each constitution possesses different characteristics, such as a tendency towards physical work, talkativeness, sleeplessness, or a tendency to think deeply. Food should support an individual’s natural tendencies and constitution. Consumption of improper food may strain or damage some of the natural activities of an individual.
Sattvic Foods
In this day and age, wheat and rice are the main food articles which are sattvic. Sattvic foods support us to lead a calm and peaceful life. Based on the climate in which we live, one of these two should be our main food, while the other would be secondary. At a high elevation, and in cooler climates, wheat is preferable, as one moves closer to the equator, rice will be. A highly recommended sattvic supplement to each meal, is one teaspoon of ghee
Time Tested Preparations
All the recipes introduced here are completely traditional, time tested over centuries and are based on Ayurvedic principles. For the humankind they support health, if used in an ideal way. For a yogic practitioner, they will support one’s Yoga practice by keeping the mind calm and quiet. These dishes may be considered as sattvic foods, suitable for all Yoga practitioners. The greatness of these preparations is that not only sattvic in nature, they are also delicious!
Auspicious Dates:
April 7th is Chāndramāna Yugadi. We take this opportunity to convey our best wishes to all of you on this auspicious day. As all of you are aware, there are two types of calendars followed in India, Chāndramana and
With Chandramāna the calculations revolve around the movement of the moon and with Souramāna, the calculations revolve around the movement of the sun. The lunar calendar is followed in the Indian states Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. In Tamil Nadu, the solar calendar is followed.
Yugadi is the start of the New Year and the spring season. In the Bhagavadgītha Lord Sri Krishna says ‘mansanam margashīrshoham ruthūnam kusumakaraha’, “among the seasons I am the spring season”. If we keenly observe nature, we can feel godliness well established in autumn and in spring, giving additional support to the inner journey of a yogi or an aspirant. According to Souramāna this festival occurs on April 15th, when both day and night will be equal.
In yoga philosophy, day is considered as prana, the upward movement of breath, and night is considered as apana, the downward movement of breath.
To achieve calmness or Samadhi both prana and
On this auspicious day, Nature, as a gift, offers much support for the inner journey. Deep meditation is quite possible throughout these days.
April 15th will be the festival Rāma Navami, honoring Rama’s birth. The story of Rama, the Ramayana will be chanted for nine days.
All human beings are incarnations. Those caught in the birth and death cycle are known as Jivas The incarnations which will not be caught in the birth and death cycle are known as Devas, these beings have a spark of the Eternal Light with an intention, sankalpa. They are born from and return back to the Eternal Light after executing their intended work. The special features of these incarnations are total health in body and mind. Ideal health includes Realization, beauty, and extreme capacities.
Rama is known as an Avathara, one who has descended to this world knowing who he is. Rama is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Yogis realize Rama at the anahatha chakra, or the heart center.
Meditation holds good on Rāma Navami while the ideals which are seen in Rama may be adopted in our life.
May 10th is Shankarajayanthi, the jayanthi , or birthday celebration, of the great monk and non-dual philosopher Shankaracharya.
Whenever we remember India we are sure to remember this great sage who is also known as Shankara-bhagavath-padāchrya.
Acharya means one who understands all three stages of Nature’s behavior: srusthi, or evolution, stithy, or existence, and laya, or de-evolution. Understanding Nature itself is not sufficient, an Acharya must bring this knowledge into practical life and, through his behavior, influence others to follow the “do’s” and “don’t’s” of Nature’s laws.
The great Shankaracharya took birth in the small village of Kaladi in southern Bharata, India. At the age of seven, after his brahmopadesham , or thread ceremony, he left home in search of an Eternal Teacher. On the banks of the Narmada River in central India, he met Govinda Bhagavthpadācharya, and through his guidance, Shankaracharya experienced the Eternal Truth. Shankaracharya subsequently established four Matts, or monotheistic centers, in the four corners of India: Sharada Peetham, at Sringeri, in the South; Dwaraka Pītham, at Dwaraka, in the West; Govardhana Pītham, at Puri, in the East; and Badarikashrama, at Badarinath, in the North. The purpose of these Matts was to teach Dharma throughout society.
Shankaracharya preached Advaitha Vedanta, oneness or non-dual philosophy, which holds that there is no difference between the individual soul and the universal soul. Shankaracharya was a great philosopher and his thinking towards national integrity was quite remarkable as he brought unity in worldly administration affairs. He did this by having his South Indian follower be the head of the Northern Matt and the North Indian follower be the head of the Southern Matt, while the followers and heads of the Eastern and Western Matts were also mutually interchanged.
Shankaracharya is known as an incarnation of Lord Shiva. He traveled by foot throughout India, wrote many holy texts and commentaries on the Bhagavad Gīta, Brahma Sutras and the Upanishads , and was a very good poet as well as a remarkable scholar. At age thirty-two, in the Himalayan mountain caves of Kedaranath, he left his mortal body.
The main intention in celebrating the birthday of Realized people is that the same qualities within them will be showered on us and sowed within us.
~ Wishing you all yogic success ~