For the Love of Yoga with Nish the Fish

Next week is Shiva Ratri, which is among the biggest (if not THE biggest) events in our community! This is a night when we really plunge into Shiva with the whole of our being, fasting all day, staying up all night, signing, dancing ecstatically, performing ritual worship and above all, meditating and opening up to the totality of all things! However, "one does not simply walk into Mordor." Just like climbing a mountain or wading into icy water, just like courting a lover or practicing Hatha Yoga, we must ease into Shiva Ratri, gradually and skillfully. As such, in this short little discourse, we say a few things about "how to Shiva Ratri" and how to use the week ahead to prepare yourself body, mind and spirit for this complete immersion into Shiva!I cannot contain my excitement! Jai Bhole! PS: Here is our playlist on all things Shiva! Support the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Earlier this year on Swami Vivekananda's birthday we decided to do three back to back lectures focusing on different aspects of the Swami's teaching: the innate divinity of the soul, the oneness of all existence and the harmony of all religions. We start with the idea of one-ness, Advaita which is so wonderfully expressed in Shankara's song "The Six Stanzas on Nirvana" (which you can find the Sanskrit lyrics for here) which Swami Vivekananda himself was very fond of and which he himself translated into English. As such, in this first of three lectures we sing and contemplate the Six Stanzas on Nirvana using Swamiji's translation (which you can read here) making a case for why music is such an important method for practicing and realizing Advaita, Non-Duality! For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This might be the most closely guarded secret teaching in non-dual Tantra!First, we discuss some of the non-dual, "left" leaning traditions within Tantrik Shaivism with an emphasis on the Kaula marga and its profound liturgy and philosophy. Then, we introduce the "formless Kali who is pure Void", the "point in Shiva which even Shiva cannot objectify" and the 12 Kalis that are the threefold expressions of the Four Goddess of the Trika! Lots of exciting Non-Dual Tantrik material! Let's have at it! Here are a list of the secret Kali's presented in the lecture:aparā (prameya)Sṛṣṭikālī = manifesting an object internally, she then Raktakālī (bahirmkuhī) = becomes passionate towards that object Sthitināśakālī = wishes to reabsorb it and starts to internalize it Yamakālī = manifests and dissolves a "vighna" (obstacle) to re-absorption parāparā (pramāna)Saṃhārakālī = reabsorbs the object Mṛtyukālī = and contemplates "svabhava": my very nature is to reabsorb! Rudrakālī = perceives a subtle impression left over from perception + also Pure Consciousness Mārtaṇḍakālī = reabsorbs the solar-mandala of 12 faculties into the "Lord of the Circle" (ego) parā (paramātr)Paramārkakālī = reabsorbs the Lord of the Circle (ego) Kālāgnirudrakālī = reabsorbs the separation of one purusha (individual knowing subject) from another (mayīya-mala) Mahākālakālī = reabsorbs the Universal Subject (Shiva) into full expansion Mahābhairavacaṇḍograghorakālī = reabsorbs even that fully expanded ground into...what? void unspeakable!For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

One of my favorite classes in the series so far! We've been reading from Swami Vivekananda's Bhakti Yoga at our Friday evening Bhakti satsanghs and together exploring some of the most refined concepts at the uppermost reaches of the devotional tradition known as Parā Bhakti, Supreme Love. In this talk, we reconcile the idea that Jñāna Yoga, the Way of Philosophy and Bhakti Yoga, the Way of Devotion or somehow incompatible or categorically distinct, as is the commonly held assumption. We also show how Jñāna, Philosophy can lead to ecstatic love and vice verse proving that these two paths are not different but are rather aspects of one Reality: God or Pure Consciousness. For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

This year, Swami Vivekananda's birthday happened to fall on a Monday, a day sacred to Shiva which also happened to MLK day here in the United States! Of course the two figures, Swami Vivekananda and MLK are both quite similar in a few ways. In his talk on loving your enemies, MLK is famous for having said “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” In exactly the same vein, Swami Vivekananda tells us how we can go about creating actually change in the world along spiritually enlightened lines in his masterpiece address "My Plan of Campaign" delivered in Madras upon his return to India after his triumphant sojourn in the West. In this video, we read out the transcript for this mighty and earth-shattering talk (which is full of Swami Vivekananda calling out those forces which have opposed his mission) and make a few comments here and there. This is the third in a series of three back to back lectures we gave on behalf of Swami Vivekananda Jayanti this year, the two other being Realizing Non-Duality Through Music | Adi Shankara's Nirvana Shatakam and How Do Tantrik Rituals Work? which explore Swami Vivekananda's core teachings on Advaita and the Innate Divinity of the Soul respectively. Jai Swamiji! For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

One of the most secret (and perhaps misunderstood) traditions in Tantra is the Kaula, the path of radical embodiment. "Kaula" which is the adjectival form of the Sanskrit word "kula", means "the body" and as such presents a spiritual approach that divinizes the body, seeing embodiment (along with all the energies thereof like lust and anger and greed) as an opportunity for spiritual progress and not as an obstacle. More esoterically, the "kula", body here refers to the philosophical view that God in Her fullness is "embodied" as this entire Universe. As such, Kaula is a transgressive, radically non-dual, Goddess-oriented Tantrik tradition. Because of this, utmost secrecy is required and so a third connotation of the world "kula" is "family" either biological or spiritual in which these spiritual teachings are offered in strictest confidence. Over the next few weeks, I want to explore the Kaula with you in both theory and practice and work our way up to study the Adi Yajnya or the "Kaula Ritual" which Abhinava Gupta presents in Chapter 29 of his Tantraloka. This talk is a bit of a soft introduction to the origins of the Kaula and how it fits into the wider context of Indian Tantra. This lecture follows closely on the heels of the discussion we had last week on Why is Tantra A Secret? We review some of the ideas from that talk and also make a few new points about the value of secrecy. Also, because this talk was given on the 6th day of Magha Gupta Navaratri, we say a few things about Mātangi Mā, the Tantrik Sarasvatī in order to express our gratitude for Sarasvatī who appears in the form of teacher, teaching and also our desire to learn!|Jai Mā Nīlā Sarasvatī Ki Jai! For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Today is a special day for us because it is Raja Maharajji’s (Swami Brahmananda) birthday! He is my guru’s guru’s guru and his energy is of course the foundational spirituality of the Ramakrishna Mission after Ramakrishna-Sarada; it’s an energy that is very palpably felt at our Hollywood Temple which was founded by his disciple, Swami Prabhavanandaji. Today would be a good day to contemplate his life and teachings (which you will find in the books “The Eternal Companion” and “Guide To Spiritual Life”) but it is also a good day to do any spiritual practice since it is said that on auspicious days, “a special grace” flows! Naturally, at our 6:30pm PST puja class, we reflect a little bit on Raja Maharaja to make a few claims about why he's so important to know about and connect to! We also say a few words about our puja tradition which has a lot to do with Swami Brahmananda and the Hollywood Vedanta Temple. For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMAnd if you feel moved to donate to support me and this work, you're welcome to here:https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/jaimakaliSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

Two weeks ago we gave the talk called "how to perform the best Tantrik ritual & overcome superstitions in Tantra" where we referenced Swami Vivekananda saying in the Introductory Chapter of Raja Yoga that mystery-mongering and superstition weakens the mind: everything that is could she be taught openly, and preached in the street in the broad daylight of reason. In that lecture, I argued that in some case the secrecy of Tantra was the attempt of an unscrupulous few "to keep the power all to themselves", to borrow Swami Vivekananda's phrase. But perhaps there are indeed good reasons for keeping things secret! While in the worse cases secrecy is a tool for hegemonizing Tantrik discourse, most of the time, it is an expression of compassion and a necessary tool to create an authentic spiritual community where practitioners are practicing in a meaningful and safe way. As such, to balance out the view I presented in the aforementioned lecture, I'd like to make a case for the importance of secrecy in the Tantrik tradition. We can think of a few reasons, some of which I briefly mentioned towards the end of the talk and a few others that are coming to mind now: 1. Because these practices can be exceedingly powerful, they can sometimes backfire and cause a reaction in students who are not ready. 2. Because these practices confer tremendous power, a student with the wrong motives might misuse this power to further entrench themselves in samsaric attachment, thus retarding their spiritual growth. 3. Secrecy ensures the student will seek out a guru to get access to the tradition thus protecting them from the #1 and #2 4. Tantrik practices can be controversial and even transgressive and as such when done openly, there is the risk of public censure and misunderstanding 5. That which is secret is sacred. Secrecy reaffirms the intimacy and privacy we enjoy with God and also helps cultivate reverence and sanctity in the practice. 6. It helps students value what they have more, increasing enthusiasm and reverence for the mantra and for the practice.For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

How do Tantrik rituals work, really? Is it the intercession of spirits and divinities? Or perhaps something far more profound?IIn this talk, I want to make the case that there are no gods or spirits outside Consciousness. The entire Universe and all the powers in it are contained within the Mind, which is an expression of Consciousness, with reference to verses 160 onwards in Abhinava Gupta's Tantrāloka, Part I, and with special reference to Swami Vivekananda's emphasis on strength and non-duality.You are Consciousness and as such, all power is within you! All the gods and demons, all the spirits and energies, they are all in YOU, expressing themselves as body and mind. Harnessing these energies is what Tantra is all about. As such, any time your "prayers have been answered", it is only you gracing yourself. You are God, in every sense of that word. A Tantrik ritual functions only to create the suggestion, through sound and symbol, to call forth that Power inherent in the Self! For more detailed instructions for how to perform Kālī pūjā, watch this playlist: https://www.patreon.com/collection/233799Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM

There is nothing quite so wonderful as hearing great master of Non-Duality talk about God! After all, for far too long The Path of Devotion (Bhakti) has been considered as categorically distinct from The Path of Philosophy (Jñāna). For instance, the common view is that devotion tends to favor duality while philosophy favors non-duality; devotion prefers to think of God in a personal sense, with form whereas philosophy tends towards the impersonal, formless God which is the Self, Pure Consciousness which is more of a principle than a person. However, in this stunning presentation, Vivekananda not only reconciles the two paths but also shows how the devotion of God with form can lead to the non-dual ideal of universal love, i.e the ability to see the Divine in everyone and everything and more importantly, the ability to love everyone and everything like the Buddha did! This is perhaps one of my favorite ideas in the entire world of devotional literature!Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and Friday 10am PST and again Friday at 6pm PST.Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrMSupport the showLectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST and again at Friday 11am PST Use this link and I will see you there:https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnishTo get in on the discussion and access various spiritual materials, join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/U8zKP8yMrM