Venice Yoga Festival and Block Party

What is "yoga" anyway?

If poses were yoga, few would benefit

Actually, the best and most useful definition of yoga is "an eightfold path" (ashtanga-marga) to "meditation" (samadhi).

The practice of this path, which should not be confused or conflated with the Buddha's Ennobling Eightfold Path to enlightenment (because they are not the same and do NOT lead to the same result, even if well-meaning people trying to mush and blend them together into a syncretism of traditions).

Yoga's Eightfold Path to "Union"

In fact, the Sage Patanjali copied Shakyamuni, the "Sage of the Shakyas," the Buddha's very popular eightfold pattern in condensing a rich tradition of yoga into a handy set of steps, which is why they seem the same on the surface.

But what did each sage put inside the paths they were teaching in ancient Proto-India? The Buddha condensed the 37 Requisites of Enlightenment into eight general categories. Patanjali tried to summarize many individual practices (each limb of the path amounting to many discrete practices) into a set of eight unfolding markers.

What is true of both paths -- which are not opposed to one another but, in fact, can be very helpful each to the other -- is that they are not really "steps." A yogi or yogini (a dedicated practitioner) does not complete one step then go on to the next then leave those to and go onto a third. Each "step" mutually supports all the others.

The path for runners is a circular track, barefoot

For example, if a runner wants to run, it is important follow these eight "steps": hydrate, eat well, supplement, warm up, stretch, train, practice, and recover. One never stops doing one just because one starts doing the others. They are all included. Similarly, one may take the Buddha's Ennobling (Noble = Aryan = Enlightening) Eightfold Path take condense it further into a threefold division or virtue, meditation, and wisdom (sila, samadhi, paññā).

Each thunderstick relies on all the others to stand

Virtue does not stop because stillness (samadhi, concentration, coherence) has begun. And the right view that began the path does not stop at wisdom but rather is bolstered by it. One feeds the other, and they end up being like three spears or rifles leaning on each other to stand (like a tripod, three-legged stool, or a stand with eight factors).

In just the same way, the Eightfold Path of Yoga or Ashtanga can be said to begin here or there, but wherever one begins, one does not stop a "step" to begin another. For instance, in the case of pranayama (breath work, breath restraint, breath control, the manipulation of pranic energy in the body by breathing), there are exercises. But all through the asanas (postures, poses, stretches) there is still breathing.

Begin by focusing on the breath, in, out...

In fact, there's more breathing -- more pranayama -- than when simply sitting. Focusing the mind on a bindi, the real meaning of drishti, is arguable more helpful in the poses than in dhyana (meditation). The goal, to the extent that there ever is just one ultimate goal in yoga or Buddhism, is samadhi. In Vedic tradition, Brahmanism (Old Vedic religion), or Hinduism, the ultimate goal may be said to be a special form of samadhi. But the historical Buddha did not stop there.

Samma-samadhi ("right-samadhi") is crucial to getting the mind to a temporarily purified state to then emerge from meditative absorption (jhana, dhyana, zen) and practice meditation in a different sense of the word (perhaps best translated as contemplation or anussati) -- systematic mindfulness (satipatthana) of the body, feelings, mind, and mind-objects for the realization of permanent insight (vipassana-nana or panna, "liberating-wisdom"). The insight is into the true nature of reality, the Three Universal Marks of Existence.

You're not still focusing on the breath, are you?

Does Yoga go there, or does it stop at temporarily exalted states with the possibility of regressing back to ordinary consciousness? Seers (rishis) like Patanjali and other mystics may have been transformed to some extent by self-realization. But it was not what the Buddha was teaching and defining as moksha or final spiritual "liberation." The Buddha called this nirvana and used the term in a whole new way.

How to Know God

Yogis, Brahmins, Hindus may hear the word "nirvana," recognize it as Sanskrit, and think, "Oh, yeah, we know about that. But they do not, for they do not understand the meaning the Buddha was giving to the term -- much as he gave new meaning to many Sanskrit (an exclusively Brahmin liturgical language at the time of the Buddha), Pali (the lingua franca at the time of the Buddha), Prakrit, Magadhi, and Vedic terms.

The stated goal of Yoga as a fully rounded practice is "union." "Union with what?" one may ask. The breath (prana, chi, ki, qi), spirit (pneuma, holy spirit), Brahman (GOD or godhead, the reality behind all illusions or maya), God (Brahma), Self (Atman), the polarities of ha and tha, sun and moon, masculinity and femininity, yin and yang, the bija or seed-mantra "OM" (aum, the humming sound of the living cosmos operating)...all things?

Yoga Month events in Los Angeles this week - Beach yoga flow in Venice Beach ☀️(sped-up)

World Yoga Festival 2026 (official film)

(World Yoga Festival) Discover the magic of World Yoga Festival

African and Irish Yoga at the Beach

Tour of Brazil, Kemetic Yoga training (Oct. 16-26) - Irish Beach Yoga in the summer

Eat real Vitamin C (citric acid) from organic fresh seasonal fruits

• Dhr. Seven, Fraulein D., Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Wisdom Quarterly

Swami on overcoming the sex itch

Begins in English at Minute 13:13

(Western Hare Krishna/Hindu monk Bhatki Vikasa Swami) Overcoming the Sex Itch | SB 7.9.45

• His guru A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
• Brahmacharya: restraint, sexual abstinence
• Misogyny: literally "hatred of females," figuratively promoting separation of the sexes or normative sex role stereotyping [or saying there are only two genders]
• Ashtanga (The Eight Limbs of Yoga)
• Celibacy: choosing to abstain from sex
• Bhakti Yoga: union by way of devotion
• Vedas: ancient Indian "knowledge books"
• ISKCON: Int'l Society of Krishna Consciousness
• The Dharmic religions of India

Yogananda Fest 2025: What happened?

WHAT HAPPENED?

YoganandaFest.com featured activities

It rained in Los Angeles on Saturday morning, as it has 5 out of the 6 years this fest has existed. So most diehard yogis were undeterred. While it remained cold, cloudy, and drizzly with showers in some parts of the megalopolis that is LA County, which stretches for over 50 miles across as a basin, the sun came out over Torrance, the city (one of 88) hosting the festival.

Lovin schismatic disciple Kriyananda

Yogananda was a great Indian guru who is bigger than the organization that claims to be his exclusive promoter, the Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF). There is a better albeit smaller organization that promotes the real guru, baby and all.

(Could the great Hindu-Christian syncretic-saint have had a baby with one of his American female disciples?) The Ananda Church of Self-Realization (Donate | Yogananda Fest) is a kind of schism that arose among Paramhansa Yogananda's followers.

Autobiography of a Yogi: The
Original 1946 Edition plus

One original disciple, Kriyananda, was a purist. He decided to publish the founder's autobiography in its ORIGINAL (unredacted, unabridged) form. It's better that way to read it, but SRF doesn't like it.

The larger, less orthodox SRF organization made changes to the classic book and will not settle a lawsuit that says the rightful owner of the religious organization is Yogananda's unacknowledged son. There's DNA evidence to back up Ananda's claim, but SRF will not acknowledge, as to do so would mean the loss of their ability to legally claim ownership of the book, its proceeds, the properties spread across LA and elsewhere, and the legacy of the great master. What to do? What to do? More lawyers are needed to settle the issue. Or the son should become a guru, claim his lineage, and speak out publicly rather than behind the Ananda organization. Until then, there are TWO versions of the book. Which have most people read?

After about 9:00 am, with clear skies and lots of enthusiastic participants from the Holy City of Lost Angels, events went on as planned: meditation, Kriya Yoga, Hatha Yoga, inspiring featured speakers and more.

• Also participating: Glendale's Ashwin Clinic-College of Ayurveda Yoga & Vedic Sciences – Ashwin Ayurveda – Love in all we do – since 1901
• Kriya Meditation Ayurveda Yoga Vedic Sciences Clinic/College | Meetup
• 4:30 pm Soundbath and Prana Lifeforce Healing, Sat, May 3, 2025, 4:30 PM | Meetup
• Dharma Buddhist Meditation (Disclosure Project, Los Angeles) Events

Event details

I paved the way for PY in 1893.

Yogananda Fest (YoganandaFest.com – 2025 | Paramhansa Yogananda's Keys for Peace and Happiness) is an annual Kriya and Hatha Yoga, meditation, and spiritual-living festival. Join in an all-day program celebrating and sharing the teachings of the great American missionary and Indian yogi Paramhansa Yogananda.

Indian gurus in the USA?

Swami Paramananda, 1923

[After the arrival of Swami Vivekananda in the United States for the Chicago Parliament of the World's Religions in 1893, visiting Pasadena and declaring it the "Varanasi (Buddhist Kashi and Benares) of America," both set up ashrams here, Swami in South Pasadena and Yogananda in neighboring Mt. Washington, a prominent hill above the next town over, Highland Park, with a magnificent view of the Downtown Los Angeles skyline.

Paramahansa Yogananda, 1920

That mansion became Yogananda's Self Realization Fellowship's Mother Center (older than the magnificent Lake Shrine in Malibu, currently closed due to the Palisades Fire), after the organization's founding in 1920, along with a big temple in Hollywood on Sunset Blvd. (next to an old hospital purchased by Scientology and made into big cult offices), whereas Vivekananda's Victorian style house is a small and easily missed blip on Figueroa Street. Not far from there, a devotee of Sri Anandamayi Ma named Swami Paramananda founded the beautiful and rustic monastery in Glendale/La Crescenta called Ananda Ashram (Ananda Ashrama, spiritual center for Vedanta) in 1923.

Hinduism in America: Converge

So Yogananda is a sort of latecomer but by far the most successful of Indian gurus in America, outshining even the Beatles' cultish Indian guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder and promoter of Transcendental Meditation (TM), which was a fad from the 1960s though still some people swear by it, like a young Jeff Goldblum in his cameo in Annie Hall.

Why does any of this matter? Not only did Hinduism come to America, Buddhism came along as well (many centuries earlier, even before Columbus and Christianity, according to Rick Fields, Edward P. Vining, and other American historians), making an incredible splash that still reverberates and sends out rings of influence. Books have been written about it.]

• Buddhism in America: Global Religion, Local Contexts
• Hannah: The Untold Story of Buddhism
• Meditating at the Glendale Temple, Los Angeles
• Sri Aurobindo, founder of Integral Yoga
• Bikram Yoga's Choudhury, Dick Nixon's trainer
• Hare Krishna Movement (ISKCON)
• Sri Anandamayi Ma: The Divine Mother
• Top 10 Spiritual Gurus of India

West Coast used to have some parties that made LA the antithesis of NYC

• Yogananda Fest – 2025, YouTube.com; Siri, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Sexuality in a Hindu monk's view (TRS)

You'll look at sexuality differently after this video: A monk's spiritual perspective

(TRS Clips) June 18, 2024: Website: bbsh.in/trsclips-launch-cpyt. The Ranveer Show (TRS) welcomes Hindu monk Gauranga Das to enlighten us with his knowledge of spirituality and life. He was an IIT engineer who turned monk known for being a leadership consultant, corporate coach, inspirational speaker, and much more.

Make the sound of the universe: aum (om)

He worked for the Kirloskars before ordaining as a monk, after which he joined ISKCON (International Society of Krishna Consciousness), Mumbai (Bombay).

In this episode, Gauranga Das shared some beautiful aspects of spirituality, including the purpose of life, the purpose of sexuality, how monks live their lives, the different stages of life of a monk, Sanatan Dharma ("Eternal Doctrine," which is what Hindus call Hinduism) guidelines, the life of new generation with technologies, and how can one detach him or herself from worldly things and achieve enlightenment (nirvikalpa samadhi).

Spiritual talks are very special for Ranveer as he gets to meet many people who influence his journey of spirituality. He hopes that through this episode, viewers will also get an in-depth understanding of spiritual life and how it shapes our lives. Enjoy and comment. #spirituality #Gauranga Das

• Full show: Life lessons from the Bhavagad Gita

ABOUT: TRS Clips is a collection of short clips from The Ranveer Show (TRS) podcast. Enjoy latest knowledge-fueled videos from the BeerBiceps team. Every conversation on #TheRanveerShow is intellectual, deep, and progressive, which covers everyone from entrepreneurs to Bollywood film stars to athletes. Today, TRS: Happiness Through Curiosity, a show that hosts the world's greatest success stories and tries digging out their secrets to success. Every conversation is an extreme learning experience for the viewer.

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Buddhist stupas atop Hindu temples?

Buddhist stupas originated as burial mounds with statues of person inside, Central/North Asia

Eventually, the massive mounds covered treasure and funerary remains with no statues.

Kurgan and stupa, tumulus of Bourgon, France, neolithic period: spread to Europe

World-famous Buddhist stupa at Sanchi, India, revered by circumambulation (msn.com)

Buddhist Afghanistan, ancient Gandhara, land of the Scythians/Shakyian, rock cut stupa

Some stupas are hollow by design, serving as extraordinary temples and tombs, which gave rise to ever fancier pagodas in East Asia. This is an ancient vault in icy Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia

Theravada Buddhist monks admire magnificent stupa, Sanchi, India (robertharding.com)

.

What are Buddhist stupas? It is clear that temple structures throughout Indonesia and Cambodia have Buddhist and Hindu elements because kings and dynasties who built them were honoring the Dharma and mythology of various blended traditions. Some temples became completely Buddhist but may have begun as Hindu or a syncretic mix of both with Jain elements as well. These three are the Dharmic religions, which were blended as Brahmins/Hindus subsumed the radical breakaway "wandering ascetic" (shramana) Buddhist and Jain movements into their staid, Brahmin priest, post-Vedic umbrella religion. Now both historical figures are categorized as avatars (incarnations) of Lord Vishnu, which is a nice way of dismissing them and anything they said against the Vedas or the views of Brahmins. Both the Buddha and Mahavira were aware of the ancient Vedas and rejected them as a source of ultimate spiritual knowledge, advocating instead direct experience of the Truth. What is the Sanatan Dharma (Eternal Doctrine), the books or the Truth those books attempt to convey? The Buddha and Mahavira were shamans and seers who could directly see the Truth and taught doctrines for others to directly see it.

Buddhist stupas found in Hindu temple of Prambanan? Indonesia’s earthquake

Modern Buddhist stupa in Sedona, Arizona, also houses relics.

.

Super-ancient stupa ruins in the US? (CDA)

(PraveenMohan) Oct. 3, 2024: In the ancient Prambanan temple, a Buddhist stupa-like structure is seen on top of temple towers. One is now found lying on the ground after a strong quake brought it down to the ground. Rather than placing back, it is protected by a fence and a plaque was placed next to it. What is it doing there?

An interesting event happened in 2006. An earthquake struck Prambanan temple, and this structure, the temple's capstone, broke off and fell. Prambanan is adorned with similar structures that look like stupas (reliquaries).

However, the Javanese call them ratnas (ratanas in Pali, “gems, jewels, treasures”). What is inside them -- precious funerary relics (sharira) or common gemstones? Let's investigate.

Whatsapp Channel: whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va9U... Instagram: praveenet. Facebook: praveenmohanfans. Twitter: iampraveenmohan. Email ID: info.praveenmohan@gmail.com. Patreon account for support: praveenmohan. Join the channel to get access to perks: @realpraveenmohan #praveenmohan #indonesia #prambanantemple

Texas unveils giant 'monkey god' statue

Hindu Lord Hanuman as a white monkey with blue eyes, friend of Ganesha (pinterest)

Mahayana Buddhist monks and nuns among Hindu parishioners at Sunday's Pran Pratishtha ceremony, during unveiling of 90-foot statue of Lord Hanuman (Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple)

.

Monkeys are fun-loving and inquisitive mammals

Astonishing photographs of a 90-foot statue of the Hindu God Lord Hanuman — the third largest statue in the U.S.A. — have been obtained by Newsweek, following the unveiling ceremony in Texas.

The monument, known as the Statue of Union, stands at the Sri Ashta Lakshmi Temple in Sugar Land, Texas. Lord Hanuman is depicted as human, but with the head and tail of a monkey, as is customary.

• Huge half-monkey half-human statue in Texas sparks Christian conservative backlash (Newsweek)

Lord Hanuman namaste (Singapore)

The statue is holding both hands palm forward (mudra) and the end of the tail is twisted above the head, creating a halo effect.

Hanuman is a Hindu god known for his power, courage, and selfless service. He is also a symbol of power and celibacy.

The statue's unveiling on Sunday marks rapidly changing religious demographics in the U.S., with surveys showing a decline in the proportion of Americans who identify as Christian and a rise in those who say they are "nothing in particular" (the NONEs) or belong to religions which are followed by a minority in the U.S.

Some Darwinists worship a monkey man forbear

Speaking to Newsweek Ranganath Kandala, joint secretary of the Ashtalakshmi Temple, confirmed the statue is 90-foot-tall and said it was inaugurated in a Pran Pratishtha ceremony on August 18, celebrating it as a living embodiment of the deity. USA's new 'third tallest' statue

• These are 10 of the great Hindu temples to visit in the USA

The breathing life into the statue ceremony

Most famous American Hindu Julia Roberts

The Sanskrit word pratiṣṭhā, which in general usage means "placement" of a murti (embodied solid object), is translated by Apte as "the consecration of a vessel or dwelling" [3].

The adjective pratiṣṭha means "installed" [4]. Prana means "life force, breath, spirit." The phrase Prana Pratishtha is a ritual that means "placing the breath-of-life into the image to establish it" [WQ] or "bringing life to the temple" [2].

It is also referred to as murti sthapana (image placement inside the temple). Traditionally, this was the step when the eye of the murti was sculpted open [2], inside the inner sanctuary (garbhagriha, the Purusha space) of a Hindu temple.

Young Hindu sadhvi priestess

This ritual typically involves a devotional ritual (puja) and the chanting of Sanskrit mantras as the deity is moved from outside into the center place.

It includes inviting the deity to become a resident guest of the temple, bathing and cleansing it, similar to welcoming a revered guest after a long journey.

This is followed by dressing and seating the deity in a place of comfort, with the image's face oriented towards the east (signifying the sunrise), followed by a Nyasa ceremony with hymns (act of touching different parts of the murti, symbolizing the presence of various gods as sensory organs:

• Indra [Sakka] as the hand,
• Brahma as the heart,
• Surya [Sol, Helios] as the eyes, etc.) [1].

The Hindu priest recites specific mantras and performs rituals to infuse the idol with the animating life force or "holy spirit" (prana).

During this process, the deity descends into the idol, making it a living representation [5]. After the infusion of prana, the deity is considered blessed and consecrated.

Devotees often seek the deity's blessings at this point. The ritual also includes the spraying of scented water and flowers, with the Chaksu͡unmilan ceremony (Sanskrit chakshu unmilan, "opening of the divine eye"), marking the high point of the ritual [6]. The image is then considered fully consecrated. More

• James Bickerton, Newsweek.com via MSN.com, 8/22/24; CC Liu, Crystal Q. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Simulation? Peter meets Trump (Family Guy)

Maya and the Simulation Theory

(OntologicalOdyssey) [This whole video, from the script to the voice, seems like AI, and one can only hope there is a human creator behind it.] Explore the intriguing parallels between Simulation Theory and the ancient Hindu concept of Maya ("Illusion"). Discover how both philosophies challenge our understanding of reality, suggesting that what we perceive may be a deceptive illusion or a constructed facade. Delve into the profound implications for consciousness, existence, and the search for ultimate truth in this thought-provoking exploration.

The Simulation Hypothesis is pseudoscience

(Sabine Hossenfelder) Is it possible that you, I, and everything we experience is a computer simulation? Why do people like Elon Musk and Neil DeGrasse Tyson think this is possible? In this video Lady Einstein (Sabine) explains how Nick Bostrom's argument for the simulation hypothesis goes and what the problems with it are. The reference she mentions at around 6:00 minutes is "Constraints on the Universe as a Numerical Simulation" (Silas R. Beane, Zohreh Davoudi, Martin J. Savage EPJ A, 50, 148, 2014, link.springer.com/article/10....). #science #physics #philosophy

• 0:00 Intro
• 0:25 What is the Simulation Hypothesis?
• 3:52 Can we simulate consciousness?
• 4:38 Can a computer replace the laws of nature?
• 6:18 Can we avoid calculating details?
• 8:14 Conclusion
• 8:52 Sponsor message: Signup for FREE trial to The Great Courses Plus here: http://ow.ly/6ymM30rvhBa
• Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy); OntologicalOdyssey, July 6, 2024; Sabine Hossenfelder, Feb. 13, 2021; Seth Auberon, Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly