AUTHENTIC TRAINING TO STRENGTHEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF SANSKRIT, YOGA & LUMINOUS SOUL TEACHINGS
“Kalidasa is the Shakespeare of Sanskrit poetry.” This is the quote often repeated about the great kavi, Kalidasa. He is the author of numerous Sanskrit works including two epic poems: The Raghuvamśa and Kumarasambhava. The Raghuvamśa chronicles the kings of the Raghu dynasty, while the Kumarasambhava offers the story of Parvati’s birth, early years and […]
Chant Mantras Over Your Meal & The Elegant Art of Vegetable Picking I knew nothing about cooking. I grew up in the 1970’s where the main dishes in our house consisted of canned this and processed that. Later when I was in direct training with Guru ji I learned the art of cooking. Guru ji […]
Question: Dear Manorama, Can you help me with the word mala? How it is used, as well as what does it mean when I hear the three malas, impurities? Thank you always for your wisdom and graciousness. Love, Vanessa Manorama: Dear Vanessa, Thanks for your question. The first word, mala, is a Sanskrit word written […]
Yoga Sutra Series Adhmimatra Powerful Effort in Yoga Practice with Manorama In the context of reviewing what is needed for the yogic practice to have full fruition. We were looking at Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras 1.21 and 1.22. PYS 1.21 Tīvra-Samvegānām Āsannah The full fruition of Samadhi in the yogic practice is nearest to those whose […]
What is Śabda? Śabda means sound, word or vibration. Śabda is a tanmātra, a subtle element. Tanmātras are themselves the essence of potential. Śabda is the essential vibration that exists underneath manifested sound as well as the manifested sound itself. Śabda is said to be eternal. The eternal aspect of Śabda is called sphotam, which […]
Question: Dear Manorama, Recently, a student asked me the difference between an Invocation to Lord Patanjali and a mantra like the Gayatri Mantra. Can you explain this to me? Love, Śivā Manorama: What a lovely question. Ok let’s start with understanding a few pieces first: What is an invocation verse? An invocation verse is a […]
So, what is a tanmātra? A tanmātra is a subtle element, which is itself the essence of potential. There exist five sense perceptions. For example, seeing, hearing, touching, tasting and smelling. There are five tanmātras (śabda, rasa, gandha, rūpa, sparśa), which connect with these five sense perceptions and sense organs. The tanmātras blend together to […]
Discipline as a Structure for Freedom As I mentioned in my previous blog Freedom Found in Yogic Rituals, as a child, I had an intense thirst for soul understanding. As destiny would have it, at 13 years of age, I was to meet a great Yogi named Shri Brahmananda Sarasvati, who was at that time […]
Soul Inquiry When I was young I was introduced to the concept of the soul. I was told, “The soul is the most sacred part of you. It is the essence of the Self within.” When I naturally became curious to learn more about the topic, I was often met with confusion on the part […]
In classical Sanskrit, the word “kavi” generally translates as poet. However, during the Vedik period, kavi held a more mystical significance. In the Vedas, a kavi is referred to as the seer of vibration and light. Seeing Vibration What does it mean to see vibration? Students interested in learning about yoga begin their journey hearing this […]
The Largess Over the past 20 years of teaching Sanskrit, I have discovered two distinct ways that people engage the language. Either people study Sanskrit and become more arrogant as a result or they connect more with their heart. The etymology of the word Sanskrit itself hints at its largess and these two ways of […]
Yoganonymous chatted with Manorama about what it means to be a “knower of the field,” a phrase that appears in Chapter 8 of Bhagavad Gita. Q: It is mentioned in Chapter 8 of the Bhagavad Gita that one wants to become a knower of the field. Firstly, what is the field in the Bhagavad Gita? […]
In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna teaches Arjuna to stand in his dharma as the greatest warrior. Arjuna’s fight is our fight. It is an inner battle, and on a yogic level it is the struggle for greater self-knowledge that we all must walk through. Just like Arjuna, the student of yoga, must struggle to know […]
Good Sanskrit Pronunciation vs Chanting from Your Heart Questioner: Dear Manorama, We met in January 2015, for a Sanskrit workshop. I am teaching an “introduction to yoga” class in which I talk about mudras and mantras. I have two people who were afraid to chant mantra because they were told it is dangerous if you […]
In the Luminous Soul Method, we begin by asking the student to get curious about What is prana? Simply put prana means breath, life force and energy. But understanding prana is anything but simple. Prana is a mystical unseen force of intelligence that exists at the heart of the Yogic tradition. Modern References Harken Back […]
You are beautiful. You are powerful. You are free. You are a Luminous Soul. ~ Manorama Once when I was working with a private student in NYC I noticed that she was talking non-stop and her eyes were darting here and there. Her energy was wild. What I mean by wild is that she engaged her […]
The Conversation is a quaterly blog series devoted to the dialog between Yogis & Artists By Manorama An interview with my brother, Artist, Carl D’Alvia, acclaimed sculptor, & Rome prize winner on Art & Spirituality. “Every beauty, which is seen here by persons of perception, resembles more than anything else that celestial source from which we all are […]
Many students ask me, “How can I work with Mantra Yoga and Nadam in my practice?” Mantra Yoga and Nadam is such a vast, huge, rich subject. It is the means to learn about the mystical sound of silence that resides within you. “Stay engaged and do something.” ~ Manorama This first principle from the […]
When I first heard about meditation, I liked the idea of it. “Feel at peace through all of your experiences” was the promise echoed on almost every flier in every yoga center. The problem was that when I actually practiced and sat still it scared me. I noticed a thought emerge… maybe enlightenment was synonymous […]
According to Lord Patanjali the obstacles to experiencing yoga are: Confusion, egoism, depression, physical pain, lethargy, exhaustion, skepticism, a lack of interest, over attachment to sensuality, delusional perception, failure to reach the state of unity and the inability to remain there once you have experienced it. These are all considered to be obstacles to the […]