Ra-Hoor-Khuit Network's
Magickal Library

Yoga

From: Advancing with Yoga and Nutrition
Zebroff
c. 1972 by FFORBEZ ENTERPRISES LTD.,
box 35340,
Vancouver, B.C. Canada


FORWARD By Swami Shyam Acharya

When I first met Kareen Zebroff she said "When the Chela (student ) is ready, the Guru (teacher) appears." I immediately responded to this ancient traditional saying of Yoga tachers, "No Kareen, when the Guru becomes ready or perfect, the student appears."
There are hundreds of teachers these days but no disciples because students are now born at that level of awareness which guides them easily to the teachers they need for their growth. 
This is not a time of blind faith or belief. If the teacher is not capable enough to project his wisdom, then none will be interested in learning from him It appears then that, consciously or subconsciously, Kareen has been led by Creative Intelligence to become a perfect teacher and to create an opportunity for people to follow her instructions. She tuned her body to health, beauty, suppleness, and strength and then found her students coming to her through the medium of television.
The moment I met her I found her to be the best listener: calm, smiling, and easily comprehending. As a result, of the group with her she was the one to whom I spoke, though I had never seen her before. Such meetings I attribute to Almighty Creative Intelligence which is the guiding force for both student and teacher. That force I call the master teacher for it directs the consciousness of all the masters in the world.
In this foreword I have not to say too much about Kareen because she, through her teachings and books, is already known to nearly all aspirants of Yoga across Canada. Her books and her lessons indicate by themselves the efficiency of her particular version of ancient India's secret wisdom Yoga.
The West is very open and is not clouded by any secrecy as far as science is concerned. Western minds plunge to the depths and soar to the heights of every subject in which they are interested. 
I admire this tendency in any mind, eastern or western, because it is the key to obtaining knowledge. Unless one questions, doubts the reality of anything with which he is not familiar, how can he find the truth? Obviously, Kareen is typically western on this point. She has questioned the secrecy and vague intricacies of some presentations of Yoga. Not finding a scientific answer from those teachers who had introduced Yoga to the West with a negative attitude towards life such as don't eat this thing; renounce materiality; renounce the world and family; maintain celibacy; obey your teachers blindfoldedly, etc, she evolved and molded her own yoga.
Since time immemorial in the East, it was expected that the student never should question the master. He should accept whatever is said. But that is not the way in the West. Here one questions first and deserves the answer by his questioning. The time has come for a balance between dogmatism and open inquiry, secrecy and frankness. Such a balance is true Yoga.
Through constant practice and full devotion to her subject Kareen has made herself a symbol of health for her family and countrymen. One must certainly appreceate her desire to extend whatever she has gained to others. Several thousand years ago, Patangali, the father of yoga, said, "The true teacher is one who never teaches. Men receive his teachings as the world of darkness receives the light from the sun, without ceremony." Surely, this applies to Kareen.
There is one important point which I have always emphasized while talking and consulting with Kareen and others interested in yoga. It is not a study only of physical exercises. They are just one aspect of Yoga. We must know the true meaning of Yoga. 
Yoga is that state of life which in its perfect form holds the positive and negative qualities of everything in balance and never swings lower or higher from its yoked position. It remains ever established in harmony; serene, peaceful, full of joy, full of happiness and full of that cohesive material of God which connects the whole universe Love. From my own experience with Yoga, I have found that it improves man in all his four aspects; physically, mentally, intellectually, and spiritually. Indeed, it not only improves him, I am confident that Yoga makes man perfect.
When Kareen heard me she said, "Well Swamiji, I have little to do with the teaching of the mental and spiritual sides of yoga, though I appreciate them very much myself. I needed the knowledge of them and you supplied it. But it is hard for the western mind to accept the non physical side so I give emphasis to Hatha Yoga which I call Kareen's Yoga." Listening to her words I told her, "That is good. You have adopted just one aspect of yoga; Karma Yoga, the yoga of action." Now it so happens that her name, Kareen, coincides with a word from one of the Indian languages (Punjabi) which means "please do it". So Kareen's Yoga means "Practical Yoga". This is easy, simple, scientific and can easily be adapted by western minds and I am sure, if she goes to the East, eastern women would like to do her way of yoga too.
As I have suggested, the thinking being needs exercise as well as the physical being. If the realms of the mind are not stirred and given the right experiences, no brain will develop adequately to grasp the realities of life, happiness and immortality, realities which Western man is in a craze to know. Therefore, I introduce the inner wisdom of Yoga which is entirely concerned with concentration, contemplation and meditation. Without them, no man, whatever his position in life, can become great. It is the need of modern man to become the highest and greatest of that which he is capable. Such a need can be satisfied through meditation and the technique of highest awareness (Samadhi). If man learns this technique the world as a whole will experience an era of golden fulfillment, of joy, love and extreme tolerance for all life. That perfect state of mind is Yoga.
As far as meditation is concerned, I want to impress upon all minds, western or eastern, that meditation is a thinking process and not a chemical production of the plastic age. It concerns man alone and only the man of higher awareness. Therefore, meditation cannot be put on a par with sports, exercises, or with physical hatha yoga. Meditation concerns those who are desirous of improving their physical environments, family affairs, and the affairs vitally concerned with the welfare of mankind. To them I say that they should shift their attention from the outer aspect of life towards the inner man who wants to grow and fulfill himself at any cost, under any circumstances. Fathom the workings of the mind and when doing something channel your total energy into it. the source of energy must be handled in such a way that no wastage by way of scattered thoughts and confused thinking may take place.
How to grasp and practice the technique of Samadhi may be a little hard for the reader to understand, but I will make it as simple as truth is simple. Create a situation of utter silence, rather super silence. You know already that "Silence is power, silence is golden," and we all know that we want power and gold.
More than immortality, we want to enjoy eternity. Here, every mind is my follower. Now, these things are not to be found with out doing something. They must be earned. So for inner and outer power and gold, create a situation around you and in you of pure silence. Sleep doesn't produce silence because the nervous system doesn't completely rest. Lying in dead posture also does not provide this complete silence. The way to attain it is to sit comfortably in a chair or on the floor or in any corner no matter what noise is going on. Listen to anything. think of anything. 
Above all, be a Witness Self. Watch and be. When your eyes and ears wish to take rest, please don't be cruel. Give them rest. 
Just be simple, no complications, no secrets, no religion.
Of course, as you become more familiar with this state of silence your understanding of it will grow. Above all, for growth you must be open and frank enough to learn or talk about this silence of meditation which I have been introducing throughout the world. I do not assume to be a teacher. We are eternal learners and yoga, as this book may help you to understand, is infinite knowledge.

Om shanti, shanti, Shanti

This page last updated: 02/27/2018