Þeir, sem í raun og veru vilja gerast yogar ...

 

Þeir, sem í raun og veru vilja gerast yogar, verða í eitt skipti fyrir öll að hætta þessu narti í marga hluti. Gerðu þessa einu hugmynd að markmiði lífs þíns. Hugsaðu um hana, láttu þig dreyma um hana, lifðu samkvæmt þessari hugmynd. Fylltu heila þinn, vöðva, taugar og sérhvern hluta líkamana þíns af þessari hugmynd og láttu allar aðrar hugmyndir eiga sig. Með þessum hætti tekst það og með þessum hætti verða andlegir risar til.

Hugsaðu því sjálfstætt, náðu stjórn á huga þínum og líkama og mundu, að meðan þú ert ekki sýktur getur ekkert ytra vald náð tökum á þér. Forðastu alla, hversu miklir og góðir sem þeir kunna að virðast, sem biðja þig að trúa í blindni.

 

Swami Vivekanada

 

Dagskrá Lífspekifélagsins um helgina

 

Föstudaginn 25. febrúar kl. 20:30 heldur Jón E Benediktsson erindi: Dulspeki í guðspjöllunum

 

Á Laugardögum er opið hús frá kl. 15 - 17 með dagskrá kl. 15:30.

Laugardaginn 26. febrúar heldur Hrefna Steinþórsdóttir, erindi um danska dulspekinginn Martínus og verk hans. Hrefna rekur Reykjavík art gallerí.

 

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Hugleiðing og fræðsluefni frá Sigvalda. Á laugardögum kl. 14

Á laugardögum kl. 14:00 verður áfram hugleiðingarstund í hálftíma í sal félagsins niðri í umsjá Birgis Bjarnasonar. Kl. 14:30 mun hann svo kynna fræðsluefni úr safni Sigvalda Hjálmarssonar til kl. 15:00. Þá mun taka við hefðbundin dagskrá uppi í bókasafni eins og áður. Unnt er að sleppa hugleiðingunni kl. 14:00 ef fólk vill og mæta kl. 14:30. Mun án efa mörgum þykja fengur að því að geta kynnst betur hinum mikla fróðleik og leiðbeiningum sem þarna er að finna.

 

 

,,Þú ert við vinnu þína, og skalt þá annað slagið staldra við og reyna að öðlast þá afstöðu að horfa á sjálfan þig vinna, horfa á hendurnar hreyfast, horfa á athöfnina og sjálfan þig inna hana af hendi, og reyndu að finna, að þú getur gert þetta án þess að láta það hafa áhrif á þig. Horfðu út um gluggann og líttu á umhverfið. Reyndu að gera þér grein fyrir, að þetta er bara mynd. Þú ert eins og barn, sem er að fletta myndabók, og gleymir sér. En rumskaðu nú. Láttu þér skiljast, að þú getur horft á umhverfi þitt eins og þú værir að horfa á kvikmynd, og þótt þú sjálfur sért einn af leikurunum, þá gerir það ekkert til, því að þú átt að reyna að horfa á líkama þinn eins og starfandi tæki, sjálfum þér óháð. Taktu líka þínar góðu og göfugu tilfinningar og horfðu á þær eins og ytri fyrirbæri. Þú átt að geta elskað án þess að drekkja þér í kærleikstilfinningunni. Þú átt að geta þráð þroska vegna þroskans sjálfs og eins og hann komi þér ekkert við. Og svo kemur að lokum að skynjanirnar verða eins og skuggamyndir á tjaldi, tilfinningarnar eins og næturgolan, sem leikur um andlit þér, og hugsanirnar eins og maður sé að teikna myndir eða leika á hljóðfæri."

 

Sigvaldi Hjálmarsson

Nokkur orð um búddíska sálarfræði - Anna Valdimarsdóttir

 

 „Kjarni Búddismans (EB) er hvorki trúarbrögð né heimspeki. Búdda gerði ekki tilkall til þess að vera nokkuð annað en manneskja og hélt því ekki fram að hann væri guð. Ekki einu sinni guð í mannslíki. Hann hélt því heldur ekki fram að hann væri innblásinn af guðlegum anda né nokkrum ytri mætti og frábað sér nokkra tilbeiðslu á sjálfum sér. Í grundvallarbúddisma (EB) er engan persónulegan guð að finna né ópersónulegt máttarvald. Þar eru engar trúarjátningar, dogma eða ritúöl, engin tilbeiðsla og ekkert sem þér er ætlað að taka trúanlegt. Framar öllu snýst kjarni búddismans um iðkun og rannsókn (free inquiry) þannig að maður geti sjálfur séð sannleiks- og notagildið í því sem Búdda kenndi. Búdda hafði engan áhuga á að koma á nýrri trú og samfélagið sem hann og lærisveinar lifðu og hrærðust í var menntasamfélag, ekki trúarsamfélag… Búdda sneiddi líka hjá heimspekilegum umræðum og var ekkert gefið um háspekilegar spurningar sem leiddu ekki til neinnar niðurstöðu eins og um sálina eða líf eftir dauðann. Honum var umhugaðra um að finna lausn á þjáningu mannanna hér og nú. Hvernig við getum hreinsað til í lífi okkar og þjálfað huga okkar. Iðkun er mikilvægari en heimspeki“.

 

Lesa greinina í heild hér

... happiness follow him like a shadow ...

 

All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts. If a person speaks or acts with an evil thought, suffering follows him, as the wheel follow the hoof of and beast that draws the wagon.

All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts and made up of our thoughts. If a person speaks or acts with a good thought, happiness follow him like a shadow that never leaves him.

Dhammapada

Dagskrá Lífspekifélagsins um helgina

 

Föstudaginn 18, febrúar kl. 20:30 heldur Þorvarður Helgason rithöfundur erindi: Um ábyrgð. Hugleiðingar um mikilvægi ábyrgðar

Á Laugardögum er opið hús frá kl. 15 - 17 með dagskrá kl. 15:30.

Laugardaginn 19. febrúar fjallar Birgir Bjarnason um: Mikilvægar spurningar 

www.lifspekifelagid.is

Égið er draugur sem við sjálf höfum vakið upp

 

Égið er draugur sem við sjálf höfum vakið upp og erum sífellt í vandræðum með. Hvers vegna skyldum við vera með hlut, hugrænan hlut innra með okkur sem við sjálf höfum búið til og erum sífellt í vandræðum með? Þetta er misskilningurinn sem allur misskilningur byggist á. Öll vandræði grundvallast á honum vegna þess að það er augljóst að églaus maður verður aldrei særður. Églaus maður getur ekki þjáðst sem einstaklingur.    

 

 

 

Birgir Bjarnason – Hugur, vitund og við

 

Meditation class teaches kids to be still and know

Five-year-old Marissa Roberts was the littlest one in the youth meditation class Sunday at Unity Temple on the Plaza.

Parents know 5-year-olds can be a tad active. But Marissa tried hard to follow the instructions of her teacher, Peggy Mulvihill.

The lighting was dim, with soft lamps and candles and filtered daylight through stained glass windows. The 13 young people, ages 5 to 14, were quiet, waiting for whatever was to come.

They sat on chairs in a circle, with a small table in the center of the room.

What does it mean to meditate, Mulvihill asked. Several children were first-timers to the class that started in September. Many of their parents were meeting across the hall in an adult meditation class, led by Janet Taylor, director of the Temple Buddhist Center.

Some youngsters said they weren’t sure. Two others said: “It relaxes your mind” and “It closes your outer eyes and opens your inner eyes.”

Mulvihill explained it also meant to be fully aware of the here and now with all the senses, like what you hear and sense and smell. The theme that day was “Planting Seeds of Love.”

The children were then encouraged to talk about things the Earth gives — water, air, soil, food — and what they like to do on the Earth.

“What seeds can we work on this week?” Mulvihill asked.

Love, honesty, forgiveness, caring, happiness, trust, compassion, perseverance, kindness, patience. Just about everyone had something to add.

Then it was time for meditation. Mulvihill’s assistant, Joe Mentesana, a teacher, instructed the children to let their bodies be still. Feet on the floor — although little Marissa couldn’t manage that — eyes closed, hands open resting on their knees.

“I’ll play the bell and focus on the sound of the bell,” he said. “Then it will stop for a while, and when you hear it again the meditation will be over.”

The bell sound came when he gently circled the edge of a metal bowl with a stick-like object.

What did you hear, Mentesana asked.

“I could still hear the bell after it stopped.”

“I heard the clock.”

“I kind of fell asleep.”

Several said it was hard to keep still.

Karly McNeil, 14, said she had a hard time keeping her eyes closed “because I’m used to being aware of my surroundings.”

Although she has meditated before and listens to meditation CDs when she’s stressed, this was her first time attending the class.

“I’ll definitely come back,” she said. “This gives kids a chance to relax and to think about what’s on their minds.”

Heather Hastert, 11, said she was thinking about her family and if she had been nice or disrespectful.

Next was a lesson in breathing.

“Breathe through your nose, slowly raising hands up, and then out through your mouth, slowly pushing hands down,” Mulvihill said. “We’ll do it three times, then without the hand motions.”

She asked, “When can you do this?” That got a variety of answers.

“When your parents tell you to do something you don’t want to do.”

“Before a test.”

“When it’s noisy in the cafeteria.”

“When I’m mad at my sister.”

Mulvihill told the children to practice relaxing at home by taking the three deep breaths.

The youth then did a short walking meditation — in silence — to another room where they paired up and engaged in yoga positions, again without any talking.

Later one participant said she really needed to talk, while another one said she was more focused because there was no talking.

After the one-hour class, Eryka Bash, 11, said it helped her to feel calmer.

“I’m not as hyper.”

Her mom, Krissie Bash, said, “It is a blessing that she can learn (meditation) this young because everything in the world is getting faster and faster.”

Eryka had been coming with her to the adult class, but Bash is pleased there is a class on Eryka’s own level.

Ricky Carleton, 9, said he’s often tired when he wakes up, and meditation helps release his tiredness. But he said it’s hard for him to stay still because he likes to be active. (But he had to be told only once to sit up straight.)

His dad, Bruce Carleton, said, “Ricky can be pretty unfocused. If he can find more focus, he would better realize his potential.”

The idea for the youth meditation class came from Taylor hearing from parents who wanted the freedom to participate in her adult class.

“Also, some parents wanted to get their kids started early,” she said. “They thought how valuable it would have been if they had learned earlier.

“But we couldn’t use adult techniques. They had to be adapted to children.”

She approached Mulvihill, a Montessori teacher, to see if she would lead the project.

“She has a wealth of ideas and a passion for this project,” Taylor said.

“Children need to have balance,” Mulvihill said. “Children can go into meditation so easily because they have great imaginations and are so observant.”

When they learn meditation and how to breathe, they can learn how to focus and to relax instead of being anxious, she said.

“We are planting the seeds that they can develop the rest of their lives,” she said.

Mentesana said he has read research on meditation and children and said it is worthwhile to teach children to meditate because they can become more attentive. Also learning the breathing techniques can carry into their daily lives.

Taylor said that although some immediate results are evident, she really wants to think ahead 20 years.

“I want to meet the children who started when they were 5 to find out how they utilized those meditation tools throughout their lives,” she said. “I see this as a long-term process.”

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/02/11/2649123/meditation-class-teaches-kids.html#ixzz1Dq5pWc00

Námskeið í kriya yoga um helgina og Lífspekifélagið

 

Námskeið í kriya yoga

Swami Mangalananda Giri verður á landinu dagana 11. - 18. febrúar. Þann 11. febrúar verður haldinn kynningarfundur í Yogastöðinni Heilsubót og hefst klukkan 19:00.

Dagana 12. - 13. febrúar verður innvígsla og leiddar hugleiðslur í Yogastöðinni Heilsubót.

Dagana 14. - 17. febrúar veður ferð til Apavatns, þar sem við munum gista í 3 nætur og Swami Mangalananda Giri mun leiða hugleiðslur.

Upplýsingar: Gummi 6918565,  Bjarni 8979937

 

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Föstudaginn 11, febrúar kl 20,30 heldur Gunnar Hersveinn Sigursteinsson rithöfundur erindi:  Hófsemd og græðgi.

 

Á Laugardögum er opið hús frá kl. 15 - 17 með dagskrá kl. 15,30. Laugardaginn 12, febrúar heldur Hannes Högni Vilhjálmsson dósent í tölvunarfræðum við HR erindi: Stafrænir holdgervingar, gervigreind – hugþjálfun  

How meditation helps beat stress

 

Scientists have achieved a breakthrough in understanding how relaxation techniques like yoga, meditation, and prayer improve health.

Research collaborators from the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Genomics Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center say that such relaxation techniques work by changing patterns of gene activity that affect how the body responds to stress.

“It’s not all in your head. What we’ve found is that when you evoke the relaxation response, the very genes that are turned on or off by stress are turned the other way. The mind can actively turn on and turn off genes,” says Dr Herbert Benson of the institute.

During the study, Benson and his colleagues compared gene-expression patterns in 19 long-term practitioners,19 healthy controls, and 20 newcomers who underwent eight weeks of relaxation-response training.

The researchers observed that over 2,200 genes were activated differently in the long-time practitioners relative to the controls, and 1,561 genes in the short-timers compared to the long-time practitioners. The researchers also saw changes in cellular metabolism, response to oxidative stress and other processes in both short and long-term practitioners.

What are you?

So what are you? Apart from a name, a form, perhaps if you are lucky a bank account, perhaps a skill, apart from all that what are you? Are we not suffering? Or suffering doesn't exist in your life. Is there fear? Is there anxiety? Greed? Envy? Worshipping some image which thought has created? Frightened of death? Clinging to some concept? A contradiction, saying one thing and doing another. So we are all that. Our habits, our inanities, the endless chatter that goes on in the mind, all that is what we are. And the content of consciousness makes consciousness, and that consciousness has been evolving through time, through tremendous experiences, pains, sorrow, anxiety, all that. Now we are asking: can one be free of all that? Free from all sense of fear. Because where there is fear there is no love.

 

J. Krishnamurti - Bombay, January 31st 1982