Sunday, May 23, 2010
New Age and Ancient Wisdom
The New Age has gained a bad name. What began as an attempt to rediscover and revivify ancient wisdom has become diluted, revised, commercialized, and packaged for sale on the marketplace. Yoga, one of the most sacred and (often) esoteric practices for centuries, has, in many venues, become an athletic exercise, devoted to enhancing one's physical strength and appearance. Do yoga to look good, is often the theme. Perform asanas so you can sweat and feel better is another.
Now, there is nothing wrong with doing physical exercise to improve one's health and bodily strength. But this is not the purpose of true yoga. The word yoga means (in one interpretation) "yoke." What is yoked is the inner self with the divine source. Each asana, each move, even the flicker of a finger or the turn of an eye, is part of that process of divine union, and blessed is the practitioner who is conscious of this. The enhanced physique, the improved appearance--these may occur as the byproduct, but they are not the intent.
The great gods and goddesses whose power was acknowledged and reverenced in the past become shrunken symbols worn as ornaments by those who often don't even know their names. The ancient texts are ignored or diluted so that the core messages are skewed, as if a nourishing soup had literally been watered down for a palate too weak to swallow the pure essence. Modern "prophets" who repackage ancient ideas in forms "suitable for the Western audience" go on T. V. and make millions for their offerings.
I think such activities are diversions, traps to lead us away from the true path. Some, observing the shallowness of much of the contemporary New Age scene, turn away from spiritual pursuits entirely.
But I believe that none of this detracts from the inherent truth and authenticity of the central message, given to us by sages from many eras and societies, and often spoken to us by the "teacher within". The message is simple: we and the Divine Source are one and the link between us and all other beings in our universe is Love Itself. There is indeed a "jewel in the lotus" but it is up to us to find it.
(Image from yoga.ask.com)
