Any Words on Isha Yoga?

E

Eman Resu

Registered Senior Member
There was a seminar at work last week with the Sadhguru Vaggi something-or-another on Isha Yoga. It's $250 for a 3-hour-a-say, 7-day off-site with him to - in my words - expand your awareness.

Any thoughts on Isha Yoga (such as "what is it - really")? Do we have another thread that touches on the subject?

Thx
 
Just happened to stumble on this forum and thought I'd share some thoughts on the above subject. Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev started Isha Yoga, until recently called Sahaja Sthithi Yoga. I have not found anything on the web, or through speaking to followers that are negative about his practice. My thoughts, after going through their various programs are the following:

1) The initial program - Isha Yoga - is pretty decent. You are taught certain sound and breath pranayams and a form of meditation.
2) You are introduced to 'live' foods and their benefits. Vegetarianism.
3) It is promoted as a non-religious, 'scientific' and open path.
4) You sign a statement that you will not disclose contents of any of their programs to anyone else.
5) You are not allowed to take any notes, record etc.,
6) It is entirely run by volunteers.

I found the following to be somewhat disturbing in retrospect:

1) Like the example of the frog placed in a waterpan slowly raising the temperature and being cooked, one is slowly drawn more and more into it.
2) You realize that it is not totally scientific, non-religious and open. You should be 'willing' and 'surrender'.
3) You are drawn into more and more deeper practices changing every aspect of your belief system.
4) Eventually you get to see scenes that might have repelled you during the initial days, but you have been conditioned not to question them. You are told not to 'seek' any experiences, triggering you to actively seek these experiences.
5) Volunteerism takes on a new meaning, volunteering for the movement, and to increase enrollment.

The above are just my observations. They do not hound you for money, and they have quite a large membership whereever they start the program.
 
Thanks. Spider's reply is where I was leaning. I like the idea of learning to meditate and think that all that is "good" in the world is not to be had for profit. If it is all good then when you share it it's benefits can be realized and the "word" can be spread.
 
Isha Yoga Must Be Stoped

Sadhguru Is A Wolf In Sheeps Clothing, I Am A New Teacher Of Kundalini Yoga, But I Am Also A Warrior From Past And In Present, My Guides Had Drawn Me To See What This Isha Yoga Was All About, There Group Did Not Screen Me And Were Very Sloppy Trying To Gain More Energy From Free Willed Souls. I Took The One Week Class And Had Developed Hemroids From The Begining, But Like A Bad Relationship I Continued To See If There Was Anything That Could Benefit Me. The Day Before I Started The Class A Tarot Reading Was Done On Me And Verbatim Was Read From The Cards Where The Teacher Said You Must Forget About Everything You Have Learned Or Experienced. I Wanted To Quit On The Fifth Day After I Failed To Bow To Sadhguru's Picture After The Initiation That He Attempts To Get Followers Through Hypnosis, But Another Student**who Came To Me Because She Also Practiced Kundalini Asked Me To Stay To Keep Her Company Since She Was From Out Of Town, So I Finished It With Her For Her Protection. Two Days Later I Called Them And Told Them I Know What They Are All About And That I Would Let Everyone Know That They Are A Cult And To Send My Money Back Or Take The Karma. The Next Morning I Had Awakened With A Third Of My Gold Chain With A Crystal On It Tightened Up With One Of The Links Inserted Into A Soldered Hoop On The Clasp. I Showed It To A Woman I Know Who Does Readings And She Said Some One Tried To Choke You, Do You Know Any Black Whitches? I Then Told Her What Happened To Me And My Friend Who Did The Tarot Reading Also Confirmed It Is The Teacher Of The Isha Yoga Who Is A Black Whitch. The Next Day My New Friend From Out Of State Who*i Was Trying To Protect Called Me To Tell Me That*a Friend Of Hers Who Is With The*group Called Her To Say The Teacher*said To Tell*me*that*the Man You Are Friends With Is A Criminal And Not To Listen To Him, I Said To Her Now You Know Who Your Friends Are And She Said She Would Never Do Anything With Her Again. My New Friend Also Told Me She Has Been Feeling Sick Since She Was Doing The Kriya, I Said You Are Still Doing It? Dont Do It Again And You Will Feel Better, The Next Day She Called Me To Say She Felt Better But Everything Else Was Going Wrong, I Told Her To Be Strong And Ask For Help At The Ashram But I Did Not Tell Her What Happened To Me The Night Before Because I Did Not Want Her To Be Scared. The Morning Of This Day I Felt A Sore On My Tongue And Spit Some Blood From My Throat* So I Looked At My Tongue In The Mirror And Saw It Was Slit At The Tip Like A Snake So Later I Went To My Friend Who Does Readings And She Told Me These People Want To Murder You And For Me To Seal Every Drain And Opening In My House Because They Can Get In Like Roaches. It Lookes Like I Am In A Spiritual War And Need All The Help I Can Get. Sadhguru Is Sucking People In Every Day Thriving On People Looking For Help And Then Making Them Feel They Belong To Something, He Is Getting There Energy Through There Free Will, What Is He Doing With All This Energy?

Amritdev Singh


P.s After Going Through All This I Went Onto Google And Entered Isha Yoga Cult And It Brought Me To A Site Called “the Hub” With Someone Asking About Isha Yoga. It Was Answered By “bks Iyengar” There Is No Special Type Of Yoga Callled “isha Yoga”, It Is Just A Cult
 
Isha Yoga

I was Just browsing for some information on ISHA institute when i came across this thread and felt sharing a few thoughts of mine since I have been practicing ISHA Yoga for few years now. I don't want to comment on amritdev reply because not familiar with tarot card reading and the scientific validity of everything being said. However, I would like to comment on ftstgrg response.

1) Like the example of the frog placed in a waterpan slowly raising the temperature and being cooked, one is slowly drawn more and more into it.

There is an absolute truth to this, however the way it is put gives a negative spin. The analogy of "frog placed in a waterpan slowly raising the temperature and being cooked" does not fit in this instance because the end result, in my experience, after going through each program was being more joyful and happiness. They teach you how to take care of yourself, how to live your life in happiness and peace. The program works and hence people are slowly drawn more and more into it.

2) You realize that it is not totally scientific, non-religious and open. You should be 'willing' and 'surrender'.

Weather it is scientific or non-religious or open is completely subjective because what is science and religion to one person might not be the same for someone else. Here is what i think of science, others have a right to define it their own way. Everything that is happening in this universe is a science. Computer is a science, programming is a science, agriculture is a science, flying is a science, space and water research is a science, every atom is a science (atomic science), motion is a science (physic) etc. etc. Psychology, sociology, human anatomy, opthalmology, cardiology, everything and anything that is happening inside a human being is a science. So if someone is breathing a certain way, or sitting still for long periods of time, or eating healthy food, or creating a loving emotion or doing anything that is related to the body and mind and emotions in a structured way to bring out the best possibility to become a joyous person is a science!

Now to understand the idea behind willing and surrender one has to understand that in order for any good to happen one has to be willing and surrender. If a doctor says you need to exercise and you are not willing then it is not going to work. Even if your spouse manages to nag and make you run on a treadmill, it will generate a lot of negative emotion and resistance to the whole process of exercising there by reducing or completely eliminating the benefits. Surrendering has similar implication except that it has much more deeper involvement.

3) You are drawn into more and more deeper practices changing every aspect of your belief system.

The whole reason to do ISHA Yoga practices is to bring change. If you have a bad aching body or stressful mind or sad emotions within you then you want to change. Imagine to go from a chronically aching, tired, fatigued body to vibrant full of life and energised body, or from a constantly thinking, worried and stressed mind to a more calmer, peaceful, blissful mind or from a hatred, jealous, sad emotion to a loving and compassionate emotion. This is what everyone wants and it is possible to bring this change by doing these practices. Right now people believe that body means aches and pain, mind means stress, heart means lust. All these beliefs must go one way or the other, by practicing ISHA Yoga it has been very easy for me to bring these changes.

4) Eventually you get to see scenes that might have repelled you during the initial days, but you have been conditioned not to question them. You are told not to 'seek' any experiences, triggering you to actively seek these experiences.

If a man starts crying because of pent of emotions for years, or someone starts dancing, or screaming out of being joyful and ecstatic unfortunately is something everyone is very uncomfortable with. Imagine if you came the first day at a yoga program and suddenly everyone starts dancing and singing...it will raise all kind of question and doubts. However, that is exactly what everyone is seeking. Everyone knows that repressing emotions, good or bad, is detrimental and needs to be released. However, our society will not allow it making a person more neurotic. I have been doing my practices for 4 years now and i am happy to say that i laugh and have fun more often then before. When my nieces and nephews come to my house i am running around the house making noises, throwing ball, pillow fights, go outside and have snow fights. I have not done this for a long time now and my elderly parents always complains that I encourage children to act like hooligans. I thought this is absurd because i want to have fun and i want the kids to have fun!

I have done quite a few programs and i don't ever recall anyone telling me "not to seek any experience" The whole purpose of all the programs is to allow individual to seek higher level of consciousness and happiness and blissfulness. However, they do tells us not to pay attention to other people's experiences. It made sense to me because i was there for my own joyfulness and not look at others to see what is happening with them.


5) Volunteerism takes on a new meaning, volunteering for the movement, and to increase enrollment.

ISYA is a 100% voluntary driven organization. Every single activity to sustain this organization is performed by members voluntarily. To set up any program the volunteers do all the work. I took things for granted initially, but when i volunteered to help for few programs I realized that amount of time, energy, effort, and dedication goes into making these program happen is amazing. It is much easier to get the work done by charging the participants and hiring people, but that does nothing to improve the quality of the program. Volunteering helped me to fulfill my desires to give something back. ISHA Yoga offers individuals the means to reach the peaks of happiness and i think more and more people should be made aware and encouraged because it is not the same as material happiness, (I am not against material happiness), because if i find a way to make more money I don't want other people to know because of competition. But this happiness is coming from within which is much more fulfilling and no competition. I want all my friends and neighbor to be happy in this way because happy people don't go around hurting, shooting, or blowing up people. Anyways, it is much more fun to hang around a happy person then someone who is sad and depressed. Thank You.
 
amritdev said:
Amritdev Singh
Click to expand...

Dude! Paragraph breaks are your friend! Captials only at the front of a sentence and for proper names and a few exceptions like "I."

Also you seem to not be zeroing in too well on concensus reality.
 
hiteshrph said:
ISYA is a 100% voluntary driven organization.
Click to expand...

The first question for such things, and usually the easiest way to weed out the worst cults is - if it is 100% volunteer, why charge and who gets the money?

Granted $250 for a 7 day retreat is not outrageous. You might also find out about gotchas like room and board.

Open financial statements and the guy at the top not living in opulence are good signs.

Non disclosure agreements and secrecy are not a good sign.

Happiness is fun, but if it comes with dependency or subservience then there are issues.
 
hiteshrph said:
There is an absolute truth to this, however the way it is put gives a negative spin. The analogy of "frog placed in a waterpan slowly raising the temperature and being cooked" does not fit in this instance because the end result, in my experience, after going through each program was being more joyful and happiness. They teach you how to take care of yourself, how to live your life in happiness and peace. The program works and hence people are slowly drawn more and more into it.
Click to expand...

Hard to know since

4) You sign a statement that you will not disclose contents of any of their programs to anyone else.
5) You are not allowed to take any notes, record etc.,
 
Eman Resu said:
There was a seminar at work last week with the Sadhguru Vaggi something-or-another on Isha Yoga. It's $250 for a 3-hour-a-say, 7-day off-site with him to - in my words - expand your awareness.

Any thoughts on Isha Yoga (such as "what is it - really")? Do we have another thread that touches on the subject?

Thx
Click to expand...
its a concoction at worst or a sub branch of astanga yoga at best ..... if they are charging $250 with the promise of achieving something in 7 days during 21 hours, I would opt for the former.
 
Who would pay the cost to conduct the program?

swarm said:
The first question for such things, and usually the easiest way to weed out the worst cults is - if it is 100% volunteer, why charge and who gets the money?

Granted $250 for a 7 day retreat is not outrageous. You might also find out about gotchas like room and board.

Open financial statements and the guy at the top not living in opulence are good signs.

Non disclosure agreements and secrecy are not a good sign.

Happiness is fun, but if it comes with dependency or subservience then there are issues.
Click to expand...



Ha ha ha, what a great find that was. And the cult got isolated itself.
There is a huge cost involved in conducting any event. It is just a minimal charge when compared to what that is being taught here.

Joining and not joining is completely every person's wish.

Have fun..
 
You want self awareness? Then drop a hit or two of good LSD and that can happen to you for a lot less money! Self awareness comes from living life , daily things that happen and things you encounter while traveling through life. You can't become self aware in just 7 days, that's ridiculous and seems like a scam to me.
 
In my experience, Sadhguru is most definitely an "enlightened" master. I will never forget sitting in my chair and having Sadhguru's words echoing through my being when I felt the blood of Christ. However, I do understand those who think that it's a scam, or that it's all a waste of time, because the words spoken may give you ideas, but only because of past conditioning. Before Sadhguru proved to me that I don't exist, I would have said the same kind of things, mainly something like, "This is all some crazy bullshit." But Sadhguru isn't giving you anything new that you don't have already.. He's simply trying to help you to see what's obstructing you. All of the ideas that you have about ISHA or the Sadhguru are FALSE. Because they are ideas in the mind. Sadhguru is literally in all aspects and ideas.. GOD. Who else could he be? He is unbound. He is trying to show you that a conflict has come because you think that there are 2 of you. "I" and "myself". It is very clear to any human being with the smallest amount of knowledge that we live in a realm of Duality. Duality means, for instance, if you look in a mirror half of your body physically looks and is almost exactly like the other half. They mirror each other. Something very sickening is happening in the mind of most humans. And this is the same dysfunction that the man called Jesus was speaking about. These great and wise men have the only real message. And it is inside You. Everything that you perceive is within awareness.
 
s1ngular1 said:
In my experience, Sadhguru is most definitely an "enlightened" master. I will never forget sitting in my chair and having Sadhguru's words echoing through my being when I felt the blood of Christ. However, I do understand those who think that it's a scam, or that it's all a waste of time, because the words spoken may give you ideas, but only because of past conditioning. Before Sadhguru proved to me that I don't exist, I would have said the same kind of things, mainly something like, "This is all some crazy bullshit." But Sadhguru isn't giving you anything new that you don't have already.. He's simply trying to help you to see what's obstructing you. All of the ideas that you have about ISHA or the Sadhguru are FALSE. Because they are ideas in the mind. Sadhguru is literally in all aspects and ideas.. GOD. Who else could he be? He is unbound. He is trying to show you that a conflict has come because you think that there are 2 of you. "I" and "myself". It is very clear to any human being with the smallest amount of knowledge that we live in a realm of Duality. Duality means, for instance, if you look in a mirror half of your body physically looks and is almost exactly like the other half. They mirror each other. Something very sickening is happening in the mind of most humans. And this is the same dysfunction that the man called Jesus was speaking about. These great and wise men have the only real message. And it is inside You. Everything that you perceive is within awareness.
Click to expand...
Anything you see reflected in a mirror has a real counterpart (although the surface of the mirror may distort its proportion .... or even render it blank in cases of deep dust)
 
Some misconceptions about Isha Yoga

There have been some misconceptions expressed about Isha Yoga.

I took the Inner Engineering week-long course 13 months ago.
-- I never signed anything.

-- The course teaches a 26-minute set of practices (breath, chanting & asanas).
It does not promise that anything will happen within a week. It is the practice, done over time that creates change. My classmates included a doctor, a lawyer, software engineers, grandmothers and students. They are not fools, nor am I.

-- The class took 28 hours over the week: 3 hours weekday evenings, 8 hours on Saturday, 4 hours on Sunday. That is less than $10/hour. Given the rental cost of the hall, they barely broke even.

--In the past year, I have lost 25 pounds, drink less, worry less, and laugh more.

Check out Isha's humanitarian efforts: free medical clinic for uninsured at their Nashville center, reforestation, rural education, and more. All volunteer.

peace.

"A cynic is one who knows the price of everything and value of nothing."
 
> cosmictraveler06-08-09, 07:57 AM
> You want self awareness? Then drop a hit or two of good LSD and that can happen to you for a lot less money! Self awareness comes from living life , daily things that happen and things you encounter while traveling through life. You can't become self aware in just 7 days, that's ridiculous and seems like a scam to me.

Nothing can happen in seven days. They just teach some excercise which you have to practise twice a day for forty days and after that once a day for six months. To be frank i was as easy as it sounds. It is just a 30 mins routine but doing it consistently needs lot of discipline.

After that, I dont think you will stop doing it after seeing how much impact it had in your lifestyle


>ftstgrg

> I found the following to be somewhat disturbing in retrospect:

> 1) Like the example of the frog placed in a waterpan slowly raising the temperature and being cooked, one is slowly drawn more and more into it.

They might me drawn to it but they are not becoming monks or gone crazy. If you are getting drawn into something which makes you really happy and peaceful. I dont think it is a bad thing

> 2) You realize that it is not totally scientific, non-religious and open. You should be 'willing' and 'surrender'.

There will some disappointment on that perspective. See Yoga is a vedic science. For any kind of meditation you need to have a Guru and only he can initiate it for you. It is not a tradition but it is a practise the teaching has lot of sanity to it. For the current world people needed everything though courier or online download.

> 3) You are drawn into more and more deeper practices changing every aspect of your belief system.

There are 6.6 billlion people in this world, I think there are more than a million belief system. Which by itself means that belief system is just something which you got into your mind at younger age and it is not sientific or holy
Always remember people who thought you belief system are not scientists or holy scholars. If Jesus or Mohammed come to earth now and see what christians and muslims do, they will surely say I never asked you to do this you misunderstood me. Information gets changed as it move across 10 people. When it move across 1000+ years and billions of people you do the math ... I might agree if you say Isha makes you to belief something which is different from what you believed. but if your new belief system makes you more happy and peaceful then I dont think there is any harm in changing it.
Atlast religion is made to bring peace and happiness to human kind

> 4) Eventually you get to see scenes that might have repelled you during the initial days, but you have been conditioned not to question them. You are told not to 'seek' any experiences, triggering you to actively seek these experiences.

I never did my kriya that level to see any scens so I cant commenton that

> 5) Volunteerism takes on a new meaning, volunteering for the movement, and to increase enrollment.

There are lot of other things that Isha does and all those are done my volunteers only. Isha foundation did a guiness record on planting 1 million years in one day. Most of the things I think it is done in India. As you know India is still a developing nation there is more need here than in any other developed nation

The above are just my observations. They do not hound you for money, and they have quite a large membership whereever they start the program.
 
> swarm01-15-09, 03:34 AM
> ISYA is a 100% voluntary driven organization.

> The first question for such things, and usually the easiest way to weed out the worst cults is - if it is 100% volunteer, why charge and who gets the money?

The money goes to isha foundation. The foundation is doing lot of social services which in turn needs money. But the money what ever asked for the program, most of it will be spent for the program itself. The guy who gives the hall for rent is not a volunteer

> Granted $250 for a 7 day retreat is not outrageous. You might also find out about gotchas like room and board.

> Open financial statements and the guy at the top not living in opulence are good signs.

> Non disclosure agreements and secrecy are not a good sign.

The basic need for this is that the the yoga has lot of sanity to it. It should not be thought to others unless you are a guru. We dont have this knd of agreement in India as we understand the spirutual meaning of it since over here we believe lot more worst crap than that. But in US I think signing a NDA would have been a sensible move.

> Happiness is fun, but if it comes with dependency or subservience then there are issues.

If you want to be healthy it is good that you run or walk for 30 mins daily. That do not mean if you dont run or walk you will be sick. Doing Yoga is one of the efficient way to attain peace if you are capable of getting it elsewhere forget yoga.
 
Sahdguru is about hypnosis, black witch craft and stealing energy from the embodied

Unless you have abilities you would not have a clue you were being violated by this thief, until you learn to use higher consciousness, you are all running around like sheep, you all need to start meditation daily and turn within and realize your thought are not yours, only your actions. Follow no one but your higher self.
 
we ll he has done a lot of work for the benefit of ppl..i ve not attended isha but I have been following his videos and speeches lately...
.I for one believe there must be a natural tendency for every human being to discover himself..how come could that be so abstruse if that is what the universe wants from you?
overall i think its good to follow him if your entangled in your own beliefs without reasoning, but am also afraid if one would loose his individuality in the process..
 
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