Yoga Tattva Upanishad

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YOGA-TATTVA UPANISHAD

( ESSENCE OF YOGA )

Krishnayajurveda,
group of Upanishads – yoga

Om!

Let Brahman be our protection!
Let Brahman be our Teacher!
Let our energy be infinite!
May there never be any limitations to this Consciousness!
May we attain eternal peace!

Om! Shanti! Shanti! Shanti!

1. I will impart to the aspiring sadhakas the essence of yoga;
Whoever hears this teaching and realizes it will be freed from all karma.

2. Vishnu, Mahayogi, Great Reality, Perfect asceticism,
The Primordial Spirit on the path of yoga is visible like the bright light of a lamp.

3. Having bowed to this Lord of the world,
Brahma asked him to tell about the meaning of the eight-step Ashtanga Yoga.

4. Hrishikesha said:
I will tell the meaning of this yoga. Listen!
All beings are floundering in the nets
of joy and suffering.

5. But there is a path leading to Liberation from the net of maya – birth, disease, old age and death – which surpasses death.

6. There are many different methods, but Liberation is difficult to attain by them;
one who is immersed in the study of scriptures imagines himself to be a sage.

7. But the Great State of Brahman cannot be described even by the gods,
can the shastras explain it?

8. However, this Indivisible, Pure, Eternal, Absolute,
all-surpassing Atman is enveloped in the results of karma.

9. How does this Eternal, Supreme Consciousness become a jiva (individual soul)?
Brahman, beyond all worlds, whose essence is Jnana (pure knowledge),

10. first began to move like waves on the surface of the ocean,
then the separate self (ahamkara) manifested in it,
the five pure elements (mahabhuti) manifested in it,
evolved from hiranyagarbha (Ball of Light),
consisting of the three gunas and various tattvas.

11. The Jiva, experiencing joy and suffering, is created by illusion,
therefore its true essence is the Supreme Atman (Paramatman).

12. Desires, fear, greed, ignorance, suffering,
anger, birth, death, grief, sorrow, fatigue, hunger, thirst,

13. confusion, despair, worry, captivity -
one who is free from these vices is considered Liberated.

14. For the destruction of these vices I will give you the remedy;
Will Knowledge, Jnana, leading to Liberation, appear without yoga?

15. But yoga without Jnana will not lead to Liberation,
Therefore – he who desires Liberation (mumukshu) – let him persistently practice Jnana and yoga.

16. From ignorance – suffering, from jnana – Liberation.
After all, this is the knowledge of one's true nature (svarupa) -
achievement of the unity of subject, object and perception.

17. Thus one's own nature is known, the Supreme State,
Pure Consciousness – Sat-Chit-Ananda,

18. Beyond creation, maintenance and destruction, manifestation and knowledge.
"True Knowledge".
Now I will tell you about yoga.

19. There are many different yogas, depending on the practice:
Mantra Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Laya Yoga, Raja Yoga,

20. having attained perfection in them, like a full vessel
will be filled with the Consciousness of the Atman,

21. and will be praised by all, as having known Brahman.
I will tell about the practice of Mantra Yoga.

22. Whoever repeats the mantra for 12 years,
will gradually attain various siddhis, overcoming the three gunas.
This yoga is practiced by low-level sadhakas.

23. Laya Yoga is praised ten million times – this is the dissolution of consciousness;
whether you walk, stand, sleep or eat – always think about the Atman.

24. This is the meaning of Laya Yoga.
Now listen to Hatha Yoga.
Yama, niyama, asana, pranasamyama,

25. pratyahara, dharana and dhyana on God between the eyebrows,
samadhi, sahaja-sthiti, – this is called
Eight-limbed Ashtanga Yoga.

26. Maha-mudra, maha-bandha, maha-vedha, khechari-mudra,
jalandhara-bandha, uddiyana-bandha, mula-bandha, and also

27. repetition of the mantra "OM", connecting sound and the Supreme State,
three mudras – Vajroli, Amaroli and Sahajroli.

28. I will tell you about all this in order:
Proper nutrition is one of the main conditions of niyama.

29. Ahimsa – non-violence, the main commandment of yama.
of the eighty asanas, the most important are Siddhasana, Padmasana, Simhasana and Bhadrasana.

30. At the beginning of the practice, four hindrances will be encountered: laziness, pride, wrong association, desire for wealth and women – this is trishna (thirst for pleasure).

31. Having recognized desires through viveka,
let the sadhak avoid these hindrances by practicing yama and niyama.

32. Having sat in padmasana, let the yogi then control his breathing.
For this, let him build a beautiful hut with a narrow door but no windows,

33. with an earthen floor, very carefully smeared with dung or lime,
so that insects do not interfere with the practice,

34. carefully swept daily with a broom
and fumigated with incense with a pleasant aroma.

35. on a seat not too high and not too low,
covered with cloth, skin and kusha grass,
let the yogi, sitting in the lotus posture,

36. and straightening the spine,
let him honor the Ishta-Devata (chosen deity),

37. then, closing the right nostril with the thumb of the right hand,
let him slowly fill the ida channel with air, making a full inhale;
then let him perform kumbhaka.

38. Then let him exhale through the pingala channel, also slowly
without straining, let him take a full breath through pingala.

39. Having performed the retention of breath, let him exhale slowly through the ida channel.

40. Let the yogi measure the inhalation, retention and exhalation.

41. Inhaling through ida for 16 seconds,
the breath should be held for 64 seconds.

42. Then one should exhale the air through pingala for 32 seconds,
and then continue breathing through pingala as previously indicated,

43. let the yogi in a concentrated state of mind four times a day:
morning, at noon, in the evening and at midnight, -
practices this pranayama up to 80 times.

44. so after three months of exercises the nadis will be purified,
if the nadis are purified – various favorable signs appear in the yogi's body.

45. They are: lightness of the body,
beauty, excellent appetite,

46. and thinness of the body will undoubtedly appear.
Further, a sadhu practicing yoga should avoid the following types of food:
sour, hot, stale, old, salty, with mustard, spicy;

47. also he should not eat greens, avoid young women,
one should not maintain a sacrificial fire and visit places of pilgrimage,

48. observe morning ablutions, fasting and other things,
which leads to weakness body.
For the practitioner, the best food is milk and butter;

49. wheat, beans and rice porridge are very beneficial for the yogi,
then in holding the breath, the highest powers – siddhis will appear.

50. Let the yogi restrain the inhalation and exhalation with kevala-kumbhaka – natural retention.
If he achieves perfection in this, his breathing will stop;

51. For one who has realized this,
nothing is impossible in all the three worlds.
With pranayama, sweat first appears, it is necessary to rub oneself with it,

52. then even from slow breathing, the yogi,
sitting in the asana, begins to tremble in the body.

53. Then the yogi advances further and achieves dardri-siddhi,
wherefore, like a jumping frog

54. a yogi in the lotus position can move on the ground.
Then, one who advances further in the practice rises above the ground,

55. sitting in the lotus position, the yogi rises from the ground.

56. The yogi begins to manifest superhuman abilities,
but let him not manifest them, except those that relieve him from bodily suffering,

57. the yogi sleeps little, there is almost no urine and excrement,
bleeding, saliva, sweat, bad breath -

58. all this will not be in such a perfect yogi.
Then, one who advances further in the practice will have even greater siddhis,

59. with which he can defeat all that walk on the earth:
tigers, elephants, buffalos or lions

60. can be killed by such a yogi with one blow of the hand.
the yogi attains a body similar to that of the God of Love – Kamadeva.

61. But such a yogi should not lose semen -

62. avoiding worldly pleasures,
let him continue to practice attentively.
Due to the retention of semen in the body of the yogi, a pleasant smell will appear.

63. Then, let the yogi in solitude repeat the pranava OM
to purify all the karma accumulated earlier.

64. The mantra OM destroying all sins and
repeated by the yogi is the beginning of his perfection.

65. Next, the yogi should unite prana with apana,
practicing the highest breathing exercise – ghata,
thus the mind is united with the will, the individual jiva with the Supreme Atman, -

66. when these two are united into one – this is the correct highest pranayama – ghata.
I will tell you about it briefly.

67. Let the yogi practice this exercise for three hours daily.

68. This retention of breath should be done once a day.
It is known as the detachment of the senses from the objects of the sensory world,

69. when the yogi has performed the retention of ghata – it is called pratyahara.

Whatever he sees with his eyes – he sees it as Atman,

70. whatever he hears with his ears – he hears it as Atman,
whatever he smells with his nose – he smells it as Atman,

71. whatever he tastes with his tongue – he feels it as Atman.
whatever he touches with his skin – he feels it as Atman.

72. Let him practice in this way
daily without laziness for three hours.

73. From this the yogi will have great powers of siddhi:
hearing far, seeing far, moving over great distances,

74. having perfect speech (vakya-siddhi), taking any form of body,
becoming invisible;
smeared with his excrement and urine,
copper or other metal becomes gold,

75. with the help of special practitioner
he can move in space.

76. But for the yogi who always strives for Liberation,
these great siddhis are obstacles, let him exercise intelligence and not rejoice in them,
let him not demonstrate these superpowers given by yoga.

77. Like a simpleton, a deaf person or a fool -
so let him behave in the world to keep his abilities secret.

78. Disciples desire the manifestation of miracles,
but by satisfying their request, such a sadhu will forget his practice.

79. Not forgetting the words of the Guru, let the yogi
continue to practice day and night.
Thus by constant practice the state of ghata-avastha will appear.

80. Since without practice, only by talking about yoga Liberation is not attained,
let the yogi continue persistent practice.

81. Then, with continuation of sadhana, the state of paricaya appears:
the pranas, mixed with the fire of Kundalini,

82. enter Sushumna unhindered,
thus consciousness also penetrates there with the air,

83. let the consciousness and breath of the yogi enter Sushumna.
Earth, Water, Fire, Wind and Space – in these five

84. elements controlled by five deities
a yogi must perform five concentrations (dharanas).

85. From the feet to the knees is the region of Earth.
Earth is a yellow quadrangle with the bija mantra LAM.
Holding the breath and concentrating on the region of Earth, reciting the mantras LAM,

86. Meditating on God Brahma – four-armed, four-headed, golden in color,
let the yogi perform dharana for two hours, holding his breath,
then he can control the element of Earth.

87. Such a yogi will never perish from the earth.
From the knees to the anus is the region of Water:

88. Water is a white crescent moon, in which is the syllable VAM,
Holding the breath and concentrating on the abode of God Varuna, reciting the VAM mantra,

89. meditating on the four-armed, transparent crystal-like,
dressed in yellow robes, the eternal God Narayana,

90. let him hold his breath for two hours – then
the yogi purifies his karma and will never perish in water.

91. From the anus to the middle of the chest is the region of Fire,
Fire is a triangle of red color, in which is the syllable RAM.

92. Holding his breath and concentrating on the element of Fire, reciting the RAM mantra,
the yogi meditates on Rudra, three-eyed,
like the risen sun, fulfilling desires,

93. sprinkled with ashes, unstained,
let the yogi concentrate for two hours – then he will not perish in the Fire

94. and his body, falling into the fire, will not burn.
From the middle of the chest to the area between the eyebrows is the region of Air.

95. Air is a hexagon with the bija mantra YAM,
holding the breath and concentrating in the area of air, reciting the mantra YAM,

96. let the yogi meditate for two hours on Ishvara, full of Knowledge, residing everywhere,
then the yogi will fly in the sky like the wind and will not perish in the Air.

97. From the area between the eyebrows to the crown of the head is the element of Space,

98. The element of Space is in the form of a smoky circle with the bija mantra HAM.
Holding the breath in the region of Space and reciting the HAM mantra,

99. let the yogi meditate on Shankara, Shiva, the highest point of consciousness Mahadeva,
Sadasiva (Eternal Shiva), with a body like crystal, with a moon in his hair,

100. ten-armed, five-headed, three-eyed,
holding various weapons, adorned with jewels,

101. whose half of the body is Uma,
he fulfills all desires and is the cause of all causes.
By performing this dharana the yogi can move anywhere in space.

102. and in any place he will attain the highest samadhi.
Thus the yogi should perform the five dharanas,

103. from this practice the body will become healthy, death will retreat from such a yogi,
and even with the dissolution of the Universe he will not disappear.

104. Let the yogi then engage in meditation, and thus holding his breath,
imagine the chosen deity (Ishta-devata).

105. This meditation with form gives superpowers and the attainment of the eight great siddhis,
then with the help of meditation without form, the yogi will attain samadhi.

106. Whoever attains samadhi in just 12 days, that yogi, holding his breath,
becomes a jivan-mukta.
Samadhi is the state of union with Paramatman.

107. If the yogi wishes to leave his body in samadhi, let him simply let himself go,

108. let him completely enter the state of Brahman,
but let him not hasten his departure from the world.
If he still retains the physical body,

109. traveling through the worlds of the Great Universe,
possessing superpowers,
he can enjoy life in the Heavens of the Gods,

110. in one moment he can change his physical appearance, becoming
a person, a spirit, or any animal at his own will.
He can realize various desires that exist in the worlds:

111. a yogi can even become Maheshvara (the Great God).
Different yoga practices bring different results,
but lead to the same goal – Atman.

112. Here is another practice:
The heel of the left foot must be pressed to the perineum,
you need to grab the toes of the right foot with your hands,

113. then press your chin on your chest,
fill with air lungs,
and hold the breath (kumbhaka), and finally exhale.

114. Let him perform this practice on the left and right legs.
Then the extended leg should be placed on the opposite thigh.

115. This practice is called the Great Lock (Maha-bandha),
it should be done three times a day.

116. In this practice, the yogi, while inhaling,
turns the breath with karna-mudra (jalandhara-bandha),
twice locks the air in Sushumna (puta-dvayam), thus he attains perfection.

117. This practice is called Maha-vedha,
and is repeated by the yogi day and night.

118. Rolling the tongue to the upper palate,
it is necessary to place it in the cavity of the skull,
the gaze should be in the space between the eyebrows – this is the great Khechari-mudra.

119. Pressing the chin on the chest, you need to stop the mind -
this mudra is called jalandhara-bandha.
This mudra conquers death, like a lion conquers an elephant.

120. If you pull the entrails of the abdomen up to the spine,
prana will rise along Sushumna – this mudra is called Uddiyana-bandha.

121. If you press the heels on the perineum and bend forward -
apana rises up, this bandha is called yoni-mudra.

122. Mula-bandha – the root lock connects prana with apana in the navel area (the entrance to Sushumna is here),
by this exercise the fruits of yoga are achieved.

123. The position of Viparita-karani removes all diseases,
the yogi who practices it increases the digestive fire,
therefore he must eat properly,

124. Otherwise, the internal fire will lead the body to exhaustion.
In Viparita, the yogi raises his legs up on the first day for one moment.

125. Then let him increase the time of practice every day.
After three months, his wrinkles and gray hair will disappear,

126. practicing this mudra every day for three hours, the yogi will reach the state of samadhi.

127. Let him practice Vajroli-mudra – by its practice perfection is achieved:
if the yogi masters it, he will easily achieve yoga siddhi.

128. One who practices khechari mudra knows the past, present and future.
Amaroli should be drunk through the nose every day, then vajroli and sahajroli should be performed.

129. After that the yogi should practice raja yoga.
When he masters raja yoga,

130. Then discrimination goes away and the Supreme State comes.
Vishnu, the Great Yogi, the Great Consciousness,
the First Soul, is clearly visible like the light of the sun in the daytime.

131. One who previously sucked the breast, now by touching it becomes filled with desire;
born from the vagina, again enjoys the same vagina.

132. One who was a mother becomes a wife, then a mother again,
the one who was a father becomes a son again, then a father again.

133. This is the wheel of births and deaths (samsara),
on this wheel, like ladles on a well wheel, living beings revolve,

134. they fill the worlds of rebirth.

135. There are three worlds, three Vedas, three gunas -
the basis of this is the three syllables of the mantra OM and half a syllable in the form of a dot.

136. This is the Supreme State, this is Atman.
Like fragrance in a flower, butter in milk,

137. like butter in sesame seeds, and gold in rock,
in the Anahata Chakra is the Supreme Atman.

138. In this lotus bindu is the seat of the mind.
At the sound A the lotus straightens up, at the sound U it opens up,

139. At the sound M the highest eternal half-sounds are achieved,
this is purity, non-duality destroys karma.

140. By practicing yoga a person attains the Supreme State.
As a tortoise draws all its limbs into its shell -
so let the yogi concentrate on the Atman during pranayama.

141. When the air is retained in the nine gates of the body,
prana rises upward,

142. like fire in a pot which is not moved by the wind,
so the yogi with the nine openings of the body closed
confident in practice sees the Supreme Atman through yoga -
so says the Upanishad.

Om!

May Brahman be our protection!
May Brahman be our teacher!
May our energy be infinite!
May there never be any limitations to this Consciousness!
May we find eternal peace!

Om! Shanti! Shanti! Shanti!

This ends the Yoga-tattva Upanishad.