{"id":298,"date":"2010-05-21T14:59:46","date_gmt":"2010-05-21T14:59:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/2010\/05\/21\/tree-of-knowledge-8\/"},"modified":"2010-05-21T14:59:46","modified_gmt":"2010-05-21T14:59:46","slug":"tree-of-knowledge-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/tree-of-knowledge-8\/","title":{"rendered":"Tree of Knowledge"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-font-width: 85%;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">The Tree of Knowledge<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"text-decoration: none;\"><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Cosmic Illumination<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-font-width: 85%;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Sunlight not only drives out darkness in the external world, it helps us to look within, into the innermost recesses of our being<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Suryaji, practitioner and teacher of Suryayog, explains that as the sun makes everything visible, this form of yoga gives us light to see our innermost self. When you look at the sun, the radiant rays of light enter the Self, completely purifying, removing mental, physical and spiritual obscurations. When we meditate on the sun &#8212; as our inner Surya, third eye or door of wisdom &#8212; it destroys maya, the dualist concept or illusion and takes us to the state of glorious emptiness, which is the real nature of things.   <!--more-->  <\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p> <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><a href=\"file:\/\/suryyayog\/\"><span style=\"color: black; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Suryayog<\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size: small;\"> is an ancient scientific technique, which helps in imbibing positive and curative energies from the sun into our seven chakras or energy centres and sets you on the path to a healthy lifestyle &#8212; spiritually, mentally and physically. Suryaji, says \u201cSuryayog helps open up the inner consciousness to love with detachment, thereby making us free of bondage. It helps us ascend higher into a state of deeper awareness to establish a bond with the all-pervading universal spirit.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Surya, the powerhouse of our solar system, is the benevolent, the infallible healer, the powerful energizer, the supreme teacher who leads us towards Ekam Sat, the only One. <\/span><a href=\"file:\/\/suryyayog\/\"><span style=\"color: black; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Suryayog<\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size: small;\"> is a meaningful way of life taught by the Himlayan masters and practiced by yogis who survive without food and sustenance for many days. They draw their power from Surya or the sun, whose vibrant energy transforms and changes the bioelectric powers in human beings &#8212; fusing body, prana, mind and soul into a divine experience of cosmic consciousness.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">At a physical level, the healing rays of the sun remove imbalances of auras and chakras caused by modern-day stress. Photons from the sun energize and help the body, prana, mind and soul to come to\u00adgether in a straight line. The omnipotent Surya\u2019s presence can change, arrange, reduce, and remove imbal\u00adances as well as organise the chemical, biochemical, bio\u00adelectrical and biomagnetic powers in living beings. This in turn sets in mo\u00adtion the body\u2019s own curative and defence mechanisms to fight chronic diseases and fortify us against health hazards. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">At the mental and emotional lev\u00adel, Suryayog enhances concentration power, optimizes efficiency, rejuve\u00adnates memory cells and improves mind control. Here, mind control does not mean reining in our thought process but liberating it to dissolve into the innermost self. When one is at peace with oneself, one finds peace outside, too. At the spiritual level, Suryayog literally helps us penetrate the darkness of the mind, dispelling ignorance and putting us in oneness with nature. This inspires us to search within, leading us to a re\u00adceptive state of mind to communicate with the Absolute and discover the joy of living the natural, cosmic way<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Suryayog practitioners experience inner peace, boundless joy and energy. Their \u2018bhogic\u2019 (as in bhoga) structure is transformed in to a \u2018yogic\u2019 one with little need for food and sleep. They acquire the grace and courage to face problems with equanimity. Suryayog is above all religious dogma &#8212; it is the divine symphony of uni\u00adversal harmony, peace and brotherhood. Surya controls the seasons and the passage of day and night. He is the source of all life. He casts his rays upon all without discrim\u00adination. He is our protector. In the physical realm, the sun is the centre of illumination in the solar system. In the spiritual realm, the sun is perceived as the in\u00adtermediary of God\u2019s will. According to Suryaji, the sun as life source is the incessant flow of essential love energy, enlightening our consciousness, revealing that we are part of Supreme Consciousness. When we receive the pure energy of sunlight, it cleanses our spirit and fills us with the pure spiritual en\u00adergy of love. Desires flow through us like ceaseless waves of oceans. Surya Mudra &#8212; interlocking of fingers of the right and left hand &#8212; helps us control our senses; it is the symbolic merger of male and female principles. Desires of personal self are transmit\u00adted inward, to transform into love of the whole. When we do Suryayog with Surya Mudra we get freedom from the claims and demands of the physical, emotional and mental domains<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">As we take in the cosmic energy from the sun\u2019s rays, with a silver coin placed on the <em>ajna chakra<\/em>, we not only get food for the soul, enlightenment for the mind and a life of peace; we are also able to connect with our high\u00ader soul. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Source of Valuable Energy<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">The <em><span style=\"mso-font-width: 85%;\">Prasna Upanishad <\/span><\/em>describes the sun as \u201cthe Golden One who is all-know\u00ading, the sole light, the giver of heat, possessing a thousand rays, existing in hundred forms &#8212; the life of all creations.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">For our physical existence we depend di\u00adrectly or indirectly on this energy source. Through photosynthesis, trees and plants get energy from the soil and atmosphere. When water evaporates from rivers, ponds and other water bodies due to the sun\u2019s heat, clouds form and they give rain that brings water back to earth. The sun\u2019s renewable, consistent, con\u00adtinuous, cosmic energy is vital for a healthy lifestyle, physically, mentally and spiritually. The healing powers of the sun are leg\u00adendary. Krishna\u2019s son Samba got cured of lep\u00adrosy with the sun\u2019s blessing. Stanford University researchers found that exposure to sunlight reduces the risk of advanced breast cancer among women. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">According to Daniel Kripke of the University of California, sunlight has more benefits than anti-depressant drugs and is effective in patients suffering from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and other types of depression. Vi\u00adtamin D found in sunlight is proven to help prevent a range of diseases including cancer, heart disease and tuberculosis, bone degenera\u00adtion, and autoimmune diseases such as multi\u00adple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and juvenile diabetes. Just 20 minutes in the sun without sun-screen helps the skin to produce approxi<span style=\"mso-font-width: 144%;\">\u00ad<\/span>mately 20,000 IU of Vitamin D, which is equiv\u00adalent to drinking 400 glasses of milk.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">When the rays of the rising sun are absorbed by the eyes, the cosmic energy helps us to overcome negative emotions and pursue a spiritu\u00adal and healthy lifestyle. A healthy body and mind helps us to be happy and peaceful. Energy from the sun\u2019s rays travel via the retinohypothalamic tract to the pineal gland, which has been variously called the seat of the soul, door of heaven or <em><span style=\"mso-font-width: 85%;\">ajna chakra. <\/span><\/em><span style=\"mso-font-width: 85%;\">Tantra <\/span>says that <em><span style=\"mso-font-width: 85%;\">ajna chakra <\/span><\/em>can be used either to serve the lower func\u00adtions of the body or the higher functions such as self-transcendence and enlightenment. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Pineal gland is connected to hypothalamus which controls the nervous system through au\u00adtonomic nerves and the pituitary gland through regulatory hormones and nerves. Together, they form the golden triangle which is responsible for holistic well-being.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">DEVOTEE<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">You\u2019re welcome to contribute. <\/span><span style=\"mso-font-width: 106%;\"><span style=\"font-size: small;\">Write to: <br \/><strong>Devot2010@yahoo.com<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Tree of Knowledge \u00a0 Cosmic Illumination \u00a0 Sunlight not only drives out darkness in the external world, it helps us to look within, into the innermost recesses of our being \u00a0 Suryaji, practitioner and teacher of Suryayog, explains that as the sun makes everything visible, this form of yoga gives us light to see [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latest-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8QzSF-4O","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=298"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}