Many people often have a question about spiritual practices: what works and what doesn't?

This is a very important question: from what position of self-perception and spiritual practices can we get real results? “After all, not everything works, not everything works out, not everything fits,” we think. Why does someone come to something, but I don’t, where are the “not small” little things hidden and what should I pay attention to, what should I listen to?

Actually everything works. But we approach different practices at different times of our lives, with different attitudes and at different levels of consciousness, which means they have different effects for us.

You can conditionally divide this topic into two different approaches, although there are always transitional options. The initial question will always sound like this: "Where exactly are you now?" Can you honestly admit to yourself and determine? Yes, not just...

NOT WORKING APPROACH: THE VICTIMS POSITION

In this state, in an incorrect attitude towards ourselves and others, in a crisis, in any problem or illness - everyone has their own paths - we usually come to spiritual practices. Fatigue, disappointment - this is what makes us dig and look for something. How do we feel and with what energies do we enter the practices that we decide to do? How and what kind of teacher or instructor, with what parameters did we choose for ourselves, what did we hope for and bought into, what were we fascinated by in advance?

RACE FOR FAST RESULTS

We feel offended by life, we are ready to do anything and believe in what we did not believe before. Entering practice, we are like a loser who has learned a verse poorly and is trying to mechanically retell it to the teacher.

The only goal of such practices for us is the result: improving life, solving problems, finding happiness. After all, we have been dreaming about this for so long! Practices are perceived by us as a means to an end. Those that take time and regular practice tend to discourage us and we quickly forget about them and come up with a bunch of excuses.

Like an elephant running into a china shop, we grab hold of various tools and throw them away without noticing the fundamental changes in life. We, like capricious children, wish and demand that the “ball” turn into a “doll” at the same second. And disappointedly discard it if this does not happen. We do not respect ourselves, we do not respect other people, we do not think about the fact that our desires are often selfish and violate the basic laws of the Universe.

It is important to understand that in this state we do not see the depth and beauty of entering into practices. We do not allow ourselves to enjoy the process, in a hurry to see the result, because we are not ready to take responsibility, but simply and blindly trust that if you rub it there, stretch or breathe like that, swallow a "pill" - there should be the desired result, which was promised. But in this state, little changes, at best for a while with a large rollback. Because any practice is just a tool that allows you to look and feel, touch yourself closer, change your attitude, and I repeat, take responsibility that I will try not to live in the old way, that's all ...

LOW SELF-ESTEEM

When we declare something in spiritual practices, we can justify it only by the fact that “I have been suffering for so long”, “I want the best”. Coming to reality, we often have problems with self-esteem. We declare our desires, not knowing about our essence, beauty and value. We "want" is the key word. But this is just the mind and ego, but this is not us, but only a part of us and there are certain mechanisms that we do not know how to use. We want everything in a row, everything at once, everything and a lot, better than others. But behind this "want" there is no understanding why we deserve to have and why we really need it.

We express the intention to have something, but we cannot gain a foothold in the belief in ourselves, the feeling that we are worthy to receive it for something. And our timid stance is countered by a deep-seated excuse: “okay, I’m not ready, I’m not worthy, I’m nobody and nothing.”

Practitioners are counterbalanced by a constant internal feeling of lack, lack, infringement, insecurity, drama. And it most often outweighs in the creation of its reality. We lose our focus of attention, and where and in what capacity the thought is more often, materialization occurs there.

DOUBTS

We constantly live in fear of the mind and desperately doubt for any reason. It also happens that all our practices are just an attempt to convince ourselves that it works! We practice to get evidence that this is worth doing and that we can spend time on it. Most often, we take a position of distrust, as if to say: “well, let's see how it works, surprise me.” And initially we draw subjective conclusions, not seeing the whole perspective as a whole.
In general, the position of the victim looks like this: I don’t quite believe in this, but maybe it will work. And "maybe" is a weak motivation and, of course, it does not work.

Even if we actively and enthusiastically take up different practices, there may be mistrust inside. And after a while, in the absence of the expected results, we get disappointed, depressed - since time and money are spent, strength too, but a magical and ideal life is never observed.

It turns out a vicious circle - we tell ourselves that we will believe if we see the result. But there is no result, because we do not yet believe. We do not believe in the beauty, value and essence of our Being - therefore nothing happens.

And here comes a serious crisis: we either discard all games of “believe it or not” and move on with deep-intuitive trust and understanding that spiritual practices are now vital for me, this is exactly my path, or we give up everything under the slogan “I I knew it didn't work."

THE APPROACH NEEDED: THE POSITION OF THE CREATOR

From the position of the creator, we are aware of our responsibility for the state of our reality and our lives. We begin to understand and understand our nature. We have only our attitude and thinking, and this is our reality and freedom of choice! God, with great Love, gave us all the opportunities to create our unique reality, and it's time for us to consciously create it!

ENJOY THE PROCESS

There is a wonderful moment that allows you to get out of the eternal race for the result - this is the understanding that we have already done it. Everything that we want to receive now already exists in our reality. This allows us to be in the process of practice without unnecessary fuss, worries and negativity, enjoy it, take our time, do not wait for the result, we are no longer interested in it, it already exists, spiritual practice becomes our life, and not a "race of achievements".

It is in this state that the joy and pleasure of the process manifests itself: we begin to observe how the events of our life line up. By doing this, we begin to attract a healthy, prosperous, enlightened future self into our now. This is a multi-dimensional process of transformation and life improvement, and it is more effective than a linear process. Any practice becomes a sacrament, an amazing process of transformation, where the process itself is important! If you want to eat a gourmet dish, then it is the enjoyment of the beauty, smell, taste of food that attracts you, and not the state of satiety itself.

The awakening of a flower is beautiful, and, like this, any practice is a sacred and reverent process of getting to know the true Self.

REALIZING YOUR VALUE

Understanding and awareness of your value, the importance of your stay on the planet is the main key to positive changes in life. You are aware of that invaluable experience and baggage of wisdom accumulated through all incarnations right now. You begin to understand your uniqueness, which means that you are aware of your individual ability to manifest yourself in this material world right now.
You are no longer a beggar in search of happiness, you are a being who knows and is aware of his possibilities.

CONFIDENCE

Any knowledge is power, but we always perceive it in the context of material reality. Not information, but inner wisdom and knowledge is the basis of the creative power of our thought, our energy. Being aware of our divine nature, our capabilities, understanding the mechanisms of the work of our energies, we do not doubt the result obtained, and it should not always be visible.
Our transformation and improvement of life is not a search for evidence, but a clear understanding of our actions, a confident conscious personal creation. It works, energies change their vibrations, matter and reality are built according to our destiny. We are creators of our reality and masters of our own energies.

IN THE POSITION OF THE CREATOR:

• we know that the results are already there, simply because we consciously start the processes of knowing ourselves by performing various practices;
• we feel that the results are already there, because we consciously chose it;
• we feel that the results are already there, because we are already doing it;
• we do not doubt ourselves and perceive any obstacle as an opportunity to know ourselves even deeper and differently...

My dear readers, my greetings to you. In this article, I would like to speculate on the topic of what spiritual practices should be for women.

There are a variety of spiritual practices. These are various austerities, restrictions, fasting, prayers, yoga, meditation, and many others. Which of them are the most suitable for women?

Let's remember at least eight steps of Patanjali's ashtanga yoga. There are eight of them in total, and they master them sequentially one after another. Spiritual practices begin only from the seventh step - this is meditation (dhyana) and liberation (samadhi). To come to them, it is necessary to overcome a long way from the previous six steps.

That is, what happens? And here's what: it turns out, before moving directly to spiritual practices, you should start by observing moral principles, then prepare yourself physically, put your body in order, and only then develop the spirit.

Spiritual practices for women - what's the difference?

Spiritual practices for women have their own characteristics. After all, female nature is very different from male. And if for a man a strict restriction, fasting or austerities will be the way to spiritual growth, then for a woman it can be even the opposite.

Women endure various restrictions and austerities much more difficult, and this does not always lead to spiritual growth and development, and can even harm. All this can lead to an imbalance of energies, a woman will become nervous, irritable, will experience stress and splash it out on her loved ones. As a result, everything can end with discord in the family and problems in relationships with the spouse and children.

The nature of a woman is to serve her loved ones, take care of them and make their lives better and happier. Family for a woman should always come first. And taking care of her husband and children and also her parents (her own and her husband) will be her main spiritual practice.

In the life of every woman there are always many different restrictions and austerities, so why add them consciously? Think for yourself: pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, caring for a small child, because in the first years of his life he needs her care and attention around the clock, sometimes you have to forget about yourself. It is in caring for the family and loved ones that a woman brings up many spiritual qualities in herself.

What is a spiritual woman, according to ancient Vedic knowledge? First of all, she should be feminine, beautiful, she is a woman who takes care of herself, gives everyone around her love and tenderness, respects her husband and creates comfort in the house.

My spiritual practice

First of all, I will say that somehow I never really thought about spiritual development, I always had the feeling that this was already inherent in me. And somehow it came out by itself, probably not by chance, that from birth I always felt where the right path was.

So, for example, I never use swear words in my speech, and when I hear them, I feel as if they are directly piercing your aura, they are very hard and negatively felt at the energy level. I have a negative attitude towards smoking and drinking alcohol (although I don’t blame anyone, to each his own), I don’t even drink on holidays, and I don’t understand what the point is, but that’s another story.

So in life I am guided by my certain moral principles. And one of them is: treat others the way you want to be treated. It is important to understand that everything that we give to the world will return to us back, only multiplied. So, if we sow only good things around, help others, they will help us at the right time. If we harm someone, we should not expect that life will favor us.

I was always drawn to the light, engaged in self-development, then I became interested in yoga. And in yoga I was attracted by its spiritual side, not only the physical one. Indeed, in order to gain a slender figure, strength and flexibility, it is enough to go in for sports or fitness.

Whatever spiritual practices for women you choose, remember that it is important to consider your feminine nature. Happiness to you and harmony with everything!

I am sure that many will be interested, so I post it here too.

spiritual practice

Overview of techniques and practical tips (site navigation)

This page was created, first of all, for those who do not like to read a lot or dive deep into theory, and want to try practice as soon as possible. Here are links to all the techniques offered on the self-knowledge site, as well as to additional materials that are directly related to them and can help on the path of spiritual growth.

Advanced readers may ask why the practice is called spiritual here, because the site does not have a specific religious focus, its author is not a follower of any religion, and the techniques bear little resemblance to any spiritual rituals and methods of comprehending God or the Absolute.

The difference between spiritual practice and life improvement practices

The difference lies in the purpose for which you use the techniques, exercises, meditations and other tools offered on the site. Most people, taking care of themselves, want to improve something in their lives, get rid of psychological problems, deal with their feelings and desires - to make, so to speak, a cosmetic overhaul of their lives. Then it's just a practice to improve life, and it can hardly be called spiritual.

And if, while practicing, you set the goal of self-knowledge (that is, you want to know your true nature), you are looking for the real meaning and purpose of life, you want to comprehend some Higher Laws, to know the truth, to develop good qualities of character in yourself for the benefit of everyone - this closer to spiritual practice. And the highest goal of spiritual practice is the return to God.

As for the techniques described on the site, they work in both cases, of course, if you apply them as written and follow the general rules and recommendations. A “redecoration” can be the beginning of a serious spiritual practice and a new stage in your life.

Technique Overview

Before you begin to practice, you should carefully read the Warning, rules and recommendations and try to follow them. If something is not clear in theory or practice, you can ask on the forum by clicking on the link at the end of each article, write a PM to the admin, or use the feedback form to send a letter to the box.

In some sections of the ancient Vedic scriptures, awareness of identity with Brahman is considered only a part of self-knowledge (the first stage), since Brahman is one of the three aspects of God (Absolute Truth). It is argued that after the first stage, the second and third will follow (if one engages in appropriate spiritual practice), after which a person (consciousness) acquires eternity, knowledge and bliss. The second stage is the realization of the Paramatma (Oversoul - the aspect of God that is in the heart of everyone) and Bhagavan - the personal Aspect of God, that is, God as the Supreme Personality. Knowing all three aspects of God and his eternal relationship with Him, a person acquires integral knowledge, eternity and bliss, and never again returns to the material world, remaining in the spiritual world. However, it should be understood that, despite the fact that a person is not qualitatively different from God (created in the image and likeness), he is quantitatively different, just as a spark, being a particle of fire, is neither a flame, nor, moreover, source of fire. And from this point of view, advaita (the doctrine of non-duality) is considered incomplete knowledge.

As for the practice of self-knowledge offered on the site, here the stated goal is disidentification with the body and mind, which leads to the realization of one's true nature (qualitative identity with Brahman), as it is described in the article “Soul. The nature of the soul." However, this is not a reason to discount the other two aspects of God, so if you are interested, study this topic in more depth, there are many related sites, lectures, seminars and books.

By the way, chanting the names of God is part of the spiritual practice that is recommended in the Vedic scriptures for knowing the personal aspect of God through the development of relationships with him. This is a separate and very large topic, which is called bhakti yoga; it is interesting, fascinating and worthy of study, but so far it has not been discussed on this site.

Joke

At the end of the atheism lesson, the teacher says to the children:
- And now, children, let's shout into the sky three times "There is no God!"
Suddenly he sees that Little Johnny did not join the process. Asks:
- And you, Vovochka, why don't you shout with everyone?
To which he replies:
- If God is not there, why yell? And if there is, what for spoil the relationship?

What is spiritual practice? Before answering this question, the concept of "spirituality" should be clarified. The most capacious, precise, formally verified definition of this word was given by Alexander Zinoviev. He wrote:

Spirituality is not measured by the level of education, everyday habits and general culture, "correct" - from the point of view of the prevailing fashion - beliefs, even personal sincerity and kindness. All this is significant, but all these are only accompanying signs, consequences and epiphenomena. A spiritual person may be uneducated, have bad manners, very strange beliefs, and a bad temper. Because spirituality is not defined by this. But only one thing: a voluntary and conscious rejection of the main social pleasure - participation in the eternal and widespread humiliation of man by man. Thus, he goes against his own human nature - and to the extent that he succeeds, he ceases to be a man and becomes something else.

But do not be mistaken: such a rebirth, even if it is possible, is the privilege of a few strong-willed people.

That is, in order to be called spiritual, practice must

• have in your arsenal ways and methods that allow a person to see the malice, the carrier of which he is
• have the means and methods to carry out the process of defragmenting the human personality to the extent that is necessary for a person to be able to accept responsibility for malicious intent and its consequences

Few practices currently in existence meet these requirements. And a special place among them is occupied by the “processing of games” by Usacheva A.V., as it allows you to directly clarify and reduce malicious intent.

Currently, spiritual practices are often confused with various psychotherapeutic methods, healing systems, healing, religion, magic and other ways that allow you to influence a person. All of the above areas, of course, have their right to life, have their place in the social structure of society, and in certain cases can be very effective and efficient. For the most part, they are focused on healing the physical and mental ailments of a person, on stimulating leadership qualities and suppressing "unsuccessful" traits of a human character. However, "pseudo-spiritual" practices do not affect the deep foundations of the human "I", and, trying to "improve" the existing personality that a person is currently wearing, they act within the framework of this personality. Spiritual practice is primarily aimed at the transformation of the human personality.

Despite the fact that the interest in spiritual practices is huge, few people who begin spiritual practice have a clear idea of ​​what spiritual rebirth is and what they will have to face. After all, the process of spiritual rebirth of a person is qualitatively different from the psychophysical correction of his personality.

Of course, spiritual development is an amazing, exciting process, rich in amazing discoveries. This is a fantastic, fabulous action in which the main character is the one who follows the spiritual path. But this path is replete with obstacles and dangers, the overcoming of which requires maximum dedication and maximum concentration of all his forces from a person.

Spiritual practice, causing changes at the level of the spirit, initiates the restructuring of the entire “man” system as a whole. Therefore, anyone who was engaged in any spiritual practice (including processing) had to deal with a variety of physiological disorders of varying degrees of intensity - exacerbations of chronic diseases, with lightning-fast developing acute processes; fall into depression; experience bouts of euphoria; change externally and internally. This is due to the fact that spiritual awakening, despite the positive nature of the changes occurring at the spiritual level, causes a violation of the “internal environment” in the “human” system. (The state of the system stabilizes only after the complete processing of the material raised during spiritual awakening). The levels of the system are forced to change in order for the system to maintain integrity and stability. The process of "restructuring" in the system can occur imperceptibly and calmly, or it can manifest itself in the form of some dysfunctions and malfunctions in the work of one or another level (or levels). If “restructuring” is impossible for some reason, and the levels of individuality, mind and body cannot be transformed in such a way as to correspond to the changed spiritual level, then the system loses stability, integrity and collapses. For this reason, unsystematized, independent spiritual practices without prior thorough preparation can cause significant physical and mental health disorders.

In order to make a "perestroika" and gain stability in a new capacity, the "man" system must have sufficient resource and energy potential. If the system does not have sufficient potential for "restructuring", then it needs an influx of external resources in order to move to a new energy level. In this case, self-study, without the support of a professional, can lead to extremely undesirable consequences.

In order to engage in spiritual practice, one does not need "seven spans in the forehead." Almost any person has all the necessary abilities in order to begin his spiritual ascent. But only a few continue to consistently move along this path. One of the reasons hindering the process of spiritual awakening is the lack of information about how the transformation of the spiritual level affects the levels of individuality, mind and body.

A person turns out to be unprepared for the fact that during the period of “perestroika” the system can “break”, “fever”, “tear apart”, etc. Faced with such manifestations of spiritual awakening, a person, as a rule, begins to pay more attention to the complications that have arisen than to spiritual practice. As a result, spiritual growth slows down or stops altogether, and the states of the “perestroika” period become protracted and chronic. The situation is aggravated by the fact that health deviations that have arisen as a result of destabilization of the spiritual level are difficult to correct with medications and are completely resolved only after the situation is completely resolved at the spiritual level.

The literature devoted to spiritual practices (Roberto Assagioli "Psychosynthesis") describes some of the states that arise in the process of spiritual growth. The clinical manifestations of these conditions are the same as those of diseases that develop in a person during life in a “natural” way. The difference, perhaps, can be considered that diseases caused by the “restructuring” of the spirit-individuality-mind-body system appear as if suddenly, without any reason, out of the blue. And at the beginning, the symptomatology that manifested itself does not have an organic substrate, which misleads doctors. Ultrasound, ECG, encephalograms, x-rays, tomograms, all kinds of analyzes do not show deviations from the physiological norm, and the person feels unwell, although, according to the examinations, he should be healthy. And only after some time, doctors manage to identify the cause of the disease. In this case, the cause of the disease is a consequence of the activated and not considered material. And the time for searching for organic changes is the time that the body needs in order to “rebuild” and create a disease in itself, according to the initiation that has taken place. As the activated material is considered, diseases often disappear on their own, or are relatively easily eliminated by the right treatment.

“Prosperity, love, happiness on Earth for some reason does not come, although a person has chosen a bright path. It seems to many that he is doing something wrong, since there is no result that he dreamed of. No happiness, no wealth, no health. The choice you have made does not lead to the goals for which you started this path of life. It's not a bug, it's just the wrong route. It's like you would be going to the airport, and you yourself got into a minibus going to the railway station. In order to get to the airport, you need to take a minibus that goes to the airport” (says psychologist Svetlana Dobrovolskaya).

Many people, having illusions, having adopted the path of spiritual development for themselves and having accepted for themselves the postulate “improvement of energy, communication with invisible plans, influence on their karma”, believe that all this will bring them closer to the goal - prosperity, love, health, youth, beauty , realization. And, of course, a happy life. All these wonderful (real) techniques really purify karma, affect the state of our planet during collective meditations, but all these wonderful practices are, as it were, “fuel”. If you put first-class fuel into the tank of your car, but continue to drive towards the railway, you will not end up at the airport. There is confusion “Where am I going?”. The result is clearly not as expected.

No matter how much you trust your problems to be cleared by the Higher Forces (as so many people do), no matter how much you use various techniques, until you, a specific person, take responsibility for your human life, for your human offenses, not for your past incarnations, not for your endless tails of past realizations in various Worlds, civilizations, Atlantis, planets, but for a specific current life, for the insults that you have caused. Until you take on this human life of yours with your own human hands, and not with the help of the Higher powers that will cleanse you and release you sterile into the heavenly world on Earth, you will not end up where you want.

People ask "What to do?" instead of asking "Who am I?" It doesn't really matter what to do. What matters is who I am! Not a single higher being from the subtle plane can give us advice on how to act in our current situation. These angelic forces have never had specific life problems. There is no cooler master than yourself. There is no adviser, there is no magician who, touching a magic wand, will forever change your life.

No matter how much you turn to the Keepers of Karma, to the great Teachers and Masters who purify your fields, raise your vibrations - this helps you a lot, purifying your fuel, but you must align the direction of your life yourself. And this is impossible as long as you close your eyes to your little human part. It is very comfortable to feel like a transformer of the Earth, it is very inspiring to experience extraterrestrial states, to feel like a diamond through which the beam is refracted to transform the Worlds.

But in order to get where you want to go here on Earth, you need to look at that part of your life that has never been associated with this Divine support, and which, in its heroic everyday life, lived as best it could in a limited human consciousness. . It is this human part of you that is the most magical part of your life. And you need to look into your fears, you, a specific person, and not an immortal entity that descended into this human body to see "How karma developed there." You need to look from the position of a particular person who earns his living, and does not receive enough. You need to look from the point of view of relationships, interactions with everyone around you, at your insults, anger, humiliation, limitations and many states that are insignificant from the point of view of immortality, but from the point of view of you, a unique creation, this is a unique reservoir of energy, because each such a realized painful situation is unknowingly used the power of the Creator in the wrong direction. No one consciously wants to suffer, no one consciously wants to be deprived of strength, to be humiliated, but it is not by chance that we attract such situations to ourselves in life precisely in order to review previously committed mistakes, without being ashamed of ourselves and without blaming others, accepting this experience as game development. And when you accept this, then the whole charge of energy that was used earlier in the wrong direction in which you wanted goes to a good cause. All our suffering is fueled by a specific force that can also feed our happiness. And when you review your specific life events, let go of everyone that brought you lessons, let go of your "inner child", you understand that you could not behave differently in those situations - the entire charge of energy that was previously used for destructive purposes is released. . And then you not only get fuel for movement, the fuel that numerous practices give today, but you also get a clean road, you start moving really where you really want to go.

Svetlana Dobrovolskaya interestingly reflects on the fate of healers, many of whom are now at a loss, since a lot of strength was given - but where is the return? They have a danger of substitution of life in other Worlds of life in a specific physical body. Now the moment has come when everyone can take their life into their own hands and the help of specialists is nothing more than the help of a guide, not a healer who influences the fate of another person. The moment has come when everyone is responsible for himself, and it is not surprising that many practices do not lead to the results that they used to lead to.

Now is the time (according to Svetlana Dobrovolskaya) that practices should not be raised to Heaven, but lowered to the real Earth. No practice of balancing your inner space will be brought to life until you put on your sneakers and run until you feel every cell of your physical body in rapture with the type of activity that you have chosen. And the "star partner", the person who yearns to connect with you with his heart, simply does not recognize you, because your shell does not match your content. There must be a transformation. It is very important to act with concrete, ordinary earthly methods. From the fact that you practice and read mantras, the main thing will not happen - your ideal etheric body cannot merge with your physical body until you specifically live in this physical body. In the same way, you cannot attract a soul mate until you yourself are blissfully happy looking at yourself in the mirror. While you are fooling yourself that your blurry figure does not matter with your shining heart - no! We live in an era when harmony should be here on Earth. It is not said that everyone should be thin, but you should like your physical body, and you should be friends with it, so that it reflects your inner beauty. It is the same with profession, education and finances.

Svetlana Dobrovolskaya talks about a flood of letters in which people list many practices aimed at prosperity and ask, “What am I doing wrong, why am I still not thriving?” Prosperity is built step by step, and if you did all the practices correctly, if you really learned how to spend money with joy, how to feel independent of the assessment of others, how to feel in the flow when you give someone help, how to clearly understand that your favorite business should not bring you income, but should warm your soul - then the income will be formulated as needed.

Those. when you free yourself from the limitations of this little person who lives in you and stop waiting for a miracle, but learn how to create it in life - then there will be abundance in your environment, then it will turn out that you are able to be on that conveyor that attracts more opportunities to you . You do not find yourself out of a communal apartment in a palace, you realize that you have attracted this communal apartment to yourself by your maximum abilities in the past. Therefore, if you want to change the conditions, you should think about what internal programs prompted you to be in this communal apartment. We have a support group in the Unseen World. But this is support, not guidance. All steps here are made by us. If you find yourself in a situation where your spiritual aspirations have not advanced you to earthly prosperity, you should stop, look at those who simply live, enjoy every day with their loved ones, nature, food, animals, enjoy living an ordinary life - you need " land" and appreciate the uniqueness of life on this beautiful planet, here, in the body of this life, to sip it to the fullest. To do this, you do not need to move to a palace, be a billionaire, win a beauty contest - for this it is enough to feel that you have a guide - your physical body. Further, Svetlana Dobrovolskaya talks about the fear of taking real steps in life, as some are afraid to “fall” from their sky-high space, where they are the “saviors of the World” into an ordinary human environment, where they are inept, socially unadapted and vulnerable people. Every problem you have is a precious gift. It makes absolutely no sense to get an answer to this problem from any person who can give it to you (psychotherapist, guru, mentor). Why do you need an answer that you take outside? This answer will not bring you closer to the answer. You will solve this particular situation, but there will be a more difficult situation and you will finally think - “Why are you creating these situations for yourself?”.

Svetlana Dobrovolskaya calls to take care of yourself, emphasizing that all the accumulations of the spiritual plan do not go anywhere. You just put them aside for a while, and do not very strong, not very beautiful physical body, specific practical steps. Until you deal with the physical body, you will not be able to embody the accumulated spiritual forces in specific life situations. We need to take and disassemble the pantry with our "troubles". No matter how low it seems from the side of our “exalted” existence. You do not need to go somewhere to be "cleansed". Everything is in your hands - to understand and accept yourself! No matter how many inspiring lectures you listen to, but until you take specific steps, specific methods (which you choose yourself), nothing will work out.

Action is the main characteristic of success. Not contemplation, nor transformation of energy, but action in the physical plane. Only we have in our hands the threads from all situations in different incarnations, and only we can resolve a specific situation. We incarnated in order to resolve this plot ourselves, and not in order to free ourselves from the burden of the past. Believe in yourself, and remember - it's never too late to descend to Earth, take your life into your own hands and take concrete steps, temporarily putting aside your "cosmic wisdom", extrasensory abilities, because on the physical plane you must act like a person, meaning that you have an immortal soul. And you will succeed! Here is a review of a lecture by psychologist Svetlana Dobrovolskaya. What she said does not enter into any contradictions, but only confirms the sequence in: first, taking care of the body (), cleaning energy, fields, breaking through energy blockages (this) and only then -

The same theme, like Svetlana Dobrovolskaya, was developed by John Welwood, an innovator in the study of the relationship between Western psychotherapy and Buddhist practice. Welwood has written extensively on relationships, psychotherapy, consciousness, and personal growth, including the bestseller Journey of the Heart. It was he who introduced the term "spiritual avoidance" - a key concept for understanding the dangers of long-term spiritual practice. Welwood points to a widespread tendency to use spiritual ideas and practices to bypass or avoid unresolved emotional issues, psychological wounds, and developmental milestones. With the help of spirituality, sometimes we avoid something, we try to rise above the raw and muddy side of our humanity before we have fully turned to it and come to terms with it. The Dharma (Path) is too often used as an excuse to deny our human side.

As one Western Zen teacher interviewed in The New York Times was advised by one of his mentors: "What you have to do is to lay aside all human feelings." When he began the process of psychotherapy decades later, he realized that this was bad advice, and it took him decades to realize it. This is such a difficult task - to follow the Path, being aware of your physical body and living on the earthly plane! -

« Success comes to those who tirelessly practice. For how can one succeed without work? You will not achieve success by reading books and thinking about Yoga.

Neither wearing ritual clothes, nor talking about high matters, but only practice successfully comprehends the truth. It's undeniable » .
("Hatha Yoga Pradipika", 1-67,1-68)

“You are very wrong if you immediately seek Self-realization, Enlightenment, seek God, strive to return to the Higher Consciousness. These are very high energies.

First of all, enlighten your body. Your body is like a cluttered, untidy, dirty room. Clean the room first, and then the light will shine into it.

So first enlighten the body, and only then will you know how to grow higher and reach the True Self.”

(Pilot Baba "Himalayan Siddha Yoga")

“Fortunately, there are two ways. The first way is external. By acquiring better dwellings, better clothes, more agreeable friends, we can, in varying degrees, find happiness and satisfaction. The second path is the path of spiritual development, and it allows you to achieve inner happiness. However, these two approaches are not equivalent. External happiness without internal cannot last long. If life is drawn to you in black colors, if something is missing in your heart, you will not be happy, no matter how luxurious you surround yourself with. But if you have achieved inner peace, you can find happiness even in the most difficult conditions.

Dalai Lama XIV

Was last modified: March 12th, 2019 by consultant

39 comments on “Why Spiritual Practices Don’t Lead to Prosperity?”

1. Lina:
   -

   A good comment on the same post in my LiveJournal:

   “We (people) do not understand why we live on the planet. It seems to us that suffering is evil, so we strive for “well-being”.

   A person considers himself moral, performs some spiritual practices, rituals, but life does not improve. I have seen many such people from traditional religions. Some kind of life problem, they begin to pray, if the god did not hear, faith in him is lost.

   In general, we are only looking for external manifestations, even when we consider ourselves spiritual people.

   And all these practices in order to become richer, more famous, smarter, cooler in everything.

   There is no prosperous and prosperous life, even the saints suffered. Without feat, there would be no holiness, no heroism. Not a single person has gone through life without problems and difficulties. No matter how you pray, no matter what rituals you observe, you will still have to answer for everything you have done.

   And in general, without overcoming there would be no development, no growth. There would be a nauseating Paradise, where everything is monotonously good. And what's the point?

2. Irina laz:
   -

   Hello Lina!
   I have been using your articles for about a year now, I really like the presentation of the material, I have adopted a lot. I am writing for the first time, because, as “hooked”.

   Fate brings me amazing surprises... This time in the form of this article. All about me.

   I am engaged in spiritual practices, trying to “improve” myself, my character. And inside there remains a barrier that does not allow you to be liberated and breathe deeply. A constant feeling of guilt before loved ones, fear of offending, causing inconvenience. And nothing changes in life, although there are a lot of desires! There are no conditions, no opportunities, the husband does not approve ... I began to think about what “not destiny” means, that you can just be happy there, “within yourself”. After all, I'm not selfish.

   And then your article made me literally look at myself from the outside. It is difficult to describe the feelings I experienced. It is pain, and shame, and disappointment. And that is why I decided to write about it. I don't want to be a victim of my own cowardice, I don't want to engage in self-deception anymore and hide my head in the sand. I want to live a full-blooded, interesting, rich life. And share your happiness with everyone.

   Thank you very much.

3. Lina:
   -

   Irina,
   You are not alone in your struggles! That was the stage in your life. And now another stage may come. As in the parable:

   “When I knew nothing about Zen, mountains were mountains and rivers were rivers...
   When I started studying Zen, mountains were no longer mountains and rivers were no longer rivers...
   … Now that I have understood Zen, the mountains have become mountains again, and the rivers have become rivers.”

   – Here, again, mountains can become mountains, and rivers can become rivers. And it will be a real life in a real physical body! Both with yourself and with your husband, you can start to get along better. If we had been prescribed to spend our lives in other Worlds, then we would have been born there, in another body corresponding to those Worlds.

   "A constant feeling of guilt in front of loved ones, fear of offending, causing inconvenience"
   - everyone is familiar with guilt programs hung from childhood, already for the fact that “we gave birth to you” (and we will hang weights on your legs until we drive you :)). And as the famous yogi A. Sidersky says, "Give birth - everyone is free!" Of course, not to such a straightforward extent, you need to bring the children to "departure from the family nest", and then - in fact - everyone is free.

   If everything is done correctly, then you can be good real friends with adult children, help them both morally and financially, but when this is done, then there is a feeling of guilt towards loved ones and everything that you described.

   Irina,
   I wish you success in your new stage of life, where you can invest what you have acquired earlier, but on a different level, I rejoice in my body on this planet. And on other planets we will be in other lives (maybe) :)

4. Ivan:
   -

   “You just have to live. Pamper yourself with delicious food, build a family or not, make a career or not, go to other countries, read beautiful books, walk barefoot on the spring grass, pick wild flowers, gurgle lemonade through a straw and sometimes turn your back to the stereotypes of society. (E. Safarli)

5. Lina:
   -

   Another comment to the same post from VK from Ekaterina:

   “From my beloved R. Skinner, an article on the merits and demerits of the spiritual path and the path through psychology:

   – “... our natural tendency to swim with the flow of vital energy towards an ever-increasing degree of necrosis and ritualization of its manifestations - or, to put it another way, our predisposition to turn a genuine experience into a fantasy, to the subsequent repetition of this fantasy, so that life becomes not only a series of second-rate films, but even with the same second-rate film repeated over and over again - this tendency is so strong that we need the discipline of effort that would convince us - thanks to the constantly experienced inability to swim against any current - that we are always swimming in flow. And for this, we also need the discipline of a group of close people who know us well and love us enough to require from us the usual effort that would remind us of actual facts when we drift too far away from our real self and begin to live in dreams and selfish fantasies that would require us to be nothing less than ordinary men and women doing our daily chores.”

   Skinner is the author of the excellent books The Family and How to Survive It and Life and How to Survive It. They are much easier written than this article, and they also tell (a rare case for psychology) about the psyche of mentally healthy people :)

6. Rina:
   -

   So it turns out that the Path may have been chosen incorrectly? So much time has been spent on it. What, just take it and leave everything? And do housework?

7. Lina:
   -

   Rina,
   K. Castaneda said well about this:

   “Everyone goes their own way…
   But all roads still go nowhere.
   So, the whole point is in the road itself, how to go along it ...
   If you walk with pleasure, then this is your path.
   If you feel bad, you can get off her at any time,
   no matter how far you go.
   And it will be right.”

8. Sergey m:
   -

   Lina, it is necessary as in a subject. I am currently reading Akashic Records for May 2014 on the website akashy….ru
   and just about grounding:
   

   “This is a very exciting month, but at the heart of it is the earthiness. Now you should not spend a lot of time on meditation and trying to contact the higher realms. The sublime will not go anywhere from you, so for a while focus your attention on the earth, make sure that all your intentions and plans revolve exclusively around you and what you can do with your own hands in this world.

   Feel your feet hitting the ground, make sure you feel a spiritual connection to the planet, it's very important that you draw energy from below so that your life has a solid and reliable foundation that will energize you and help you withstand this rapid growth. that humanity is experiencing today"

9. Paul:
   -

   Prosperity does not come because we often block it ourselves.
   Watch a cool video on the website of the “money doctor” Evgeny Deineko (type his blog deyneko….com…ua/archives/11278 “Money self-sabotage.” There are 119 reasons why money is blocked, and very interesting comments from the practice of working out these blocking .

10. Lina:
    -

    paul,
    This is a find for many! Thank you!
    "money doctor" very well put everything on the shelves!

11. Svetka:
    -

    lina,
    how to be something? Ripped straight to pieces. It seems to me that my husband and I are not suitable for each other at all. I strive for spirituality, but he is purely material. It turns out that he was not destined for me?

12. Lina:
    -

    Svetka,
    There is a danger of falling into one's own superiority, when everyone around is "well, horror, how mundane."

    Sometimes such spirituality is even more dangerous than materiality.

    The material person receives karmic lessons when he is deprived of the meaning of his life - material things. He begins to understand that all this is mortal. But it is more difficult for the spiritual, because with the growth of spirituality, pride, a sense of superiority often grows. And this is already dangerous.
    

    As for fate - maybe it was given to you in order to “ground” you.

13. Sergey inv:
    -

    Good afternoon.

    And what about karma. Yes, it's great, we are tuned in to the positive, we do everything, we create, we go, we try. But what if nothing works? , when at some point you personally did everything that depended on you, and then it already depends on other people or circumstances, which, as far as I understand, in turn, will be formed from the purity of your karma. And how to break this chain?

14. Lina:
    -

    Sergey,
    - "we are in a positive mood"
    – karma is not about that, it’s not about positive attitudes.

    – The most widely accepted interpretation of karma in everyday life is the moral law of cause and effect. Everything is the effect of past causes and is itself the cause of future effects. A person is completely immersed in this process and is forced to constantly face the consequences of his past actions. This is karma.

    The Mahabharata (the ancient epic of India) says that human life is a retribution for a wrong previous one, and that just as a calf will always find its mother cow in a pasture with hundreds of cows, so Karma will find a person (and so on about karma in post "")

    “And how to break this chain?”
    – getting out of Samsara (the wheel of rebirth) is incredibly difficult. As the Indians write, thousands and millions of reincarnations can not cope with this. We are pulled back by our attachments, desires, unfinished business - and it is almost impossible to break out of it.

    “With spiritual practices, we kind of push the Wheel of Samsara to the side, and after a while - look, but it no longer follows the paved path of karma. The trajectory has changed. But, unfortunately, this may not happen in this life, we just won’t have time.”

15. Sergey inv:
    -

    Of course, I know that karma is not about this, but the problem is that everything is exactly the same, everything is interconnected and depends on each other.
    

    “Getting out of Samsara (the wheel of rebirth) is incredibly difficult. ”
    – and perhaps this is what is depressing, that it is rather difficult.

16. Allah d:
    -

    Lina, please explain what spiritual practices are? And then, as in the famous song “everything is clear, but what exactly?”.

17. Lina:
    -

    "What exactly?"

    The practice of sadhana, as a rule, consists in purposeful exercise, regular, daily meditation, practicing various types of yoga, repeating mantras (often using japa-mala) - all this develops will, self-control and increases clarity of perception.

    One of the tasks of spiritual practice is to eliminate the influence of the mind, which consists of thoughts and desires. Part of the spiritual practice are the methods of stilling thoughts. “Yoga is the calming of the unrest of the mind” (1st sloka of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjdali).
    

    Spiritual practice (sadhana) is a Sanskrit term in Hinduism and Buddhism, which can be translated as “a means to achieve something”, a certain algorithm of actions that must be constantly repeated in order to achieve some result.

    Sadhana is followed for the sake of achieving various spiritual and ritual goals, for the sake of spiritual purification and progress in spiritual life. The goals of sadhana can be the achievement of spiritual enlightenment, pure love for God, liberation from the cycle of samsara, gaining the blessing of some deity or form of God.

    In a broad sense, spiritual practice is nothing more than the practical application of the teachings to every action of daily life. In U Vivekanada in the book "Four Yogas" you can read about different practices. It is better to start with "Karma Yoga" (Yoga of service).

    Although the term "spiritual practices" is now mixed with religion, with various psychotherapeutic methods, healing systems, healing, and they call it "pseudo-spiritual" practices that do not affect the deep foundations of the human "I". But these practices are often very effective in healing a person’s physical and mental ailments. As a rule, the development of a person’s spirituality requires removal from most of the worldly excesses, up to hermitage and living alone, far from society. And it heals.

    There are thousands of pages and forums on the Internet about various spiritual practices, for example:

    “Despite the fact that interest in spiritual practices is huge, few people who begin spiritual practice clearly understand what spiritual rebirth is and what they will have to face. After all, the process of spiritual rebirth of a person is qualitatively different from the psychophysical correction of his personality.

    Spiritual practice, causing changes at the level of the spirit, initiates the restructuring of the entire “man” system as a whole. Therefore, everyone who was engaged in any spiritual practice had to deal with a variety of physiological disorders of varying degrees of intensity - exacerbations of chronic diseases, with lightning-fast developing acute processes; fall into depression; experience bouts of euphoria; change externally and internally. This is due to the fact that spiritual awakening, despite the positive nature of the changes occurring at the spiritual level, causes a violation of the “internal environment” in the “human” system. (The state of the system stabilizes only after the complete processing of the material raised during spiritual awakening). …..unsystematized, independent spiritual practices without prior thorough preparation can cause significant impairment of physical and mental health.
    (from the site "Living Knowledge", naturalworld...ru)

    I don’t even know what to add to what is collected in the “Spiritual” section (there are already 17 articles). Yes, and in this article and the link
    , and Welwood, who has many works on relationships, psychotherapy, consciousness, and personal growth, including the bestseller Journey of the Heart (one of the next posts will be Welwood's interview, On Spiritual Avoidance).

18. Allah d:
    -

    Lina, thank you so much for such a detailed, thorough answer. At least the conversation about spirituality has become somehow more substantive. I will study your links.

19. Tatyana yu:
    -

    lina,
    your blog post about the materialization of thoughts and problems in large scale planning is very interesting.

    On the one hand, when you strive for a similar implementation of plans in your life, what is your post about, yes.

    However, it also happens that you have to resort not to daily practices of visualizing what you want, but to the constant practice of filtering your thoughts, I would even say every minute, for their consequences. Because just absolutely everything that is formed in the head into a clear and coherent thought materializes at the same hour.

    This is a kind of reverse side of the topic of your post))) and certain problems and annoying situations can also happen with this, if you do not learn to live with it.

    Of course, with due diligence and regular training, you can “saddle” this force, but it is also difficult and requires every minute effort!)) Just imagine, every day you live with such a filter in your head: what you can think and what not. Because the slightest failure in the throughput system is immediately formed into a clear thought and you already see the reality)))

    For example, on a regular walk in the yard with my son. The son rides a bicycle, another boy on his bike wants to play with him in an accident: he constantly crashes into mine, thereby not only interfering, but actually creating the conditions for a great breakdown.

    As a result, after another such blow, our bike has a slightly damaged rear auxiliary wheel. I spin it and make a remark to this comrade that it is not very good to play like that. To his question “why?”, I simply answer that the same situation can happen to him, I say “your bike’s wheel will fall off”)))

    It takes about 10 minutes, his dad comes up to the boy, and they start to leave the site, stop a few meters away and begin to actively do something with the rear wheel of the bike. At this time, my son runs up to me and shows some detail, having examined our bike, we understand that everything is in order with us, but the same detail is on the rear wheel mount))) the son runs to the boy to give the found part, and I this time I hear the phrase of that dad: “I don’t understand anything, the wheel has fallen off!”

    This is me, for example, in everyday life, which certainly becomes a constant reality when there is the ability to materialize on a large scale. When the close-up works, no one cancels the current moments)))

    In my opinion, today quite often you can find all kinds of information on the topic of achieving what you want and cultivating various abilities in yourself that help, as it seems to everyone, to make your life better. But a coin always has two sides.

    Perhaps, personally, my case does not fall into the majority, but it is real and gives growth in a different direction: not in achieving what is not given, but I want it, but in a qualitative understanding of what is and living with it so as not to interfere with others )))

20. Lina:
    -

    Tatiana,
    Well, I'm reading a letter from my twin sister.

    And of course, “the case does not fall into the majority”, but such scenarios are quite frequent (or just such people gather around me) - I didn’t have time to think - and here it is. Since time does not exist, and any event has already happened (we just may not know it yet), this “thought-happened” is often explained by the fact that “I considered the information of an approaching event - I saw this event”. As one of my friends says, who visualizes all this every minute, “It’s even boring!”

21. Natalia at:
    -

    Lina, how do you feel about mantras? It's actually a spiritual practice. And, following from this article, they are already after asanas and pranayama in order? That is, they should be taken if everything is more or less balanced with physics?

22. Lina:
    -

    Natalia,
    Yes, the sequence is exactly this, without asanas you will not sit correctly for practicing pranayama, and then you will not enter a meditative state.

    The chanting of mantras is considered one of the types of meditation. And the task of meditation is to free the mind from unnecessary thoughts, calm the mind, like the whole task of yoga. “Yoga is the calming of the agitation of the mind” (1st line of “Yoga Sutra” by Patanjali). And it is very difficult to calm the mind if the person's body and soul are in a state of discomfort, and the person's breathing is uneven.

    Those who call neophytes to all sorts of meditation mantras say that mantras can spiritualize a person, make everything around perfect, fulfill bright and good desires, grant good luck and success, heal from diseases of the body and spirit, and also protect against their appearance.
    

    In fact, few people succeed, except for “spiritualization”. Luck, success often accompany other, more mundane comrades who don’t bother with anything at all. Big money (with which many associate success) is not made for goodness.

    Millions of Hindus have been chanting mantras for thousands of years in poverty and in a body that has not completely outlived its illnesses and problems. And it would seem - everything should work! This means that the above-mentioned promises of the “work of mantras” are slyness, something exists that does not allow such promises to come true.

    Mantras work like any tool in the right hands. But it turns out that those who masterfully use this instrument (know how to pronounce mantras correctly) most likely have reached the point where they are no longer interested in everything that was listed above: wish fulfillment, good luck, success, healing from diseases. They no longer need anything, and they do not care about the body, realizing that it is mortal.

    The rest, who do not perfectly master this skill, may not achieve any success and may even harm themselves.

    Here is the correspondence on one of the “advanced” sites:

    “I am very glad that among us there are those who are seriously engaged in the study of Sanskrit, honor and praise to them, but there are also those who find languages ​​difficult and I ask the latter not to be driven by this question, the main thing is what meaning we put in pronouncing these mantras. Guruji said that the Indians themselves are not driven by this issue, but we are driven by the fact that we were brought up in the Western understanding to put everything on the shelves and thus fall into the trap of our mind.”
    (end of quote).

    That is why many Indians also do not have any results, because "the Indians themselves are not driven by this issue."

    By the way, the seeming total employment of Hindus with their spiritual improvement is a myth. In Canada, where I live in a large environment of Indians (there is a huge immigration from India), there are enough Indians, we communicate often. So, we tell most of them about yoga, Ayurveda (and not they tell us).

    One comrade, from the Brahmins, told me and my husband that what we know, God forbid, 2% of Hindus know. Yes, and he himself learned almost nothing from his Brahmin family, and apart from the Brahmin thread, he has nothing to boast of.

    Back to mantras:

    Each sound carries a certain vibration, acts on certain areas of consciousness (and events), must be recognized very correctly, otherwise it may not lead to the desired result, and time will be wasted (meaning the achievement of goals). Well, as a wonderful pastime, listening (not repeating) mantras is wonderful.
    

    Mantras pulled out of the system, when people are invited to mantra meditation, often poorly prepared (bodily), promising incredible results for something - do not quite work. People repeat mantras for hours and days (but do they pronounce Sanskrit sounds correctly, the difference in pronunciation of which is sometimes difficult to catch?).

    When they start mantra meditation, they begin to “seriously” engage in, failures may lie in wait here. With incorrect and inaccurate pronunciation of sounds, various diseases of the spirit, and even the body, can develop.

    There are many subtleties - from the correctness of breathing (some sounds need to be pronounced, for example, on exhalation, directing your breath to the lower abdomen, others vice versa. Also in Sanskrit, there are aspirated sounds that are unknown to many, which are difficult to pronounce. Pronouncing them correctly is not a task from the lungs.

    Here they can’t pronounce “tripkhala” correctly :)
    cm.

    If you pronounce it incorrectly, you will not achieve positive results, or, even worse, cause irreparable harm to yourself.

    Just recently, one girl told her story:

    And she herself read, and the yoga instructor of the famous center told her that in her difficult current situation, she should read the “durga mantra”. Well, she reads it year after year, goes to the ashram 2 times a year, the situation in life is only worse.
    And then her kundalini began to rise, and this is not a joke, you need to know what to do with it.

    In general, after a few years of employment during mantra meditation, she got a fever along her spine, she was shaking and fettered. It’s good that there was a family member in the next room, he heard her mooing, somehow she managed to explain and ask to call her yoga center, the main Hindu yoga. He quickly came to her, somehow achieved what she was doing, said that she pronounced one sound incorrectly and the mantra acted the other way around. And all that in that mantra is one line. In general, he gave her this correct sound, they sat together chanting a mantra, he did something else to her - the girl was wedged. But she recited the durga mantra with great persistence for several years, and maybe it worked.

    The majority, however, do not have such perseverance, and mantras cannot cause serious damage. And like pleasant, wonderful music that puts someone into a trance, someone just in a good mood, like the unity of a group (as cynics joke - “for further stupefaction”) - mantras are a wonderful thing. I love it and listen to it all the time. True, sometimes overflow occurs, then Beethoven and Mozart turn on (this is all only during work, in the background).

    On numerous sites calling for mantra meditation, you can find that it doesn’t matter how to read mantras, it is important that it comes from the heart, as in prayer. This is a delusion, fraught with consequences (in a bad scenario) or a small result in the form of a good mood. Missing words in prayer do not play a role, but in mantras, accurate reproduction of sounds is important.

    Another neophyte reasoning (from one of the many forums):

    “No matter how you read the mantra, it will be understood there. Surely the Deity will not understand his child who, instead of “orange”, says “lipisin””

    To which they reply:
    “Caring parents usually take their child, who, growing up, continues to say “lipisin”, to a speech therapist” :)
    –

    Here's another one from another site:

    “.. even if some sounds are not given to you, for example, if they are not in your native language, it is absolutely scary. For some reason, some people think that mantras are like spells from science fiction films that must be pronounced exactly. In fact, the main thing when pronouncing mantras is intention, love and feelings. For example, if you say: “I am happy and my heart is filled with love”, you do not have to pronounce this phrase correctly, because you know what you mean, what feelings you experience. And you can't go wrong here."

    It's possible to make a mistake! One of the stories has already been described above.

    Well, I will end the too long comment (which I will then supplement and make an article about mantras) with a parable
    –
    CREATION
    What is the highest deed a person can do?
    - Sit and meditate.
    But the Master himself was rarely seen sitting in meditation. He was constantly busy - working around the house and in the field, meeting visitors and writing books. Even led accounting in the monastery.
    “Then why do you spend all your time at work?”
    – When you work, there is no need to sit and meditate.

23. Anastasia Aum:
    -

    Lina, I read your 22nd comment on this article and thought.

    I don’t think about the unfolding kundalini yet :)

    Recently I began to notice that after practicing yoga, and sometimes outside of practice, in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe heart (exactly where the heart is physiologically located - slightly to the left of the spinal column) I have a noticeable heat for a couple of minutes. As if someone inside turns on a light bulb near the heart. Very pleasant such warmth, unlike anything else.

    And when I just started doing yoga, my spine ached in this place, but there was no hernia or osteochondrosis.

    Have you experienced this? Can this Anahata chakra open like this? I didn’t strive to open it, it just so happened) And it’s also very interesting, do the chakras open one after another or in parallel?

24. Lina:
    -

    Anastasia,
    I don't even know where to start. Hundreds of volumes by various authors have been written on the chakras, one cannot re-read them. There are many different notions on the Internet, “new techniques”, under the actions of which “suddenly something is revealed”. Often this is a game of imagination, since people are very suggestible (this is confirmed by numerous experiments), such as they give salt to everyone, but 29 (decoy) people say that it is sugar. The 30th, one “normal”, unaware of the conspiracy, feels that it is salt, but after a short time succumbs to the general pressure, and also says that it is sugar. So it is with the chakras and with the kundalini, many read a lot and they begin to “open the chakras”.

    In the previous comments, I wrote - where only I have not been to which sects I have not climbed (understanding what it is). So - dozens of times I saw women during “meditations” who were accidentally dragged by someone, briefly talking about kundalini, and by the end of the hour-long session, the lady “enlightened” - her kundalini rose. And then he tells the rest, “Yes, I have some kind of snake living there, it’s already crawling, crawling along the spine.” Well, a complete undermining of everything :)

    The chakras themselves open as they grow up, no special training is needed for this, and they open gradually, from the bottom, vital. When the body is provided with vitality, then you can already think about something else.

    Not always a straightforward relationship: the chakras work poorly (it is not clear why) and as a result, a person has problems in the corresponding area.

    Here the connection is two-way: the extent to which a person develops this area for which the chakra is responsible, the extent to which it, this chakra, functions. Rural residents have a strong Muladhara (root chakra), in itself, no one specially develops it, connection with the earth, simple work, simple but sufficient nutrition with pure products give this strength.

    Creative people have developed Vishuddha (throat chakra), and the more a person is engaged in creativity, the more intensively his Vishuddha works. And if such a person wants everything to be in order in his creative life, it is precisely this creative life that you need to engage in, and not sit in the Lotus position and influence Vishuddha so that creativity moves for the better.

    Many sources persistently explain that the premature opening of the chakras is dangerous and it is impossible to open them by force. But all the same, there are a lot of kundalini classes around, trainings for opening the chakras. Thank God that this kundalini cannot rise in a simple person who has got into such trainings, and the chakras (if they are closed) will not open just like that either.

    Forcibly opening the chakras is not always possible, a person must be prepared for this by previous actions.
    Well, when a person is prepared for this, the chakras open themselves!

    The improvement of a person in various areas is the opening of the chakras. They open themselves. It is impossible to deceive the laws of development and “jump over” the stages of working on oneself.
    

    For those who decide to engage in the unwinding of the chakras, there is a warning - these are not toys, this is a rather complicated process that requires many months of practice. Great care is needed when working on the chakras, if the slightest discomfort occurs, the lesson should be stopped. Kundalini can take a path that was not intended for her and cause trouble, up to a fatal outcome or insanity.

25. Anastasia Aum:
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    Lina, thank you very much, I haven’t really studied anything about chakras yet. So I'm not on purpose) I only do yoga and try to live in accordance with my conscience. It's hard to understand what's going on when you don't know what's going on.

26. Vasily Terkin:
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    if you do not have enough money, you can ask your rich inner world for it :)

27. Dmitry M:
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    In material terms, doing spiritual practices harmed me. When I didn't know anything, like a tank, I achieved everything I wanted. I was very aggressive, I could “crush” anyone and turn the way I needed. Everyone felt my power.

    And then I got, as I thought, into the “mode of Goodness”. It turned out that in "Guna of Stupidity." Because the edges need to be known in both cases.

    The change was felt right away, and they simply “gobbled it up” at one job, did not take on others, a small business parallel to work fell apart, problems began in the family. So far I have not been able to recover (in material terms), not even recover, I'm just now at a broken trough and trying to assemble myself from the remnants of that former me.

    Of course, I will never be the same, I have learned too much and changed my mind during this time, but somehow you need to feed your family, they don’t have spiritual practices :)

28. Lina:
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    Dmitry,
    thanks for the revelations! This will help many to understand their lives, especially beginners, with their :)

    I have been asked many times “Do you think my situation will improve if I do yoga, search for truths, spiritual practices?”.
    I always answer - “In material terms - no, at least the first years. Maybe later, when everything is sorted out, you will calmly find a business that you want to do and it can bring you good income. But not now, when you nervously grab everything in a row to improve your financial condition. All these practices are not about that.

    How can spirituality help a worldly person like me? the businessman asked the Master.
    “She will help you become even richer,” the Master replied.
    – But how?
    - Learning to want less.

29. Gregory:
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    Illusions in Spiritual Practice
    

    There is a belief that sadhana, initiation, mantras, purva-punya (reserve of piety) solves all problems. But as experience shows - even after many years of pilgrimage and life in the ashrams of India, people can continue to carry the problems of "worldly" relationships, for example, the burden of resentment towards their parents.

    That is why it is so important to know the following:

    Spiritual practice answers many questions, but it does not solve all problems and does not release the genie from the bottle to fulfill all desires.
    Sooner or later you will have to face yourself and your deepest experiences.
    .
    Be prepared for the fact that acceptance of yourself and the imperfect world around you may be more difficult for you than love for the Highest. But without the first there is no second.

    If you started your spiritual practice expecting quick and easy changes, you may be disappointed. Get ready for a general cleaning of your heart, you have to start with it.

    Remember, working on yourself is a lot of work and sometimes pain. But this process brings problems to the surface and provides an opportunity to deal with them. And when space is cleared, Light enters it. This will be the result of spiritual practice.

    (found on the Internet, in the "Practice of Conscious Living")

30. Lina:
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    Many people are interested in meditation, but this interest is superficial, for only a few have been transformed through meditation. If the interest is really deep, it becomes a fire of transformation in itself. Many seem interested but remain the same.

    This means that they are deceiving themselves. And this deception is subtle. Deep down you do not want transformation, you are even afraid. The fear of transformation is like the fear of death. Transformation - this is death, for the old leaves and the new is born. You will be no more, something unknown to you will emerge from you. If you are not ready to die, then your interest in meditation is hypocrisy, because you can be reborn only by dying. The new comes only when the old dies. Between the old and the new there is a gap, a gap; this gap creates fear in you. you want to grow; but you want to be yourself. This is a lie.

    If nothing happens to you, then you think that your spiritual practice is wrong, your mentor is bad, that sacred books, principles, methods are bad. And you do not think that if the aspiration is true, then the transformation is achieved with the wrong methods. If your soul and heart have merged in a flaming aspiration, then no one but yourself will lead you astray. Nothing hinders your development except your own hypocrisy and self-deception.

    The real transformation happens when you are involved in it, when your being is involved. The main involvement; principles, methods, teachers - this is secondary. But you don't do anything, you just talk and talk about doing. And the words create an illusion; you have read so much about transformation, you have heard so many lectures on meditation, that you start to feel like you are doing something. When you start doing something, difficulties will arise. There are no difficulties when you do nothing. Therefore, if difficulties arise, then know that you are on the right track. Spiritual growth is never smooth. After all, spiritual growth is the achievement of the unknown, the achievement of the unpredictable. But know that with every difficulty you go through, you become more real, stronger, more courageous….

    Do you have a question - does enlightenment lead to prosperity? No, but the enlightened one is always happy whether he succeeds or not. Success is not a criterion, as it depends on many factors. Happiness is the criterion, because happiness depends only on you. You may not succeed because others may act cunningly, prudently, violently, immorally. Success is not a spiritual, but a social phenomenon...

    For the enlightened, success is not measured by something external, worldly, it is measured by your bliss. But for you bliss is not success; success is something else for you. For the world, success is the satisfaction of the ego, it is the indulgence of the ambitions of the mind. Satisfying the ego, you strive for power, wealth, fame. You get it all. The whole world proclaims you successful. And you, perhaps, have lost your soul, peace, inner joy, purity. Worldly success ends in failure. What is the use if a man conquers the whole world, but loses his soul.

    (Osho, “Mirror of Enlightenment. Message from the Playing Spirit”)

31. mila mer:
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    Lina, please advise from which book to start studying spiritual practices?

32. Lina:
    -