Yogic Pranayama
In yogic pranayama we are cultivating the power of Shiva or the Cosmic Prana in one aspect or another. Shiva is the great guide to meditation, the supreme guru, teaching us to observe, contemplate and not react, providing us with a cosmic view of the events in our lives and the emotions in our minds, so these can never overwhelm us. Yet Shiva is not the deity of a mere intellectual meditation or any mere personal self-analysis; he is the deity of merging the mind back into its source in the infinite, giving up the personal mind for the universal consciousness.
Shiva takes us beyond the preconceptions of the mind to the consciousness that pervades all space and is not bound to any memory patterns, fears or desires. Shiva as Yogeshvara or the Lord of Yoga is the ideal ascetic, monk, swami and sadhu. Worshipping him we can master all aspects and practices of Yoga and meditation. There are those who fear this Shiva energy or who would denigrate it as something harsh, uncontrolled, animal, or sensuous. Even many academicians take this approach to Shiva as a deity, reading human weaknesses, rather than cosmic transcendence into his mysterious symbolism. This is because they misunderstand Shiva’s cosmic power as something negative, no more than the wild forces of nature that would disrupt our lives.
However, Shiva is also the supreme healer, bringing rest, peace and rejuvenation to body, mind and heart. This occurs when we surrender to his power as holding a deeper love and bliss. In this regard, Shiva is also the deity of doctors, known as Vaidyanath or the Lord of all Ayurvedic physicians.
Shiva as fiery Rudra helps us overcome febrile and infectious diseases and brings about purification. Yet as watery Soma, Shiva holds the powers of nourishment, rejuvenation and revitalization. The worship of Shiva pervades the Yoga tradition from the most ancient to modern times. The Nath Yogis who gave us Tantric Yoga, Hatha Yoga and Siddha Yoga, were followers of Lord Shiva who is Adi Nath or the original Nath guru. This includes the great teachers Goraknath and Matsyendranath, who still have wide followings in India today.
Om Namah Shivay
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