This month our Moving into Meditation class is studying the Yoga Ethic of Aparigraha. Here are some of the resources we used in this morning’s practice of guided relaxation, mindful movement and sitting meditation.
We used the Pavamana Asatoma Mantra to seed our breathing consciousness in our pranayama practice. This old living peace mantra is taken from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. You can listen to Deva Premal’s beautiful rendition of this chant and practice at home.
We drew inspiration from the astronomer and philosopher Carl Sagan’s reflections on our place in the universe in his book Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space and and Thanissaro Bhikkhu’s translation of the Bhaddekeratta Sutta in the Majjhima Nikaya – the Middle-Length Discourses of the Pali Canon. (You can learn much about the Pali Canon, some of the earliest know teachings of the Buddha, at Access to Insight.)
