CHIT SHAKTI

When we practise yoga, we practise it for attaining balance, harmony and equilibrium in all aspects of our personality and expression. There is an urge in everyone to find happiness, tranquillity and harmony. We would like to attain psychological balance and avoid tensions and conflicts of daily life. Today, in our world, we find that we need two items to make our lives a complete success. The first item is vitality, which is not physical strength but inner strength, willpower, clarity of mind and the ability to perform every action with intention. The second item is tranquility. We are so engrossed in our day to day activities that we forget, in our intellectual and emotional tensions, that we have lost contact with our inner nature. We have two forms of expression, external development is one aspect and internal development is the other. In yoga, we try to combine both aspects. On the external level we develop the faculties of the intellect and the senses. We also develop emotional expression, but on a very superficial level. On the internal level, many yogic techniques bring about a state of inner awareness. By becoming aware of our mind and our mental perceptions, and by integrating this awareness into our day to day life, we can become more balanced, harmonious and complete. Through yogic techniques we can develop the ability to relax in any situtaion and under any condition. ~Yoga Darshan, vision of the Yoga Upanishads - Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati