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Showing posts from May, 2025

Class Summary for May 20, 2025 - Chapter-6 Slokas 1- 6

Summarized by: Neelima Turga We started the class with opening prayers, pranayama and meditation and then did a recap of previous class There was a question about how does Karma Yoga cleanse my mind.  Karma is action and yoga is union with the higher. Performing karma detaching from desires and attaching to the higher will help in the purification of the mind. A thought precedes action. Actions that follow a desire are selfish actions. When there is a change in  thought – for example thinking of buying something just for your child vs buying for another underprivileged child along with your own child. Once you start thinking less selfishly and in the interest of a larger society, the process of cleansing begins. Bhagavan advised Arjuna to perform Karma Yoga. Arjuna was a grihastha. Karma Yoga in essence is performing actions without any attachment to the results. When we perform actions in the grihasta ashrama, many a times we are doing actions for ourselves or our family or f...

Class Summary for May 6, 2025 - Chapter-5 - Recap and Intro to Chapter-6

Summarized by: Pranavi Sreeramoju The class began with opening prayers, alternate nostril breathing, and om chanting. The class had a discussion based on chapter 5, which was reviewed during most recent classes. The conversation centered on whether karma sanyasa yoga and karma yoga can be pursued together, or karma yoga needs to be attained before karma sanyasa yoga can be attained. The consensus was that karma yoga is preparatory and that it needs to be attained before we pursue karma sanyasa yoga. None of us know where we stand unless we try because we don’t know how much spirituality we had in our past life. The analogy of cleaning pots was presented to the class for consideration. One has to put effort until the pot is clean; After it is cleaned, you maintain the cleanliness of the pot by not getting it dirty.  Sravanam, mananam, and nithidyasanam help us maintain  the cleanliness of the mind by not getting the mind dirty. Another way to attain  karma sanyasa yoga is t...