We interview Ganesh Narayanaswamy, volunteer with the Isha Foundation, to learn more about the Shambhavi Mahamudra session going to be held with Sadhguru in Vancouver on May 27 & 28.
1. How long have you been associated with the Isha Foundation for and what is your role within the team?
I have been associated with Isha Foundation for 9 years and am currently a full-time volunteer and yoga teacher with the foundation, teaching the Inner Engineering Total program in cities across North America.
2. What are some of the reasons for people approaching programs such as Inner Engineering?
Today, although we have engineered the outside world in so many ways to bring many comforts and conveniences to our lives, we as a generation are not any happier, peaceful or joyful than any other generation before us. This is because we have never looked at the inner science within us. Just as there is an external science to create external wellbeing, there is a very profound inner science of yoga to create inner wellbeing - this is what the Inner Engineering program offers.
Sadhguru puts it very simply: "Yoga can be transmitted on many different levels. You can use this yoga just to get rid of your backache, if you want, or you can use this yoga to get better mental focus and little peace of mind and happiness in your life, or you can use this yoga as a way of climbing up to the highest possibility within yourself."
3. Please tell us a bit about Shambhavi Mahamudra. How is it beneficial?
In the Inner Engineering program, you will learn the Shambhavi Mahamudra along with a few preparatory asanas, and also explore how to align all the dimensions of who you are: your body, mind, emotions and energy, to bring lasting inner peace, joy and overall well-being.
Shambhavi Mahamudra is a 21-minute meditation practice involving the breath that can be done in a comfortable cross-legged posture. Sadhguru has distilled the essence of the yogic sciences into this practice, so that peace, joy and blissfulness can be a natural state within us, without having to seek this from outside.
Daily practice of Shambhavi Mahamudra has been scientifically shown to provide relief from chronic ailments such as hypertension, asthma, headaches, anxiety, depression, neck/back pain, diabetes, obesity and insomnia. Also, one can experience significant improvement in concentration, mental clarity, emotional balance, energy levels, productivity and quality of sleep. One can deepen interpersonal relationships and handle stressful situations effortlessly.
Inner Engineering can be taken by anyone 15 years or above and no previous knowledge of yoga or physical agility is required.
4. What are some of the biggest misconceptions about yoga in our society today?
Most people think of yoga as bending or twisting your body in many different ways, or as purely an exercise form. Although many health benefits are there, yoga is a much more profound inner science that can align your entire system to function at its peak. As Sadhguru says: "Using yoga just for health is not wrong, but it is a crime, because if explored in its full depth and dimensions, it can take you to places which you have never imagined. It can be a ladder to the Divine."
Also, many people associate yoga with Hinduism or Indian culture. Yoga pre-dates all religions - it is not an ideology, philosophy or belief system, but rather a technology that allows you to gain mastery over your own body and mind, and explore life to its fullest potential.
5. Advice for those who are arriving at this session?
Simply come with an open mind and you'll embark on a deeply transformative inner journey in the presence of Sadhguru. Also, please remember to register early at www.innerengineering.com/SadhguruLive - as prior to attending the 2-day program with Sadhguru, one must complete the Inner Engineering Online program which is a series of 7 online classes guided by Sadhguru, each one approximately 90 minutes each.
6. A piece of advice for those who are unable to attend Isha Foundation's Shambhavi Mahamudra session with Sadhguru in May?
It is a rare opportunity to take this program directly with Sadhguru and he is coming all the way to Vancouver, so one should not miss this opportunity. It is a small investment that can bring a huge transformation in one's life.
If one is unable to attend, Inner Engineering Total is also being conducted by an Isha teacher as a 4-day program in Vancouver on June 22-25 at the University of British Columbia, Asian Centre - more information can be found at https://www.innerengineering.com/ieo-new/total/
