Tamil Yoga

 

The term “Tamil yoga” is derived from the fact that it has been called “Tamil Yoga” by

many other scholars in different parts of the world, including the most recent ones in

Sri Lanka, India, and Nepal.

In our previous blog posts, I have explained more about the historical origins of this

practice and how it came to be practiced in Sri Lanka.

In this post, we first go through the origin story of T.L.Sr, one of our teachers at

Bangalore City Center for Arts (CCAC), in association with CCAC – New Haven.

This section of the article briefly touches on Sri Lanka as far as its cultural heritage is

concerned but also goes back to our original inspiration, which was drawn from Indian

culture.

Thus, I will highlight some key points from this particular episode so that you can better

understand why and how we found our way here and how it came to bring us closer to a

chieving what it did.

As mentioned earlier, Sri Lankan Yoga started thousands of years ago in the northern

part of today’s Sri Lanka, especially in the region around the coastal area and along the

east coast of Sri Lanka.

Its name is derived from the Sinhala word Rama, which is actually an amalgamation of

the Sanskrit words rasa [rule]and Saha [rule].

From there, a person or entity who uses ‘rama’ to refer to himself/herself becomes

known as someone who practices the ‘Tamil-yoga”. One common thread between all

Tamils and Sri Lankans, in general, is their strong emphasis on spirituality. While it may

not necessarily mean anything physical in nature, I would consider such practice as a

spiritual practice. However, it must be remembered that unlike Hinduism, where a

single form exists for all followers, the Tamils had only two forms of being: ‘sattva’ and ‘

bhakta’. While Bhakta means ‘in action’ and Sattva refers to ‘out of action’, both are

considered soulful activities if done correctly in accordance with dharma.

So, while Bhakta was intended to be performed when the body was still, Sattvama was

meant to be executed as soon as the mind became active. Moreover, in all three sattvas

Vedanta, Rajasthani and Veddiyatra – there are 2 varnas: (1) the ‘soul’ or ‘consciousness’

and (2) the ‘spirituality’. Hence, Sattva should always be used in conjunction with Bhakta. For example, when performing Sattva with Bhakta, the practitioner needs to put aside his/her personal desires for the sake of selfless service to others. On the other hand, Bhakta can be combined with Veda Vibhagya, the second kind of sattva practice.

So, now let us look at our teacher/guru Mr. Sr, with whom we all have developed a close

relationship throughout our respective careers at CCAC. He introduced us to Buddhism

to us in 1997, which meant that we were already very much aware of the concept of

karma and our responsibility towards the society we live in. We learned about the

principles behind Karma and sought answers to questions like what is Dharma, Karmic

Wheel, Akhand Bhujalini, etc for ourselves as well.

Then we went into our journey of

seeking out teachings related to Vedanta that could help us in shaping our own

identities and philosophies of life from within. Our goal was to learn how to balance

these aspects of our lives through meditation. That is how we began training under

Dharmachandrika Sr, who guided us further at CCAC. When he passed away in 2019,

due to various health complications after suffering an accident, we felt completely bereft,

and yet somehow blessed to continue learning from him at great expense. Before we

get stuck in that bit, though, it is important to note that Mr. Sr was not just any yogi but a

dedicated practitioner and he was deeply devoted to the teachings of Advaita Vedanta.

And so, the next section of this piece explores the core concepts involved in the

teaching of Advaita Vedanta, particularly those of Yogic philosophy. To me, this type of

philosophy seems as if they are trying to bridge the gap between the West and the East

since they tend to place too much focus on physical exercises, and meditation exercises

with no regard for mental peace. Instead, they seem more interested in creating a new

universe of consciousness through meditative thought and cultivating ‘samskaras’,

‘samadhis’ and other methods that do not involve direct physical exercise.

I would also like to point out some key theories behind this approach with respect to the

theory of liberation and praxis. First of all in terms of orthodox Vedanta, if liberation is

achieved, then praxis comes into play.

However, according to the author Shri Swami Vivekananda, Brahmacharya defined

Yoga in terms of inner freedom and detachment from external thingsThe latter is something that we find extremely challenging in modern times.But it is a valuable insight because it explains why we cannot achieve Liberation without

having a complete surrender of all self-consciousness. Since ‘lalma’, as it is commonly

termed, is not just limited to thoughts and feelings, it is also applicable to other objects in

the material sense if we do not control them. Because everything that we feel and think is

nothing but “lalma”. Allowing yourself to fully acknowledge each and every aspect of your

existence makes it easy to reach greater levels of Freedom and ultimately realize

nirmana. Without doing that though, we are bound to suffer from negative emotions such

as anxiety, stress, and depression to name a few.

Therefore, it is very difficult for us to

attain ultimate liberation, because we are constantly trying to fight off our primal urges,

the one thing that keeps us running in order to survive. Furthermore, liberation as defined

by ancient texts involves complete sublimation of all ego and ego-centric tendencies to

liberate the self from all outside influences.

As such, we need to make sure that all our inner voices are free and not controlled by

anyone else. If anything, Sublimating the voice of the Self allows individuals to release

their “negative energy”, otherwise known as chakra kundalini, and thereby gain control

over their experiences.

To get deep into the topic of the above, however, it would help to know something more

about the theory of chakra kundalini – the center of all the chakras (energy centers)

present in the human body. Essentially, this center is responsible for controlling our

emotions, feelings and reactions toward different situations. According to Dr. Srivastava

Shetty, the study and analysis of Chakra Kundalini (the root of feelings, emotions and

behavior) is mainly focused upon the functioning of specific organs. After studying chakra

kundalini from various perspectives, she believed that this center is essentially

responsible for preventing or reducing bad emotions. What Dr. Shetty suggests to do is

to become conscious of how you react to certain scenarios or circumstances.

By practicing positive affirmations or focusing on past victories instead of dwelling on

negative events you can ensure that your feelings and reactions are aligned.

Once you have this awareness you can create room for positive changes in your overall

wellbeing by using techniques that would promote joy, happiness, and good feelings.

Such a process is what happened right from day one with our guru at CCAC. At least in

my experience, we became better equipped with mindfulness techniques at home, and it

allowed us to adopt new habits of living that helped us make a difference in our lives

even in small ways. Overall, I believe that practicing positive thinking is a necessary tool

for achieving a higher state of awareness.