The short story is that the Naths and Hatha Yoga as propounded by Yogi Swatmarama only overlap on certain points. Certainly asana and removing obstruction from the nadis is important, but this is only a comfortable sitting posture for most Naths. The focus on a Nath adept, male or female or devotion and concentration on a [...]

Shakti can be described in a number of ways. The straight definition is that Shakti is the energy or power by which the Cosmic Spirit manifests itself. Now I will go through some hypothetical definitions and respond to each: A power to be controlled and utilized?  That is siddhi. To the extent that the individual [...]

The accompanying one minute video clip (in .wmv format) presents a moment deep into a Dhuni ritual. By this point the Nath sadhaks have been immersed in worship for hours. The air is thick with fragrant smoke from smoldering fire offerings, mixing with the swirling, expanding, multi-layered mantric vibrations. In the video, we first see [...]

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We might do well to look at some attempts to define what an Avadhut may be. The definition over at the Nath Order site might serve as a backdrop or lighting effect. Avadhut…One who has cast off the fetters, returned and gone back. Back to the Spirit. Cosmic Spirit, Shiva, OM or Divine. It [...]

Adesh, Adesh, On a Sunday afternoon, two days after Guru Purnima, July 1991, after a gloriously intense ritual honoring Guru Mahendranath at a place called Syn Dhuni and a day spent reading the English translation of the Avadhuta Gita by Shree Purohit Swami and edited by S. Mokashi-Punekar (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers) in the company of [...]

Greetings, I was reflecting on the short missive of the poster who wished to find an Indian disciple of Shri Mahendranath to bend their ear. Why some private person would want to discuss their relationship or experience of a holy man with a stranger is obscure, if not invasive, but it set me to thinking… I remembered [...]

The Five Kleshas have been touched upon a number of times, and rightly so. Insight into the way we habitually maintain our kleshic “reality bubble” is essential to the long process of finally letting it go. Relaxing our grip on the Kleshas makes room for a new… yet eternal… more expansive spiritual awareness to [...]

Greetings Everyone,I would like to share an expansive thought on an excerpt from The Occult World of a Tantrik Guru relating to Yantra and the Kleshas. Clinging or attachment to life is the fifth evil of the five-fold pentagon of the pain-bearing obstructions. The complete pentacle is as follows: The five pain-bearing obstructions, The root cause of [...]