Wholistic Fitness

Noble Ones,

before the current era of Kali Yuga,
before the Human Beings became so “busy” with chasing and grasping for outer, material wealth,
“Tapas” – one of the 10 yogic guidelines known as the Yama and Niyama (see my book TBT) – used to mean performing austerities such as meditating on snow, or fasting, or overcoming direct pain infliction by slowing the mind waves.

For today’s “modern man”, the contemporary Masters are quick to school us that such austerities are no longer required nor suggested. the fight of daily life is already so fatiguing upon our Neural Bodies that to superimpose more intensity of pain is not in accordance with the Yamas and NiYamas, particularly the guideline of Ahimsa (non violence).

Thus, Masters of Hatha Yoga such as Swami Muktibodhananda confirm that just attempting to Wake Up earlier than what our egoic self may like is, inDeed, austerity enough.

i have struggled on and off with this form of Tapasaya – this notion of Waking Up earlier than ‘i’ would like – for many, many years. in fact, that is how i came to create many of the unique Teachings of WF Temple such as Early Morning Cleaning Ritual, Early Morning Ritual, Rock Vinyasa, as well as a host of other Active and Passive Meditations.

Getting on the SUNRIDER Herbs, maintaining a Positive Nitrogen Balance via the BioBuilde Amino Acids, and of course, executing enough Self Discipline (means; the Love of Learning About Our True Self) to get into bed earlier are all proven Keys to help meet the Wake Up Call during Brahmamurhurti (Hour of God – between 4 and 6 am when the Earth/Sky Prana is at its most concentrated and pure). as the Purification work of our Practice begins to cause the vibratory and pranic fitness of our body/mind to pay off, then we delightedly discover that our appetite for sleep (as well as food, gossip, clinging, etc) decreases. actually, this a trick. what is really happening is that due to the Purification of our cellular body, the rest that we do receive is far deeper than back in our former body/mind due to the decrease in fluctuating manas (lower mind).

In other words, to sum this up,
“The early bird gets the worm,” or
perhaps we could rephrase it less lower chakrally by saying,
“The early Sadhaka gets the en(Light)ment!”

For those whose karma or skillful determination has already made waking up early not a big deal, we know that there is nothing quite like the feeling of getting up in the pre-dawn, cranking out a Meditation or physical workout before the Outer World awakens…no matter what happens in the crush of your day, having done the Inner Work(out) early, there is a great feeling of spiritual success which permeates your day.

yesterday after my Brahmamuhurti Ritual, i was up on the slopes of the Sacred Peak for 2.5 hours mountain biking among the deer and dewy forest paths. Kachina spirits were felt dancing beside me and the alpine meadows were rich with wildflower panache. i was flying down Little Bear Trail, with the Painted Desert unfolded thousands of feet beneath me and miles and miles beyond, an enormous Coopers Hawk screamed his wild cry and brought me to skidding stop on the precarious, narrow trail. Hawk took abode on a high branch of a snag directly overhead. we merged and flirted with our incarnation understanding.

meanwhile,
others slept.
so be it.

i choose to do my best to Stay Awake.

may the strength and spirit of your Practice today give rise to all Sleepy Heads who choose not to see the spiritual valor of waking up early or the amazing transformational power of a transpersonal fitness lifestyle. we are Blessed.

ec