Session 4 of Yoga Phil
101 will meet monthly from January - May:
January 1/22 - Yoga Sutra, begin Pada 3
Feb. 2/19 - Yoga Sutra, finish Pada 3 -
more about sanskaras; begin 5 kosha discussion
March 3/18 - Taittirya Upanishad,
continue/complete 5 kosha discussion
April 4/22 - TBA - sanskaras
May 5/20 - TBA
All sessions meet on Sunday afternoon, 1:30-3:30,
immediately following Beth Nelson's Level I asana class,
at South 11th. Come early, exercise your body, then stay
and expand your mind! Suggested donation for philosophy:
$10-15; rates for asana class are as posted on 12 South's
website. Philosophy sessions are led by me, Zo Newell,
Ph.D., CYT. You are totally welcome to come and join the
discussion whether or not you have actually read the
material in advance.
We begin 2012 by considering the little-discussed
chapter III of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, Vibhuti Pada.
This chapter explores the finer points of yoga’s last
three limbs – dharana, dhyana, samadhi – and offers
perspective on some of the "magical" side
effects of a meditation practice. Suggested translation:
B.K.S. Iyengar.
Recommended additional reading: T.K.V. Desikachar, The
Heart of Yoga, chapter 12 and his translation of Vibhuti
Pada (in the same volume); Meher Baba's Discourses,
sections on sanskaras (http://discoursesbymeherbaba.org/);
and, for the seriously academic, Edwin Bryant’s The Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali
We will move on to the Taittirya Upanishad’s second
chapter, which presents the "five kosha" model.
In this model, the human body is understood as a complex
of five interpenetrating dimensions, the physical,
intellectual, emotional, breath, and "bliss"
levels. Suggested translation: Eknath Easwaran, The
Upanishads – however, this is abridged, so feel free to
consult other translations. Recommended additional
reading: B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life, chapter 1.
