Dark Yoga

Has anyone ever heard of this practice?

I'm trying to find out about it on the internet but there really is very little to read. In a nutshell, it appears to be a yogic practice designed to allow you to carry the ego onto the higher planes so you can function there with a sense of self rather than the usual loss of ego you'd expect. This definition may be incorrect, but this is all I've been able to find out about it and it seems veyr interesting.

I tend to follow the Buddhist spiritual practices, but have issue with the dogma of it - I don't really see as why it's entirely necessary to focus solely on spiritual enlightenment as quickly as possible, it seems to me that through choosing to experience everything the universe has to offer will eventually make for a richer spiritual enlightenment. We have many lifetimes to live after all, you might as well experience eveyrthing.

So, if anyone has any information it would be greatly appreciated.

You do not want to go down this road as it will ultimately lead to destruction...However, if you wish to continue I would do so at your own peril. The ego is not something you want to latch onto if you are seeking spiritual development.

I thought that yoga was no more that exercise and meditation, no real purpose, no real goal, no real structure.

Thats the problem with their religeous ideals... the ego cannot be destroyed, to kill it is a figment of your imagination, the 2 are one, the ego and "the good" (the good = the place you arrive at after the "death" of the ego)
You must bring them both together in harmony, (the snake coiled around the shepards staff)...

Cogito Ego Sum

Without my ego, there wouldn't be much left.

While spiritual progress may necessarily require redefining one's sense of self, I don't think it necessarily requires the death of ego.

Rather, an adaptation of it.

But then, that's probably just my ego talking.

Those egos who are more geared towards the spiritual will move on, and those who are geared towards the physical will die...

Its more of a placement of your ego... you choose where it will rest, in the flesh that will die, or with the spirit that lives forever.


The ego is your seperate identity, from me and your mom and my dad.. lol, although we are all made from the same molecules and atoms and all that, our egos are made out of will.... we will our egos into existance through our desires... than people started judging desires as good and bad.. which is fine if you wanna be God, but our ego/flesh mix tells us, that we are god.. well to each God his own, there's enough room for all the planets and stars to move unchallenged.

My point is, you have to follow all of this nonsense to the end, you can't as all religeons do, and thats pick and choose what suits you and what you can and can't understand..

Some of us stop at certain lessons.. like when one assumes the truth... I am God.
or
God will Judge You for your actions.

you see, if you don't accept one of those truths the other means something totally different.

Well if you are God, you judge your own actions... which is a truth we all accept, to a degree.
But if your not God, than someone you don't know but who apparently knows you is going to judge you...

Accept it all, or accept none of it... stop picking pieces of the story.

[edit on 22/6/06 by dnero6911]

Reaching "enlightentment" does not mean the destruction of the ego. However this depends on which path one chooses to follow, because certain paths do teach the destruction of the ego in order to have no obstacles around your soul. The Lefthandpath or the right hand path.

I personally belief that one needs to understand and over come the ego. In the sense that you are not led by the ego, but you are the one leading your ego. And face it...most if not all people are led by the ego instead of the other way.

Originally posted by Enyalius
Reaching "enlightentment" does not mean the destruction of the ego. However this depends on which path one chooses to follow, because certain paths do teach the destruction of the ego in order to have no obstacles around your soul. The Lefthandpath or the right hand path.

I personally belief that one needs to understand and over come the ego. In the sense that you are not led by the ego, but you are the one leading your ego. And face it...most if not all people are led by the ego instead of the other way.

This is probably where I was heading towards...I however do wish to destroy my ego as I have no use for it anymore. It has only been destructive in my life and now I have to "slay the beast." I've been under the process of awakening my kundalini for a few months now and will be able to use this newfound power to help me. It also doesn't hurt to be centered spiritually etc. You are right Enyalius about people being lead by the ego. I used to be completely ruled by it but not so much anymore. It definately has a good deal of hold over my life which is partially why I want to kill it. I want control of my life back (well back what I've lost) and for me the end of the ego is the only way.

Originally posted by Majic
Cogito Ego Sum

Without my ego, there wouldn't be much left.

While spiritual progress may necessarily require redefining one's sense of self, I don't think it necessarily requires the death of ego.

Rather, an adaptation of it.

But then, that's probably just my ego talking.

Ah Descartes glad to see you stepped in today....

The ego is only a part of you that seeks to control. It is not your conscious being, more like the subconscious (but not the whole part of that either). In order to be fully conscious, the ego must not get involved in one's thoughts or actions. One must act from the heart and typically the ego will not allow one to do so.

The ego is a part of who you are. Destroy it and you destroy yourself as well. That is why I opted for understanding the ego, understanding it fully and dealing with all the aspects that you feel negative about and come to terms with it.

Awakening Kundalini's and such won't help in any way except giving you the insights that I'm sharing here right now.

Look at it from a psychological point of view to get a clearer understanding. Why do people feel attacked, aggresive, fearfull or sad whenever something says or does something? Simple excample. People often get aggrivated when I say something to them and go into full offense. The reason why to go into full offense is to mask their own shortcomings and is an intuitive reaction of the ego whenever it is held a mirror in front of it showing its incompleteness.

People often get angry when you confront them with something that they did not come on terms with and maybe even supressed. People should learn to let go of all their fears, accept their shortcomings, see things for what they are isntead of having to have constant opinions. Opinions are subjective and are nothing bu judgements about something and if you belief in "God" then you should know NOT to cast judgement unless you want to be judged. You feel bad about personal emotions and situations and unconciously assume that others will judge you for it as well.

Hopefully this made my point clear enough about not killing the ego but coming on terms with it and thus take control over it and turn it into a powerfull ally.

.
During the occasions I've spontaneously astral travelled, I wasn't aware of a 'self'; had no sense of self. Rather, I seemed to be similar to a video camera: observing, recording. No thoughts. No opinions. No fear. No joy. Simply flying past like an aerial camera.

It was pretty relaxing, in hindsight. At the time of course, I had no self and no thoughts, so I didn't have an opinion about it.

But looking back, it was very nice. Free. Not bothering anyone. No mental chatter at all.

I suppose it was ego-less. If so, it was a whole lot better than I feel when I'm being 'me'. So I wouldn't mind loss of the ego at all and hope this reassures anyone who's anxious about being stripped of their usual stuff.

Originally posted by Dock6
.
During the occasions I've spontaneously astral travelled, I wasn't aware of a 'self'; had no sense of self. Rather, I seemed to be similar to a video camera: observing, recording. No thoughts. No opinions. No fear. No joy. Simply flying past like an aerial camera.

It was pretty relaxing, in hindsight. At the time of course, I had no self and no thoughts, so I didn't have an opinion about it.

But looking back, it was very nice. Free. Not bothering anyone. No mental chatter at all.

I suppose it was ego-less. If so, it was a whole lot better than I feel when I'm being 'me'. So I wouldn't mind loss of the ego at all and hope this reassures anyone who's anxious about being stripped of their usual stuff.

Ummm, One question that will tell you if you were egoless or not..

Could you look at yourself? not your flesh...... your astral body .... could you see your astral body?.... if so I would say you were observation, if not, I'd say you were whoever you are... What you were was desireless... .Fleshless.... there's a major difference...

.
No, I couldn't see myself. It didn't occur to me to look for or at myself. I wasn't aware of myself. In hindsight, I would describe my state at the time as a pinpoint of consciousness, of necessity, (1) because I was able to observe (2) because after it was over, I had very clear recollection of what had been observed. However, at the time, I wasn't aware that 'I' was observing and/or 'flying'. I didn't know I was an 'I' at the time. No thoughts at all. I 'flew' over and through people (amongst other things). Went literally through an unusually tall Chinaman.

If you can imagine a breeze or wind with a recording eye in it, then that's the best way to describe my state at the time --- moving very fast.

I know you say I was merely 'fleshless'. But it wasn't like that. I was not me. Not me. I was no-one. My personality, ego, sense of self, awareness of self --- not there. And not missed.

I imagine one could fly along the way I did for thousands of years in earth time, yet it would pass so swiftly, in that non-aware, non-personalised condition.

When we're normally 'conscious', our minds never stop: thoughts, fears, expectations, disappointments, anxiety, self-pity, critical of so much, concerned with so many issues (most of them meaningless in the final analysis). On and on, from the moment we wake. Then continuing as 'dreams' while we're 'asleep'.

All this constant mental activity is neurotic, really: a symptom of our condition and environment, etc. Even when we're under anaesthetic, our minds are continually processing everything, trying to make sense of things and fit them into categories. And all of it is subjected to the personal viewpoint, as in: ' I don't like the look or sound of that person, they seem mean or cunning'. Or, ' I don't like the feel of this neighbourhood: it's depressing' and so on. Everything is coloured by what we regard as our personal viewpoint, which in reality is a mind-set that results from out personal experience and possibly even our genetic inheritance.

But when I became a nothing, flying through space --- there was none of that. My personality/ego was absent. So what was seen wasn't subjected to a filter. What was observed was not judged as good or bad. I had less personality/ego than a train moving along the tracks. I didn't exist at all. Something did, and that something took me for a ride and left me with the memory. Whatever that 'something' was -- it was in my head. I guess it was raw consciousness or awareness. And it chose to leave 'me' behind.

Like anyone else, I used to worry what it would be like to be dead. Then, with the issue of reincarnation, I worried what it would be like to be someone else, with no memory of the 'now' me, and so on. I decided it would work itself out. No use worrying, because there's not a lot we can do, and should we try to anyway?

I'd read a bit about the ultimate aim of eastern religions, re: discarding the dross of personality and ego, but that was a bit hard to buy, seeing as I'm like anyone else and cling to the 'me' I know and fear the loss of it and so on, even though the loss of it wouldn't be any great loss to me or anyone else, when it's all said and done.

But then I had the good fortune to experience a form of existence WITHOUT the pain and burden of an unweildy, unsatisfactory 'personality/ego' --- and all I can say is ....... it's nice. There's no sense of loss at all. So it's nothing to be afraid of, is all I really hoped to convey when I first posted.

Originally posted by Enyalius

Hopefully this made my point clear enough about not killing the ego but coming on terms with it and thus take control over it and turn it into a powerfull ally.

I hope you realize Enyalius that the concept of what I was describing and what you just said now are exactly the same...Using the energy for your own purposes not the selfish pursuit of the egotistical mind. However, you may not see it this way...

Originally posted by Dock6
.
No, I couldn't see myself. It didn't occur to me to look for or at myself. I wasn't aware of myself. In hindsight, I would describe my state at the time as a pinpoint of consciousness, of necessity, (1) because I was able to observe (2) because after it was over, I had very clear recollection of what had been observed. However, at the time, I wasn't aware that 'I' was observing and/or 'flying'. I didn't know I was an 'I' at the time. No thoughts at all. I 'flew' over and through people (amongst other things). Went literally through an unusually tall Chinaman.

If you can imagine a breeze or wind with a recording eye in it, then that's the best way to describe my state at the time --- moving very fast.

I know you say I was merely 'fleshless'. But it wasn't like that. I was not me. Not me. I was no-one. My personality, ego, sense of self, awareness of self --- not there. And not missed.
................

Okay, granted... BUT... What is your ego? ... I think you might have a skewed idea....
If you were observing things and were aware of your observation you therefore had an opinion of the objects as objects, and would be your ego.... you cannot escape yourself. The buddhist ideal of the ego is wrong... they are mistaking the holy spirit for our actual being, which is correct to a degree, it sustains us, but it was given to us for our ego...



-


"Blessed are you who have prior knowledge of the stumbling blocks and who flee alien things.

"Blessed are you who are reviled and not esteemed on account of the love their lord has for them.

"Blessed are you who weep and are oppressed by those without hope, for you will be released from every bondage.

[edit on 22/6/06 by dnero6911]

.
Ah. I didn't explain it adequately.

At the time, I was not aware that I was observing.

It was only after it was over, that I was aware of what had been observed.

I'm trying to find a way to explain.

Usually, even in a dream, I'm aware of being SOMEthing, SOMEone. In a nightmare, for example, I may not feel exactly myself, but I'm aware to varying degress of being in whatever situation is unfolding. I run. I panic. I evade. Whatever. It's 'me' involved in the action. It's 'me' who's in some form of body. It's 'me' engaged in whatever's going on. In dreams and nightmares, I don't need to look down to my body to know that I'm 'in' a body ... it's an automatic sense.

It's the same in real life. Whether I'm just waking up, or going to sleep, there's a sense of 'being', even if I'm half asleep.

Now, imagine having no awareness of anything at all, except what is unfolding. And imagine NOT being aware that you're aware.

Or -- imagine being pulled so fast out of your body, that everything about you gets left behind, so that only your eyes (or perhaps an 'inner eye') are left. Everything about you gets left behind. Only your eyes remain and they are unattached to your normal thought processes. So your eyes see. That's all. They don't beam what they see to anything. They don't THINK about what they're seeing or doing. They just see. They aren't connected to anything. They aren't aware of THEMSELVES, let alone a body.

Your eyes don't have thoughts. They're not a thinking aparatus.

Then, imagine just those eyes, or even one eye, flying through space on their own.

That isn't what happened, but it's the best way I can think of right now to describe it.

Obviously my eyes (or, my inner eye) WAS sending back data, which registered in memory. I have the memory. But 'I' wasn't there when it happened. I just received or stored the data.

The 'eyes' (or whatever) didn't have a body. Didn't have a personality or ego or opinions or feelings. They didn't think. They didn't say to themselves: 'Oh, look at that !' They just 'saw'.

Or -- this just occurred to me -- imagine that deep-space explorer thing that kept flying through space, photographing Jupiter etc. and beaming those photos back to earth until it disappeared off the radar.

Now, that explorer thing wasn't aware of itself. It wasn't aware it was made of titanium or whatever. It didn't think. It didn't have an ego or personality. It was free of all that. It just 'saw' without thought or analysis or self-awareness. But back on earth, WHAT that module saw was being recorded. Well, my experience was similar to that.

It's virtually impossible, I realise, to explain what it's like to be without self-awareness. But I've experienced it, spontaneously and much to my surprise, and I can remember --- from the vantage point of memory -- what it was like. And i believe it is as close as I'll probably ever get (while 'alive') to separation from the personality and ego.

I guess it's something that has to be experienced to be understood. But --- loss of self-awareness, loss of ego and loss of personality are not to be feared. You don't miss what you don't HAVE. Stepping beyond ego/personality/self-awareness is as painless as stepping out of your shoes.

What is the EGO? (A wise man helped me understand this)

All the suffering, whether it be personal, or collective, is caused by the same thing. The ego. The ego is a false mind-made identity.

The ego feeds on energy vibrating at its frequency. It seeks out to create conflict, and turmoil, to define its sense of separateness, its identity.

What does the ego feed on? Time. It cannot live in the NOW, only in the future and past. It uses the mind to mentally linger in the past or future, creating a situation that will "fulfill" it, give it energy. By going into the present moment you dissolve the ego. This is the process of alchemy (transformation of consciousness).

When the ego is dissolved, we can attain what is called enlightenment.

There is so much more that I could talk about this, but it is important to remember that it is solely my opinion, based on experiences. Beliefs are not important when going through a shift of consciousness, sometimes they can actually hinder the process.

We live in a dual world. Short, tall, good and evil. We are constantly comparing things, labelling them, judging them. This is done through the ego, that likes to make a sense of identity, by mentally labelling what is, in order to make itself superior to reality. What I'm trying to say is that it likes to make the present moment an enemy, it is always looking for the next moment, and uses this moment as a means to an end. It cannot live in the NOW, it needs future, it needs to fulfill itself, it is insufficient, it has not yet found itself.

By going beyond dualism, we can dissolve the ego. Instead of mentally labelling things, we can let them be. This is the key, accepting every moment. We are constantly denying the moment, it is never enough. When we let go of all resistance to what is, we are free, the ego is gone.

This is what the image of Jesus on the cross represents. The acceptance of what is. Jesus' last moment of resistance is when he said "Lord, why have you forsaken me." He then completely accepts what is, when he says, "not my will, but Thy will be done." It is the archetypal image of letting go of resistance to the moment. Usually this only happens when the moment becomes so unbearable that all resistance to it collapses.

The desires of the flesh are part of the ego, we do not supress them. Rather by dissolving the ego they become weaker, and weaker, until we are no longer identified with them and free.

Try it right now, just be in the moment. Notice the peace that comes along with the acceptance of what is.

Nothing happens that is not meant to happen. Peace. All questions welcome...

Originally posted by Nygdan
I thought that yoga was no more that exercise and meditation, no real purpose, no real goal, no real structure.

Hello Nygdan

Actually, the Yogachara school of Buddahism teaches the the body can be used as a mode to reach enlightment. There are other "tantric" practices (not Sexual) that
teach the same thing.

In Tibetan Buddahisn, there is even the practice of "dream yoga "which
teaches practices almost identical to the methods used to acheive lucid dreaming.

Originally posted by AnAbsoluteCreation

That was beautifully written.

Funny how we separate ego as this third person? Its not like if you get arrested for a crime and can solely blame it on your ego.. The ego is a label of that contrary side of you. They don't throw ego in jail they throw you in jail...

It sounds like the reason of Musubi.
The ultimate sense of self.
But, isn't sense of self just another step toward ultimate realization of infinity?

Why not pursue it?

Most people do reiki, but reiki is a dark art.
It is a dark art because you are impossing your will/sense of self onto someone else (regardless of the intention, impossition is impossition...)

So yeah, go for it.
I think that "ego" has developed a real negative reputation, it's what keeps us alive.
It's only when we allow it to control us is when it becomes a true problem.
Go forth and develop your self.
You have my blessing.