Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev is one of the most profound mystics and yogis of modern times and firmly believes that his life is an endeavour to help people manifest their divinity. In ancient Sanskrit, " Guru" means dispeller of darkness, and "Sath" means within. This enlightened Guru affectionately called Jaggi, possesses a presence and energy that is a source of inspiration to many. Jaggi Vasudev was born in Mysore, India. A different and independent child who did not fit into the logical ways of the world, he started yogic practices like Pranayams and Asanas under the tutelage of Shree Raghavendra Rao popularly known as Malladihalli Swami as early as the age of 13 years. The son of a physician, he received tremendous support from his family, who saw in him something beyond an average child. He graduated from Mysore University in Karnataka. When he was 25 years old he had a deep experience of the Self that made him renounce all the material prosperity that he had achieved. He recalls: " One day I went to the Chamundi hills in the afternoon and sat on a huge rock, my usual place. I sat with my eyes open and after a few minutes, I did not know where I was. I felt myself spread everywhere, no longer bound by my body. I was in the rocks, the trees, and the earth. Everything was me. Tears flowed down my cheek in a torrent. I thought this had lasted for a few minutes. But when I came to, it was late in the evening. I wondered if I had hallucinated, but in the days that followed, this experience recurred and each time it left me in a state of utter bliss." "After each such episode, I would not sleep for the next three or four days, nor would I eat. Also the urge to share that bliss with the world grew each time. " From then onwards he has dedicated his entire life to the sharing of those experiences. His important teachings revolve around the spiritual unfolding of the inner being and have relieved thousands of lives of their physical and mental sufferings. Creation of the Dhyanalingam In 1992, the Sadhguru along with his band of seekers founded the Isha Yoga Centre and Ashram at the foothills of the sacred Velliangiri Mountains at Poondi near Coimbatore, India. Spread over a 50-acre area, the Centre houses the magnificent 13ft Dhyanalingam, a meditation shrine and multi-religious temple completed in 1999 (see Ashram. article for details). The powerful energies around the Dhyanalingam have the quality of curing diseases leading to well being and prosperity, giving an individual opportunity to move into higher joyous states of being. The Dhyanalingam is a reservoir of energies emanating from people who have gone into deep meditation, the shape of the lingam is said to be the distilled essence of yogic sciences. Visitors are allowed to sit in meditation at the shrine for any length of time and bask in spiritual warmth. The creation of the Dhyanalingam, according to scriptures, can happen only through a grihastha yogi. An intense process of prana pratishta has gone into its creation. As the Sadhguru simply states, "The very purpose of life is to reach the highest possible flowering. Dhyana or meditation is the path to flowering and the Dhyanalingam prepares every individual to embark on a spiritual journey." The Centre also houses the Isha Foundation that administers more than 25 yoga centres, a medical centre and an orphanage in India and 3 yoga centres in United States. Isha Yoga A firm believer in the ancient principal that the body is the temple of the Spirit and that good health is fundamental to spiritual development, Jaggi Vasudev has devoted his life to helping individuals break through all limitations into their natural state of freedom, love and joy. He does not advocate renouncing the world but believes he can teach people to live life to the fullest within their sphere of existence. Jaggi Vasudev has synthesized the techniques of meditation and Pranayam (controlling vital energy) into a dynamic program called Isha Yoga that allows people to engineer their inner energies and bring them into balance. Once given the tools to rejuvenate and balance their energies, people can optimise their physical, mental and spiritual health. The Sadhguru belongs to no particular tradition of yoga. He offers yoga in its purest form as a way to find fullness in one's life from within. This form of yoga does not require physical agility or previous knowledge or experience with yoga. His programme called Sahaj Sthithi Yoga, which literally means "natural self" is experiential and can be easily integrated into one's daily life. The programme aims at the improvement of the creative potential, efficiency, and level of self-fulfilment of an individual giving an individual greater ability to concentrate but in a relaxed frame of mind. continue>> Archive