Speech of HH Sri Datta Vijayananda Teertha Swamiji – International Yoga Day – June 21, 2016 – Mysore
Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri
Jaya Guru Datta
Gurur brahma gurur vishnuhu gurur devo maheswaraha
Gurussaakshaat parambrahma tasmai sri gurave namaha
Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda sadgurubhyo namaha
Salutations to Yogi Patanjali Jnanadam sachchidanandam sadgurum tam namamyaham. Salutations to Sadguru Sri Swamiji.
We are celebrating the International Yoga Day today at the Nada Mantapa. I pray to God to shower His blessings upon all the students and teachers of Yoga who have gathered here. We are also celebrating the World Music Day today. Nada and Yoga are merged here in this ashrama. Ms. Sarvamangala is here. We are happy.
We all have different desires. One desires good education, one desires a good job, one desires marriage, one desires children. The common, natural desire we all share is that we should remain healthy. Music and Yoga have the power to bestow upon good health. For this reason, we have to practice these daily. Practice itself means something that is done regularly and daily. It is not enough to word hard to learn to perform a few Yoga postures just for demonstration on this day. If the rest of the year we slack off, it is of no use.
The food we eat should be such that it should promote our health, make our minds blossom, and sharpen our intellects. Food, recreation, and thoughts should all be regulated. Then our lives will be comfortable and happy.
Yoga has the capacity to moderate all three of the above. ‘I’ does not mean just the body or the name we bear. Mind, intellect, and body together are Trikarana. We are composed of all these three. Yoga practice has been in vogue since ancient times, taught by our sages. The Vedas extol the greatness of Yoga. Many deities are represented as assuming Yoga postures. Especially, Hayagriva Swami, who grants us a sharp intellect gives us darshan in a Yoga Mudra. Same is true of Mother Saraswati, Varaha Swami, and Sri Dakshinamurti, who shows the Chinmudra. Ayyappa Swami presents the Janubandhana mudra. Any deity or great soul will demonstrate a Yoga Mudra. This shows the greatness of Yoga. This is to encourage us to follow their example. Swamiji to this day, daily exercises for half an hour and does Yoga for half an hour. At 74 years of age, it is difficult to maintain this schedule. If one day he misses this routine, he feels uneasy. Like this, great people are showing us that Pranayama and Yoga, when performed daily will certainly increase our memory power and physical stamina. Our courage is enhanced. Fear vanishes. Students perform better at exams. Yoga steadies the mind. Mind is called a monkey. In Hindi, it refers to the mind. Man ki. If mind is given a form, it will resemble a monkey. How many people have complete focus on the present activity? Many people have wandering minds, looking at the clock, thinking of other things, and not paying attention to what is happening here. Mind is difficult to control.
Pranayama should be learned in the proper manner from a trained teacher. The Asanas or postures also should be properly learned along with breath regulation during and after the posture is assumed. Those whose minds are composed and concentrated, will retain any subject that they have learned. Without concentration, even if one reads the same material day in and day out, the matter will not register in the mind. Mind has the power to remember. One must gain control over the mind. Anyone who has mastered the mind becomes a great man. We all have the potential to become great. The fault lies within ourselves if we fail to control our minds and fail to focus the mind upon the task at hand. Restraining the mind is difficult. Don’t force it. But persuade it to be under your control. A horse that is tamed will serve the owner lifelong. If it is forced, it will rebel and harm him. Similarly, mind should be tamed and brought under control. It should be given proper training. Yoga has the ability to do it.
Sage Patanjali has shown us how to control the body, mind, and intellect. Our Sadguru Sri Swamiji also urges us to practice Yoga daily. Let us do continuous practice of Yoga for gaining excellent health of body, mind, and intellect. All over the world people are practicing Yoga. This is India’s treasure. We must share it with the rest of the world, without any distinction of race or creed.
The children with speech and hearing impairment have come here to perform Yoga before us. Their achievement truly inspires us. How the practice of Yoga has transformed them is indeed remarkable. Many Yoga instructors are present here. Rishi Prabhakar’s disciples also have come here. I pray for God’s blessings upon all of them. The students for SGS Schools have come. Our ashrama’s Sri Gopalakrishna, Dr. Phanishree, Chakradhar, Siva, and Subhadramma are here, dedicating their effort to the propagation of Yoga. From Nuzvidu we have invited a group who have committed their lives to the spreading of the Yoga techniques. Since 1994 they are engaged in this activity. One mature lady from the group will demonstrate to us the power of Yoga. She is 75 and has suffered four paralytic strokes. One 89-year-old woman was making Kailasa Parikrama and refused to receive any assistance. In fact, she offered us her help. Her grandfather had taught her Yoga and that had given her the strength to take up the arduous task of walking around Mt. Kailas in the Himalayas.
May all practitioners of Yoga be successful in their efforts. Please witness and be inspired by the performance of Yoga by the participants of the program today.
Sri Guru Datta.