Pink Panther wrote:In a way, it's part of what I was looking for when I joined the so-called ”Spiritual University” only to find they did not even have a library except of their own propaganda.
When I arrived, they had just a domestic cupboard with a few copies of a few of their books on a couple of shelves. They were still just free. Then you had to pay "cost" price for them.
Now they have shops selling. Still no library though. Not even of original Murlis and teachings.Sadly, even their "Museums" are not museums and they don't even keep an archive or musuem of themselves. They went from sticking stickers on old poster to cover up failures, to "slash and burning" the past every few years culling the past and leaving little to no record of it.
I tend to hark back to my understanding of the Bhaibund business model and the relationship between Lekhraj Kirpalani and Jagdish Chander fits in well with it. Once proven as a loyal "son", a junior in the business, the "clever businessman gave him his freedom to come up with new business ideas.
I remember trying to read Patanjali's Ray Yoga sutras before BKism, it was one step in the path that brought me to them, and, to be frank, it was hard to make sense of it or see or understand it much of it as being realistic ... I don't know the super powers a yogi was suppose to be able to learn.
It's "8 Limbs of Yoga" were somewhat different from the BKs merchants' version 8 Powers. I can see Chander sitting down trying to make them into something more simple and practical for the mothers.
I also suspect that BKism must have pretty damned boring for decades if you look at the material they actually had.
It's still very unclear me what they actually did for all that time during "the beggary period" and after. It's like based your impression of what it must have been like to be an early Christian based on the image of Jesus walking around and say, "I am the way and light, follow me ... OK, next village guys".
I suspect it was all very mundane; no books, no papers, no other religions or philosophies, just a grinding of folks down to fit within a very narrow spectrum of thought and expression without any resistance, or even creativity.
Patanjali's principles make sense ... but I don't know the real history of its development as you refer to it, Pink.
YAMA - Restraints, moral disciplines or moral vows
NIYAMA - Positive duties or observances
ASANA - Posture
PRANAYAMA - Breathing techniques
PRATYAHARA - Sense withdrawal
DHARANA - Focused concentration
DHYANA - Meditative absorption
SAMADHI - Bliss or enlightenment