Speaker 1: Welcome to Destiny. Now here's your host, Cliff Dunning.
Speaker 2: Hey, how are you? Come on in? Have a seat.
Speaker 2: This is Cliff, your host of Destiny, and I hope
Speaker 2: you're doing well today. We got a magical sacred art
Speaker 2: to talk about. We haven't talked at all, well, very
Speaker 2: little about yoga. And yoga is one of these sacred
Speaker 2: arts that I firmly believe comes from that early period
Speaker 2: of the yogas, the Satya or the treat to yoga period,
Speaker 2: because whoever designed and came up and formulated the details
Speaker 2: of yoga understood the body down to a cellular level.
Speaker 2: They have done tests on people who do yoga regularly
Speaker 2: and discovered not only is there a huge benefit for
Speaker 2: the circulatory system, the heart, the digestion, everything. It's a
Speaker 2: wonder exercise. That's why it's so popular. It also it
Speaker 2: also connects us to the brain, to the spirit, and
Speaker 2: to the higher levels. After I do yoga, I feel really,
Speaker 2: really good. If you ask somebody who does regularly or
Speaker 2: who does yoga on a regular basis, how they feel
Speaker 2: after they do a session, most people will say, I
Speaker 2: feel amazing, I feel wonderful, and it's a it's really
Speaker 2: It's quite unique in the way it is designed around
Speaker 2: using the body's weight to anchor. I mean you've heard
Speaker 2: things like downward dog, cat pose, lion pose, and these
Speaker 2: different poses. Each of poe's that you perform has a
Speaker 2: directed ad, a group of organs, a group of muscles,
Speaker 2: even bone, and it's brilliant, you know. I before I
Speaker 2: started reading about it in Great Lanths and this is
Speaker 2: years ago, somebody told me that during the Maha Barata
Speaker 2: Wars of India, and this is thousands and thousands of
Speaker 2: years ago, they think that yoga's seven thousand years old.
Speaker 2: It's actually you know, if you think about satya or
Speaker 2: treata yoga, that's one hundred thousand years ago. And of
Speaker 2: course some of you are listening and going, no, why
Speaker 2: are you talking about one hundred thousand years Cliff, You
Speaker 2: are out of your gourg. It's possible, and don't I
Speaker 2: don't discount anything anymore. I mean I had to consider
Speaker 2: just how advanced yoga is. But anyhow, the story goes
Speaker 2: that when they had these flying craft known as Vamana,
Speaker 2: and they fight and the craft were passing through the
Speaker 2: atmosphere and the other planetary systems to our Cosmos. Yoga
Speaker 2: was developed as a exercise of the pilots of the
Speaker 2: crew so that they would get the needed exercise without
Speaker 2: having to fly to a gravity based planet and get
Speaker 2: out and stretch and run or whatever. So and of
Speaker 2: course I don't know if that's true or not, but
Speaker 2: it sounds plausible. It really does. Of course, a lot
Speaker 2: of you are listening and going, here we go, here
Speaker 2: we go. Come on, how nutty does Cliff Dunning get
Speaker 2: on this show? Notice the quiet pause. No, I don't know.
Speaker 2: I mean, I think it's very, very advanced. And so
Speaker 2: when we have people on the show talking about the
Speaker 2: Golden Age, the gardener viten of the yogas satya and
Speaker 2: the treta yoga systems, the Yuga periods, these Golden ages
Speaker 2: are prime for yoga, for meditation, for even taichi, you know,
Speaker 2: even though it's attributed to the Chinese, I think taichi
Speaker 2: is one of those universal systems of moving energy through
Speaker 2: and around the body. Well, yoga, yoga is just amazing.
Speaker 2: I've done tai chi. I'm sorry. Yoga by far is
Speaker 2: more immediately beneficial, and I've done I've probably done it
Speaker 2: twenty five years and when I was just starting out,
Speaker 2: I had chronic low back problems. I had sciatica. I
Speaker 2: sat too much, and so I had compressed lumbar vertebra.
Speaker 2: And when I started stretching and started doing the downward
Speaker 2: dog and joining classes of others doing these exercises, I
Speaker 2: felt so good and it was relieved of such so
Speaker 2: much strain and pain that yoga began to be my
Speaker 2: healing tool. And so I reduced my visits to the
Speaker 2: chiropractor almost in half, if not more. I'd go twice
Speaker 2: a month, sometimes three times if I was in a
Speaker 2: lot of pain. And so those of you who are sedentary,
Speaker 2: you know, there's all types of yoga. There's you can do.
Speaker 2: I don't want to call it geriatrics yoga, but if
Speaker 2: you're in your sixties, seventy eighties and beyond, you can
Speaker 2: actually send in a chair and stretch your legs and
Speaker 2: stretch your back and bend forward and just this amazing
Speaker 2: stretching is such a benefit. And of course if you
Speaker 2: are able to stand, and if you are able to
Speaker 2: kneel and get down on a yoga mat or just
Speaker 2: on the floor and do a few of the poses,
Speaker 2: they are amazingly beneficial. So this is something we're going
Speaker 2: to talk about today, and we're gonna go one step further.
Speaker 2: We're going to talk about the meditative practice that is
Speaker 2: carried out in a lot of different teachings to meditate
Speaker 2: with mantras to prepare the day. And you know what
Speaker 2: I've learned is that you do your stretching first in
Speaker 2: preparation for your meditation. So you unblock the arteries, you
Speaker 2: unblock the the energetic super highway that runs through the body.
Speaker 2: And you stretch and you release hormones, you release tension
Speaker 2: or knots or whatever. You take a break, a couple,
Speaker 2: have a glass of water, then you sit for your meditation.
Speaker 2: And I got to tell you, wow, wow, wow, wow,
Speaker 2: this is something to really consider. So now, if you're
Speaker 2: interested in considering yoga, I really recommend that you try
Speaker 2: to go down to a local YMCA, YWCA gym fitness center,
Speaker 2: private class, pay your three, four or five class tuition
Speaker 2: for at least a month, and learn the basics. Learn
Speaker 2: the basics with a teacher. So once you have those
Speaker 2: basic poses in printing your brain, then you can keep
Speaker 2: going to the courses, to the classes or And this
Speaker 2: happened during the pandemic when you were not supposed to
Speaker 2: gather together. You can develop your own ritual of stretching
Speaker 2: when you first get up, followed by your short meditation.
Speaker 2: You know a lot of my listeners are like, Cliff,
Speaker 2: I don't do that. I get up, have my coffee
Speaker 2: rushed to work. Well, if you can begin incorporating yoga
Speaker 2: and meditation, you're gonna do a couple of different things.
Speaker 2: First thing you're gonna do is you're going to begin
Speaker 2: reversing aging processes. You're gonna start reversing physical problems throughout
Speaker 2: the body. And as we age, it's tougher to recover,
Speaker 2: it's tougher to heal, and we don't always have time
Speaker 2: to go to the gym. But if you do yoga
Speaker 2: every morning, it's a substitute some ways, not necessarily for
Speaker 2: the weight training, although there are poses that you use
Speaker 2: using your own body weight to practice various poses. But
Speaker 2: as you are working in these yogic poses, you are
Speaker 2: benefiting the body on numerous levels. So if you can't
Speaker 2: get to the gym, at least you have the training
Speaker 2: the very and you can learn it in a few weeks,
Speaker 2: and perhaps your teacher will also give you recommendations for
Speaker 2: a book to hold on to as well. If you're
Speaker 2: not into groups, at least go and practice the basics,
Speaker 2: just the basics. But it's also great to go to
Speaker 2: fellowship in the community. When you're with others, you can
Speaker 2: chat about you know, how you're feeling, how you're doing,
Speaker 2: and you develop fellowship. And that's also a big part
Speaker 2: of the program of yoga. So today we're going to
Speaker 2: learn about both aspects. That's the bio the brain, and
Speaker 2: that's the spirit of yoga. So today's program is the
Speaker 2: Yogi's way transform your mind, health and reality. And my
Speaker 2: guest here on Destiny is Rima Data. If you haven't
Speaker 2: been to Turkey, it is a fabulous country to visit.
Speaker 2: Not only is Istanbul a cosmopolitan, very modern city, but
Speaker 2: the people are wonderful, the food, the beverages are fantastic
Speaker 2: and of course if you're with Earth ancients, we're going
Speaker 2: to see the ancient sites. Our tour this year is
Speaker 2: June twenty second to July second, and we'll be visiting
Speaker 2: go Beckley Teppe, the underground city of darren Kuru, the Kappadocia,
Speaker 2: the hill cities, Carahan Teppe, will visit Karahan Teppy and
Speaker 2: have private.
Speaker 3: Visits with the archaeological team that is continuing to excavate
Speaker 3: that amazing city and discovering beautiful carvings from deep within
Speaker 3: Earth's antiquity. If you'd like to join us, go to
Speaker 3: earth Agents dot com Forward slash Tours check it out.
Speaker 2: We have the full like tenerary for you to view
Speaker 2: and also more details available for registration. Turkey is not
Speaker 2: to be missed. We do it once a year. We
Speaker 2: take small groups of people so we all can see
Speaker 2: the museums, we can stay on one bus and it's
Speaker 2: a wonderful country to tour. For more information, go to
Speaker 2: Earth Ancients dot com Forward slash Tours and see all
Speaker 2: the details, or email me at earth Ancients the number
Speaker 2: four of the letter you at gmail dot com for
Speaker 2: any specifics you might need. This is a special tour,
Speaker 2: it's unique. We'll be with SABA Tours and it is
Speaker 2: not to be missed. Again. For more information and to register,
Speaker 2: go to Earthancents dot com Forward slash Tours. You got
Speaker 2: a good one for you this week. You know, we
Speaker 2: talk about yoga, we talk about the various ancient techniques
Speaker 2: for wellness, and we haven't had anyone really present the
Speaker 2: material on the program. And this week we have a
Speaker 2: new author who has written a book called The Yogi's
Speaker 2: Way Transform Your Mind, Health and Reality. And I had
Speaker 2: a chance to look at it. It's a good one,
Speaker 2: not only because it presents the basics of yoga, but
Speaker 2: our author today also has studied Vedic texts and presents
Speaker 2: details of that in the book. And as someone who's
Speaker 2: meditated for a number of years, this is important to know.
Speaker 1: This is the.
Speaker 2: Roots of yoga, the roots of meditation, and it gives
Speaker 2: us a sense of how old it is. So my
Speaker 2: guest today, Rima Data, has learned yoga and are Veda
Speaker 2: from her mother and her grandmother as well as her grandfather.
Speaker 2: She's been teaching yoga for over twenty years. Right there.
Speaker 2: That's something to consider. And this new book is kind
Speaker 2: of a distillation of what she's been up to and
Speaker 2: we're going to learn more about it today. Sorima, Welcome
Speaker 2: to Destiny. Great to have you on the program.
Speaker 1: Thanks thanks for having me.
Speaker 2: All right, I got to get right to it. Why
Speaker 2: this book, Why write all this material? And why did
Speaker 2: you need to present it? And that's basically the fundamentals
Speaker 2: of writing. But hey, tell us what it's all about
Speaker 2: and why, you know, One reason.
Speaker 1: Is I've traveled so much and taught yoga and throughout
Speaker 1: Europe and Asia and North America. And one thing I've
Speaker 1: noticed is that yoga it's almost equated with asena, which
Speaker 1: is the physical postures, and it's almost like yoga and
Speaker 1: asna have become synonyms. And the way I grew up
Speaker 1: with yoga, we did asina and that's a part of yoga,
Speaker 1: and it's a very powerful part of yoga. And I
Speaker 1: recommend that everyone practices asina. And there's so much more
Speaker 1: to yoga that I feel like is being lost, and
Speaker 1: there's not the awareness of the other dimensions of yoga.
Speaker 1: So I really wanted to write a book to share
Speaker 1: what those other aspects of yoga are and how to
Speaker 1: integrate them into our practices and into our lives.
Speaker 2: Tell us how you feel about the beginnings of yoga.
Speaker 2: We don't really know where it came from. And you know,
Speaker 2: we talk on this program about the yogas this ancient
Speaker 2: system of mankind's dwelling on the earth, and there's these
Speaker 2: very early golden ages of the Satya and the Trita
Speaker 2: yoga period. Does it feel to you like this yoga
Speaker 2: came from that time when we were supposed to be
Speaker 2: living in this garden of Eden, and we were these
Speaker 2: divine beings, and this was a practice that was perpetuated
Speaker 2: in those earliest periods.
Speaker 1: It definitely feels like yoga came from a time when
Speaker 1: people were very connected to nature and to the cosmic energies,
Speaker 1: and their intention of their intention of the earth yogis
Speaker 1: was to live in alignment with the cosmos, you know,
Speaker 1: the Sun and the moon and the planets. And I
Speaker 1: think they lived such quiet and you know, lives that
Speaker 1: were grounded close to the earth that they were in sync. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and they felt out of sync. They were like, okay, well,
Speaker 1: here are some practices to get us back into harmony,
Speaker 1: not just with our mind, body, and spirit, but with
Speaker 1: the greater cosmos. You know, how can we live in
Speaker 1: harmony with the land and the our surroundings.
Speaker 2: It doesn't it feel like yoga is really I mean,
Speaker 2: I feel it's extremely advanced. It's like from another planet almost.
Speaker 2: It's like somebody understood our physiology and the mind body
Speaker 2: spirit connection that is brought forward. Talk a little bit
Speaker 2: about what your feeling is and your understanding on that.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's amazing. I think even now, like science
Speaker 1: is just catching up with the Yogis, Like they're supporting
Speaker 1: a lot of Yogic wisdom how the mind, how the
Speaker 1: thoughts and emotions affect our body and even our reality.
Speaker 1: But I feel like even it's just science is just
Speaker 1: brushing upon what a depth of understanding the Yogis had
Speaker 1: of the subtle body, how our body is made of
Speaker 1: subtle winds and the thoughts and emotions right on those winds,
Speaker 1: and they affect our energy, they affect our health, they
Speaker 1: affect the way we experience the world. And their knowledge
Speaker 1: of the subtle body was so profound. I think science
Speaker 1: and still catching up, and I feel like for them
Speaker 1: to have figured out what kind of thought patterns and
Speaker 1: emotions affect what kind of parts of the subtle body
Speaker 1: and the gross body, like they had to have such
Speaker 1: a sharp awareness, you know. And I think, I mean,
Speaker 1: we know that the Yogis took themselves into deep meditative states,
Speaker 1: and when they got meditative and receptive, they realize these teachings,
Speaker 1: and I think we have hope that we can also
Speaker 1: experience those states. But it's just so hard because there's
Speaker 1: so much distraction in our world now, there's so much activity.
Speaker 1: There's the internet, or like, you know, it's hard to
Speaker 1: actually like sit and be quiet and get that that
Speaker 1: all of quiet tune and awareness of how how thought
Speaker 1: not just like what we eat and how we exercise
Speaker 1: affects our health, but even what kind of thought patterns
Speaker 1: and emotions affect our wellbeing.
Speaker 2: What have we lost by being so absorbed on the
Speaker 2: internet and constantly looking at our phones and being distracted.
Speaker 2: What does that do to us?
Speaker 1: But I feel like we're losing so much, you know,
Speaker 1: And it's like not just adults, but even our children
Speaker 1: our suffering with like mental illness and anxiety and sorrow
Speaker 1: and depression and jealousy. And it's like all these emotions
Speaker 1: are gripping our minds and draining our energy. And the
Speaker 1: Yogis knew that our thoughts and emotions have that potential,
Speaker 1: but they also gave us these practices that we don't
Speaker 1: have to be gripped by these emotions. Like, of course
Speaker 1: we're going to feel anxiety sometimes. Of course we're going
Speaker 1: to feel sorrow sometimes. But there's a way to experience
Speaker 1: those emotions and be in integrity and not brush them
Speaker 1: aside or anything. Like be in our fullness and our wholeness,
Speaker 1: but not get gripped by those emotions and still have
Speaker 1: a deeper awareness of consciousness, you know, this deeper part
Speaker 1: of ourselves in the world, which I feel that is
Speaker 1: something we're losing because to really tap into consciousness, which
Speaker 1: is the deepest and most powerful part of ourselves, a
Speaker 1: really essential part of ourselves, does require quietness and practice.
Speaker 1: I think we're losing, like the ability to focus and
Speaker 1: to have discipline because all these practices of the Yogis,
Speaker 1: you know, whether it's meditation or mantra or praniama movement,
Speaker 1: it's only powerful when we do it consistently, you know,
Speaker 1: like repetition, Like the neuro sciences are now saying, like
Speaker 1: we have to have repetition to create the new neural pathways.
Speaker 1: The Yogis was saying the same thing. To have the
Speaker 1: new subscaas the new habits, there has to be consistency
Speaker 1: and repetition, and that requires focus and discipline, which is
Speaker 1: so hard to have when it's like our minds are
Speaker 1: on our phones and social media and every second is
Speaker 1: a different thing.
Speaker 2: You know, it's really bad, it's really and I'm sure
Speaker 2: there's been medical literature written on this. But it seems
Speaker 2: like when we're constantly distracted, are constantly on our phones,
Speaker 2: our mental faculties are damaged, aren't they.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think science is proving that that, you know,
Speaker 1: our ability to focus diminishes so much. And science has
Speaker 1: also shown us that the more we can focus on
Speaker 1: the present moment, the happier we are. You know, there's
Speaker 1: a study that I mentioned in the book that even
Speaker 1: when the mind is distracted by a happy thought or
Speaker 1: a happy memory, we feel less content than if we're
Speaker 1: just present in the moment, just like what all spiritual
Speaker 1: traditions are teaching us, you know, to be present, to
Speaker 1: be in the moment, not get gripped by the past
Speaker 1: or concerns about the future. But I think the way
Speaker 1: our society is today is becoming more and more difficult.
Speaker 1: But I think that's why it's becoming also more and
Speaker 1: more important to be part of a community and practice together,
Speaker 1: because otherwise it's like we're so easily distracted and a
Speaker 1: day goes by, two days go by, and then you know,
Speaker 1: it's like starting from scratch again. But communities, I mean,
Speaker 1: they can really motivate us and keep us up with
Speaker 1: our practices and then the journey becomes fun too. It
Speaker 1: doesn't have to be like a drag, like oh, I
Speaker 1: have to sit and meditate and it's lonely or you know,
Speaker 1: it's like it's fun because we share our stories and
Speaker 1: our breakthroughs and our breakdowns. And I think community is
Speaker 1: just what it's like more. I mean, yoga was always
Speaker 1: passed down in community, Like traditionally in the Vedic era,
Speaker 1: they had schools for yoga, and all the students and
Speaker 1: the teachers lived in the same vicinity and had each
Speaker 1: other's support, So that was always part of passing down
Speaker 1: the teachings. But I feel like now like we're in
Speaker 1: this epidemic of loneliness and isolation and we're disconnected from
Speaker 1: our ourselves and from each other. And I feel like
Speaker 1: without community, I don't know if we can really get
Speaker 1: that discipline and motivation.
Speaker 2: It's tough though, because we've just finished with this pandemic
Speaker 2: where we were forced to isolate. Yeah, and I think,
Speaker 2: I mean, I'm one of them, of course, my girlfriend
Speaker 2: and it forces me to do stuff, but I'm still
Speaker 2: reticent about going out and doing things because in the
Speaker 2: back of my mind, I'm like, Okay, who's sick now
Speaker 2: you know.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, well there's online communities you can Oh
Speaker 1: that's a good point. Even that that's much better than
Speaker 1: doing things on your own, you know, just to have
Speaker 1: that accountability. It's like it's really I mean, I feel
Speaker 1: like the ancient use their wisdom was just mind blowing
Speaker 1: because now we have the science. Like I was researching
Speaker 1: for my book and found that people who have an
Speaker 1: accountability partner are sixty five percent. They have a sixty
Speaker 1: five percent and success rate at creating change in their
Speaker 1: life and reaching their goals. And those who have regular
Speaker 1: check ins with their accountability partner, the success rate is
Speaker 1: ninety five percent.
Speaker 2: I believe it.
Speaker 1: Those who don't have an accountability partner ten percent success rate.
Speaker 2: Okay, Rima, that's your next book, The Accountability Partner and
Speaker 2: how to get one, because I don't know what the
Speaker 2: hell you're talking about. I think what you're talking about
Speaker 2: is finding a community and then you'll pair up with
Speaker 2: people and that's your accountability or maybe the group. Is
Speaker 2: it the group or what?
Speaker 1: Well, so the way we do it, like we have
Speaker 1: a community and you know, we have a twelve week
Speaker 1: course coming up, and so I'm encouraging people to either
Speaker 1: sign up with a friend or they'll be paired with
Speaker 1: a friend. So you only have one accountability partner within
Speaker 1: the community, and we call it matre. Like in Sanskrit
Speaker 1: that's a is a friend, but it's like a very
Speaker 1: special friend that protects you from harm, not just the
Speaker 1: harms of the world, but the way we harm ourselves
Speaker 1: through our own thoughts and words and actions and choices.
Speaker 1: So with our Matra, we have even more chickens, not
Speaker 1: just once a week, but we'll give our Metra our
Speaker 1: phone number. And just like anytime we're where we feel
Speaker 1: like we're sliding from our practices or we're going through
Speaker 1: a big thing, whether it's a breakdown or a breakthrough,
Speaker 1: like we have someone to share our experience with and
Speaker 1: to vocalize it and in that way process it.
Speaker 2: I really like it.
Speaker 1: You have a question like I did this practice and
Speaker 1: this crazy thing happened, I don't get it, Like you
Speaker 1: have someone to share your experiences with and in that
Speaker 1: way process it and then you can it's your choice
Speaker 1: if you want to bring it to the larger community
Speaker 1: or not, but just to have that person that you
Speaker 1: have a commitment you're sharing this commitment or X amount
Speaker 1: of days. In our case, for this twelve week program,
Speaker 1: we're going to do these daily practices. You know, we're
Speaker 1: going to do certain practices daily, certain practices once a week,
Speaker 1: and you're on a journey together.
Speaker 2: I really like that a lot. Before we move forward,
Speaker 2: I want to ask you how did you get connected
Speaker 2: to the musicians staying? Because he's all over the place
Speaker 2: and there's a big hug. It's a photo you'll give
Speaker 2: him giving you a big hug. I'm like, well, did
Speaker 2: she give a class or something and he showed up?
Speaker 2: Or is it more he recommends your classes?
Speaker 1: Well, you know, years ago, I think it was two
Speaker 1: thousand and four or five, I think I mentioned to
Speaker 1: you I was living in San Francisco. I had decided
Speaker 1: I was actually working full time at a yoga studio
Speaker 1: called It's Yoga and San Francisco, and I decided to
Speaker 1: leave that studio. I had told my boss that, like,
Speaker 1: I grew up with yoga, and I just had this
Speaker 1: curiosity of other spiritual traditions that I wanted, and I
Speaker 1: had an opportunity to go to Brazil and and so
Speaker 1: I decided to leave that studio. And one of the
Speaker 1: a friend that I had went to Brazil with. He said,
Speaker 1: you know, you should meet my friend Danny, Like he's
Speaker 1: really he's a great yogi. He teaches yoga all over
Speaker 1: the world, and he also is tapped into other spiritual
Speaker 1: traditions and you know, brings them into his workshops and classes.
Speaker 1: So I said, okay. So after I came back from Brazil,
Speaker 1: I call him Dairy Paradise, who's this amazing yogi and teacher,
Speaker 1: And ended up he invited me to teach yoga with
Speaker 1: him all over the world. Actually he was about to
Speaker 1: tour all through Europe and Asia, and so he said,
Speaker 1: why don't you come and teach with me? And I said, okay,
Speaker 1: I just left my job, so I said all right.
Speaker 1: And he was Sting's first yoga teacher and Madonna and
Speaker 1: Paul Simon and you know rock stars, and he was
Speaker 1: also one of the first traveling yoga teachers. Like now
Speaker 1: there's so many traveling yoga teachers, but he was kind
Speaker 1: of the pioneer of that. And so he brought yoga
Speaker 1: you had to Sting, and then Sting brought it to
Speaker 1: his bandmates, and you know, it spread like wildfire. But
Speaker 1: he was he was a huge figure in that. And
Speaker 1: so when I was traveling with Danny, I met Sting
Speaker 1: we want some of his homes in Italy and England,
Speaker 1: and then we would often meet him backstage for concerts
Speaker 1: and he often does yoga right before he goes on stage. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, that's years he's been doing that, and so
Speaker 1: he he has several yoga instructors he works with, but
Speaker 1: then I became one of them, and you know, I've
Speaker 1: met him, I think it was two thousand and four
Speaker 1: or five, and to this day where we're in touch
Speaker 1: and I'll try to meet him as often as I can.
Speaker 2: So do you show up when he's in the area
Speaker 2: and you know, go work together in some yoga?
Speaker 1: Yeah? Yeah, he Actually it was kind of amazing. I
Speaker 1: moved to Tallas about five years ago, and that summer
Speaker 1: he did a concert in Taos, which was which was
Speaker 1: kind of mind boggling because he went do concerts in
Speaker 1: small towns. So I met him backstage and we did
Speaker 1: some practice together.
Speaker 2: Fun for you, Yeah, so wonderful.
Speaker 1: Wow. Sometimes I travel to meet him and sometimes you know,
Speaker 1: like in Tows he showed up and.
Speaker 2: Yeah, fantastic. I want you to explain a little bit
Speaker 2: about the meditative aspects of yoga. I typically do the
Speaker 2: physical because I've practiced yoga. Excuse me, meditation, uh to
Speaker 2: another technique I use, but it is Indian. What is
Speaker 2: the benefits and why is meditation part of the yoga system?
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, there's so many practices that are meant
Speaker 1: to become to be meditative, you know, and then eventually
Speaker 1: lead to just seated and silence and stillness. But the
Speaker 1: I think what is special about what yoga brings to
Speaker 1: meditation is this awareness that the body is made up
Speaker 1: of these subtle winds and what affects the winds. Again,
Speaker 1: our thoughts, our emotions affect the winds more than our nutrition,
Speaker 1: more more than the way we exercise, you know. Our
Speaker 1: thoughts are so powerful. So there's a lot of understanding
Speaker 1: of how different thoughts affect different parts, different winds in
Speaker 1: the body. So just for example, there's five major subtle
Speaker 1: body winds. There's more, but there's five major ones. And
Speaker 1: like the winds at the heart are affected by anger
Speaker 1: and thoughts and emotions around anger, the winds that the
Speaker 1: belly are affected by jealousy and confusion, and the winds
Speaker 1: that the reproductive organs are affected by isolation and fear.
Speaker 1: The winds that the throat are affected by attachment and
Speaker 1: addiction and shame. And then there's vi ana value, which
Speaker 1: is an all pervasive wind that's affected by anxiety. So
Speaker 1: when we so meditator practices, it can be you know, breathwork,
Speaker 1: but it's the ancient practices. They often include awareness of
Speaker 1: our thoughts and like noticing what thoughts are harmful and
Speaker 1: what thoughts create blocks and our subtle winds and what
Speaker 1: kind of thoughts are actually uplifting and loosen of the
Speaker 1: subtle of the subtle body. And so the practices, you know,
Speaker 1: ultimately they're about they're about recognizing that we have blocks
Speaker 1: in the body and we have blocks in the mind.
Speaker 1: But how do we work at the level of our
Speaker 1: thoughts and emotions and breath and awareness to loosen those knots.
Speaker 1: And you know, in Sanskrit, those knots are called grunties,
Speaker 1: which literally it translates to very difficult knots to untie,
Speaker 1: Which is why we have practices with breath of movement,
Speaker 1: of working with our thoughts of you know, healing our
Speaker 1: emotional wounds, like, because those knots are so hard to
Speaker 1: so difficult to untie that. It's like we work from
Speaker 1: the inner body, like from the inside out through our
Speaker 1: thoughts and emotions, and we also work from the outside
Speaker 1: in with our breath and our movement. So it becomes
Speaker 1: like for it to really work, for us to really
Speaker 1: loosen the knots, we we have this like holistic approach.
Speaker 2: We're gonna take a short commercial break to allow our
Speaker 2: sponsors to identify themselves, and we will return shortly with
Speaker 2: my guest today, Rima Data, discussing her new book, The
Speaker 2: Yogi's Way. We'll be right back. My guest today is
Speaker 2: Rima Data. She is really the new book on yoga
Speaker 2: called The Yogi's Way, Transform Your Mind, Health and Reality.
Speaker 2: She has been teaching for over twenty years and has
Speaker 2: developed a system based on the ancient sanscript Vedic texts
Speaker 2: from ancient India. And in your practice and how you teach,
Speaker 2: do you open the class with a short meditation followed
Speaker 2: by the actual postures or how do you how do
Speaker 2: you work?
Speaker 1: Yes? You know what I started to do as I
Speaker 1: was creating the content for this book. I it's flayed
Speaker 1: in the book. How you know a lot of this
Speaker 1: approach was born out of my own. I went through
Speaker 1: a difficult time in my life, and I was actually
Speaker 1: overcome with anger and attack.
Speaker 2: That's the beauty of the book, though it's a hard
Speaker 2: times to glory times.
Speaker 1: Yeah, So I felt disconnected from these deeper teachings of yoga,
Speaker 1: you know, and I felt like and then I knew
Speaker 1: that I wasn't the only one who was dealing with
Speaker 1: mental turmoil and having a hard time getting a hold
Speaker 1: of my mind, because I saw it all around me,
Speaker 1: you know, and then we know the statistics like anxiety
Speaker 1: and depression, it's just skyrocketing right now. So I went
Speaker 1: back to the texts and really studied this wisdom and
Speaker 1: was and just continued to be kind of shocked that
Speaker 1: it's so lacking in the mainstream yoga world and in
Speaker 1: the dissemination of yoga today, you know, because again it's
Speaker 1: mostly the physical aspect. So so I went back to
Speaker 1: those teachings and what I started to do is I noticed,
Speaker 1: you know, how I was mentioning how certain emotions affect
Speaker 1: certain winds, and then that affects that that leads to
Speaker 1: certain diseases and balance is so I I, you know,
Speaker 1: with the backup of these ancient teachings. I started to
Speaker 1: create a yoga sequence for each emotion, and so if
Speaker 1: you're feeling afflicted with anger, then you can do this sequence.
Speaker 1: And each sequence has a meditation, a breath practice, a
Speaker 1: movement practice, a visualization practice, a mantra, and so I
Speaker 1: kind of like focused on the emotion and in Sunsprit
Speaker 1: we call it a clasia. Claysia is like a harmful
Speaker 1: thought or emotion and anger, attachment, anxiety, shame, those are
Speaker 1: some of the big ones. Fear, so the and so
Speaker 1: what I started to do when I teach, you know,
Speaker 1: I would say, okay, today we're working with this emotion.
Speaker 1: This is how it affects the subtle body. These are
Speaker 1: the types of illnesses or imbalances it can lead in
Speaker 1: our physical body. And we're going to go through this
Speaker 1: specific set of movement and breath work and meditation and
Speaker 1: visualization and mantreat to work with this particular clasia.
Speaker 2: Yeah, the clachias are kind of the foundation of your book,
Speaker 2: and I really like that you brought them out because
Speaker 2: these are serious issues. If you are not resolving your cliches,
Speaker 2: it can cause disease. Right, So give us first of all,
Speaker 2: describe what it is I think you just gave us
Speaker 2: the majority of what the description is, but what are
Speaker 2: they specifically and how do they come up in our system?
Speaker 1: Sure, so the definition of clacia in the yoga texts
Speaker 1: the sensor texts is a mind poison or a destructive emotion,
Speaker 1: And those are strong words, but it yeah telling of
Speaker 1: how well the Yogis knew about the power of our
Speaker 1: thoughts that they can literally destroy our health, which science
Speaker 1: is showing us. Now you know certain thoughts can be
Speaker 1: harmful and and emotions, you know that is trickier to
Speaker 1: look at. But to be clear, what the teachings are
Speaker 1: in the text is that no emotion is a good
Speaker 1: or bad in and of itself, Like there's nothing wrong
Speaker 1: with feeling anger, or there's nothing wrong with feeling fear,
Speaker 1: like that's just a natural part of being human. But
Speaker 1: whether our emotions become something wholesome that leads to healing
Speaker 1: or something harmful that leads to a disease depends on
Speaker 1: how we experience and express them. Right, So in a way,
Speaker 1: emotions are not intrinsically good or bad, but it depends
Speaker 1: on like do we have the tools and the practices
Speaker 1: to experience them and constructive beneficial ways, which is what
Speaker 1: I was, you know, giving practices for that in the book.
Speaker 1: But that's so oor clacias. Clacia is the word when
Speaker 1: the emotions and thoughts become harmful. You know, if we
Speaker 1: experience anger and we just understand that that's part of
Speaker 1: being human and there's a message behind this anger, there's
Speaker 1: I can catch the energy of the anger and use
Speaker 1: it in a way that's useful. It's not a clachia.
Speaker 2: So you just describe the resolution of it. So you
Speaker 2: recognize that you're angry about something and you just can't
Speaker 2: see straight because you're so angry. And then by recognizing,
Speaker 2: wait a minute, I'm angry and I'm angry about this,
Speaker 2: So you're doing some self therapy, is what it sounds like.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Like, you know, I can be angry that there's
Speaker 1: violence in my community and it just really pisses me off,
Speaker 1: and I'm just like, I have a daughter. I want
Speaker 1: her to be safe, you know, So instead of just
Speaker 1: sitting in my house and just brewing on this anger
Speaker 1: and it's creating notts in my body, I can recognize, like,
Speaker 1: you know, my daughter's safe is important to me, and
Speaker 1: I'm going to connect community. I'm going to figure out
Speaker 1: I'm going to work with some people figure out solutions
Speaker 1: to this problem. And then all of a sudden, I'm
Speaker 1: using that energy behind the anger in a way that's
Speaker 1: helpful instead of in a way that's harm harming mostly myself, right,
Speaker 1: because I'm the one who's creating notts within. So that's
Speaker 1: like how an emotion isn't really good or bad, but
Speaker 1: it's how we experience it, how we express it. So
Speaker 1: when the emotion becomes something that we're not processing well
Speaker 1: and that's creating nots, then it becomes a clacia. Then
Speaker 1: it becomes a poison in our body, and it's creating
Speaker 1: blocks in the body which can lead to illness and
Speaker 1: imbalance and disease.
Speaker 2: And I love this because you are working with these
Speaker 2: cliches by acknowledging them, doing a meditation with the mantra,
Speaker 2: and then physically doing your your poses to release it mind, body,
Speaker 2: and spirit. Is do I got that right?
Speaker 1: Yeah? All of that because it's that's what I wanted
Speaker 1: to bring. What through this book is just saying that,
Speaker 1: you know, yoga really is holistic, like we have to
Speaker 1: approach it from all these angles. If we're just doing
Speaker 1: the movement or we're just doing the meditation, we might
Speaker 1: not actually get to the roots of our blocks and
Speaker 1: our wounds and have like lasting healing and growth. Because
Speaker 1: as you know, and all of us experience, like we
Speaker 1: do a yoga class, whether it's movement or meditation, and
Speaker 1: we feel so good after, Like they're powerful practices. Yeah,
Speaker 1: but you know, after traveling so much and talking to people,
Speaker 1: but people would come to me and they would say, like,
Speaker 1: I do yoga and I feel peace for like twenty minutes.
Speaker 1: But that that peace and freedom that's written in the
Speaker 1: ancient texts, that like not many people are experiencing that,
Speaker 1: which is like a lasting piece. It's like a piece
Speaker 1: that no matter what's going on in our inner world
Speaker 1: or outer world, we're like rooted in this okayeness, and
Speaker 1: we can bring that piece to our surroundings. Like that's
Speaker 1: something that's become rare. And I feel like that does
Speaker 1: require a holistic practice. You know, we're working on all
Speaker 1: these different layers of ourselves.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I like that. In your research for your book,
Speaker 2: did you discover that the Sanskrit passages of ading passages
Speaker 2: give examples of these class and people having these problems.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's very like in the Yoga sutras, it
Speaker 1: lays it out very clearly that they identify five major
Speaker 1: cliches which are anger, attachment, fear mostly fear of death.
Speaker 1: What are the other ones? Pride or feeling of separation
Speaker 1: between self and other and then the other biggest cliche's
Speaker 1: delusion like illusion, illusion like thinking that you're separate, you know,
Speaker 1: are thinking that the divine doesn't live within you, powerless.
Speaker 2: You're totally disattached.
Speaker 1: Yeah, to be you know, detached from that that wisdom
Speaker 1: and that that those eternal truths that we are connected,
Speaker 1: what science is telling us now that we are all interconnected,
Speaker 1: we're part of one big energy field. You know, that's
Speaker 1: delusion when you when you live not in accordance with
Speaker 1: those eternal truths.
Speaker 2: This do do another emotional uh problem that a lot
Speaker 2: of people have, which is depression. Yeah, let's talk about
Speaker 2: how you would go about processing that emotion. What would
Speaker 2: you recommend?
Speaker 1: You know, I would like contemplation and journaling are huge
Speaker 1: parts of the journey, So I would recommend writing about it,
Speaker 1: like getting try to get clear on like what is
Speaker 1: causing the depression, Like where did it start? How is
Speaker 1: it deepening? What what am I experiencing in my body
Speaker 1: and my mind, my heart when when I'm feeling afflicted
Speaker 1: with the depression, and then doing a certain certain breath
Speaker 1: works that are uplifting, you know, Like a lot of
Speaker 1: praniama practices, they each have different effects, you know, So
Speaker 1: for depression, I would probably recommend like a faster like
Speaker 1: a bastrika kabati where you're doing more like rapid breaths
Speaker 1: that are uplifting and energizing and.
Speaker 2: What do you call it the shan asanas as excuse me, Yeah,
Speaker 2: that's what you're doing with this kind of stuff.
Speaker 1: Right, that's funny. I'm the breathwork is pranyamayah and then
Speaker 1: the asna is the postures. And depression really affects vian
Speaker 1: a value, which is the full body. So doing any
Speaker 1: kind of movement is great for depression. So a movement
Speaker 1: practice that's touching upon all parts of the body would
Speaker 1: be good for depression. Then nurturing yourself with rest and
Speaker 1: good food, nutritious food, good community. And one of the
Speaker 1: practices that I offer for depression is actually service, you know,
Speaker 1: to get out of your mind a little bit and
Speaker 1: distract yourself in a good way through service by getting
Speaker 1: absorbed and giving to someone rather than like letting the
Speaker 1: mind ruminate about what is causing the depression and.
Speaker 2: Services that it's fantastic. In the book, your book, Yogi's Way,
Speaker 2: you have the twelve pillars of the Yogi's Way. What
Speaker 2: are the twelve pillars? Talk about that?
Speaker 1: Yeah, so the twelve pillars. One is community ar matras,
Speaker 1: which I mentioned breath, you know, to expyand our energy
Speaker 1: through breath. The third is healthy thoughts to recognize the
Speaker 1: thoughts that are harming yourself and others and to engage
Speaker 1: in practices to create new habits a positive thinking. Another
Speaker 1: is mantra mantras. A lot of manthras are like affirmations,
Speaker 1: you know, if we have the habit to being down
Speaker 1: on ourselves and thinking like I'm stupid, I'm incapable, I can't.
Speaker 1: A lot of manthras are very uplifting, like giving us
Speaker 1: the message that I am powerful, I am capable, I'm strong,
Speaker 1: i am pure, I can you know, I can face
Speaker 1: my challenges. I can overcome my challenges.
Speaker 2: Let me stop you real quickly, Rima. Are you suggesting
Speaker 2: that we can use lautras in our meditation. Absolutely, I
Speaker 2: mean that's what I use mind for but mine's just
Speaker 2: a sound that helps me harmonize. So you're suggesting, and
Speaker 2: they feel almost like affirmations in the form of a mantra.
Speaker 1: There are a lot more about that.
Speaker 2: I love that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but you can also do mantras while you're folding
Speaker 1: her laundry or doing the dishes or driving, you know,
Speaker 1: which is like that's I mean. I speak about my
Speaker 1: grandmother in the book, and her main practice was mantra.
Speaker 1: But she she had mantras in her mind all day,
Speaker 1: you know, while she's cooking, grocery, shopping, sewing clothes for
Speaker 1: her daughters, you know. And so there's like and I
Speaker 1: write about how her life was very challenging. She was
Speaker 1: a lot of oppression and patriarchy that she dealt with,
Speaker 1: but she had so much in her joy and like
Speaker 1: this like unshakable peace, and it came from those mantras,
Speaker 1: like just constantly having them moving through her mind. She
Speaker 1: had so much resilience, you know. So the mantras are
Speaker 1: very powerful.
Speaker 2: Talk about how that would work because I think our
Speaker 2: listeners are like, what I'm just talking about something, I'm
Speaker 2: just you know, what's she talking about? Give us the
Speaker 2: meat and potatoes of it, because I can't explain how
Speaker 2: the mantra works for me because I remember when I
Speaker 2: I mean, I was like eighteen or something and I
Speaker 2: was given my mantra, and the first time I did
Speaker 2: a meditation, I went so deep. It kind of scared
Speaker 2: me because I wasn't asleep, but I was deeply altered.
Speaker 2: And I want you to talk a little bit about
Speaker 2: how a sound repeated can change us.
Speaker 1: Sure, I'll mention the mantra that I introduced in the book.
Speaker 1: One of them is so hum and there's so many
Speaker 1: layers to it.
Speaker 2: So it's only ten thousand years old, Clerk, it's just.
Speaker 1: And this is another example of how in tune the
Speaker 1: Yogis were because they've found that and they I'll just
Speaker 1: say one of the basic teachings in the Vedas, the
Speaker 1: oldest yoga scripture, they say, don't believe anything until you
Speaker 1: experience it yourself. So these practices are totally non dogmatic.
Speaker 1: It's like reiterated in the Upani sheds and a lot
Speaker 1: of the Yogic wisdom texts. Only believe what you experience directly.
Speaker 1: Like the purpose of all the practices is again, loosen
Speaker 1: the knots in your body and in your mind. Why
Speaker 1: so that you can have a direct experience of what
Speaker 1: lies inside of you, you know. So it doesn't on
Speaker 1: one level, it doesn't even matter what anyone says. It's
Speaker 1: nice to have the seeds of the potential of the practices,
Speaker 1: but it's like only believe what you experience. So even
Speaker 1: what I'm about to say about so hum, the ancient
Speaker 1: yogis they they were so in tune that they found
Speaker 1: that the vibration of the inhale is so and the
Speaker 1: vibration of the exhale is hum. So they said, when
Speaker 1: you meditate, when you do a breath meditation, you can
Speaker 1: add this layer of mantra with your meditation. So with
Speaker 1: the inhale, hum, with the x hill, and another layer
Speaker 1: of that is in Sanskrit, So comes from the root
Speaker 1: verb sa, which means to be, to have to have agency,
Speaker 1: and hum means to let go, to release, to yeah,
Speaker 1: just to let go of. And so with every inhale sake.
Speaker 1: So with the inhale, you're connecting with your inner power,
Speaker 1: with your possibility that lies within. And with every exhale
Speaker 1: you're letting go of what you don't mean that's inside
Speaker 1: of you. And and but even if you don't know
Speaker 1: that that meaning, just you know, meditating with the breath
Speaker 1: and tapping into the vibration of soul and hum can
Speaker 1: put you into an altered state.
Speaker 2: You know, you're thinking it in your mind, So hum
Speaker 2: so and relaxing and breathing, and you're shifting. I guess
Speaker 2: you're suggesting that we're begining to shift by using those mantras.
Speaker 1: Yeah, so with the inhale and hum with the x
Speaker 1: him and another layer of that meaning of so hum
Speaker 1: is I am that. So I have to say that
Speaker 1: I don't actually agree with how even the definition of
Speaker 1: yoga that's mainstream now, which is union and mind, body
Speaker 1: and spirit. Like we do align mind, body and spirit
Speaker 1: and yoga. But I feel when I look at the
Speaker 1: ancient texts, the meaning of yoga is very clear that
Speaker 1: it's union with your soul or union with consciousness, your
Speaker 1: innermost being. And we work with the mind and body,
Speaker 1: like we loosen the knots in the mind and body
Speaker 1: so we can connect with our soul or consciousness or
Speaker 1: the deepest part of ourselves. But really the meaning of
Speaker 1: yoga's union with soul or union with consciousness. I love
Speaker 1: that and what's so hum getting back to the mantra. Well,
Speaker 1: but it also means I am that which is saying
Speaker 1: that I am not my body, which is constantly changing.
Speaker 1: I'm not my mind, which is full of thoughts and
Speaker 1: emotions that are constantly changing. I am that. I am
Speaker 1: that infinite consciousness, you know, that infinite field of possibility.
Speaker 1: That's what I truly am. So soham means that I
Speaker 1: am that. And if you're meditating and your mind gets
Speaker 1: gripped by the paw to the future, you can come
Speaker 1: back to that monthra. So I'm not that thought, I'm
Speaker 1: not that fear about the future. That I am that
Speaker 1: infinite consciousness.
Speaker 2: I love that. We're going to take a short commercial
Speaker 2: break to allow our sponsors to identify themselves, and we
Speaker 2: will return shortly with my guest today, Rima Data, discussing
Speaker 2: her new book, The Yogi's Way. Will return shortly. Today's
Speaker 2: author is Rima Data. She is the author of The
Speaker 2: Yogi's Way. Brand new book just came out and it's
Speaker 2: available on Amazon. This is really a good text for
Speaker 2: those of you who are interested in yoga, and it's
Speaker 2: a beginner's guide to addressing the ancient wisdom of the
Speaker 2: Hindus and the Vedic text. You're a Yogi sage, you've
Speaker 2: been practicing and learning. Is the use of a mantra
Speaker 2: as you're within a pose recommended or is that post
Speaker 2: supposed to be the aftermath of the meditation?
Speaker 1: Well, the pose leads to meditation, you know. So the
Speaker 1: purpose of the pose on one level is to get
Speaker 1: the body open and comfortable enough to sit and meditate,
Speaker 1: because sitting in like we get fidgety, the legs are
Speaker 1: we just pain that pain right, then that like, if
Speaker 1: the body is open and you know, centered and grounded,
Speaker 1: that whole purpose originally of usna was to be able
Speaker 1: to sit and meditate.
Speaker 2: Oh, so the poses are the prelude to the actual
Speaker 2: deep meditation, So they kind of prepare the mind.
Speaker 1: Yes, and mantras are also. It's all kind of a preparation.
Speaker 1: Breath work, mantra, it's all a preparation to be able
Speaker 1: to sit in quietness, because when we're sitting and we're
Speaker 1: just quiet, that's when we can really connect with consciousness
Speaker 1: and con rciousness. Is this like vast, like infinite field
Speaker 1: of possibility as we say, it's like the underlying reality,
Speaker 1: which to me, it's very interesting that quantum physicists are
Speaker 1: saying the same thing. They're saying, behind every person, behind
Speaker 1: every object is just a field of pure potentiality, right Like,
Speaker 1: we're ninety nine every object, including each of us, we're
Speaker 1: ninety nine percent empty space, and so we don't have
Speaker 1: to be attached to any label, right Like if I
Speaker 1: grew up thinking I am stupid, like that's just I'm
Speaker 1: actually nine nine zero point nine percent empty space like
Speaker 1: pure potential. So I can change that thought I'm stupid
Speaker 1: to I am brilliant, you know, And we start to
Speaker 1: experience what our mind dwells on. We experience like that's
Speaker 1: a teaching from the Vedas.
Speaker 2: You touched on the divine. When we meditate with these mantras,
Speaker 2: are we automatic connecting to the divine? Or is it
Speaker 2: a process where we step by step release, unfold and
Speaker 2: evolve and then at some level, I'm connecting with universal mind.
Speaker 2: I don't know what that means. Universal mind. I think
Speaker 2: off the top of my head, I think of the
Speaker 2: Akashik records that everyone talks about, this universal library of
Speaker 2: data that I have a question. Oh, I'm downloading it now,
Speaker 2: but what's your what's your explanation?
Speaker 1: For that, I think it depends on the person and
Speaker 1: where they where they are, you know, like for some
Speaker 1: people mantras can be tools to loosen knots and blocks,
Speaker 1: and for some people who are more open, the mantra
Speaker 1: can just directly connect you to the divine and to
Speaker 1: pure consciousness, which like you know, maybe that what did
Speaker 1: you call universal mind? Yeah, I think of it as
Speaker 1: pure consciousness. That's kind of the Yogic term for this
Speaker 1: dimension that's within us and around us, that's just vast
Speaker 1: and eternal and infinite and quiet. And when we're when
Speaker 1: we can rest our mind on consciousness, that quietness and
Speaker 1: that vastness, we can connect to wisdom, and we can
Speaker 1: gain insights and we can even heal because it's it's
Speaker 1: it's like a source of energy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm kind of moving a little h into heart
Speaker 2: edge stuff, Rima, I'm kind of I'm asking you, like Rema,
Speaker 2: I want to download a new musical piece. I want
Speaker 2: to download, you know, not that I want to do that,
Speaker 2: but it's far like and I hear there's people on
Speaker 2: my shoulder thinking, you know, can I get can I
Speaker 2: connect with Tesla or connect you know, I'm not going
Speaker 2: that far, but you know, what level can we gain
Speaker 2: from this practice? Because I keep thinking, you know that
Speaker 2: the ancients who invented this stuff were really aware of
Speaker 2: universal mind.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean it's a great question because in the
Speaker 1: text they talk about Sidney's like, if we really get
Speaker 1: clear and open, if we really loosen all those grunt thies,
Speaker 1: those knots, we can start experiencing Siddy's which is like
Speaker 1: clairvoyant's bilepathy. Remote viewing, so maybe you can actually connect
Speaker 1: with Tesla or like whatever, you know, because that's what
Speaker 1: remote viewing is. And it's fascinating to me that, you know,
Speaker 1: the American government has spent billions of dollars researching remote viewing, yes,
Speaker 1: the CIA, and you know, you for intelligence purposes, but
Speaker 1: also to explore consciousness. So I mean, I think that's
Speaker 1: what it can lead to. Yeah, but yeah, sorry.
Speaker 2: So go ahead, I want you to finish. And here's
Speaker 2: the secret to talking to Tesla.
Speaker 1: Right, But since there's that potential, at the very least,
Speaker 1: we can experience peace of mind, you know, and just
Speaker 1: calm and stability, which is huguis in a world where
Speaker 1: so many people are suffering with anxiety and depression and stress.
Speaker 2: Yeah, So I think what you're saying, and this is
Speaker 2: an important message I think you're passing on to us,
Speaker 2: is that because of the complexity of our world right now,
Speaker 2: unseen energy wi fi people who are upsetting to us
Speaker 2: cause trauma. The more important thing is to have the vessel,
Speaker 2: the body in harmony with the universal forms of energy
Speaker 2: and nature. And this is what we do with these
Speaker 2: mantras and with these poses. That's the key. If you're
Speaker 2: then if you're a pure soul, then asks Tesla, what's
Speaker 2: going on?
Speaker 1: Right? Yeah?
Speaker 2: Was that kind of the message?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think it's more important than ever for us
Speaker 1: to you know, find alignment within ourselves, take care of ourselves,
Speaker 1: nurture ourselves, change harmful patterns, not just for ourselves, but
Speaker 1: just knowing that so many people around us are suffering
Speaker 1: and we could become a healing force, you know, for
Speaker 1: our surroundings, like not just the people, but the environment.
Speaker 1: And because that's you know, one of the teachings of
Speaker 1: ancient yoga that's also seen throughout the world is that
Speaker 1: we our energies affect each other and the and the
Speaker 1: larger unit that we're all a part of. So even
Speaker 1: if you're like, oh, well, I'm fine, you know, I
Speaker 1: have peace of mind, my body's healthy. It's just it's
Speaker 1: good for us to remember that we don't actually do
Speaker 1: these practices just for ourselves, like for our own peace
Speaker 1: of mind, our own physical health, but we do it
Speaker 1: to create a vibration that helped the whole.
Speaker 2: You know, that's important. So you're talking about being a beacon,
Speaker 2: a stable force for the for the collective.
Speaker 1: Is that what you're suggesting, And it's really important, you know.
Speaker 1: In the in the text, it's emphasized to have that motivation,
Speaker 1: and they actually say when you have a motivation to practice,
Speaker 1: you know, for the benefit of all, then the universe
Speaker 1: supports you. It's like you're blessed. Your practice is blessed.
Speaker 1: You are blessed, and you'll be able to practice daily,
Speaker 1: you know, because even like it's almost a luxury right
Speaker 1: to have a daily practice and to carve out time
Speaker 1: every day for your practices, but you'll have that blessing
Speaker 1: to be able to practice when you have that bigger motivation.
Speaker 2: You know, this is amazing what you're saying. This is
Speaker 2: just exactly the genius of the Vedas is that through
Speaker 2: practice you open space and actually you're creating your own reality. Yeah,
Speaker 2: of betterment, right, absolutely? Yeah, can you talk a little
Speaker 2: bit about reality creation through the vessel of yoga.
Speaker 1: So it again comes back to our thoughts, like all
Speaker 1: of these teachings about how powerful our thoughts are, and
Speaker 1: the Yogis would they explain how every time we have
Speaker 1: a thought, it's like planting a seed in the mind, right,
Speaker 1: and what happens with seeds Someday they sprout, right, and
Speaker 1: so the world. The Yogis would say the same thing
Speaker 1: as the quantum physicists, that the world is a field
Speaker 1: of pure potentiality. But the way that we experience the
Speaker 1: world is based on the seeds in the mind that
Speaker 1: come from our own thoughts, you know, And so so
Speaker 1: as those seeds sprout, they color our reality. So if
Speaker 1: I have these thoughts that you know, everyone is cruel
Speaker 1: and I'm cruel to people, and I'm going to be
Speaker 1: I'm going to live in a world where everyone's cruel
Speaker 1: to each other. But if I really do my best
Speaker 1: to be kind and my thoughts and my words and
Speaker 1: my thoughts not just my words and actions, but even
Speaker 1: my thoughts, then all of a sudden, I'm living in
Speaker 1: a world where I just see kindness everywhere you know,
Speaker 1: and then that snowballs and expands. But the basic teaching
Speaker 1: is that the world is actually empty of any fixed
Speaker 1: quality or characteristic, and even you and I are empty
Speaker 1: of any fixed quality or characteristic. But the way we
Speaker 1: experience ourselves, other people, the world itself comes from the
Speaker 1: seeds in our minds. And a lot of us have
Speaker 1: experienced trauma, and you know, some of the seeds are painful.
Speaker 1: But what the Yogis emphasize is that as traumatic as
Speaker 1: anything has been, like we have, we can change those seeds,
Speaker 1: we can plant new seeds, and we can create a
Speaker 1: new reality, a new personal reality.
Speaker 2: Do you read in these scriptures about resonate, resonating at
Speaker 2: certain frequencies, you know, being your pure self. The best
Speaker 2: way to do it is through these practices and clearing
Speaker 2: out traumas and clearing out crap so that you're a
Speaker 2: you're resonating a certain frequency for and opening to the
Speaker 2: ability to create the world that you want. It might
Speaker 2: be a little metaphysical, but I'm just wondering what your
Speaker 2: feelings are.
Speaker 1: Yeah, So the texts say that we are inseparable from
Speaker 1: the divine, So it's like if the if the divine
Speaker 1: was the sun, then we're like sun rays, you know,
Speaker 1: we're inseparable from it, and we are made of the
Speaker 1: same essence. The divine is like pure potential again, the
Speaker 1: field of infinite possibility, and so are we. So when
Speaker 1: we get into tune and alignment and vibrate with the
Speaker 1: frequency without all those knots and blocks, then we can
Speaker 1: experience ourselves as that infinite being, and then we really
Speaker 1: tap into the gifts we were born to give and
Speaker 1: nurture those gifts and give them because again it's about
Speaker 1: the practice. Is it not about getting anything you know
Speaker 1: from the world, but it's about getting into such a
Speaker 1: beautiful alignment that we can connect. We can discover what
Speaker 1: our gifts are, and we can nurture them, and then
Speaker 1: we can actually give them. And that's where the peace
Speaker 1: and happiness and fulfillment come from.
Speaker 2: And the thing that that's wonderful about what you're saying, Rima,
Speaker 2: is that we're connecting with the soul, and the soul
Speaker 2: is the higher wisdom, the higher self that had a
Speaker 2: plan in place when you incarnated, right, So when you're
Speaker 2: clear and pure and trauma free, you're able to connect
Speaker 2: with that soul level existence, which is you know, you're
Speaker 2: a pretty cool person, male or female.
Speaker 1: Yeah, at the sole level, we're cool definitely. You know.
Speaker 1: I'll tell you a story because all of these teachings
Speaker 1: I've learned because at some point or another, I forgot myself,
Speaker 1: you know. So I mentioned in the book that I
Speaker 1: learned yoga initially from my grandparents. Yeah, tell you. Like
Speaker 1: I after one year of teaching yoga, which was like
Speaker 1: around two thousand and three, I went to India to
Speaker 1: visit my grandfather, and I was so happy. I was
Speaker 1: so excited to tell him that I had like quit
Speaker 1: my job and started teaching yoga. And I and so
Speaker 1: I went to the village where he lived and I
Speaker 1: and I called him Bapuji, and I said, Bapage, I'm
Speaker 1: so happy, like I quit my job. I'm teaching yoga
Speaker 1: full time. I'm practicing. I was like, so, I've never
Speaker 1: been so strong and my body I feel so good.
Speaker 1: And then he turned to me and he was like angry.
Speaker 1: He was really upset, and he said, Rieman, this is
Speaker 1: not about you. He said service. He took his two hands.
Speaker 1: He said service and spiritual. Spirituality and service go hand
Speaker 1: in hand. We do yoga for others.
Speaker 2: Oh right, what did I do?
Speaker 1: Like? Oh man, So it's like, you know, we forget.
Speaker 1: I'm just saying we forget. There's so much to it.
Speaker 1: There's so much depth, and yoga feels so good that
Speaker 1: it's like, oh, yeah, I'm doing this so I have
Speaker 1: more energy to give.
Speaker 2: So decipher that a little bit. He was angry that
Speaker 2: you had quit your job or no, you're ecstatic about
Speaker 2: what you were doing but for the wrong reasons.
Speaker 1: Yeah he was. He was totally fine that I quit
Speaker 1: my job and was teaching yoga. But it was more
Speaker 1: my Yeah that I was just thinking about myself that
Speaker 1: I feel.
Speaker 2: Goodlffish you selfish?
Speaker 1: Yeah? Yeah, he was like me and feeling good. This
Speaker 1: is about giving.
Speaker 2: You know, Hey, as we conclude, I want you to
Speaker 2: talk about this book and the twelve. Basically you break
Speaker 2: it into twelve weeks of practice and without we don't
Speaker 2: have time to go through every week. But the purpose
Speaker 2: of that is for to do what from week one
Speaker 2: to week twelve? How did you why did you design
Speaker 2: it like that? And what is your expected results for
Speaker 2: the practitioner.
Speaker 1: So I wanted to give people by the end of
Speaker 1: the book, you have a seventy minute practice that you
Speaker 1: can do it on your own at home if you like.
Speaker 1: And it's a holistic practice, So I was I wanted
Speaker 1: to give people a practice that they could do on
Speaker 1: their own and their home, and that is holistic that
Speaker 1: incorporates meditation, visualization, mantre movement, subtle body awareness and understanding
Speaker 1: of how thoughts and emotions affect the inner winds, and
Speaker 1: also like journaling and awareness practices, how to actually change
Speaker 1: our thoughts, Like, once we realize how certain thoughts are
Speaker 1: creating harm, how can we actually change them? And not
Speaker 1: just for a moment, but like, how can we actually
Speaker 1: lead to lasting change? So that was the purpose of
Speaker 1: the twelve weeks, to give at least a feeling for
Speaker 1: all those pillars, visualization, meditation, breathwork, all of it.
Speaker 2: Okay, and you design the book for the beginner, for
Speaker 2: the intermediate, or for the advanced user.
Speaker 1: I designed it for a beginner that anyone, you know,
Speaker 1: even if you don't have a background in yoga, that
Speaker 1: you can pick it up and get a practice from.
Speaker 1: But I also designed it for you know, seasoned teachers
Speaker 1: who haven't been exposed to these other dimensions of yoga,
Speaker 1: so that they can bring it into their practice into
Speaker 1: their teachings. So it's it's it can be good for beginners,
Speaker 1: and if any beginners are having find it difficult, then
Speaker 1: they can always join our online community because we go
Speaker 1: through the practices as a community. I do twelve week
Speaker 1: courses where we go through the book together.
Speaker 2: Excellent, so they can are you on Zoom or another
Speaker 2: video channel.
Speaker 1: We do the classes on Zoom, but all the information
Speaker 1: is on my website and I'm actually starting a twelve
Speaker 1: week journey March sixteenth, so if anyone would like to
Speaker 1: hop on to that community.
Speaker 2: So the book's called The Yoga's Way, excuse me, the
Speaker 2: yugas the Yogi's Way transform your mind, health and reality.
Speaker 2: And my guest has been Rima Data. Give us your
Speaker 2: web dress how people can get a hold of you,
Speaker 2: and you just give us your twelve week program, so
Speaker 2: you know, give us the details.
Speaker 1: Yeah, So the easiest is to go on to Rima
Speaker 1: yoga dot com, r E E m a yoga dot
Speaker 1: com and then that'll have all the information about the
Speaker 1: book and the twelve week course And if anyone's interested
Speaker 1: in teacher trainings, then that's also. Rema Yoga is also
Speaker 1: my Instagram and social media.
Speaker 2: Excellent, and that's fantastic. What do you want to leave
Speaker 2: us with, Rema, What's what are you feeling about where
Speaker 2: we're at right now? As as I'm talking about Western culture,
Speaker 2: not the world, what's happening with us in the United States.
Speaker 1: I think I think like yoga has helped so many
Speaker 1: people with their physical health, but I feel like peace,
Speaker 1: like in our peace has become something very rare. Yeah,
Speaker 1: And I just want people to know that, like, whatever
Speaker 1: you've been through and whatever craziness is going on in
Speaker 1: the world, like we can cultivate in our peace, and
Speaker 1: we can bring that to the world because I think
Speaker 1: a lot of us right now are more sensitive to
Speaker 1: the types of oppression that exists, racism, sexism, all the
Speaker 1: things that are going on, and we want so badly
Speaker 1: to change things and for the world to just be
Speaker 1: a better place for all of us. And that's great,
Speaker 1: and may we may we make the efforts to do that.
Speaker 1: But at the same time, what we do have control
Speaker 1: over is our own you know, thoughts and emotions and
Speaker 1: what we're what we're cultivating within ourselves, And if we
Speaker 1: can cultivate in our peace, then we can bring that
Speaker 1: to the world. And that can be a powerful way
Speaker 1: to change things, you know. So I just want people
Speaker 1: to know that that's possible, because it can feel really impossible,
Speaker 1: and especially when we're gripped with these kinds of emotions
Speaker 1: like depression and sorrow, anxiety, shame, anger, it can feel
Speaker 1: really hard. But just to know that it is one
Speaker 1: hundred percent possible to create peace inside of ourselves and
Speaker 1: bring it to the world.
Speaker 2: Fantastic. It is a well written book. It has a
Speaker 2: lot of good material in it, and it is a
Speaker 2: it's a I guess you're writing it for the beginner.
Speaker 2: It has a lot of technique in it as well,
Speaker 2: which is fantastic. So, hey, much success on this and
Speaker 2: is it when did it come out? Did it come
Speaker 2: out in December?
Speaker 1: The book?
Speaker 2: You know what?
Speaker 1: Then? Release date is today, February.
Speaker 2: It's available now, I hope.
Speaker 1: Yeah, just today was the official release date on the
Speaker 1: first interview.
Speaker 2: Fantastic okay, So I would imagine it's available on Amazon
Speaker 2: for people to get it. Yeah, okay, Hey, much success
Speaker 2: on this book. And I really appreciate you being on
Speaker 2: the program.
Speaker 1: Oh, thanks for having me. It's been so fun to talk.
Speaker 1: I want to.
Speaker 2: Mention that yoga is a progressive practice, and that means
Speaker 2: that you get the basics of the postures and then
Speaker 2: you can choose from the different techniques. I do Hatha yoga,
Speaker 2: which is about holding postures for a periods of time
Speaker 2: let them sink in a little bit. But there's other types.
Speaker 2: There's even a hot yoga where you could go to
Speaker 2: a studio and it's hot. They turn the heater up
Speaker 2: and it loosens your muscles a little bit, and some
Speaker 2: people love it. I am not a big fan Birkham yoga,
Speaker 2: but the point being, there's various types of settings and
Speaker 2: various styles. She talks a little bit about him. Rihima
Speaker 2: brings it up in the book, so get something to
Speaker 2: choose from. I honestly believe that everybody who can should
Speaker 2: do some form of stretching, especially the of the spine.
Speaker 2: That's a long energy cords, a long spinal cord. And
Speaker 2: if you stretch that and you keep it flexible, your
Speaker 2: chances of being ill, of losing flexibility, of being infirmed,
Speaker 2: you know, kind of like locked to your chair as
Speaker 2: you're elder, as you're getting older, is lessened. And I
Speaker 2: also think that your chances of longevity increase substantially too,
Speaker 2: and I think there's in fact, I know there's a
Speaker 2: number of studies that show that people do do yoga
Speaker 2: into their retirement ages are much better off than those
Speaker 2: who don't. So great to have her on again. The
Speaker 2: book The Yogi's Way Transform Your Mind, Health and Reality
Speaker 2: just came out, and it's funny because today was the
Speaker 2: day that it hit the streets. So fun fun to
Speaker 2: have around the program that kind of is another concluding
Speaker 2: show on these ancient techniques. And you know, it's funny
Speaker 2: because I was considering adding yoga to the biohacking It's
Speaker 2: not really considered a biohacking tool, but it is a
Speaker 2: bio hacking tool because it has such great benefits. And
Speaker 2: you know, people go to the gym and they do cardio.
Speaker 2: I mean, I'm one of these people. I go to
Speaker 2: the gym and do cardio and I do some weights,
Speaker 2: but I'll tell you I don't feel as good as
Speaker 2: when I'm done with doing a yoga posture. And my
Speaker 2: yogas sessions and only go for about half and half
Speaker 2: an hour thirty minutes, so they don't have to be
Speaker 2: longer drawn out. And I even do a yoga session
Speaker 2: when I'm not feeling well, and I think about at
Speaker 2: least six months ago. Six months ago, I ripped my
Speaker 2: intercostal muscles, these are the muscles between your rib cage
Speaker 2: on the right side, doing some uh weightlifting, and I
Speaker 2: couldn't do anything. The only thing I could do was
Speaker 2: a few other weightlifting exercises and my yoga. Now I
Speaker 2: had to be very gentle when I'd bent and turned
Speaker 2: on that right side, but I still got through it.
Speaker 2: I healed a lot quicker. And I'll tell you it
Speaker 2: is not to be missed. Yoga, yoga, yoga. It's really
Speaker 2: you know, and we talk about this. It's one of
Speaker 2: our ancestors health wise techniques. So we need to consider
Speaker 2: these ancient but very very sophisticated sachia and treata yog
Speaker 2: yoga technique. So get back on, get back to where
Speaker 2: your ancestors were and do some yoga. If you're enjoying
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Speaker 2: all right, I said, for this program, I want to
Speaker 2: thank my guest today, Rima Data coming to us from
Speaker 2: taois New Mexico. As always a team of Gil tour,
Speaker 2: Mark Foster and everyone who makes this thing happen. You
Speaker 2: guys rock all right, take care of you well and
Speaker 2: we will talk to you next time. COMMU