Thanks to @RajivMessage and supporters of the Infinity foundation (like http://beingdifferentforum.blogspot.de/) for doing immense research and coming up with concrete solutions that helps the likes of a Yoga teacher like me. Based on readings and their experiences, some of the framework and references have been significantly altered in my Yoga teachings in western paadigm and world. Following are possibly my own interactions which may or may not be thought by other sources.
Soul vs Atma
Open any yoga website or modern age Gurus English terminology, you will find the following- Body, Mind and Soul. Any Indian reader would miss its obvious Anglicized twisting and digestion of meanings which have far deeper impact to unassuming yoga teacher and unassuming yoga student.
In Yogic version or Vedic version we have the Gayathri Mantra, Kaya- thiri or 3 bodies and meaning goes like "Let our (not mine) Buddhi be illumined by Self effulgent and may we together meditate upon the Light of the Self , the Atma"
We have a Sthula Sarira , Sukshuma Sarira , Karana Sarira and then the Atma as per the Gayathri mantra.
Try mapping this to Body Mind Soul paradigm and what you get is
Body - Sthula
Mind - Sukshuma
Soul - Karana
(Am NOT delving here into chitta, samskaras, buddhi , ahamkar tattva)
And what does western yoga studios and lot of modern indian yoga ashrams tell you , Go to your soul , Go to our Core.The above mapping is incompatible. The Atmic concept of the western followers is therefore nothing but the Empowerment of Jeeva with all its defects refusing to submit itself to nameless. Others soul has therefore become the Ego and ones own "Soul".
Bharathiya version is Atma asks for Buddhi to meditate on the Atma which is pure, defectless, already liberated , sanatan etc. Since the Atma is impersonal , there is no your atma and my atma per say but there can your soul and my soul which is going through birth-death phenemenon. In tamil its called uyir (உயிர்)
As a result, a set of Methodology has been created where being the Self degenerated as being the Soul, has actually become being the Ego, a ego with full puff of knowledge. By the power vested thanks to the mayic understanding of one Self as the Soul , they go to transform the lesser Egos. This is state of the western and confused indian yoga centers today. A classic case of blind leading the blind.
The Bharathiya version handles this problem with the Guru Parampara where Guru is the highest Power center authority who can at the right time remove the Ego of willing seeker. Even Gods can only shower the grace but only Guru can remove the Ego.Therefore a Guru has higher position to the seeker than God. (Check Murugas imparting upadesam to Brahma or Siva or Auvaiyaar). Here Standards for Guru is the highest who has successfully removed Ego himself through his divine and Guru channel who is fit for such a thing and who is not bound by Karma of associating with the disciple (Guru is the Shakthi which made the Guru presenting itself in a human form as per Guru Brahma Guru Vishnu ....)
In the modern system, Wisdom has comes ones own life and from indian hidden sources through a bit of Guru shopping here and there which cant be fully revealed. This includes Indian practioners as well. So the modern systems has sufficiently gone on to create teacher systems which do not trace to any guru parampara and churning out trainers in 2-3 years are bypassing Guru parampara. The danger is they are preaching what they themselves could never fully practise. So you have MindFullness teachers who cant practise mindfullness, Ego removers who themselves are full of egos. But wait , this cant be told even by sincere seekers in public because their livelihood depends on it.
There is a tamil saying "paambin kaal paambariyum" (பாம்பின் கால் பாம்பறியும்)
The criteria for teacher is to experience the problem, solve it atleast partially at a certain level and then share it with the public with truthful admission of the same, given the modern circumstances. This will need tremendous sincerity and Satya in the heart provided livlihood is not on the line.
The solution is therefore to reintegrate the Self - Atma in the place of soul so that unassuming people dont seek their personal soul but the Higher Self. Beyond that the inner Guru somehow has to be made the center of practise. Yoga and Self Enquiry - atma vichara shakes the very foundations of the mind and social paradigms , this for many people has become very very depressive. The indian system complements the practioner with large heart and warm social structure where Satsanga , family and temple infrastructure , astrology supports this unique phase of the seeker. in the western world , this is provided by the commercialised pyscological counselling. Somebody has to counsel the psycologists , otherwise they would go mad in this mad world ......
From now on all my usage in all my yoga sessions would be Vedic and Vedantic terminology , 100% crediting the source of 5000 + year civilisation and my Guru parampara.....No more souls , but Self
Satguruve Saranam !
