The Artistic Yoga Podcast

In the fourth and final segment of this blog, Dr. Bharat Thakur dwells on the healing effects of asana. You know now, that muscles play a much larger role than just providing structural support  and generating energy for motor activities. The heart is a vital muscle of the body and what asana can do for the heart is simply, heart warming.   EPISODE 4 SEGMENTS What Stretching Does To The Body  Heal...

The body’s physiology is impacted in different ways by the different modes exercise. Understanding a little about the physiology of exercise, and how yoga effects the body deeply, Bharat talks about a source of joy that is embedded in our bodies - stretch. EPISODE 3 SEGMENTS Maximum intensity is produced in isostatic exercise  Maximum muscle fibre are used in isostatic exercise The right kind of m...

What makes muscles the source of our physical power and how does asana approach them? What kind of exercise does asana provide support to and why?  EPISODE 2 SEGMENTS The Anatomy of muscle power Actin myosin - the power couple The Three types of exercise Asana is isostatic exercise  Why does asana employ isostatic exercise?

From the moment we were conceived as a single cell our bodies have never ceased to change and it never will till we are alive. Our bodies are so sensitive that even a smell can trigger a cascade of memories and can get the heart to beat faster and even holding still for a few minutes creates powerful changes in the body.  We rarely hold still actively, but if we do so, in a well balanced posture,...

Following an introduction to ashtanga yoga in episodes 1 and 2, and a dive into the vibhuti, the powers and attainments in episode 3, Dr. Bharat Thakur now talks of the bridge between a practice that is all about losing any traces of ‘modification’ of the mind to one where the mind manifests great powers. How can these two possibilities co-exist? Or is that the real point of it all.  Episode 4 is...

In Episodes 1 and 2, Dr. Bharat Thakur took us on an introductory tour of the entire matrix of the the eight limbs, ashtanga of yoga. This was a preparation for an exploration of, “what can yoga do for me”, before we dive into the question of “what is yoga”.  In Episode 3, we dive into the ‘vibhuti’, the attainments that come along the way of the serious practitioner. What is the purpose of the oc...

In Episode 1, Dr. Bharat Thakur spoke of the three limbs of yama, niyama and asana of the eight limbs of ashtanga Yoga. The question that’s being dwelled upon is “what can yoga do for me” and the context is “what is yoga”.  In Episode 2, we discuss the deeper legs of the journey of the traveler of the inner world, as it traverses through the dimensions of pranayama, pratyaahaara, dharana, dhyaana...

“The Yogi Diary: Logs Of The Eternal Traveller” is an exploration of the question “what is Yoga” by Dr. Bharat Thakur, where the question is not seen as a target to be brought down with an apt answer, but a cue to travel, to explore, to dive deep into the basic questions that occur to each of us, as they have occurred to the great explorers of the inner world - the Siddhas, Buddhas and the Yogis. ...

How can one explore the agama, or the knowledge that is inherently within us? The knowledge that is represented by the collective unconscious, something that is transpersonal, something that all of humanity shares, something that is inherited from the archetypes. In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur delves deeper into archetypes through the exploration of the deity Kali. In a beautiful poetic way he...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur introduces us to the concept of Tantra. Tantra is a science of practice, not of scholars, however brilliant. It begins at the point where the conscious mind ends, is frustrated. You don’t stop when you have reached the limit of your analysis, the journey begins then. If you give up here you will have done all the hard work and stopped. It is like searching for th...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur explores duality. Is it possible to be in two states at the same time? This possibility questions determinism. It questions what we call deterministic reality. Through simple and beautiful examples, Bharat explains the duality of the nature of light - as a wave and a particle and explains how the duality concept rejects determinism. He ponders upon the question o...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur highlights how we often interpret the word Maya to be synonymous with  'illusion',  while it is actually measurement. He subtly points to how we begin to associate the ability to measure as a proof of reality. Hence, Maya = measurement and hence the fallacy of reality. He suggests thinking about the the theory of relativity and  Quantum Mechanics as unf...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur explains Determinism in Science. Through thrilling stories of wars amongst the greatest Science in history, he explains a very profound concept of Determinism. His simple explanation throws incredible insight and simplifies the concepts of the Theory of Relativity and Quantum Computing. He outlines the difference between deterministic approach to thinking and the...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur explores Science and Tantra, the similarities and the differences.  He points out that Science and Tantra share a common God - ‘learning’.  In order to learn, we need to be open.  Open mindedness is often observed when when one's view is challenged. He suggests that when we are  disturbed by another’s point of view, a view that is different from our view, we...

This episode is dedicated to exploring “who am I”. How does one enquire into the self? So as we study his method, the thing to realize first is that there is no reference to ‘god’, a particular faith, or a technique of meditation. It is about you. We get to understand that liberation and enlightenment cannot be stations that we can arrive at. You cannot buy a ticket to it. There is no last station...

Dr. Bharat Thakur tells the story of how Michelangelo saw Pieta in the block of stone. Michelangelo did not create it. It came to him, he ‘saw’ Pieta and he chipped away the excess marble until Pieta emerged. Michelangelo is said to have used the method of being still or quiet as the way to arriving at his ideas and sculptures. Sri Ramana Maharishi used to often answer deep philosophical questions...

Continuing on from part 1, where we studied the philosophies and journeys of Maharishi Ramana and the great Cezanne. In this episode, we delve deeper into how they perceived their journeys. Did they know where they were going? Was it a conscious choice? Did Cezanne in his passionate pursuit of his art eventually come to realise that he was the art.  Dr. Bharat Thakur very beautifully lays out the...

How do we see our journey? Do we buy a return ticket to a particular station? A monthly pass to hop on and off different stations that we visit regularly, a series of small journeys to be completed ever day? Or, a one way ticket to the last station? Or perhaps, even a one way ticket to the station beyond the last...to oblivion? What drives each passenger to choose his journey? Where do we really w...

In this episode, Dr. Bharat Thakur explains the 5 factors of cooking - 'rasa', 'guna', 'veerya', 'vipaka' and 'prabhava'. Rasa is not just taste as we know it. Beautiful aspects of 'sneha' and 'andaaz' go into creating it. If every recipe has a method, process and timing, why then does the same dish taste differently depending o...

Spice: the three great fires "First comes food and then everything else". Dr. Bharat Thakur traces some of the greatest historical events and how spices have had a part of play in them. The highlights key events in the evolution of mankind before and after the discovery of fire and then before and after the discovery of spices. Spices brought traders and then invaders to the borders of I...

In this episode, we learn about awakening the breath body. We explore Swara yoga which constitutes two of the four steps to awakening the breath body.  Bharat compares the 72,000 nadis in our body to rivulets. As in the case of a river where the rivulets lead to the ocean, in our bodies too, the nadis or rivulets lead to the great river called the kundalini. The nadis join to form 3 major rivers o...

In this episode, Bharat continues to explore the vayus, diving deeper into the fifth of the five major vayus, Vyana Vayu.  We often become identified with our thoughts, our body, our feelings, our memories….and we are often asked to practice detachment in order to separate ourselves from these. It is very hard to practice detachment. However, attaching ourselves to our breath offers a path to deta...

In this episode we go deeper into the breath. We examine how to access our entire being by delving into the breath.  The difference between sleep and meditation is one of unconscious and conscious relaxation. Through meditation, we  can enter a state of deep relaxation and this can be achieved through awareness of the breath.  Our breath mirrors our state. We  breathe very different when we are ag...

The intense longing for the goal begins when we are “done” with all that we have been craving and been busy with - recognition, wealth, ego, ….now we crave for something deeper, something lasting. In yoga, this is the sign of “now I am ready”. Through the retelling of a fable in which a young boy who deep desire to be a musician takes him to a master, Bharat highlights the maturity, readiness, pre...

The key to the greatest quality of life lies in our breath. The science of the breath begins and ends with just one word, “awareness”. By breathing with awareness, we begin the process of witnessing. Every effort to become aware of the breath influences the breath itself.  In the episode, Bharat examines healing through awareness of the breath. Through the retelling of a fable, he explains what it...