It Takes A Living Master To Bring Alive Sutras

A spiritual practice by itself is nothing. You have to breathe life into it; otherwise, it will not
become alive. This is why traditionally, there is much reverence for a live guru. Doing yoga without a living guru is like
stillbirth. If you are looking for exercise, i would say go play tennis, take a swim, take a walk or
climb a mountain. The yogic system was not created as an exercise form. It is a subtle manipulation of your
system to allow it to rise to a different level.Yoga means ‘union’. Every asana, everymudra, every way of
breathing — is focused towards ultimate union. If it has to become alive, you have to breathe life
into it. This is why yoga was given in the form of sutras.The word sutra literally means ‘thread’. Without a thread, there
is no garland, but you never wear a garland for its thread. You wear it for the fragrant flowers that it
holds. But without a thread, there is no garland. When Patanjali gave the sutras, he only gave the thread.It has been
for each master to put together the flowers,beads,pearls,or diamonds, or whatever else he likes. But
Patanjali gave the thread; you cannot change the thread, nobody can because it is a live thread. This is not something that somebody
thought up;this is not an idea.This is a very deep observation of life. So you cannot change that because that is how life is made. But what
kind of garland one makes out of this thread is left to each master or guru who comes along the way.
To make a garland out of this thread, he has to have some stuff of his own; otherwise, it is not possible to do this.
This cannot be done in a yoga studio.This will not happen because you have a certificate in yoga. Some subjectivity has to happen,
which needs sadhana. You must hold it above your life, not as your profession, not as your hobby, not
as something that you do on the side. This must be more important than your life,only then we let you teach; because without subjectivity, you
cannot breathe life into it. There are many ways to breathe life into the spiritual process. The most rudimentary way is through
sacrifice. The simple technology of this is to take a life which is young, a life which is vibrant.
When you break that life,it releases a certain amount of energy. There is a whole technology of using
that energy to convert it into another form.
Many idols are consecrated by this means. Once you have a consecrated idol, every day you must make the necessary offerings
depending upon how that particular energy form is created. Because it is not a toy to play with, it
is not a toy for you to work out your emotions. It is not a psychological tool. If you do not keep it up all the
time, it will die. Or it will become a receding energy.When it becomes a receding energy, it causes more harm than well-being.
So, constantly sacrifices were done. That is very rudimentary technology. There are more sophisticated ways of doing the
same by using one’s own energy system. This needs a certain level of mastery and development of the energy system.
If you were not restricted by the limitations of logic, if all of you were simply open, i would not waste your time and my
time talking. Everything that needs to happen, will happen, just by the presence. My work is not about changing your
attitude but to touch you at your core. A touch that will leave you transformed. Not changed but transformed.

By Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4305268.cms