Tag: spirituality
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Yoga as Living Mythology: Why Hindu Deities, Mantras, and Sacred Symbols Belong in Practice
In contemporary Western yoga culture, studios increasingly strive for neutrality, often removing statues of Hindu deities, omitting Sanskrit chants, and reframing yoga as a purely physical wellness practice. This trend reflects a broader discomfort with religion and mythology in public spaces, driven by fear of alienating students unfamiliar with or resistant to spiritual symbolism. Yet…
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Iran: the universal struggle between control and conscience
The unfolding protests and state repression in Iran during early 2026 can be understood not only through political analysis but also through symbolic and spiritual frameworks drawn from cyclical theories of history. In Hindu cosmology, history moves through four repeating ages, or yugas, culminating in Kali Yuga, the final and most degenerate era. Classical texts describe Kali…
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Chakra Guide
The seven traditional chakras form the foundation of the human energetic system.They describe how consciousness moves through the body, from survival and sensation, to will, love, expression, perception, and ultimately awareness itself. These centers originate in classical yogic and tantric traditions, where the chakras are understood as psycho-energetic gateways linking body, mind, and spirit. They…
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Explaining the Layers of Reality in Theosophy and Sankhya
Theosophy and the Sankhya school of Indian philosophy present a hierarchical cosmology that attempts to explain the nature of existence, consciousness, and spiritual evolution. Theosophy gives us the seven planes of existence that range from the dense physical world to the highest spiritual planes. Sankhya presents a metaphysical framework based on tattvas (principles) that distinguish…
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States of Consciousness in Theosophy
In Theosophy, the concept of “planes” refers to different dimensions or layers of existence. Each is associated with distinct states of matter and consciousness. The word plane is “the range or extent of some state of consciousness, or of the perceptive power of a particular set of senses, or the action of a particular force” (Theosophical…
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The Five Characteristics of Spiritual Decay in the Age of Kali Yuga: Materialism
The Materialism of the Kali Yuga is exemplified by the people’s excessive attachment to wealth and physical pleasures. The focus is first on external possessions: money and our ability to trade it for tangible materials and tangible commons such as land, natural resources, and water. Thus, our ego’s striving for power is satisfied. Additionally, the…
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The Five Characteristics of Spiritual Decay in the Age of Kali Yuga: Darkness
The Darkness of the Kali Yuga is intangible and immaterial. It is really the darkness of the soul. As spiritual beings, we naturally seek the good and the light. Our whole purpose is education and the unburdening of our souls within our physical bodies as we process a variety of emotions available to us in…
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The Fourth Yuga as the Foundation for the Current Spiritual Decay
In Hinduism, time is cyclical. It is constituted of four major epochs or Yugas: Satya Yuga (the Age of Truth), Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga, and Kali Yuga. The yugas represent a gradual decline from an age of spiritual perfection to an age of moral decay and materialism. The fourth yuga, Kali Yuga, is the final…
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Practice and Purpose: The Universal Appeal of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra’s Part 2
Beyond the Yamas and the Niyamas, the first two of Pantajli’s 8-limbs, Pantajali discusses six more principles critical to yoga philosophy. As we move from limb to limb, we gain a closer understanding of ourselves, and if we take the study seriously, the ultimate goal becomes that of Samadhi, or the pure union with the divine.…
LUX PHARI YOGA 