CAROL KRON / Copley News Service Om-my-gosh that's funny: Laughter meditation class got people chortling at a recent class at Pasadena's Yoga Kingdom Sanctuary. INDIA GOVERNMENT TEAM TO CONTROL YOGA HERITAGE Hinduism Today + adbkronosinternational + Washington Times: Mumbai, 6 Oct. (AKI): Yoga has to remain an Indian discipline. It's in this spirit New Delhi's health minister has approved a project of almost three million euros (US$3.6 million or IRs 151 million) to protect on the international level, the patent on the postures involved in this thousand-year-old discipline that is an expression of Indian culture and religion, which the West has been trying to get a hold of after it gained worldwide popularity. A team of experts will produce a digital document on the 1,500 asana or yoga postures, to be translated in English, French, German, Spanish, Chinese and Japanese, and distributed in 11 countries. Under the supervision of V. K. Gupta - a health ministry expert - the team, which can count on the collaboration of more than 100 members and 15 Indian religious schools, examined 16 Vedic texts (Hindu sacred texts) to illustrate yoga's historical origins and evolution, said patent lawyer K.M. Gopakumar. In the West, yoga generates huge revenues in the range of billions of euros. Many improvised gurus, of Indian origin, start up their own yoga business. The Indian health ministry has recorded more than a thousand yoga-related websites run by these "gurus" who publicize yoga postures and practices claiming that they are their original creation and therefore protected with an international patent and covered by copyrights. Once the Indian government's document is issued, ‘’the so called life-style gurus cannot claim copyright and allege infringement by others", said Gopakumar. In the United States, in Europe and Japan at least 150 yoga postures are covered by patents, says the health ministry. In the US alone 2,300 yoga schools and yoga practices have copyrights. Yoga is also connected to health, as underlined by the Indian health ministry's project, which aims to protect this wide religious, scientific and cultural heritage, which includes 75,000 formulas of ayurvedic medicine and 50,000 formulas of unani herbal remedies. "This is a very good idea," says B.K.S. Iyengar, the 86-year old yoga guru credited with having introduced yoga to the West in the 1970s. "Yoga is an essential part of our heritage, and India has to protect it." The worst "culprits" are Indians based in America, where yoga has become a $30 billion-a-year business -- a growth fueled by celebrity adherents such as Madonna.   Among Western gurus who have prompted the concern, according to an Indian official, is Bikram Choudhury, whose "Bikram" or "Vikram" method is currently one of the most fashionable styles in the West. A session involves a series of 26 poses in a room heated to 90 F to 100 F, enabling students to adopt more "extreme" positions than at normal temperatures. A spokesman for Mr. Choudhury refused to discuss the task force report, but the guru previously said that rather than claiming intellectual ownership of the individual postures themselves, he has copyrighted a sequence of poses, the dialogue that accompanies them and the environment in which they are performed during his classes. These, he asserts, are all of his own devising. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued 134 patents on yoga accessories, 150 yoga-related copyrights and 2,315 yoga trademarks, says the Indian task force. It also says that Britain has approved at least 10 trademarks relating to yoga training aids that are mentioned in ancient texts. According to one report, attempts have even been made in America to patent the syllable "om," the sacred sound with which Hindus begin their chants. "No one should be able to claim ownership of these traditional postures," says Mr. Gupta. "The information has been in the public domain in India for thousands of years. But, until now, it has only been available in languages which people in the outside world cannot understand." MEANING OF yog IN kli-yug The news of yoga in the left hand column is what the prime characteristic of  kli-yug is as defined in practically all of 18 puraaAN and 18  up-puraaAN. and the total of 108 puraaANo. Any and all the puraaAN contain the very simplified TRUE KNOWLEDGE called GNaan in vED. GNaan in vED is the sciences on which all creation of life and its infinite physical manifestations are powered to exist. GNaan in itself is a shk`ti or power which empowers all creations to function as per its inherent design and purpose. As per puraaANo, in kli-yug with a human time span of 432,000 years the following will be the prime characteristics of all humanity: All kARm will be guided by wealth and attainment of wealth;   Production and/or attainment of wealth will be mainly by aDHARmik means meaning breaking all rules and regulations of DHARm. The primary effect of aDHARmik way of life is to create pain and suffering. And that includes obtaining wealth by cheating, robbing, forceful means, illegal means, all means which basically would empower one to have more wealth than one should rightfully possess in a just society.   Wealth will corrupt all relationships as all relationships will tend to exist on wealth and related to having wealth with any and all means through relationships. Alternatively, relationships will not exist if wealth is not a basic factor.   Relationships of husband-wife, parents-children, all human inter and intra relationship in a community and inter and intra community will be on need of exchange of wealth for self-sustenance first and then sustenance of others who are needed for self-purposes.    Wealth will be used for self-pleasure only.   This column is shared by SHRii Champaklal Dajibhai Mistry of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada to open a FORUM for discussion of what YOU think about this news story.....continue reading this sharing on the next page...... Please continue reading on the next page by clicking on the next line ...about COMMERCIALIZATION OF YOGA IN LINE WITH THE ABOVE KNOWLEDGE......and WHAT yog MEANS AS PER vED........

COMMERCIALIZATION SIGNS OF YOGA To prove that in kli-yug every kARm involves production of wealth for somebody with just or mostly unjust means, here is sampling from various web sites of what yoga classes offer in the western cultures with membership fees which is generating billions of dollars for the yoga class operators: YOGA PERSONALITY QUIZ: In order to understand the above here is the sampling of the purposes of yoga commercialization in the news item: As yoga's popularity swells, so does the number of hatha yoga styles. Many have been around for decades. Other styles pop up as yoga teachers try to put a personal stamp on their classes and differentiate themselves in the crowded marketplace.   WHY DO YOGA?: The short answer is that yoga makes you feel better. Practicing the postures, breathing exercises and meditation makes you healthier in body, mind and spirit. Yoga lets you tune in, chill out, shape up -- all at the same time. For starters, yoga is good for what ails you. Specifically, research shows that yoga helps manage or control anxiety, arthritis, asthma, back pain, blood pressure, carpal tunnel syndrome, chronic fatigue, depression, diabetes, epilepsy, headaches, heart disease, cancer, multiple sclerosis, stress and other conditions and diseases.   LAUGHTER YOGA: a growing global movement that has devotees simulating chuckles and guffaws – which, judging by this laugh riot, can turn real. The theory is that forced laughter (with yogic deep breathing) relieves stress, pumps up disease-fighting hormones, helps people bond with others, and, as a bonus, promotes world peace.   FREE YOGA PERSONALS: YogaBasics is excited to announce a new partnership with YogaConnect "the first online relationship site for yoga enthusiasts." Search for yogis and yoginis in your town to interact, discuss, share ideas and create conscious relationships with!   POST-NATAL YOGA: This new 34-step pose sequence gently strengthens the core muscles and helps to re-balance the body's systems after childbirth.   WARNING TO YOGA BEGINNERS: To get the most out of our site, we suggest you take some time to explore before jumping into the practice. Browse our yoga section for general info on the history and types of yoga, then start exploring asanas the physical postures used in hatha yoga. Remember to breathe and always start your yoga practice with a brief meditation. Ahimsa, the yogic practice of non violence must be adhered to when engaging in the practice of hatha yoga. Respect your body's limitations and inner wisdom, if something feels wrong or dangerous, please do not do it. Please consult your health care practitioner before starting a yoga, pranayama or other exercise program. Hatha Yoga posture performed at a Hindu temple   TRUTH ABOUT WHAT IS yog The word yog is first of all incorrectly pronounced in the process of its commercialization as "yogaa". The word yog in sNskRUt is understood as follows: yog is any kARm that makes one realize the existence of God and thus helps and guide one to unite or yoke with God.   In Merriam Webster's Unabridged Dictionary God is defined as the supreme or ultimate reality : the Deity variously conceived in theology, philosophy, and popular religion: as a: (1) : the holy, infinite, and eternal spiritual reality presented in the Bible as the creator, sustainer, judge, righteous sovereign, and redeemer of the universe who acts with power in history in carrying out his purpose *the Hebraic thought of God as the living sovereign Jehovah ;  (2) : the eternal, invisible, arbitrarily omnipotent Lord of the worlds and final judge of all men presented in the Koran as all-knowing, just, compassionate, merciful, and unchangeable *Allah hath said: Choose not two gods; there is only One God Koran* b (1) : the unchangeably perfect Being that is the first and final cause of the universe *it is necessary that there should be as the first cause of the series of motions an unmoved mover or God  (2) : the whole of the universe in its unity - religion is not forced to choose the pantheistic God of idealism  (3) : reality opposed to appearance : ABSOLUTE *Hegel claims that:  religion is the self-consciousness of God - how the Absolute Spirit is conscious of itself in finite spirit (4) : the creative, integrative, and redemptive process at work in the world that is the supremely worthful actuality of all existence and upon which all other forms of existence depend for life, meaning, freedom, purpose, value, and the realization of their highest destiny - we are invited to behold a growing universe and to discern at its heart - a finite growing God (5) : Hinduism: the one ultimate infinite reality that is pure existence, consciousness, and bliss without distinctions (as of time and space) (6) Christian Science : infinite Mind : the incorporeal divine Principle ruling over all as eternal Spirit *God T the all-knowing, all-seeing, all-acting, all-wise, all-loving, and eternal; Principle; Mind; Soul; Spirit; Life; Truth; Love; all substance; intelligence:  (1) : the Being supreme in power, wisdom, and goodness that men worship and to whom they pray *turn to God in time of trouble (2) : the ideal or essence of what is best in human life - to them God became a symbol for the highest human aspirations and without reality apart from the minds of men   The meaning of the Greek/Latin root of the word "religion" in the above is: "religio" meaning reverence, piety, religion, probably from "religare" meaning "to tie back, tie up, tie fast + -ion-, -io -ion. This is tending to the knowledge below.   The union of human-self with God through realization of GNaan = TRUE KNOWLEDGE is yog. And this yog is brought about by GNaan and kARm performed with GNaan. The sNskRUt words on this PVAF web site are in italic, bold and blue or brown and its spelling is in true phonetics based system being developed at PVAF...please click here to access the sNskRUt - English transliteration chart on this PVAF web site... PVAF invites YOU to share more information in the same sharing way as SHRii Champaklal Mistry has done in this column...Just click on the POST A COMMENT in the news header and share away or email your knowledge as an email or attachements to the email to be published by clicking here

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