World of Philosophy

SR No.: 007005
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Christopher Key Chapple, Intaj Malek, Dilip Charan, Sunanda Shastri, Prashant Dave
Publisher: Shanti Prakashan
Publication Year: 2011
Total Pages: 1002
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 30 MB

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Consciousness Raising, Outreach, and Action in Green Yoga
- Dr. Laura Cornell
Introduction
This chapter will examine how the ecological aspects of Yoga might be more fully integrated into contemporary Yoga teaching and practice. It is based on collaborative research with a group of five U.S. Kripalu Yoga teachers. While our research was primarily focused on our own personal practice and teaching of Yoga, an action-oriented arm of the collaboration emerged. This subsidiary branch of the research lead to the founding of a national non-profit organization, The Green Yoga Association in 2004. In honor of Professor Shastri, and in honor of his commitment to peace, ecology, and Yoga, this chapter will present our group's learning in the areas of consciousness raising, outreach, and action.
I first met Professor Yajneshwar Shastri in 2006 when traveling in India. He and his wife Sunanda welcomed me into their home, serving chai and sharing their delightful collection of Ganesh statuettes. Sunanda gave me a translation of the Sri-Lalia-Maha-Tripurasundari-Stotrani, edited by her and her husband. Later, Professor Shastri travelled to the United States to speak at the second Green Yoga Conference in May of 2007 on Yoga and ecology. I appreciated Professor Shastri's efforts in supporting our conference, and am grateful for the opportunity to give back by presenting this chapter.
The Bhagavad Gita describes action in the world as one of the main paths of Yoga. When undertaken as spiritual practice, action becomes Karma Yoga, a key form of Yogic development. The Bhagavad Gita provides a helpful perspective for the social or ecological activist; the activist learns that he or she is not the doer, but simply the vehicle for the action of the Divine in the world. Given the extent of the environmental crisis, being clear on how to act skillfully in raising consciousness and caring for the planet is very, very important.
This chapter will begin with an overview of our outreach work, providing a context for the learning we derived. The chapter will then describe seven principles for conscious action drawn from our experience, giving examples for each. Overview of Actions Engaged by the Collaborative Research Group
Our research group consisted of six Kripalu Yoga teachers--Ben Lord, Bob Bruce, Hasita Agi Nadai, Leanne Ovalles, and Tanuja Pat Daniel--plus myself as lead researcher. We held two retreats at a cabin in the Vermont
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