Eight Lectures on Yoga
 | |
| Author | Aleister Crowley |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | The Equinox |
Release number | III (4) |
| Subject | Thelema |
| Publisher | Ordo Templi Orientis |
Publication date | 1939 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| ISBN | 0-9726583-1-9 |
| Preceded by | The Equinox of the Gods |
| Followed by | The Book of Thoth |
Eight Lectures on Yoga is a book by the English occultist Aleister Crowley about the practice of Yoga. The book is the fourth of volume 3 of The Equinox, which was published by Ordo Templi Orientis. The work is largely a demystified look at yoga, using little to no jargon or satirical humour. It is in two sections each with four parts, which are transcripts of eight one-hour lectures on the subject given by Crowley. The book was originally published in 1939.
Summary
[edit]In Eight Lectures on Yoga, Crowley instructs students on the steps needed to approach mysticism through yoga, and details the complications that arise along the path. One intent Crowley had in writing the book was to dispel the various myths surrounding Yoga in Europe at the time — most thought it to be an exotic, Eastern ritual of the ancient past.
The first section, "Yoga for Yahoos", is in four lectures, in which Crowley successively:
- Dissects the word "Yoga", as well as its various implications on the human mind.
- Lists the eight limbs of Yoga, and explains the first, Yama, which is defined as control.
- Details Niyama, the second limb of Yoga, with analogies to various planets.
- Describes Asana and Pranayama, the third and fourth limbs of Yoga, and correct posture while practicing.
The second section, "Yoga for Yellowbellies", covers in detail the philosophical, mathematical, and scientific aspects of Yoga, in four chapters.
Analysis
[edit]Aleister Crowley, an occultist, became interested in yoga and incorporated some of its philosophy into his esoteric teachings in his 1913 work Magick (Book 4).[1] This placed him among early proponents of yoga in the Western world (at a time when the practice of asanas was largely rejected), alongside Vivekananda, Krishnamurti, and Annie Besant.[1] The Eight Lectures on Yoga describe some of the concepts of the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali, Crowley giving himself the name "Mahatma Guru Sri Paramahansa Shivaji" (Great-spirit Teacher Revered Supreme-swan Respected-Shiva).[1] The Indologist David Gordon White has described Crowley as "a fraudulent self-practitioner of Tantric Yoga".[2][1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Wendland, Kristin (2024). "Soul Connection: Modern Yoga". The Power of Practice: How Music and Yoga Transformed the Life and Work of Yehudi Menuhin. State University of New York Press. doi:10.1353/book.119370. ISBN 978-1-4384-9605-4.
- ^ White, David Gordon (2014). The Yoga Sutra of Patañjali: A Biography. Princeton University Press. pp. 192–194. ISBN 978-1400850051.
External links
[edit]- Full text on Internet Archive