Margaret Rhasoda Varga: My experiences with other yoga schools

Many people I know have been following some kind of yoga training under the guidance of noted foreign masters for decades, and I have tried to get involved in them. I have studied these systems and have not joined them because the progress of my friends has been undetectable compared to what I have achieved in developing my own system alone. In my experience, the yoga masters (with respect to the exception) are not interested in the development of their students, but in keeping them at the same level, because this provides them with a regular income, which they use to maintain their ashrams abroad. Now, why should I support the residents of eastern ashrams? If their system worked that well, they would be able to raise their society to get the support they need to survive. The original purpose of creating monastic orders was not to withdraw from society and isolate themselves, but to serve its spiritual upliftment.

Those of the disciples who are really serious about progress will sooner or later give up the worldly way of life, frequently joining their master's ashram. The majority of the Eastern masters have no idea of Western culture and way of life, or if they do, they do not appreciate it, and therefore they make their disciples impossible, who during their study, become less and less able to integrate into society, and adopting their master's approach, judge their fellow human beings who lead a Western way of life. To what extent is Indian or Tibetan culture more successful, either in terms of economic development or spiritual fulfilment? If it were successful, there would be visible signs of it and it would be an example for us. A sensible combination of the two cultures could be the solution, but few are capable of this. The Eastern masters condemn those who combine the two cultures, saying that they do not transmit the teachings 'purely', but modernize them, adapting them to Western culture. In my opinion, this is a natural process, although there are indeed excesses to be avoided.

Students feel that they should give up their former Christian roots and culture, despite the fact that the starting point of all yoga schools is the independence from religions. I see the reason for this in the fact that the master is a role model for the students, and because he is a Hindu or Buddhist who knows Christianity only by reputation, the students adopt his value judgement. Here is an example that was happened in my presence. Someone asked the initiating master why Jesus was listed as a master in their yoga schools? The answer was, "We just put him there." The answer was so "lofty" that it could be immediately interpreted on several levels: 1) he had no idea, 2) this is a way to attract Christian-attitude disciples, 3) he didn't think Jesus belonged there either. Eastern masters who do not know Christianity in depth draw conclusions from the outward realizations of the average Christians, which leads to erroneous results. When I was in India, I did not try to judge the authenticity or spiritual significance of Vedic scripture from the average Hindu (or Krishna consciousness) believer's realization level. The man on the street is as ignorant of the essence of his own religion in east as in west.

In my experience, the Eastern masters do not impart to their disciples the pure living of their faith, but the dogma of their religion. Combining several paths or religions is seen as wrong, to be avoided. With them, one can only follow the beaten path. It is as if, in the forest, the only way to get to the top of the mountain is by the path marked out. This can lead to the realization of a particular religion at best, but not to the realization of Over-self and God. The latter is a land without paths. 

If one studies all the authentic scriptures impartially in his yoga training, he can create a bridge between cultures. And the bridge connects; it leads towards unity. Conversely, if one elevates one's own religion above the others, that it is the only true one and the others are false, then this leads to separation, it leads away from unity.

What makes the yoga training of the EYA-N spiritual educational system different from others?
- on this path you can really progress at your own pace,
- you can live a full life with it (no need to withdraw from society, become a monk, move to an ashram),
- it is adapted to the western way of life and culture; it is really bridge between East and West,
- no need to practice abstinence (as you progress, unnecessary habits automatically disappear)
- truly independent from religions but not from belief,
- a completely customizable path. 

EYA-N Yoga School is a continuation of EYA-N spiritual self-knowledge training. In this sense, completion of the latter is a prerequisite for joining the yoga school. As an additional prerequisite, the submission of completed self-knowledge workbooks may be required; this serves to allow the prospective student to demonstrate their progress in self-knowledge. Furthermore, completion of the EYA-N Angel Course and at least the first level of the EYA-N life-energy transmission course is necessary for the participant to be able to receive the teachings of the yoga school.

The EYA-N Yoga School provides a comprehensive overview of the paths to inner God-realization currently available to humanity. It raises consciousness permanently above ordinary awareness, whereby the disciple gains insight into the own and others' actions, the own and others' life tasks, the laws governing the universe, their interconnections, and can choose a path for himself/herself with a higher knowledge instead of the unconscious drift he/she has been on. This yoga school is responsible therefore exclusively for spiritual development, for those who in this or a future life wish to leave the gross material plane of existence and to serve the Supreme at some higher point in the universe.

Joining the yoga school does not require the disciple to follow a particular religion, for in this system he/she will be part of a teaching independent of religions, but which based on the knowledge and operation of religions, in which the elements of religion are merely limitations fixed on either side of the inner path, which he/she must eventually let go of. Yoga school develops skills and can lead to the possession of lived knowledge. Once completed, the disciple can become self-improvement, i.e. able to access and develop his/her own inner knowledge independently.

Some of the skills required to apply for yoga school:

- Openness and acceptance.
This is applied to all religions, all entities, all methods. Rejection takes you away from Oneness. Acceptance is not the same as saying yes to anything, anytime. Since acceptance and openness between master and disciple are mutual, the disciple can make his/her decisions of his/her own free will and evolve at his/her own pace.

- Commitment to spiritual development.
I do not say God here because in the process of spiritual development the disciple himself/herself experiences the entity, power, intelligence to which he/she bows of his/her own free will. No one forces on him/her any form of God, not even of God himself, which means that the path also gives the possibility of dissolving in the powers or intelligence.

- An aspiration to external and internal self-knowledge.
The disciple realizes that all persons and situations reflect him/her, that everything is for his/her development, that everything happens for him/her, and that he/she uses his/her experiences in his/her inner and outer world for his/her development.

- A stable family and financial situation.
If a disciple is preoccupied with financial situations or problems with his/her partner and family, he/she cannot concentrate on his/her spiritual development and must therefore have the means and methods to deal with the situations that arise, so that he/she does not have to leave school in the middle of the process. The above condition does not mean that his/her family and financial situation is above average, but that his/her situation in the financial world is stable and manageable.

- At least average physical and mental health.
Serious illnesses and pains prevent one from concentrating on spiritual development. Mental illness is contra-indicated for this yoga training. Must not use psychoactive substances, suffer from alcoholism, psychical illness. He/she must be able to control his/her nervous system in basic situations of life. This does not mean that a sick person cannot be a student, but that the illness in question must be brought to a manageable level before enrolment, either independently or with assistance.

Margaret Rhasoda Varga is the creator of the EYA-N spiritual education system and the guru of the yoga school in the physical realm.

How to live the yoga aphorisms of Patanjali in everyday life
link