To Light a Thousand Lamps - The Theosophical Society

106 / TO LIGHT A THOUSAND LAMPS
yoga, ‘‘yoga of action’’; jñāna yoga, ‘‘yoga of knowledge’’;
and others. The path of rāja yoga* is the ‘‘royal or kingly
union’’ of the personal self with the illumined self. It is of
small consequence what path we take outwardly, so long as
we set our inner goal on the highest within. ‘‘In whatever
way men approach me, in that way do I assist them; but
whatever the path taken by mankind, that path is mine.’’†
Today in the West there are many practitioners of yoga
whose goal is to restore physical health and alleviate, where
possible, some of the unusually stressful conditions people
are experiencing in these crucial times. We would be well
advised, however, to stop short before undertaking sophisticated
breathing and other techniques that could, if unwisely
pursued, interfere with the proper functioning of the
prāṇas. Prāṇa is a Sanskrit term for the five or seven ‘‘lifebreaths’’
that circulate through and maintain the body in
health.
The Chinese for centuries have taught that sound physical
and psychic health depends upon the balance of yin and
yang. If one, however unknowingly, upsets the natural
rhythmic flow of the ch’i — their term for prāṇa — through
the twelve primary meridians or energy channels of the
body, imbalance of the yin/yang may result. In other
words, when there is interference with the natural lines of
force, a misalignment of prāṇic balance may occur, often
with serious consequences. Rather than concentrate on the
psychic and physical aspects of the constitution, far better to
*See Bhagavad-Gītā 9:2, the first line of which reads: rājavidyā
rājaguhyaṃ, literally ‘‘royal knowledge, royal mystery.’’
†Ibid. 4:11 (Judge recension, p. 24).