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What happens when classical Indian yoga philosophy is read alongside the spiritual writings associated with Edgar Cayce? Istvan Fazekas explores that question in Edgar Cayce and the Yoga Sutras: Uniting Body, Mind and Spirit. This is not a modern sequence of stretching exercises. It is a book about interpretation, meditation and the search for meaning across two quite different traditions.

What is the book actually about?

The original description introduces Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the yamas and niyamas, and the purpose of meditation. It then sets these classical themes beside the Edgar Cayce readings, including what the description calls twelve steps toward enlightenment. Fazekas invites readers to look for parallels in the ways both traditions speak about self-knowledge, ethics and spiritual growth.

This comparative approach is the book’s central attraction. The Yoga Sutras are an Indian philosophical text; Edgar Cayce was an American figure associated with psychic and spiritual readings. Readers should not assume the two sources have identical histories or authority simply because the author discusses them together.

What are the yamas and niyamas?

In the classical eight-limbed presentation of yoga, the yamas concern ethical restraints and the niyamas concern personal observances. They offer a framework for thinking about how attention, conduct and daily life relate to meditation. The book uses these concepts as part of its conversation between Eastern philosophy and Western metaphysical thought.

Who would enjoy reading it?

This title is most likely to appeal to someone interested in Patanjali, the Edgar Cayce tradition, comparative spirituality or reflective reading. A newcomer who wants clearly photographed beginner poses may prefer a practical yoga manual. Readers who are skeptical of psychic claims can still approach the book as a study of how spiritual ideas have been compared, without treating the Cayce readings as scientific evidence.

Is the original book still available?

Yes, an e-book of Fazekas’s book is still listed for purchase. The book is best approached as a comparison of spiritual interpretations rather than a source of scientific proof for psychic claims.

For background on yoga as a practice, see the NCCIH overview; it is a health and safety source, not an endorsement of the book’s spiritual claims.

Related reading on Veggie-Blog: Practice and Doctrine of Yoga and Lessons on Yoga: Royal Path.

Book: Edgar Cayce and the Yoga Sutras by Istvan Fazekas
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In the classic bestseller, Introduction to Tantra, Lama Yeshe offered a profound glimpse into the authentic and sophisticated practices of Tibetan Buddhist Tantra. The Bliss of Inner Fire may be considered a perfect follow-up to that book. Lama Yeshe follows Tsongkhapa’s (1357-1419 a.d.) text, Having the Three Convictions, and introduces the renowned Six Yogas of Naropa, focusing mainly on the first of these six, the practice of “inner fire” (tummo). Mastery of inner fire quickly brings the mind to its most refined and penetrating state — the experience of clear light, an extra-ordinarily powerful state of mind that is unequaled in its ability to directly realize ultimate reality. Lama Yeshe felt that twentieth-century Westerners could easily grasp the often misunderstood ideas of this esoteric tradition: His aim was for his students to actually taste the experience of inner fire rather than merely gain an intellectual understanding. Lama’s own realization of the transformative power of these practices comes through, inspiring his students to discover for themselves their own capacity for inexhaustible bliss.

This book examines the renowned Six Yogas of Naropa, a stage in the practice of Yoga Tantra. Through experiential commentary, guided meditation, and practical advice, Lama Yeshe brings the reader a tantalizing taste of the blissful technology of tantra as well as its direct application to everyday living.

Book: The Bliss of Inner Fire by Robina Courtin
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At the center of Debra Galant’s new novel is Nina Gettleman-Summer, a stressed-out New Jersey yoga teacher. Nina should be calmly guiding her high powered students through their savasanas and their chakras . Instead she is worried about… everything: her new meditation fountain overflowed resulting in a dangerous mess that caused one of her more litigious students to slip and fall; her husband Michael’s job as Newark Airport’s meteorologist was outsourced to the Phillipines, and a hurricane is bearing down on her parents’ home in Florida. The last thing Nina needs is her suspicious mother Belle around, wailing about the weather and asking questions about Michael’s job. To complicate matters, her teenage son Adam is showing a sudden interest in having a Bar Mitzvah – even though Nina, never a fan of her Jewish heritage, signed the family up at the local Unitarian Church. Which brings us to the heart of this very funny book. Nina’s put her faith in feng shui and crystals while her husband passes the time chatting with the local Jehovah’s Witnesses and Adam plots his religious coming of age, which he believes will net him a real life pot of gold. The Gettleman-Summers are poised for an awakening which, when it arrives, is deftly portrayed in Galant’s classic screwball style.

Book: Fear and Yoga in New Jersey by Debra Galant
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A longtime yoga teacher and Buddhist meditation practitioner, Charlotte Bell describes in passionate detail how she applied the eightfold path of the Yoga Sutras and the Buddha’s heed for mindfulness to her hectic Western life. The path is often rough; she writes of self-doubt and struggles, of trying too hard and discouragement, of learning to accept the life she has, imperfections and all. But with grace and guts, she navigates the eight limbs of yoga, using the Yoga Sutras and insight meditation as her compass. She shows each limb at work in her relationships, music, asana, meditation, and even in writing this book. Her discussion of each limb includes practical ways that readers can bring mindfulness into asana itself, and in a section called “Reflections,” Bell encourages readers to experience even the most ordinary activity as extraordinary, whether it’s washing dishes, making tea, or rolling out their yoga mat.

Donna Farhi has practiced Yoga for twenty-eight years and has taught internationally for over two decades. One of Americas most respected and loved Yoga teachers, she travels throughout the world leading retreats and training others to teach. Farhi has been an asana columnist for both Yoga Journal and Yoga International and is the author of the contemporary classics The Breathing Book and Yoga Mind, Body & Spirit. Born in America, she now resides in New Zealand.

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YOGA FOR MEN is written for men who find themselves overwhelmed by work-related stress and other health risks posed by the demands of modern life. Beginning with disturbing statistics about stress and stress-related immune disorders, Bruce Eric Van Horn offers YOGA FOR MEN as a tool to defuse their effects, decrease the risk of diseases (including prostate cancer), and improve sexual performance. Van Horn, who suffered an ulcer while running himself ragged working in corporate America, has designed a tool men can use both at home and in the office to improve the quality of their lives. His text is essentially a basic explanation of the rudiments of mind, body, and spirit aspects of yoga, and contains a suggested yoga routine. It is written in a style that will appeal to men who may have the preconceived notion that yoga is for the fairer sex or that it involves painful positions.

Book: Yoga for Men by Bruce Eric Van Horn
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