LifeForce Yoga for Depression

Gary Weber writes seamlessly and his Non-dual wisdom is clear throughout. Happiness Beyond Thought is a practical book that offers strategies for seekers on the road to enlightenment. Weber generously and passionately shares every trick in the book, a book that began more than 2,500 years ago, and includes the many practices and queries that have supported him on his own journey to becoming a self realized in Self. For Weber, his realization has meant the dissolution of the individual "I." Although he acknowledges that the awakening experience may be spontaneous, he argues that for the experience to be sustained, preparation is necessary. Without "preparation of the neurological structure" and a "context in which to support the experience," the "apparent enlightenment" soon fades. Weber includes asana, breathing, chanting, meditation, self-inquiry, affirmation and diet as steps that prepare the seeker to settle in to an awakened state once enlightenment has been experienced. The practices quiet the mind for deep inquiry, which in the tradition of the enlightened masters Weber has studied, he himself has used to awaken. In the spirit of this awakening through practice and inquiry, a question precedes each offering, be it Weber's, Ramana Maharshi's, Shankara's, or the Bhagavad Gita's

The book proceeds through a series of logical questions as section headings. For example in the section, How do you use physical postures (asana) for awakening?, Weber recommends a meditative approach to practicing Hatha Yoga through the practice of flowing sequences coordinated with the breath that, once learned, can be practiced with the eyes closed. In the next section, he elaborates on three recommended sequences. What makes his approach unique is the development of meditative awareness in the asana, first through counting the exhalations as the pose is held in order to develop concentration, and then through the use of inquiry. He suggests several useful questions in poses, questions that Ramana Maharshi guided his students to ask of themselves in meditation, like "Who am I?", "Where am I?", "What is doing this asana?", and recommends finding the one question that serves you. "This is not about getting the right intellectual answer," says Weber, "or saying it over and over again as a mantra. It's about feeling the question deeply within."

With commentary and poetry, Weber explicates core teachings that he feels are essential in both their power to awaken and their accessibility. He begins with Ramana Maharshi's Upadesa Saram or Essence of the Teachings, a practical guide from a nearly modern (within the last 100 years) awakened master. Gary's interpretative instructions are clear in their advocacy of practice as the doorway in, i.e. a way to still the mind in preparation for an inquiry that may reveal your true nature.

Next, he translates and comments on six verses written over 1200 years ago by the realized master Shankara. This is a beautiful rendition of the Advaita Vedanta practice of neti neti, "not this, not this,"-the practice of negating identification with narrow aspects of self, while affirming the truth of who you really are. If you're interested in non-dualism, I would encourage you to consider Happiness Beyond Thought for your library, if for nothing else, Weber's clear explanation of these two awakened masters.

Weber shares and interprets twelve versus from the 2,500 year-old Bhagavad Gita, The Song of God, that have been seminal in his own awakening.

After logging in thousands of hours of Yoga practice, meditation, mantra chanting, and study, Weber's own enlightenment occurred during a pose. "I went into it one way and came out of it completely transformed," he says of his experience. "Thought as a continuing phenomenon just stopped. The 'I' was blown out like a candle in the wind." He goes on to discuss the stages of settling in when one has had an awakening, but he warns against fixating on a model. "As long as there is a mind or an 'I' trying to construct such a state with its tools, enlightenment cannot happen." This book is not a formula for enlightenment, however it helps the seeker prepare the ground so that when the personal "I" dissolves, the foundation of self remains solid.

Happiness Beyond Thought offers a treasure chest of practices for the serious practitioner seeking liberation. On your own journey towards awakening, savor these simple, easy to follow practices culled from Weber's study with his primary teacher Ramana Maharshi, his on-going exploration of Zen meditation practice, and the life-enhancing results of his experiments on the laboratory floor of his yoga mat.