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Agni Yoga (1929) :
Yoga - that supreme bridge to cosmic attainment - has existed through all ages. Each Teaching comprises its own Yoga, applicable to that step of evolution. The Yogas do not contradict each other. As the branches of one tree they spread their shade and refresh the traveler exhausted from heat. Agni Yoga (1929) - 158:
All preceding Yogas, given from the highest Sources, took as their basis a particular aspect of life. Now, at the dawn of the age of Maitreya, there is needed a Yoga comprising the essence of the whole of life, all-embracing, evading nought. One remembers the example of those unignitible youths in the biblical legend who valiantly sacrificed themselves to the fiery furnace and thereby acquired power. Agni Yoga (1929) - 158:
You may call this the Yoga of Life. But the most precise name will be Agni Yoga. It is precisely the element of fire that gives its name to this Yoga of self-sacrifice. While in other Yogas the dangers are diminished through practices, in the Yoga of Fire the perils are increased, because fire, as an all-binding element, manifests itself everywhere. But it also permits mastery of the subtlest energies. Fire will not lead away from life; it will act as a trustworthy guide to the far-off worlds. For what but fire saturates immeasurable space? Agni Yoga (1929) - 161:
161. Let us see wherein lie the similarities and differences between Agni Yoga and the preceding Yogas. Karma Yoga has many similarities with it as far as earthly realities are concerned. But when Agni Yoga provides ways to the realization of the far-off worlds, the difference becomes apparent. Raja Yoga, Jnana Yoga, and Bhakti Yoga are all separate from the realities of routine life, and because of this they cannot enter into the evolution of the future. Of course, an Agni Yogi should also be a Jnani and a Bhakti, and the development of the forces of his spirit makes him a Raja Yogi. How beautiful is the possibility of being fit for performing the tasks of the future evolution without rejecting the past conquests of spirit! One should not boast of bringing innovation, because only by a synthesis of the old and the new is a renewal of possibilities attainable. Agni Yoga (1929) - 166:
166. Everyone has within himself some kind of Yoga, even if only in a rudimentary stage or in a distorted form. People can be classified not only according to the elements, but also according to Yogas. Often in a hypocrite you find a perversion of Bhakti Yoga; in an overbearing athlete, Hatha Yoga; in a zealot, Raja Yoga; and in a bigot, Jnana Yoga. But what can match the heights of the true Yoga, which links the earthly consciousness with the cosmic pulse? Can one imagine anything that could replace the fundamental striving of the incarnate spirit; something that could imbue one with astral understanding; something that would make clear the purpose of mankind's existence? It is the study of Agni Yoga that brings one closer to the far-off worlds. Agni Yoga (1929) - 193:
193. A skilled archer, even in this age of firearms, is still a skilled marksman. Likewise with Yogas. Except for Hatha Yoga, all Yogas are beautiful in accomplishment. It would be unwise to belittle any of them. One should only speak of which better applies to the present stage of evolution. Hierarchy (1931) - 297:
297. Where, then, is attention directed? It must be understood that the process toward perfection lies at the basis of evolution. It summons one to simplification and to direct communion with higher worlds. It can be seen how pranayama and other artificial methods of various yogas can be replaced by a simple, fiery heart. Certainly this simplicity is relative. The flaming fiery path leads to it. Yet it brings into life precisely that which was rejected as abstraction and fiction. I consider that each striving to knowledge should be speedily brought to fulfillment. People ask why We do not compel the striving toward evolution. But even a plain nurse tells a child, "Be like a grown-up, find by yourself!" Heart (1932) - 444:
444. Among the sacred pains there is a certain type which is called, "The Vina of the Creator." As chords on a musical instrument, so speed the pains of the centers of the throat, the shoulders, the elbows, the extremities, the knees, and other centers. Thus is the heart attuned. Undoubtedly, the contact of the heart with the Highest remains the only refuge of humanity. Other Yogas have corresponded to different cosmic conditions. The heart is set out like an anchor in a storm, and it is not difficult to approach the fiery Yoga of the Heart. First, one should sense the great battle and the threatening peril which gathers over Earth. Second, one should regard one's own heart as a refuge. And third, one should be affirmed upon Hierarchy. It would seem that these conditions are not difficult. But so often we prefer the deviations, and even prefer deceit, rather than to turn to the simplest ways. True, tension of the heart is needed, and not without cause was the heart called, "The Great Prisoner." Fiery World - Book 1 (1933) - 380:
380. Since Hatha Yoga demands certain bodily exercises, the question may be raised as to whether such exercises are also needed for other Yogas? Neither Arhats nor Great Spiritual Toilers practiced these. Verily, theirs are the trials of the spirit, which not only subdue the body but take the place of all exercises of the flesh. Only the avowal of spirit can replace all else. Fiery World - Book 1 (1933) - 542:
542. In more ways than one it is possible to determine by experiment how the spirit helps even the development of muscles. It do not speak of Hatha Yoga, in which physical exercise is emphasized primarily. In other Yogas physical exercise has not such significance, but the spiritual development gives the muscles a special tone. Take two athletes - let one develop along physical methods alone and the other realize the power of the spirit. How much more will the latter excel! Fiery World - Book 2 (1934) - 8:
8. Agni Yoga requires a special resourcefulness. It cannot manifest through physical mechanics, which appear in different degrees in other Yogas. Such an element as Fire should, it would seem, be subject to physical laws no less than other elements. But the essence of Agni is subject to such very subtle laws, that physically it is inexpressible. Thus one must apply the entire refined resourcefulness in order to follow the fiery signs. Hence, one may perceive that often fiery signs are sent by Hierarchy, and people do not even try to perceive them and to apply them. The fiery covenant lies at the very foundation of human life. Conception, birth and all acts subject to Agni do not arouse wonderment at the manifestation of the Ineffable. One may wander around the mechanical constructions, but advance into the future is possible only through realization of Agni. When whole continents are dying, how are new abodes to be found without new energy? It is necessary to prepare the spiritual consciousness for great earthly upheavals - this, at best, but if people approach the last divide filled with the black hatred of the past, they will be but powder magazines. Thus let us resourcefully think about Agni.
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