Lesson plan

Part I: Peace invocations

• What is prayer?
• Prayer for the world (swasti prajabhya)
• Prayer for study (sahana avatu)
• Prayer for health (bhadram karnebhih)
• Invocation of fullness (poornamadhah)

Part II: The qualified student

• Introduction to the teacher and the text
• The four qualities of a seeker
• Discrimination (viveka)
• Dispassion (Vairagya)
• The Six Treasures (Shatsampatti)
  • Mind control (Sama)
  • Sense Control (Dama)
  • Withdrawal from activity (Uparati)
  • Forbearance (Titiksha)
  • Faith (Shraddha)
  • Concentration (Samadana)
• Yearning for Truth (Mumukshutvam)

Part III: Inquiry into Truth

• What is real?
• Who am I?
• The Five Sheaths
• The Three Bodies
• The Three States
• The Nature of Truth
  • Existence
  • Consciousness
  • Bliss
• The Universe
• The Transcendent
• God and Man
• You

Part IV: Living in Freedom

• The State of Enlightenment
• Karma
  • Agami
  • Sanchita
  • Prarabdha
• Total Freedom

Hari Om!

Before starting a study session, I strongly recommend that you take 5 minutes out for the preparatory meditation, which I will post along with the lesson.

I will post explanations and teachings as articles and/or video. These would be typically no more than one hour long. Based on this, you may post your reflections and questions which we will discuss. I don't want to set a time frame for the discussion - thorough understanding is very important. I may also from time to time precribe exercises/meditations to bring the teachings home. All students must report their experiences with these.

Please stick to the order of lessons, or you will feel completely lost.
At the send of each of the four major sections of the class, I will assign homework to be completed before moving on to the next session.

Don't expect enlightenment at the end of the course. You will get a strong spiritual push in the right direction, but we all have a lot of work to do before we're spiritually finished.

Most importantly, this is a journey to discover your own inner nature, so please, enjoy every step of the way, laugh, smile and remember - you are the master of every moment. You can make life joyous or miserable. Choose wisely.

At the Masters' feet,

Bhaskar

i do have one question.

how vital are the videos and audio clips going to be to understanding and learning in this course.
see, i have dial up, so watching videos and listening to audio clips is not an option for me. should i still take this class?

I am not the instructor, but I think you should stick around, bhaskar knows alot about hinduism , and I think those videos and audios are just accessories to the main theme that bhaskar expounds in his lessons .

Neodude, I was hoping to be able to post most of the lessons as audio files - I find it is a better for me to work with and saves me time. Could you perhaps try going to a library or somewhere that you can get highspeed internet for free? As a last resort I can transcribe what I have to say for you. Please don't hesitate to ask about that - I want to help you learn.