Modern thoughts on an ancient idea

In Chinese mythology a divinity known as the Jade Emperor, Yu Huang, was fed peaches by his mother as they were believed to ensure the gift of immortality. Perhaps because I had just indulged in a delicious peach myself before class, I was and have continued to think about the idea of immortality since my teacher discussed it as a part of hatha yoga, the branch of yoga that we as modern yogis base our everyday practice on.

There are many reasons why I entered yoga: to bring peace and calm to my overworked mind as well as the physical aspects that have transformed my body to such a point that I can't remember ever having experienced this level of strength and health in my life.

As I stood with a handful of vitamins at the sink last night, I thought about the ramifications of immortality. The weight of the word alone is not enough to fully appreciate what the initial proponents of hatha yoga were teaching their followers so long ago. Not satisfied with this brief teasing mention of it in class, I did a little more research and was a bit shocked when I came upon Georg Feuerstein's The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice, in which he wrote:

(The yogi) wants it all: Self-realization and a transmuted body in which to enjoy the manifest universe in its diverse dimensions.

Through the creation of the adamantine body we could realize immortality in the earthly realm while we were in the process of finding both selves, self and Self. As someone living in the 21st century, and particularly as an American, I can appreciate the attitude "I want it all, and I want it now." Sometimes I even fall prey to this myself, but am able to remember my humility and allow events to fall into place themselves.

While the idea of the adamantine body itself, the "Diamond vehicle," is appealing, I am more apt to fall in line with what Helen Keller once wrote. "I thank God for my handicaps for, through them, I have found myself, my work, and my God." Despite how much I may grumble about this infirmity or another, it is my imperfect body that led me to yoga, that eventually brought an inner peace and a level of self-satisfaction which in turn has allowed me to enjoy a certain degree of success in life. With all that said, I am still striving towards the best version of me that I can be in this lifetime, which might be, at best, a flawed diamond but one that still shines with an eternal hope for myself, and mankind.