Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy

Although I've ready many books throughout my life this is the first book I'm writing a review for. Thought provoking and inspirational, this book resonates with me like no other. I've read many books by authors such as Eckharte Tolle, Osho, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Ramana Maharishi, etc however none of them put it as simply as Sadhguru does in this book. Every time I'm going through a tough phase or I'm feeling down I pick up this book and start reading it. Every passage, every sentence, every word has been crafted carefully - just reading the book is a great joy! Sadhguru is an unbelievable man, his perception of life and what it means to be human is incredible. He is a buddha of modern times and truly a dispeller of darkness (The word guru means dispeller of darkness). I've taken most of his meditation and yoga courses and I can assure you they are truly transformative. If only they taught this to every child in school, we would be living in a totally different world. It's a strange thing how from the beginning of our lives we are put on a wheel where we are constantly running in pursuit of happiness. We chase money, power, pleasure, love, sex, drugs. We spend so much time and energy chasing other people, and material objects. We chase a certain status, a certain recognition from society. We become slaves to our desires. By the time one desire is fulfilled we have a hundred other desires waiting. We come into this life with all sorts of expectations, if we don't get what we want we are miserable - but even when these desires are fulfilled we often find ourselves missing something or looking forward to the next desire, and like this life just flies by and before we know it we are on our death beds. There is a constant greed within us for more and more, we are never willing to settle. The biggest problem is - We have everything, but we don't have ourselves. Our experience of life is just limited to this body and mind, but these are just things we've accumulated over time, so then who are we? What is the nature of our existence? Society provides us with all sorts of belief systems, philosophies, religions. You run to your priests for answers, you run to the scriptures for answers. You look into books for answers, yet you are still not settled, the longing for more is still there, misery is still there, you are not free. Through inner engineering, Sadhguru talks about desire, the nature of joy, the mind, the body, what it takes to live a life of fulfillment. He addresses the fundamental longing within each human being and his meditative courses provide the methods to which one can know what is beyond this body and mind. I cannot recommend this book enough for anyone who is interested in growth, inner transformation, happiness, fulfillment, spirituality or just life itself. No matter what stage of life you're in or what your background is - this book can definitely be of great use. This book does not provide any sort of ideology, philosophy, dogma, or form of belief systems. Everything is based on Sadhguru's own sheer experience of life and therefore people from all walks of life can take something from it. A life transforming chance - don't miss out!

I recently came across Sadhguru on one of the podcasts and since then got fascinated with his philosophy which he calls self-transformation. In this book, he relates the moment of his own awakening, and gives guidance to our highest spiritual enlightenment. He is devoted to humanitarian causes. He explains the term guru: “dispeller of darkness, someone who opens the door for you…” He states, “As a guru, I have no doctrine to teach, no philosophy to impart, no belief to propagate. And that is because the only solution for all the ills that plague humanity is self-transformation. Self-transformation means that nothing of the old remains. It is a dimensional shift in the way you perceive and experience life.” This book is summarized, “The wisdom distilled in this accessible, profound, and engaging book offers readers time-tested tools that are fresh, alive, and radiantly new.” And I highly agree with these words. What struck me with Sadhguru is the pure message he relates from the eastern world. And what I’ve been relying on is what I’d call westernized knowledge. For example, in the western world, we keep hearing about seeking purpose in life as pursuit of happiness, but as Sadhguru explains the purpose of life is to be happy. And happiness comes from within. No external factor will make us happy. And what we seek as purpose in the western world is still classified as external factor in the eastern world. We will never be truly happy until we understand the meaning of happiness that comes from within. This is one of the most profound and engaging reads if you’re interested in spirituality.

This book is an absolute treasure. It has enhanced my understanding of life and Shambhavi on an even greater level than I originally understood. No doubt the next time I read it - it will again open me up to other levels of experience. I am humbly grateful to have learned more than I ever could have imagined from SADHGURU. I started Sadhguru’s 21 minute Inner Engineering daily practice called Shambhavi in 2010 ; a tool to enhance one’s life in creating inner and outer well being. At the end of the Inner Engineering weekend course I took in August 2010, a closing video of Sadhguru was shown, Sadhguru said something to the effect “do this 21 minute practice for 40 days and see what happens, do this for six months and you will never stop” I was struck by the confidence and simplicity of which Sadhguru said this, I couldn’t understand why such an incredibly simple anyone can do practice, which even for a distracted mind only included a few minutes of meditation, could alter one so powerfully so as not to want me to stop! At the time I admit, I was in a place where I felt the need to do something about the way I was living life, …I wanted to know more, even though I was not sure what more was - what I did know, I was ready and eager to make changes to the way I was experiencing life. I yearned to modify the cyclical cycle of experiences occurring in my life, including cyclical thoughts and emotions. Since this practice seemed so basic - I decided there and then that I had to commit experience the unknown and actually see for myself - if this could this be true. I also knew this was not going to be an easy task, at a stretch; the idea of a disciplined routine of any kind other than working out was clearly not one of my best virtues. It is 2016 and I have not stopped. I can honestly say I cannot stop. The inner transformations and ever increasing state of internal and external awareness and changes have been nothing less than phenomenal and only continue to grow. This is why I do it everyday without fail, otherwise why bother. No matter how tired I am, I by pass the chatter of the mind and it’s vigorous aim to distract me, and commit. And, no matter how I am feeling before I sit down, my perception changes; I always, always feel better, relaxed yet alert, happier and energized. This is only one of many reasons why I am humbly thankful to Sadhguru and all I have learned during these last six years.

I debated whether I should buy this book or not because I have read many of Sadhguru's books and articles and watched his videos. So I assumed I "knew" most of the stuff. And yes, the book is indeed a rehash from his lectures with little new material. But I am wrong in assuming that I do not need this book. I actually found that this book is a pretty good summary of Sadhguru's teachings and offers several new insights. It is really a "guide"! The book started on a "wrong note" for me. In the introduction titled "The four letter word", Sadhguru starts to debunk several "spurious and dangerously misleading teachings in vogue in our world today". I was surprised to see that one of them is "do only one thing at a time" which Sadhguru interpreted as a way of "obliterating the power of a phenomenal multidimensional machine called mind". When there are innumerable scientific studies that conclusively prove that multi-tasking does not lead to productivity and is in fact a poor utilization of brain's capabilities, ridiculing it without understanding the basis for it is something I did not expect from Sadhguru. But the chapter "No Boundary, No Burden" compensates for my initial disappointment. This chapter is a beautiful exploration of the word "responsibility". This is my favorite chapter of the entire book and Sadhguru's awesome wisdom is at display here. This chapter is one of the chapters that constitutes "Part One" of the book, a part that offers a lot of wisdom that forms the basis of Yoga. One of the topics touched upon is "Pancha Koshas", the five sheaths or layers that we are composed of. Sadhguru's description of these Koshas is one of the best I have read. But he puts "Pranamaya Kosha" (energy body) after "Manomaya Kosha" (mental body) while the Yogic and Vedantic tradition actually puts "Pranamaya Kosha" before "Manomaya Kosha". This is a fundamental error and I hope it will be corrected in the future editions of the book (Or possibly Sadhguru has an explanation for this and I was wrong). In Part Two, Sadhguru addresses Body, Mind and Energy. In Body, he explores Hatha Yoga and the popular "Surya Namaskar" (Sun Salutations) and then proceeds to discuss the topics of food, sleep and sex. On the topic of food, Sadhguru does not directly ask us to stop eating meat, but convincingly argues that a vegetarian diet with 50% raw food is ideal for most people. Food advice is often controversial even when it comes from the most revered nutrition experts. So I think his claim that "raw vegetables" take least time to digest and pass through the system can be contested. He himself says "raw meat" takes more time to pass through the system than "cooked meat", so it is only logical that "raw vegetables" should take more time to pass through the system than "cooked vegetables". In fact, traditional Indian health system called "Ayurveda" (which Sadhguru mentions in the book), recommends "cooked food" over "raw food" as raw food is difficult to digest. But Sadhguru is absolutely right in saying that raw foods have much more nutrients than cooked food and do a lot of good to the body. In the end, one should follow his advice of "listening to the body and do what is good for it". The chapter on Mind is my other favorite chapter in the book where Sadhguru explores the "limitations of intellect", "head vs heart conflict" among other things. Yogic terminology such as "Manas" (Mind), "Buddhi" (Intellect), "Chitta" (Consciousness) are explained with impeccable clarity and insight. These complex concepts seem simple enough to be understood, thanks to Sadhguru. The chapter on Energy explains "Chakras", "Kriya Yoga", "Consecrated Spaces" among other things. Though the topics explored here are very interesting, they seem somewhat disjoint. Overall, this is a very good book. It is a wonderful introduction to Yoga and Well-being offered in Sadhguru's inimitable style, filled with jokes and anecdotes. There are Sadhanas (Spiritual Practices) offered through out the book which are very useful. I practiced one of them (when you are very hungry, don't immediately eat; wait for 2 mins and avoid reactionary response) and found it helped me to improve my awareness. So this is a very practical book which we can immediately put to use. I recommend it for everyone.

I took Inner Engineering completion Program (Shambhavi Kriya) in May 2015 and has been evolving since with regular practice of shambhavi kriya.I took additional programs which had been additional tools for my self transformation. Each tool that Isha Yoga offered ( especially the advanced meditation program-BhavaSpandana) helped me look inward. Life changed. I am meditative,peaceful, joyful and grateful to this life and everything around me. My perception enhanced and everything I come across has been wonderful. Having studied the medical physiology and practicing medicine, I am blown away to get acquainted to yogic physiology. It is amazing to experience the yogic physiology work through the regular practice of the kriya. At this stage of life, this book has been published. I preordered it and started reading it and completed it. I have to admit that I am not enthusiastic reader ( I was in childhood, but lost it once started the medical school). I start reading books, but hard to finish them. I committed myself to read this book and once I started reading- I couldn't keep it down. I am so gratified to be blessed with it. I recall that I wished I could take notes from the inner engineering program as I could not retain the program contents. It is like my wish came true in the form of this book. It is a manual for me, I have to read it again and gain to retain the content. There is so much wisdom in every line. I will be referring back to it as I did to my Hutchinson manual ( in my medical school time). I add one more tool to my journey of self realization. THE ONLYWAY OUT IS IN and Inner Engineering is an excellent tool help her your way in. Blessed are those who gift themselves this life transforming tool. Inner Engineering Book is a wonderful and accessible tool for those who haven't taken Inner Engineering program ( Could be the way in if they are not hard nuts like me). It is a wonderful manual to those who have started the inward journey with Inner Engineering Program. This book is a contemporary gift to the Spiritual seekers as the Autobiography of a yogi has been in the past.

At first I started to enumerate all the reasons why I recommend this book, but I soon realized there are far too many and I was almost writing a book of my own. So rather than try to pick a few, I will just say that for me this is a keeper, and it goes on the top shelf. I've been a Buddhist for most of my adult life, so Sadhguru's words are mostly watering existing seeds rather than planting new ones. That said, his perspective is fresh and contemporary. Subject matter aside, I have found in the author an interesting, lovable, admirable, and inspirational character. Please enjoy.

Great book, very helpful

Good book

I have been reading since last 20 years and I read about 4 books a month and i can honestly say that this books is one of the 3 most influential books I have ever read. Spirituality has become a western fad as of late, every other person who goes to a yoga class or has read a couple of books thinks he/she is enlightened. Nothing can be further from the truth, a lot of people try this or that spiritual idea for a few days and then give up as they lack the correct mindset to sustain that life. Ignorance is the like the fog obstructing the truth which is right in front of our eyes. We will all need a teacher who can show us the way and Sadhguru will be your teacher when you experience his profound wisdom. He explains the human and cosmic nature both through the eyes of a yogi and a 21st century scientific man. Its easy to follow the path in this book and change your thinking and way of life with tiny steps at a time. If you are unsure please watch Sadhguru's Ted talk [...] The teacher can appear only when the student is ready

Thank you Gurujji for teaching me that I have agency over my thoughts. I indeed have responsibility over what is in the world, and I am empowered to go through life. I have been touched by your grace and I hope to keep aware of what actually is in my everyday life.

This book is easy, the wisdom of Sadhguru is powerful, and the book propose some very easy and practical exercises that help to understand the meaning of a section. Sadhguru is using common good sense and it helps to just realise that simple changes can be powerful in your life.

Merci 👍👍👍👍

This book is great in that it is written in plain English, easy to understand, easy to follow logically and most of all enjoyable. Difficult these days to find gurus that are easy to understand and are so in touch with today's realities. I have read many books by Sadhguru and would recommend this one to anyone whether as a first approach or simply a refreshment on the topic of inner growth. It would be amazing in the future to have an italian translated version available too to be able to gift it to my parents.