Five Tibetan Rites
Encyclopedia
The Five Tibetan Rites is a system of exercises reported to be more than 2,500 years old which were first publicized by Peter Kelder in a 1939 publication entitled The Eye of Revelation. Although practically nothing is known about Kelder, one source reports that Kelder was raised as an adopted child in the midwestern United States, and left home while still in his teens in search of adventure. In the 1930s, Kelder claims to have met, in southern California, a retired British army colonel who shared with him stories of travel and the subsequent discovery of the Rites. Originally written as a 32-page booklet, the publication is the result of Kelder's conversations with the colonel. The Rites are said to be a form of Tibetan yoga
similar to the more well-known yoga series
that originated in India
. However, the Five Rites and traditional Tibetan yoga both emphasize "a continuous sequence of movement" (Sanskrit: vinyasa
), whereas Indian forms focus on "static positions". Although the Rites have circulated amongst yogis for decades, skeptics say that Tibetans have never recognized them as being authentic Tibetan practices.
The Five Tibetan Rites are also referred to as "The Five Rites", "The Five Tibetans", "The Five Rites of Rejuvenation" and most recently "T5T"
s who had apparently discovered a "Fountain of Youth
". The "wandering natives", as he called them, told him of old men who inexplicably became healthy, strong, and full of "vigor and virility" after entering a particular lamasery. After retiring, Kelder's Colonel Bradford went on to discover the lamasery and lived with the lamas, where they taught him five exercises, which they called "rites". According to the booklet, the lamas describe seven spinning, "psychic vortexes" within the body: two of these vortexes are located in the brain, one at the base of the throat, one on the right side of the body in the vicinity of the liver, one in the reproductive anatomy, and one in each knee. As we grow older, the spin rate of the vortexes diminishes, resulting in "ill-health". However, the spin rate of these vortexes can be restored by performing the Five Rites daily, resulting in improved health.
Bradford was also instructed in how to perform a sixth rite an abdominal breathing exercise
, which the lamas recommended only for those willing to "lead a more or less continent (celibate) life". Additionally, Bradford reveals information on the importance of what foods one should eat, proper food combinations, and the correct method of eating.
, whose 1994 book The Five Tibetans helped respark the Five Rites' popularity, says, "As the story has it, they were shared by Tibetan lamas; beyond that I know nothing of their history." Even though the historic lineage of the Rites prior to the publication of Kelder's booklet remains to be ascertained, the Rites have nevertheless been affirmed by a lama and scholar of the Sa skya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism as being "a genuine form of yoga and were originally taken from an authentic Indo-Tibetan tantric lineage, namely a cycle of yantra-yoga associated with the Sadnadapadadharma." However, it has been argued that the Five Rites predate yoga as we know it today by as much as seven hundred years or more and, therefore, could not have derived from either Tibetan or Indian forms of yoga. Moreover, it has also been suggested that the Rites are more likely to have originated from a system of Kum Nye
which, like the Rites, date back 2,500 years. Nevertheless, Chris Kilham also states that "[t]he issue at hand, though, is not the lineage of the Five Tibetans. The point is their immense potential value for those who will clear 10 minutes a day to practice."
Kelder cautions that when performing the First Rite, spinning must always be performed in a clockwise direction. He also states that Bradford clearly recalled that the Maulawiyah, otherwise known as "Whirling Dervishes"
, always spun from left to right, in a clockwise direction. No mention is made of the orientation of the palms, although the original illustration of the Rite in the 1939 edition of The Eye of Revelation clearly depicts both palms as facing toward the ground. Here arises a point of contention: the Whirling Dervishes spin in the counter-clockwise direction, with the left palm facing down, towards the earth, and the right palm facing up, towards heaven. However, this discrepancy may find partial resolution in the fact that Tibetan Buddhist yoga regards clockwise rotation to be favorable, whereas counter-clockwise rotation is considered to be unfavorable.
"Stand erect with arms outstretched, horizontal with the shoulders. Now spin around until you become slightly dizzy. There is only one caution: you must turn from left to right."
"Lie full length on rug or bed. Place the hands flat down alongside of the hips. Fingers should
be kept close together with the finger-tips of each hand turned slightly toward one another. Raise the feet until the legs are straight up. If possible, let the feet extend back a bit over the body toward the head, but do not let the knees bend. Hold this position for a moment or two and then slowly lower the feet to the floor, and for the next several moments allow all of the muscles in the entire body to relax completely. Then perform the Rite all over again."
"While the feet and legs are being raised it is a good idea also to raise the head, then while the feet and legs are being lowered to the floor lower the head at the same time."
"Kneel on a rug or mat with hands at sides, palms flat against the side of legs. Then lean forward as far as possible, bending at the waist, with head well forward—chin on chest. The second position of this Rite is to lean backward as far as possible. Cause the head to move still further backward. The toes will prevent you from falling over backward. The hands are always kept against the side of the legs. Next come to an erect (kneeling) position, relax as much as possible for a moment, and perform Rite all over again."
"Sit erect on rug or carpet with feet stretched out in front. The legs must be perfectly straight -- back of knees must be well down or close to the rug. Place the hands flat on the rug, fingers together, and the hands pointing outward slightly. Chin should be on chest -- head forward."
"Now gently raise the body, at the same time bend the knees so that the legs from the knees down are practically straight up and down. The arms, too, will also be vertical while the body from shoulders to knees will be horizontal. As the body is raised upward allow the head gently to fall backward so that the head hangs backward as far as possible when the body is fully horizontal. Hold this position for a few moments, return to first position, and RELAX for a few moments before performing the Rite again."
"When the body is pressed up to complete horizontal position, tense every muscle in the body."
"Place the hands on the floor about two feet apart. Then, with the legs stretched out to the rear with the feet also about two feet apart, push the body, and especially the hips, up as far as possible, rising on the toes and hands. At the same time the head should be brought so far down that the chin comes up against the chest. “Next, allow the body to come slowly down to a ‘sagging’ position. Bring the head up, causing it to be drawn as far back as possible."
"The muscles should be tensed for a moment when the body is at the highest point, and again at the lowest point."
An abdominal breathing exercise.
Trul khor
Tsa lung Trul khor known for brevity as Trul khor is a Himalayan tantric discipline which includes breathwork , meditative contemplation and precise dynamic movements to centre the practitioner and to...
similar to the more well-known yoga series
Yoga series
Yoga series consist of a number of asanas done in sequence, typically either in opposition to one another , or in variations of increasing difficulty . The most common yoga series is Surya Namaskara or the Sun Salutation, originating in the Hatha Yoga system...
that originated in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. However, the Five Rites and traditional Tibetan yoga both emphasize "a continuous sequence of movement" (Sanskrit: vinyasa
Vinyasa
Vinyasa , is a Sanskrit term often employed in relation to certain styles of yoga. The term vinyasa may be broken down into its Sanskritic roots to assist in decoding its meaning...
), whereas Indian forms focus on "static positions". Although the Rites have circulated amongst yogis for decades, skeptics say that Tibetans have never recognized them as being authentic Tibetan practices.
The Five Tibetan Rites are also referred to as "The Five Rites", "The Five Tibetans", "The Five Rites of Rejuvenation" and most recently "T5T"
The booklet
In his booklet, Kelder claims that while stationed in India, British army officer Colonel Bradford (a pseudonym) heard a story about a group of lamaLama
Lama is a title for a Tibetan teacher of the Dharma. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term guru .Historically, the term was used for venerated spiritual masters or heads of monasteries...
s who had apparently discovered a "Fountain of Youth
Fountain of Youth
The Fountain of Youth is a legendary spring that reputedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks of its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted across the world for thousands of years, appearing in writings by Herodotus, the Alexander romance, and the stories of Prester John...
". The "wandering natives", as he called them, told him of old men who inexplicably became healthy, strong, and full of "vigor and virility" after entering a particular lamasery. After retiring, Kelder's Colonel Bradford went on to discover the lamasery and lived with the lamas, where they taught him five exercises, which they called "rites". According to the booklet, the lamas describe seven spinning, "psychic vortexes" within the body: two of these vortexes are located in the brain, one at the base of the throat, one on the right side of the body in the vicinity of the liver, one in the reproductive anatomy, and one in each knee. As we grow older, the spin rate of the vortexes diminishes, resulting in "ill-health". However, the spin rate of these vortexes can be restored by performing the Five Rites daily, resulting in improved health.
Bradford was also instructed in how to perform a sixth rite an abdominal breathing exercise
Uddiyana Bandha
Uddiyana bandha is the abdominal lock, one of the three internal locks or bandhas described and employed in hatha yoga...
, which the lamas recommended only for those willing to "lead a more or less continent (celibate) life". Additionally, Bradford reveals information on the importance of what foods one should eat, proper food combinations, and the correct method of eating.
Disputed origins
Although the origin of the Five Rites prior to the publication of The Eye of Revelation is disputed between practitioners and skeptics, a comparison of illustrations of the postures shows a remarkable similarity between the Rites and authentic Tibetan phrul 'khor exercises from a system rendered into English as 'Vajra Body Magical Wheel Sun and Moon Union' . Chris KilhamChris Kilham
Chris Kilham is a medicine hunter, author, educator, and world-traveler devoted to researching and promoting plant-based medicines. He is the founder of Medicine Hunter, Inc., and is a Fox News integrative alternative medicine TV personality and columnist...
, whose 1994 book The Five Tibetans helped respark the Five Rites' popularity, says, "As the story has it, they were shared by Tibetan lamas; beyond that I know nothing of their history." Even though the historic lineage of the Rites prior to the publication of Kelder's booklet remains to be ascertained, the Rites have nevertheless been affirmed by a lama and scholar of the Sa skya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism as being "a genuine form of yoga and were originally taken from an authentic Indo-Tibetan tantric lineage, namely a cycle of yantra-yoga associated with the Sadnadapadadharma." However, it has been argued that the Five Rites predate yoga as we know it today by as much as seven hundred years or more and, therefore, could not have derived from either Tibetan or Indian forms of yoga. Moreover, it has also been suggested that the Rites are more likely to have originated from a system of Kum Nye
Kum Nye
Kum Nye and sKu-mNyé refer to a wide variety of Tibetan religious and medical body practices. The two terms are different spellings in the Latin alphabet of the same Tibetan phrase , which literally means "massage of the subtle body". Some systems of sku mnye are vaguely similar to Yoga, T'ai chi,...
which, like the Rites, date back 2,500 years. Nevertheless, Chris Kilham also states that "[t]he issue at hand, though, is not the lineage of the Five Tibetans. The point is their immense potential value for those who will clear 10 minutes a day to practice."
Performing the Rites
In the original The Eye of Revelation booklet, Kelder suggests standing erect between each of the Five Rites with hands on hips and taking one or two deep breaths; he neither implies nor suggests that specific breathing patterns should be adopted while performing the movements. Nevertheless, subsequent publications pertaining to the Rites contain edits by others which recommend and detail specific instructions for breathing while performing the exercises. Some practitioners also recommend taking caution prior to performing the Rites due to the possibility of aggravating certain health conditions.Kelder cautions that when performing the First Rite, spinning must always be performed in a clockwise direction. He also states that Bradford clearly recalled that the Maulawiyah, otherwise known as "Whirling Dervishes"
Mevlevi
The Mevlevi Order, or the Mevlevilik or Mevleviye are a Sufi order founded in Konya by the followers of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi-Rumi, a 13th century Persian poet, Islamic jurist, and theologian. They are also known as the Whirling Dervishes due to their famous practice of whirling as a form...
, always spun from left to right, in a clockwise direction. No mention is made of the orientation of the palms, although the original illustration of the Rite in the 1939 edition of The Eye of Revelation clearly depicts both palms as facing toward the ground. Here arises a point of contention: the Whirling Dervishes spin in the counter-clockwise direction, with the left palm facing down, towards the earth, and the right palm facing up, towards heaven. However, this discrepancy may find partial resolution in the fact that Tibetan Buddhist yoga regards clockwise rotation to be favorable, whereas counter-clockwise rotation is considered to be unfavorable.
"Stand erect with arms outstretched, horizontal with the shoulders. Now spin around until you become slightly dizzy. There is only one caution: you must turn from left to right."
"Lie full length on rug or bed. Place the hands flat down alongside of the hips. Fingers should
be kept close together with the finger-tips of each hand turned slightly toward one another. Raise the feet until the legs are straight up. If possible, let the feet extend back a bit over the body toward the head, but do not let the knees bend. Hold this position for a moment or two and then slowly lower the feet to the floor, and for the next several moments allow all of the muscles in the entire body to relax completely. Then perform the Rite all over again."
"While the feet and legs are being raised it is a good idea also to raise the head, then while the feet and legs are being lowered to the floor lower the head at the same time."
"Kneel on a rug or mat with hands at sides, palms flat against the side of legs. Then lean forward as far as possible, bending at the waist, with head well forward—chin on chest. The second position of this Rite is to lean backward as far as possible. Cause the head to move still further backward. The toes will prevent you from falling over backward. The hands are always kept against the side of the legs. Next come to an erect (kneeling) position, relax as much as possible for a moment, and perform Rite all over again."
"Sit erect on rug or carpet with feet stretched out in front. The legs must be perfectly straight -- back of knees must be well down or close to the rug. Place the hands flat on the rug, fingers together, and the hands pointing outward slightly. Chin should be on chest -- head forward."
"Now gently raise the body, at the same time bend the knees so that the legs from the knees down are practically straight up and down. The arms, too, will also be vertical while the body from shoulders to knees will be horizontal. As the body is raised upward allow the head gently to fall backward so that the head hangs backward as far as possible when the body is fully horizontal. Hold this position for a few moments, return to first position, and RELAX for a few moments before performing the Rite again."
"When the body is pressed up to complete horizontal position, tense every muscle in the body."
"Place the hands on the floor about two feet apart. Then, with the legs stretched out to the rear with the feet also about two feet apart, push the body, and especially the hips, up as far as possible, rising on the toes and hands. At the same time the head should be brought so far down that the chin comes up against the chest. “Next, allow the body to come slowly down to a ‘sagging’ position. Bring the head up, causing it to be drawn as far back as possible."
"The muscles should be tensed for a moment when the body is at the highest point, and again at the lowest point."
An abdominal breathing exercise.
Claimed benefits of performing the rites
According to Kelder, Bradford's stay in the lamasery transformed him from a stooped, old gentleman with a cane to a tall and straight young man in the prime of his life. Additionally, he reported that Bradford's hair had grown back, without a trace of gray. The revised publications of The Eye of Revelation entitled Ancient Secret of the Fountain of Youth also contain numerous testimonials by practitioners of the Rites, claiming that they yield positive medical effects such as improved eyesight, memory, potency, hair growth, restoration of full color to completely gray hair, and anti-aging. However, claims as to the benefits of the Rites are often exaggerated, resulting in unrealistic expectations. The benefits most likely to be achieved are increased energy, stress reduction, and an enhanced sense of calm, clarity of thought, increased strength and flexibility, and an overall improvement in health and well-being.Further reading
- Co, Stephen & Eric B. Robins, M.D. Your Hands Can Heal You: Pranic Healing Energy Remedies to Boost Vitality and Speed Recovery from Common Health Problems. Free Press; Reprint edition; (January 5, 2004).
- Carolinda WittCarolinda WittCarolinda Witt is a globally known hot air balloon pilot and complementary health practitioner whose primary area of expertise is as a teacher of The Five Tibetans, a yoga methodology originally described by Peter Kelder in his book “The Eye Of Revelation”.- Early years :Carolinda was born in...
. T5T: The Five Tibetan Exercise Rites. Penguin Books (Sept 2005). - Carolinda WittCarolinda WittCarolinda Witt is a globally known hot air balloon pilot and complementary health practitioner whose primary area of expertise is as a teacher of The Five Tibetans, a yoga methodology originally described by Peter Kelder in his book “The Eye Of Revelation”.- Early years :Carolinda was born in...
. The 10-Minute Rejuvenation Plan: T5T - the Revolutionary Exercise Program That Restores Your Body And Mind. Three Rivers Press (April 3, 2007) - Weor,Samael Aun. The Tibetan Exercises for Rejuvenation: Gnosis and the Yantra Yoga for Long Life. Glorian Publishing (June 1, 2008)
External links
- Project Documenting Effects of Five Tibetan Rites
- A New Look At The Five Rites
- Additional Information on the Five Rites with Researched Articles
- Five Tibetan Rejuvenation Energy Rites
- Flash Mavi Animated 5 Tibetans Lesson
- Tibetan Exercises by Samael Aun WeorSamael Aun WeorSamael Aun Weor , born Víctor Manuel Gómez Rodríguez, Colombian citizen and later Mexican, was an author, lecturer and founder of the 'Universal Christian Gnostic Movement' with his teaching of 'The Doctrine of Synthesis' of all religions in both their esoteric and exoteric aspects...
- Informative articles on the Five Rites