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Yoga
Yoga is primarily a philosophical science, born out of
man's need to fathom the meaning of existence.
Patanjali, the father of yoga, states in the second
sutra, (the yoga sutras):"Yogah cittavrtti nirodhah." (yogah
= integration of all levels of our being; citta =
consciousness; vrtti = fluctuation or state of mind;
nirodhah = restraint) - meaning, "Yoga is the cessation
of consciousness."
The ultimate aim of yoga is self-evolution. In ancient
times, when people lived the yogic way, good health was
the natural result of their lifestyle. But, as health
deteriorated with man's changing values, yoga gained
ground in its use as therapy.
Patanjali explained that uncertain action, giving rise
to violence, whether done directly or indirectly, or
condoned, is caused by greed, anger, or delusion in
different degrees. This causes endless pain and
ignorance. Through introspection comes an end to pain
and ignorance. This sutra explains the essence of the
genesis of ill-health in today's world and also the
method of management. Diseases are due not just to
physical reasons but to decay in moral standards also.
So the curative methods, should not be confined to the
material plane alone. |
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Yoga and Modern
Medicine - A Comparison
The fact that yoga can prevent and cure many ailments is
well known. Yoga should not be viewed as an alternative
system of medicine but as a primary form of cure in
those areas in which yoga alone can cure ill-health.
Yoga can tackle many major illnesses non-invasively; it
is not just a stress-reliever or a panacea. This places
yoga in a different dimension altogether. Modern
medicine uses bio-feedback as a stress-relieving
technique, but yoga works on the inner senses and mind
in a conscious process and is more direct in its
approach. It is an automatic feedback system.
Modern medicine undergoes constant change. Theories
alter by the minute. Terminologies are modified in each
national or international conference. Newer drugs are
being discovered to tackle old and new illnesses; old
illnesses are vanishing and new ones taking their place.
The science of yoga however, has remained unchanged, as
the yogic procedures have been researched on and
determined by our ancient seers. There are clear-cut
guidelines for both prevention and cure. Today when, in
despair at the failure of Western medicine to deliver
every time, we are turning to natural remedies, yoga is
coming into its own.
The ancients said that the mind is the cause of all
diseases, physiological or mental. Modern medicine has
corroborated this with the word `psychosomatic'. Now
there is clear proof that mental stress produces many
diseases coronary and respiratory illness, peptic
ulcers, weak immune systems. Mental stress is due to
disorganised behavior inside the psyche. The soma or
body is influenced by the sense organs (which are the
agents of the mind). On coming into contact with a
pleasurable situation or object for example, a cigarette
they give feedback to the mind. The organs of action
pursue the same object to perpetuate the experience.
Thus, the mind and senses are caught in a vicious cycle
each reinforcing the other, being themselves reinforced
by the experience. Patanjali emphasised that the cause
of pain lies in the identification of the seer with the
seen, and the remedy lies in the disassociation. If the
mind is silenced by the practice of asanas and pranayama
and the senses are quietened, one's perception is
altered, leading to a sense of detachment in
observation. The senses are not stimulated. The person
uses innate intelligence to remain unaffected by
pleasurable situations. In other words, realising the
transient nature of everything, he or she is equanimous
in all situations.
The relation between the psyche and soma is harmonized
by the practice of yoga. Drugs may cure illnesses, but
the basic inner foundation for achieving health, the
harmonization of the inner psyche, is not established.
Yoga is of most value in this. |
About Yoga
The ancients said that
the mind is the cause of all diseases, physiological or
mental. Modern medicine has corroborated this with the
word `psychosomatic'. Now there is clear proof that
mental stress produces many diseases coronary and
respiratory illness, peptic ulcers, weak immune systems.
Mental stress is due to disorganised behavior inside the
psyche. The soma or body is influenced by the sense
organs (which are the agents of the mind). On coming
into contact with a pleasurable situation or object for
example, a cigarette they give feedback to the mind. The
organs of action pursue the same object to perpetuate
the experience.
Thus, the mind and senses are caught in a vicious cycle
each reinforcing the other, being themselves reinforced
by the experience. Patanjali emphasised that the cause
of pain lies in the identification of the seer with the
seen, and the remedy lies in the disassociation. If the
mind is silenced by the practice of asanas and pranayama
and the senses are quietened, one's perception is
altered, leading to a sense of detachment in
observation. The senses are not stimulated. The person
uses innate intelligence to remain unaffected by
pleasurable situations. In other words, realising the
transient nature of everything, he or she is equanimous
in all situations.
The relation between the psyche and soma is harmonized
by the practice of yoga. Drugs may cure illnesses, but
the basic inner foundation for achieving health, the
harmonization of the inner psyche, is not established.
Yoga is of most value in this. |
| Yoga is an ancient
system of relaxation, exercise, and healing with origins
in Indian philosophy. Yoga has been described as "the
union of mind, body, and spirit," which addresses
physical, mental, intellectual, emotional and spiritual
dimensions towards an overall harmonious state of being.
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| Yoga as an
alternative medicine is a healing system of theory and
practice, its a combination of breathing exercises,
physical postures, and meditation, practiced for over
5,000 years. |
Yoga is considered
a mind-body intervention that is used to reduce the
health effects of generalized stress.
Yoga is believed to calm the nervous system and balance
the body, mind, and spirit.
It is thought by its practitioners to prevent specific
diseases and maladies by keeping the energy meridians
open and life energy (Prana) flowing.
Yoga is usually performed in classes, sessions are
conducted at least once a week and for approximately 45
minutes.
Yoga has been used to lower blood pressure, reduce
stress, and improve coordination, flexibility,
concentration, sleep, and digestion.. |
Yoga, one of the
complementary alternative medicine therapies, is a
healing and releasing self therapy.
Yoga is a great complementary alternative medicine
therapy to release stress and to come out of the
negative feelings that your body is holding onto.
Yoga is an art, if you do it correctly. You can learn it
easily and you can also continue it on a daily basis.
The more you practice yoga the greater are the benefits
you can get.
Yoga can cure and treat you in more than one aspect of
your life. Simply speaking it is a holistic treatment
that treats your mind, body and soul. |
Power of the
Human Mind
With regard to many of the benefits of yoga, the
mechanisms are at very subtle levels. The concepts of
treatment in Yoga are different from those of western
medicine. Sometimes, we in the medical profession,
having been tuned to a particular way of approaching the
human body, find it difficult to accept other systems of
cure. It is a fact that the human mind is the source of
immense energy. We use only one-tenth of our brain
cells, the remainder being inactive. In a yogi, with
accomplished capacity for supernormal healing, it is
postulated that much more of the brain is active. Yogis
have demonstrated their healing powers time and again;
but this cannot be as objectively studied as western
medicine would like it to be. There are no medical
yardsticks to measure many of the effects of asanas and
pranayama. There is no way of studying the workings of
the mind in the material plane. Mind is energy, and
energy can heal or destroy, depending on the proper
balance in and around us.
Life is an offshoot of the basic energy in all living
things, and when this is depleted, there is a state of
death. This energy balance is disturbed in many
illnesses. When a drug is administered, it is not that
alone which cures; the inner strength of the body also
aids it. If this fails, in spite of the medicine, the
patient can die. The human will has been recognized as a
considerable force in overcoming many illnesses. Beyond
this, western medicine refrains from comment. But, yogic
science has explored this and has realised that it is
possible to achieve a state where the mind triumphs over
matter.
A simple example is the ability to shut off pain. It is
possible to avoid experiencing severe pain physically by
intensely repositioning the mind in a different
direction. In this respect, yogis have always
demonstrated the supreme capacity of mind over matter. A
telling example is that of the very famous sage, Sri
Ramana Maharishi of Tamil Nadu in India. When sarcoma
was diagnosed, and an operation was imminent, he refused
an anaesthetic and felt no pain at all. |
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INTRODUCTION TO
YOGA
Over the last few decades or so, especially in Western countries, many
people have become acquainted with Yoga as an effective way to become
more relaxed and healthy. The primary aim of Yoga, however, extends
beyond the cultivation of physical and emotional well-being to promote a
spiritual vision of the transcendence of mundane existence through the
realisation of the Divine, the Absolute, the Ultimately Real. This
transcendence can be interpreted as the ultimate healing, as it promises
liberation from the suffering and limitations of our daily lives and the
attainment of our highest potential.
The term Yoga refers to both the goal and the means of attaining it. In
the first sense Yoga denotes a state of perfect transcendence, while in
the second it represents the vast array of paths, schools, principles
and practices that have been developed to attain this end.
Yoga
cannot be interpreted as a religion in the
conventional sense if for no other reason than its
presence and influence in all the major religious
paths that have their origin in India: namely
Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Rather than
being a formal or institutional response to the
human desire for the Divine, Yoga in its broadest
sense is the working out of this desire in the life
of the individual spiritual seeker. |
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The
great diversity in the many paths of Yoga cautions
us not to be dogmatic or rigidly sectarian in the
way we regard the ends and means of our spiritual
inclinations. The nineteenth century Bengali saint
Sri Ramakrishna is reported to have often stressed
that the fundamental goal of human life is the
realisation of God or the Divine, and that goal can
be approached in an indefinite number of ways: ‘As
many paths as there are aspirants.’
The
impressive complexity that the full breadth of the
tradition of Yoga presents reflects this need for a
multitude of ways to the common goal of liberation.
However there are recognisable emphases in this
tradition that are represented by the major paths of
Yoga. The differences between these paths relate to
how Yoga is conceived and how it is to be realised.
For
instance Jnana-yoga, the yoga of knowledge or
wisdom, conceives the Absolute or Brahman as
impersonal and aims to realise the Self as identical
with it. In contrast Bhakti-yoga, the yoga of
devotion, upholds the primacy of a personal God and
seeks a union that doesn’t extinguish the
distinction between oneself and God. Different
again, Raja-yoga maintains a fundamental distinction
between nature (prakrti) and the Self (purusa), and
it is our ignorance of this distinction that causes
us to be bound to the cycle of rebirth. |
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