The science of yoga
is a wonderful instrument for internal engineering. With manifold health long
term health benefits and minimum resources, it is the body’s combative force to
the attacks of external forces.
Yoga
is the yog or the connection between
the mental and physical. An asana is
the effort the body makes to reach a pose with controlled inhalations and exhalations
and attains physical benefits of good health through optimum mind control.
Each
turn or twist the body makes to
replicate an asana is the body’s
answer to the ask of the mind that calls upon the physical self to collect
itself through rhythmic breathing and focus on a particular physical entity
whilst observing the going ons of the body…i.e. flow of blood, sound of a
throbbing heartbeat or the aches and pains
the body is facing.
Mind through Body
The
mind is a subtle entity and the body a more palpable one. To control
the body is easier than to harness
the dynamic mind. It is the constant
flow of water in a gurgling brook or the energetic flapping of a bird’s wings,
it is unending, ever-expanding and ever-curious. If mind were the wind that assists the kite, the body is the kite that
flutters and flows upon the tug of the main thread of which we have the sole control.
Yoga
as is common knowledge is an ancient science going back centuries and has
modelled itself on the natural ecosystem. Hence asanas replicate the animal and the plant world.
It
is the bridge that transcends a worldly experience and translates into a larger
surreal experience as one travels through the physical self and releases itself
to reach out to a world which is far beyond its physical capacity. It is another word for one’s existence realization.
Institutionalized
Yoga Practice
A
human institutionalized effort to bring basic yogic practice and comprehensive
and tailormade yoga Teacher’s Training program under the aegis of an
organization are the teacher’s training programs at the Rishikul Yogshala. Based out of Rishikesh, Nepal, Thailand, Delhi,
Gurgaon, Bangalore, Mozambique, Vietnam, Khajuraho and Iran, the practices are
time bound and manned by experienced yoga practitioners.
Physical perks of
yoga practice
Benefits
of yoga on physical wellbeing are manifold –
1. Benefits the
spiritual and mental wellbeing by opening up clogged emotions and pent up
feelings.
2. Replaces negative (Nakaratmak) with the positive (Sakaratmak) thinking
3. Identifies the weaker
muscles or organs of the body, through aches and pains and quivering muscle masses
4. Effectively deals
with stress and mental health issues hence decreased level of anxiety and depression,
which are preserves of the modern day life
5. Brings out physical
and intellectual sweat to master yogic practices and control the going ons of
the mind
6. Known to optimize systolic
and diastolic pressures
7. Helps attain samamkaya – to align each and every part of the body without
deviation, retraction or contraction
8. It lets energy flow
freely through the chakras whilst controlling body heat and allowing awareness
to travel through each cell and vein
9. Helps improve muscle strength and controls common
issues like arthritis, back pain, joint
aches, migraine, sinus, heart burn to name only a few
10. Yoga gives posture a
pump up and helps align the spine with the rest of the body, this prevents
posture related injury
11. Yoga assists the joint fluids and protects cartiledges
and bones from wear and tear
12. Yoga helps one lift
one’s own weight through asanas and
uses the body weight as a prop to
achieve optimum weight loss and muscle strength
13. Yoga is a boost to
the blood flow and makes the hand and leg muscles more agile. It is known to
pump more oxygen to the cells. Advanced
yoga poses that demand a greater
twist wring poisonous blood out of the body and allow new oxygenated blood to
flow to the primary organs
14. Yoga improves oxygen carrying hemoglobin and red blood
cells and cuts the level of clot promoting proteins in the blood. It, therefore, deals with heart attacks and strokes
with better effectiveness
15. Yoga raises the
combative forces of the body to take on the physical hazards of the external
nature. Pollution, stress, weight gain, fatigue, aching muscles, bad spinal column
health, breathing problems to name a few
16. Yoga gives tremendous importance
to the anterior spine and regular
practitioners of yoga enjoy optimum
flexibility and movement for the umber, thoracic and anterior spine
17. Yoga and pranayama massages interior organs
without the need for a surgery. It loosens tight muscles and allows blood to
flow seamlessly
18. Yoga and pranayama are passive reflections and
opens the minds gates to newer possibilities
19. Yoga and pranayama
improves nerve health, it ensures
the generated energy during the practices reaches the gates or the ends of the nerves
20. Mindful breathing
techniques of pranayama and asana practices are a boost to the
happy hormone serotonin and finds it’s correlation with elevated levels of
happiness and better immune function
Yoga is the body’s
natural response to attacks on its subtle and larger entities, it is a way of
existence when not just the inhalations
and exhalations but also the pauses
between them (Kumbhaka) are stressed
upon. Yoga is refreshing and invigorating and opens up clogged pores to
facilitate the flow of energy and life. However, any yoga practice requires the
practitioner to be under the tutelage of a seasoned teacher, who is not just a regular practitioner but also a sensible
human being who is privy to the vast possibilities of this life force and the
orbit shift it can bring to one’s day to day existence and also long term well-being.
The teacher’s training programs at Rishikul Yogashala at Rishikesh
does just that with its schools within the country and also without it. It is an
amalgam of years of practice, controlled learning environment, multiple keen yoga practitioners and one common goal –
to lead a fuller, healthier and happier existence.
