Yoga Asana Is Not Yoga

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Yoga Asana Is Not Yoga

When we talk or think about yoga all we imagine is a yogi performing nerve straining postures and literally wrapping oneself into a compact shape which makes us astound by that bizarre sight. Then, we tell ourselves with a deep sigh oh! I want to but I cannot do Yoga, it’s so difficult. Many of us are in this illusion that yoga and yoga asana are synonymous, which is not true. The word yoga means, “Union or Unity – In”, whatever we do. 

Yoga is much wider than physical postures and movements. It involves meditation, right breathing and right thought. Long time ago, yoga was supposed to open and relax the bodies of yogis so that they can develop strength to sit for long hours in a particular posture.

According to an ancient sage Patanjali, yoga has eight limbs which go hand in hand and forms a full cycle where one step leads to another. Each step being of prime importance that requires consistent practice throughout the life to reap its benefits. Following are the eight limbs of yoga-

1) Yama is more about our values and integrity and how we practice yoga in our lives not on a mat. The 5 yamas are non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, continence, and non-hoarding. 

2) Niyama is to practice self-discipline in every aspect of life and spiritual activities. The 5 niyamas are cleanliness, contentment, spiritual purification, study of sacred texts, and devotion to one’s higher power.
Abiding your actions & thoughts to these code of conduct – Yama & Niyama are more difficult than performing complex asana.

3) Asana is the physical posture that helps to keep us conscious, dissolve tensions, build strength, eliminate toxins, increase mobility and improve blood circulation.

4) Pranayama is the expansion of life force through breathing exercises. It focuses on control on our breath which leads to control on our mind. This ultimately relieves us from anger stress, fear and anxiety because our mind is in a state of peace.
Personally, I feel that with Pranayama, we increases our lung capacity, this lung capacity helps us to strengthen our emotion related chakra – heart chakra & solar plexus chakra, we become more better in facing emotional whirlpool situations. 

5) Pratyahara is about withdrawing ourselves from the outer world to experience the inner state of mind. In this we turn off our 5 senses which provide us information about the world around us. Shankhmukhi mudra is performed for this where we shut our sense organs with the help of fingers. 

6) Dharana is practicing focus or concentration. Focus is like a muscle on the body, the more you use it the stronger it becomes. Dharana helps to overcome distraction and paves the way for a calm, centered and still mind.

7) Dhyana is meditating and focussing totally on a single object and let the mind experience inner depth of peace and silence. It is practiced repeatedly to achieve control on our mind and prevent it from losing focus. 

8) Samadhi is the final and supreme state of consciousness. In this we surrender ourselves completely and open up to the infinite world with the help of shavasana.

Performing these yoga asanas correctly strengthen our muscles through stretching. Yoga asana along with breath control helps to stay in the present moment, massage our muscles and constantly sends fresh oxygen to the muscles while stretching and strengthening.

Our minds and bodies being connected, every part of our body undergoes the change without our realisation at the initial stage. Secondly due to oneness of our mind and body our perception and feeling is reflected in our body language, the way we carry ourselves, how we react to different people and situations and how we interact with the world around us.

This is the reason why body language holds prominence and why positivity is essential for a healthy and successful life. Yoga starts with internal balance then we move towards understanding self and finally towards self-realization. It is rather complex because our mind and body has to go through complete transformation from what we are and what we want to achieve. It involves release of tremendous energy and a cleansing process to drive away the illusions, negative words or feelings absorbed by our minds. It also includes changing the long drawn patterns and habits formed since childhood. By practicing yin yoga which involves a full body suite, one experiences release of emotions and feelings deep seated in mind and body. 

In this entire process of transformation every cell has the strength to withstand the energetic changes which our body goes through and leads to balance and positive energy infused in us. The effect of yoga varies from person to person depending upon the place from where they start both physically and energetically.

Yoga is done to achieve stability, balance and good health.

In changing times we have distanced ourselves from our ancient legacy because of which people are unaware about yoga. It is a practice of complete revival and transformation of mind and body and goes beyond mat exercises.

Yoga is basically what we do every day with our mind and body working unanimously but to do it right is what yoga and yoga asana is all about.

Read more

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Full History of Yoga (Origin, Evolution, Development With Timeline)

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