YOGA Yoga as an integral part of life. The word yoga has been derived from the sanskrit word 'yuj' which means to unite, add Or b...
 |
| Yoga as an integral part of life. |
The word yoga has been derived from the sanskrit word 'yuj' which means to unite, add Or bind. In 'bhagwat geeta', yoga is described as skillful competition of a task. In other words, yoga is the Union of the body, mind & soul. Practising yoga enables us to work efficiency and lead a disciplined life.
Importance of yoga
Adopting the practice of yoga in our daily life improves the overall fitness of an individual, enhances physical and mental strength, increase flexibility, corrects posture, relieves stress, and establishes inner peace. The practice of yoga evolved in the indian peninsular region over 5000 years ago. However now a days it is adapted by the Western culture too. People of all age groups, be it children, adults or senior citizens, should regularly practice yoga asanas.
To recognize the importance of yoga, every year 21st June is celebrated as the 'International Yoga Day.
Yoga consists of eight braches or elements which are:-
- Asana
- Pranayama
- Dhyana
- Dharana
- Samadhi
- Yama
- Niyama
- Pratyahara
Maharashi patanjaliji had described all these elements in his book "YOGA DARSHANA".
1. Yamas
Yamas are ethical vows in the Yogic tradition and can be thought of as moral imperatives. The five yamas listed by Patanjali are:-
Ahimsa : Nonviolence, non-harming other living beings through actions and speech.
Satya : truthfulness, non-falsehood.
Asteya: non-stealing
Brahmacarya: chastity, marital fidelity or sexual restraint.
Aparigraha : Non-greed, non-grasping, non-possessiveness.
The commentaries on these teachings of Patanjali state how and why each of the above self restraints help in the personal growth of an individual.
2. Niyama
The second component of Patanjali's Yoga path is called niyama, which includes virtuous habits, behaviors and observances.
Saucha: purity, clearness of mind, speech and body.
Santosha : contentment, acceptance of others, acceptance of one's circumstances as they are in order to get past or change them, optimism for self.
Tapas : literally translates to fire or heat. But in yogic context it means persistence, perseverance, austerity.
Savadyaya : Self-study, self-reflection, introspection of self's thoughts, speeches and actions, study of scriptures.
Ishvarpranidhana : contemplation of the Ishvara (God/Supreme Being, Brahman, True Self, Unchanging Reality)
3. Asana
Patanjali begins by defining asanas as the third element of yoga. All the different types of asanas should be practised in the given conditions.
Asana is thus a (meditation) posture that one can hold for a period of time, staying relaxed, steady, comfortable and motionless. Patanjali does not list any specific asana, except the terse suggestion, "posture one can hold with comfort and motionlessness". Āraṇya translates verse II.47 as, "asanas are perfected over time by relaxation of effort with meditation on the infinite"; this combination and practice stops the quivering of body.
4. Pranayama
After a desired posture has been achieved, verses recommend the next limb of yoga, pranayama which is the practice of consciously regulating breath (inhalation and exhalation).
5. Pratyahara
Pratyhara is a combination of two Sanskrit words prati- the prefix (,"against" or "contra") and ahara - the suffix ,("food,diet or intake").
Pratyahara means not taking any input or any information from the sense organs. It is a process of retracting the sensory experience from external objects. It is a step of self extraction and abstraction. Pratyahara is not consciously closing one's eyes to the sensory world, it is consciously closing one's mind processes to the sensory world. Pratyahara empowers one to stop being controlled by the external world, fetch one's attention to seek self-knowledge and experience the freedom innate in one's inner world.
Pratyahara marks the transition of yoga experience from first four limbs that perfect external forms to last three limbs that perfect inner state, from outside to inside, from outer sphere of body to inner sphere of spirit.
6. Dharana
Dharana means concentration, introspective focus and one-pointedness of mind. The root of word is dhṛ , which has a meaning of "to hold, maintain, keep".
Dharana as the sixth limb of yoga, is holding one's mind onto a particular inner state, subject or topic of one's mind. The mind is fixed on a mantra, or one's breath/navel/tip of tongue/any place, or an object one wants to observe, or a concept/idea in one's mind.Fixing the mind means one-pointed focus, without drifting of mind, and without jumping from one topic to another.
7. Dhyana
Dhyana literally means "contemplation, reflection" and "profound, abstract meditation".
Dhyana is contemplating, reflecting on whatever Dharana has focused on. If in the sixth limb of yoga one focused on a personal deity, Dhyana is its contemplation. If the concentration was on one object, Dhyana is non-judgmental, non-presumptuous observation of that object.If the focus was on a concept/idea, Dhyana is contemplating that concept/idea in all its aspects, forms and consequences. Dhyana is uninterrupted train of thought, current of cognition, flow of awareness.
Dhyana is integrally related to Dharana, one leads to other. Dharana is a state of mind, Dhyana the process of mind. Dhyana is distinct from Dharana in that the meditator becomes actively engaged with its focus. Patanjali defines contemplation (Dhyana) as the mind process, where the mind is fixed on something, and then there is "a course of uniform modification of knowledge".
Adi shankaraachaary , in his commentary on Yoga Sutras, distinguishes Dhyana from Dharana, by explaining Dhyana as the yoga state when there is only the "stream of continuous thought about the object, uninterrupted by other thoughts of a different kind for the same object"; Dharana, states Shankara, is focussed on one object, but aware of its many aspects and ideas about the same object. Shankara gives the example of a yogin in a state of dharana on morning sun may be aware of its brilliance, color and orbit; the yogin in dhyana state "contemplates on sun's orbit alone for example, without being interrupted by its color, brilliance or other related ideas", according to Trevor Leggett.
8. Samadhi
Samadhi literally means "putting together, joining, combining with, union, harmonious whole, trance".
Samadhi is oneness with the subject of meditation. There is no distinction, during the eighth limb of yoga, between the actor of meditation, the act of meditation and the subject of meditation. Samadhi is that spiritual state when one's mind is so absorbed in whatever it is contemplating on, that the mind loses the sense of its own identity. The thinker, the thought process and the thought fuse with the subject of thought. There is only oneness, samadhi.
No comments