- The Fourfold Yoga - Part 6
- by G Kumar,
Astrologer & Epistemologist
"Excellence in action is
Yoga " declares the Song Celestial ( Geetha ), an authentic
treatise on Yoga and the quintessence of the Upanishads. Yoga,
as the science of Holistic living, is a way of life. Yoga does
not mean physical exercises even though such exercises have been
prescribed for improving the skill of our body. Yoga comprises
techniques that transform our intellect, mind and emotions and
provides a comprehensive philosophy for Integral Life.
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In order to live an integral
life, we must develop skill in life. Aurobindo defined Yoga as
the Art of Conscious Self Finding. The first and fundamental
thing we should do if we are to expand the limits of our Consciousness,
is to gain mastery of the mind. This is not easy.
The incidence of most of the
physical diseases that have plagued humanity for centuries have
been reduced by glorious advances in medical sciences. The eradication
of most infectious diseases and the control of many metabolic
disorders have been effectuated by better drugs and surgical
techniques. Soon, even routine genetic minterventions may be
possible. But new and ever more common causes of illhealth haunt
us today. They are psychosomatic ailments and chronic stress.
Allopathy is less than effective when dealing with these complaints. |
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The cause of these are found to
be attitudes and lifestyle and not physiological anomalies. Allopathy
by concentrating on a physical and mechanistic approach to healing,
can do little to relieve conditions such as these. The frenetic
pace of modern life exposes many people to continous high mental
tension and unrelieved stress. And if we are largely sedentary
in our habits and overindulge in health damaging substances and
foods, as we are fond of doing, our well- being and fitness will
be furthur compromised. Eventually stress may manifest itself
in the form of physical disease or mental breakdown. Allopathy
is symptomatic, and has countered with symptom- suppressing treatments,
instead of tackling the root cause of the problem. Lack of disease
has been regarded as health, rather than as a dynamic growth
process in which we feel truly well on physical, mental level
and spiritual levels.
The Evolution of Medicine
and the Three Eras of Medicine
Allopathic Medicine or "
Physical Medicine" belongs to the first era. It is Cartesian
and creates a dichotomy between mind and body. Treating a disease
is like fixing a part of the machine.
The second era of medicine refers
to 'Mind-Body medicine." It became popular in the 1960s
with the advent of Meditation, imagery, hypnosis and bio-feedback.
Mind and body are interconnected by messenger molecules and these
molecules are invoked to accomplish the healing process.
The third era of Medicine refers
to " Transpersonal Medicine ". It became popular in
1990s with the advent of group support and spirituality to heal.
Yoga therapy supplements the
second and the third eras of medicine.
Yoga therapy complements medical
technology with a holistic system of health care that addresses
the triune problems - physical, mental and spiritual. The author
of Yoga Sutras, Patanjal, defined it as the Science of the Mind.
Mind is the root cause of bondage and in order to redeem us from
the thraldom of the mind, we have to annilhilate the mind. Extirpation
of thought waves is Yoga. And it is through teaching us to control
our mind, our desires, and our reactions to stress, that yoga
can fundamentally help us. It is based on the tripod of Life
- Body, Mind and Self and the three levels of Being- Doing, Thinking
and pure Being.
Mastery of the mind involves
2 aspects;
1) Concentration - The ability
to concentrate our attention on any given subject or object
2) Meditation - The ability to
quieten our mind at will.
Though the first has been mastered
partially by most people, the second is very difficult. It is
difficult indeed to lapse into a state of inner peace, let alone
at will. As an intellectual, skillful means for quietening the
mind, Yoga is unparalleled. A still mind is pure Spirit.
All aspects of the Fourfold Yoga
work toward this in some way and if we practice this master Science,
we reach closer to our goal. Yoga generates that inner mental
peace perpetually, in all our actions, and thereby we achieve
physical and mental health. This calmness in action is the secret
to attaining the skill, according to Yoga Philosophy. This is
known as the strength of Superconscient stillness !
Stillness itself is inertia
Action itself is discord
When stillness and action equalise
Then is the Highest Cosmic Union ( Yoga )
Lo! steadfast a lamp burns sheltered
from the wind
Such is the likeness of the Yogi's mind
Freed from sense storms and burning bright to Heaven
When mind broods placid, soothed with holy wont
When Self contemplates Self and in itself
Hath comfort ! ( The Song Celestial )
Health & Yoga Therapy
The World Health Organisation
defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social
well-being and not merely an absence of disease and infirmity.
WHO also suggests a fourth dimension - spiritual well-being.
It is clear from this definition that health should be conceived
as a continous function indicating the state of well-being and
not a lack of ill health.
The approach of Yoga Therapy
is based on the holistic concept of human being; the five "
sheaths " of existence of which the physical sheath ( Annamaya
Kosha ) is only the first. The second is the Vital Sheath ( Pranamaya
Kosha ), that is made up of the Vital Energy called Prana which
flows through invisible channels called Nadis. The third is the
Mental Sheath ( Manomaya Kosha ) The fourth is the Intellectual
Sheath (Vijnanamaya Kosha) and the final sheath is the Bliss
Sheath ( Ananda Maya Kosha ). The Bliss Sheath is found to consist
of the positive energy associated with the Divine Self. It is
from this sheath that the inner peace characteristic of true
Bliss emanates.
More information about Transcendental
Philosophy and Yoga can be had from http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/yogamain.htm
Disease is defined as any imbalance
in any of the three lower sheaths of existence. Ego Consciousness,
which is centered around the Self, predominates in the physical,
vital and mind sheaths. Harmony in these sheaths can be easily
disturbed as the ego is up in arms against the world most of
the time. The fourth and the fifth sheaths are permeated by a
larger, Cosmic Consciousness and cannot be disturbed as they
are closer to the Self. When we are truly healthy, the positive
energy in the higher sheath percolates freely through the lower
ones and brings total harmony and balance to all our faculties.
But the imbalances in the lower sheaths block the free movement
of Bliss despite the harmony of the higher sheaths being constant.
A great treatise on Yoga, the
Yoga Vasishta, declares that there are two types of physical
illness, and each requires a different approach. The first are
the illnesses with a strong physical element, such as contagious
diseases and accidental injuries. These are most effectively
dealt with by conventional medicine, though Yoga can play a substantial
supportive role. Yoga is prophylactic and also helps prevent
the occurrence of such ailments by improving our general health
and making us less accident-prone.
The other types of illness arises
through disturbances in the mind sheath and includes all the
psychosomatic and degenerative ailments. In these disorders,
psychological factors play a much greater role, and conventional
treatment alone cannot effectuate healing. According to Yogic
Psychology, such ailments are thought to be caused by mental
diseases called Adhis. ( Adhi creates Vyadhi , disease ). These
arise when excessively strong feelings of like or dislike ( Raga
& Dvesha ) becomes amplified & established acting to
distort personality and to obstruct the flow of positive energy
to the lower sheaths. This causes imbalances that result in physical
ailments and also makes us feel restless and discontented.
The positive energy from the
bliss sheath is responsible for our natural state which is Peace
. While the flow of this energy is interrupted by Adhis ( mental
blocks), our sense of well-being is diminished, and in our attempt
to regain it, we may be furthur aggravating the problem by behaving
inappropriately.
We may eat the wrong type of
foods, lapse into negative states of mind, drive ourselves too
hard, overwork ourselves, live in unhealthy surroundings and
add more tension and stress. These methods, however will give
only momentary relief and may be actually damaging to our health.
Y T provides that all-important
element that conventional therapies lack while dealing with psychosomatic
illnesses, as it acts directly on the mental imbalances that
underlie them. While Meditation and emotion- culturing makes
us conscious of the fact that thoughts and emotions are tyrants,
Happiness-analysis teaches how to look within ourselves to find
beatific peace and contentment. This effectively complements
allopathic techniques which improve the situation physically
but are unable to eliminate the root cause of the problem.
The root Cause of all Disease
- Bhoga or Sensory enjoyments
Bhoga ( enjoyments of the senses
) is Roga ( Disease). It can only be cured by Yoga ( Divine Alchemy
).
All food that is tasty is detrimental
to the body, declares Prakriti Therapy The food which cometh
from Nature, fruits and vegetables, are alkaline by nature. Maximum
health is in an alkaline body. We can only be healthy if we keep
a 80%- 20% ratio. ( 80% alkalinity & 20% acidity). This means
we have to eat more natural foods and less processed foods (
which are more or less acidic ). Truly speaking, processed foods,even
though they taste well, are robbers as they rob us of our natural,
vibrant health.
Happiness Analysis for Lifestyle
Change
Happiness Analysis is a technique
for analysing the cause of happiness, what constitutes Bliss,
the inner beatific peace that characterises the fifth level of
Being. It basically embodies the realization that happiness comes
from within and is not dependent on material possessions or physical
enjoyment.
When we achieve desires, we are
happy temporarily because of the satisfaction involved and happiness
is often associated with jubilation and excitement. But such
feelings of euphoria are often followed by negative feelings
such as tiredness and disillusionment. The Beatific Peace, which
is the aim of Yoga, involves no great effort and engenders no
fatigue. The authoritatie texts of Yoga postulate that the Ultimate
State of Bliss is a state of eternal silence, wherein we are
not troubled by tormenting thoughts and
fears and where we are freed from all sorrows.
Though Yoga practices lay the
foundation needed for us to achieve this, we must also make determined
efforts to sustain a state of perfect happiness by analysing
our feelings of pleasure. The basic hypothesis of Yoga is that
actions bring pleasure when they briefly evoke the inner silence
that defines true happiness. When our desire is fulfilled or
when a goal is won, at the very instance of success our thoughts
vanish and our mind dips momentarily into the Bliss sheath. Actually
what we do is to open up temporary channels to the higher sheath,
hence evoking positive sensations. This is merely a temporary
feeling and cannot be perpetuated.
Can we generate that moment from
within and free ourselves from dependency on external aids? Yes,
we can, if we try enough. Practice makes one perfect and at first
we may not be able to maintain inner peace for long, but gradually
we will become less vulnerable to negative influences. The likes
and dislikes ( Raga and Dvesha ) that can lead to mental diseases
( Adhis ) will become less important and our growing awareness
of Cosmic Consciousness will give meaning & coherence to
every aspect of our life.
The Basis Of Yoga Therapy
Yoga therapy is fundamentally
different from allopathic practice in its approach to health
care. Instead of trying to reduce the cause of disease to a single
factor and to correct it using a specific cure, Yoga aims to
treat illness by improving health on all the five levels of Being
- physical, vital, mental, intellectual and spiritual - simultaneously
and restoring inner harmony.
Ill-health occurs when the total
balance of perfect health is disturbed. And although the original
disrupting influence may only affect one level at first, viz
the physical level, the disturbance soon spreads to the other
four levels. All the five sheaths of existence interact, thus
something that primarily affects the mind can soon spread to
the body and the subtler sheaths. A bad day at work may make
us irritable and it also increases stress reaction, makes our
muscles tense and often depletes our energy level leading to
chronic fatigue.
While emotion culturing generates
equanimity, Relaxation and Meditation can calm our mind. Positive
action produces harmony, just as as negative influences spread
disruption. The different types of yoga practice augment each
other and are more effective when done together. All wisdom is
given in the one word " Relax".
Physical relaxation can be effectuated
when we do the prescribed Asanas and stretch our muscles as muscular
tension is released.
Mental relaxation is effected
when we relax our mind during Meditation and release suppressed
emotions.
This is the essence of Yoga Therapy,
both prophylactic and therapeutic. Daily practice of a complete
Yoga session can restore our natural balance and harmony, bringing
positive good health to the three levels of Being - physical,
mental and spiritual.
The Therapeutic Potential
of Yoga
Yoga, holistic science and integral
life, has become popular because it promotes positive health
and is also useful in the prevention and treatment of diseases.
Its therapeutic potential has largely been investigated for stress-related
pyshco-somatic ailments. But with the recent interest in "
Psycho-neuro- immunology" ( the effect of psyche on the
immune system ), there is also a possibility that Yoga therapy
can modify the course of infectious diseases.
One of the stress conditions
which can definitely be controlled through yoga therapy is bronchial
asthma. Beneficial effects of specific yoga practices, such as
pranayamas, or kriyas can alleviate asthma. Patients with type
II daibetes mellitus were also shown to improve significantly
following yoga practice. Systematic studies on the effects of
Yoga therapy for essential hypertension has shown that Y T compares
favourably with bio-feedback. A study conducted in the UK on
patients with rheumatoid arthritis demonstrated that Y T reduced
symptoms and need for medicine.
Scientific studies also show
that if pathological Angst ( anxiety ) patients practice Yogic
techniques such as Pranayamas ( which means the control of the
Vital Force, Prana ), they show significant improvement.
Yoga therapy has also been used
in the rehabilitation of the mentally handicapped. Ten months
of yoga practice significantly improved the IQ, eye-hand coordination
and social adaptation of 45 children with varying degress of
mental retardation.
Psycho-neuro-immunology has given
rise to interest in the idea that Y T can be used for the management
of infectious diseases such as pulmonary tuberculosis.Studies
indicate two months of Y T along with short term chemotherapy
caused tremendous change for the better. This beneficial effect
of Yoga on the immune system has delighted the alternate medical
community. Holistic health practitioners how talk about the the
effect of Y T in cancer and even in AIDS patients. It has been
shown that the practice of Yoga reduces the unpleasant side effects
of chemotherapy in patients with cancer of the uterine cervix.
It is also interesting to study scientifically investigated reports
on cancer regression following meditation. It is encouraging
to note that there has been a scientific study which showed that
AIDS patients benefited ( clinically, psychologically, immunologically
) from Y T.
Ayurveda, Tai Chi, Y T, Kai-Igaku,
Pranic Healing, Reflexology, Reiki, Acupuncture are all included
amongst the 70 systems of Alternative Medicine which are prevalent
today. All these come under Holistic Medicine which highlights
the greatness of the Whole more than the parts. ( " The
Whole is greater than the sum of its parts " )
A good site where you can get
quality information about Holistic Medicine is www.holistic-alt.com
Yogic Diet & Prevention of
Cancer
Modern reasearch shows that diets
such as smoked fish/ meat or other foods known to contain carcinogenic
chemicals should be avoided at all costs. Because of the Western
fast food type diet, colon cancer in men, promoted by high meat
( beef ) and fat consumption is on the increase in the West.
There is no doubt that a high fibre, low-fat diet reduces the
risk of colon cancer.
Many compounds which are potent
carcinogens are contained in cigarette smoking as well as smoked
or barbecued meat or fish products. They include benzenes ( in
the tar component of cigarette smoke), heterocyclic amines and
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ( in smoked / barbecued meat
or fish ). That explains why lung cancer is on the rise in the
Western male population during the last century. Colon cancer
has reached endemic proportions in the West ( because of higher
consumption of barbequed meat and beef fat ) and stomach cancer
occurs at an alarming rate in Japan because of the Japanese habit
of consuming fish.
Claims which need furthur research
While spices such as ( black
or green) or spices such as fresh ginger, garlic and turmeric
have been reported to reduce the risk of colon cancer, onion
is claimed to lower the risk of stomach cancer. Soyabean products
reduces the risk of prostate cancer. Skin cancer is reduced,
it is claimed, by topical application of some constituents of
ginger oil and ginger extract. It is true that more research
is needed on natural compounds. One breakthrough is the discovery
of taxol, a plant product which is of tremendous benefit in certain
cancers. There are many such waiting for their discovery, particularly
from indigenous plants in India, with proper scientific research
tools and testing.
Hygiea's Commandment that "Thou
shalt eat unprocessed, living natural food " merits consideration
here. Naturopathy asks us to consume 100 grams fruits & 300
grams vegetables ( organically grown ) daily. Yoga with its emphasis
on a naturopathic diet of fruits and vegetables can show us the
path to perfect health and Wisdom. Naturopathy is a branch of
Ayurveda, the Science of Life, which is allied to Yoga.
More info about Ayurveda can
be had from http://www.chakrapaniayurveda.com
The Healing Centre in us
Yogic philosophy averrs that
true healing comes from within, the Self, the divine component
in man.
His great transparent mirror,
Self !
Within each of us is the source
of Life and health, the Divine Centre. We have to learn to turn
to that source and return to it again and again. When we breathe
it in, the freshness engages us. Yoga frees us from the thraldom
of both mind and matter & we become more whole.
Copyright 2003 G. Kumar |
The Fourfold
Yoga - Part Vll 
