I am not a prodigy. I don’t speak with any authority about Yoga. I only speak as I have learnt through the scriptures I have come across.
Yoga as seen by the modern culture, is more about doing some awkward twist and turns which improves the flexibility and helps getting into better shape. Yoga has become more about twisting the body, without straightening the mind. And what is achieved? You can sit in a posture for an hour. There is nothing great about it, even Indian buffaloes can sit, for hours together.
Yoga originally comes from a Sanskrit word yuj which means to unite. The exercises were developed to tune your mind into the divine/our true self. Yoga exercises are used to either relax the body which becomes rigid from meditation or to improve concentration of the mind. Ex. Ekpadasan position is performed to still the thoughts of the mind beacause when mind is not completely detached from the body, both affect each other.
Yoga is not just a posture of body held to a countdown but a way to live life. Patanjali’s famous definition of yoga is “yogas chitta vritti Nnirodhah”, which means “yoga is removal of the fluctuations of the mind” Living life with inspiration is Yoga. Gaining knowledge to get nearer to self is yoga. Any activity done with an objective to perform one’s duty is yoga. Living life happily is yoga. Thus any activity which evolves the being we are, is Yoga. It is not the matter that goes into understanding and doing things. It is the mind that goes into it.
So next time when you do yoga. Try thinking it with a broader perspective. Don’t just do yoga. Live in that state. That state is Yoga
No comments:
Post a Comment