Sunday, December 30th, 2007
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Beginning Yoga Finding A Yoga Mat
You have decided to start yoga classes. Wherever you practice yoga, be that at home or at a yoga studio, there is one piece of yoga equipment you will need and that is a yoga mat. If you are taking organized yoga classes, then your instructor will advise as to what type of yoga mat would suit you. Basically a yoga mat is exactly what it sounds like, a mat that is used during yoga. These mats are typically quite thin but incredibly padded and comfortable and are not supposed to be used as a pillow but rather as a sort of gripping surface so that you do not slip or slide around on the floor while you are completing your yoga positions. If you are wondering where you can find a yoga mat, you can be assured in knowing that there are many different locations that are available to you. Because of the incredible popularity of this activity, there are now more stores that specifically cater to the needs of yoga instructors and participants alike. A good place to start would be your local department store or local chain sports store, as these types of stores should have a good range and the prices could be good also. However, if you would rather go to something more individual, or if you want a more unique and personalized mat, there are many other options that are available for you as well. Another place to start looking for your yoga mat is the Internet, going online and checking out what is on offer at the online yoga stores will give you a better idea of the types of yoga mats available. There are even places where you can custom design and create your own mat, exactly to suit you. With this choice you will be paying a higher price but normally with that, comes a better quality so it is not necessarily bad. Wherever you decide to buy your yoga mat, make sure you do your homework and take your time in making your decision. So that your choice can result in getting the best quality and value for your money so that you can find a mat that you will be able to use for the durations of your yoga practices. Please visit our site YogaInfo-Online for great resources, information, hints and tips for all things Yoga and catch up on the Yoga Learning Center
By: Carmel Baird
Sunday, December 30th, 2007
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Beginning Yoga Breathing All You Need To Know
In yoga, breathing is everything. Breathing is more than just an intake of oxygen. It is also a way of cleansing the body and restoring equilibrium. But, in order to gain high quality results from the breathing that you do, you must do them correctly. There is no quick way to learn the right technique, but here are a few pointers to bear in mind while starting out with yoga breathing. Kapalabhati- basic yoga breathing. In this method, you learn to breathe in order to purify the body. It is one of the six different Kriyas practices. Your breath is short, strong and fast. The lung acts as a pump that expels the waste from it. Here, you are deliberately breathing faster while breathing through your stomach and not your chest. Alternate Nostril Breathing Technique- This is another basic yet fundamentally important type of breathing technique. Here, you will breathe through one nostril, hold your breath and then exhale through the opposite nostril. The ratio of inhale:hold:exhale is 2:8:4. Brahmari- This type of less used yoga breathing is done by partially closing the glottis and then inhaling through both of your nostrils. Your lips are closed and the palate will vibrate due to the nasal airflow. Sithali, Sitkari- This is a rarely used type of yoga breathing. It works in a different manner. Here you stick your tongue out a little and then softly curl the sides of the tongue up. Now, start inhaling through your mouth. Yoga exercises are fundamental to the breathing work that you do. In any type of session, you will be taught the fundamentals of breathing. This is due to the simple fact that it is the source of life. It is essential to cleansing the body. It is one of the central focuses of successful, effective yoga. Mike Singh is the publisher of http://www.yoga-made-ez.com/ On his website he provides free yoga exercises and more information about the different types of yoga.
By: Mike Singh
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Beginners Yoga Guide Take Asana Step By Step
Yoga is gaining popularity globally. If you are the one who is keen to take up yoga exercises you are going the right way. Yoga has been found helpful not only in keeping you in good shape but also in preventing various complications. It’s not only you but thousand others who take refuge in yoga every day in America to attain physical as well as mental rejuvenation. In order to practice yoga you may enroll yourself in Yoga classes being run in your locality. A beginner is first taught basics of yoga including basic postures and mudras. If you are willing to learn yoga by yourself, you better go for beginner’s yoga videos. You can practice yoga while watching these videos. But while learning yoga on your own you must not take plunge into complex yoga practices at first. As your exercise tolerance increases gradually so you should first take up simpler forms of asana and other yoga exercises. First thing that you probably learn as a beginner is yoga’s way of saluting sun and moon. Then you are made to do relaxation exercises. In earlier phase of yoga lessons you are also imparted various breathing techniques. Gradually in beginner’s classes you learn asana that could be performed easily. For example you are made to practice Savashana and Padmasana that are easier to follow. After first few classes you might be directed to do yoga postures of crouching and stooping. Beginner’s yoga movements are aimed at enhancing body flexibility. Once you get the required flexibility and tolerance, you can go for complex or difficult yogic practices. In beginner’s yoga sessions you also get to know basic body balance postures. There could be various other basic positions ranging from standing poses to various bending and sitting positions. Once you are through with the first week of yoga classes, you are accorded with a little higher level of exercise that is taking different yoga turns and twists. Meditation of various kinds, happen to be an integral part of beginners practices. Beginner’s yoga is basically meant to make folks accustomed with yoga. Once desired level of comfortability and familiarity is achieved you can go ahead with elevated genres of yoga. If you face a little discomfort in doing yoga, don’t give up the practice. A little perseverance would make you comfortable with it and all benefits are yours. Lastly all beginners are most welcome to the world of yoga. By taking up yoga you are helping yourselves with holistic health improvement. To get more information on yoga, yoga postures and yoga tips visit http://www.therealyoga.com/
By: Joann Grant
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Beauty and Youthfulness
In all ages, the endeavor of man has been to remain beautiful and youthful. For this he spends all his income in housing, food and dress. However as he gains age, nothing helps him in his endeavor to remain beautiful and youthful, diseaseless and ageless. This is because of thousands of years of ignorance, prejudice encoded in the mind. Body is just like a burning flame. A flame exists and gives light so long as oil or wax burns. Fresh oil is drawn up into the flame and burnt out oil leaves the flame into the atmosphere. Similarly food, water and air enters into the body and used up and toxic materials leaves the body in the form of sweating, urine and stool. The body remains as burning flame giving beauty and youthfulness. However the difference is that oil in the body is inexhaustible. It is the life-force(prana) pervading all parts and all cells in the body. The source of this life-force is the soul(atman) within each living being. Soul and its life-force is eternal, unending and uncontaminated. Hence so long as this life-force exists in the body, the body should be beautiful, youthful and uncontaminated with disease and death. Again if we view the body scientifically, the cells in the body are being regenerated continuously. After every seven years all old cells are replaced by newly created cells. So after every seven years we get a new body and never remain the same. Hence the body should always remain beautiful and youthful. So long as we don’t realise our life-force(prana) and source of this life-force i.e. soul(atman) or true self, we cannot remain youthful. In order to realise true self one has to practice Yoga. Yoga is a method to control body and mind and finally the mind. We are nothing but a mind. What our mind thinks up it materialises. When we practice Yoga to remain youthful and beautiful it really happens. We rule over the body and mind and overcome disease and death. This is liberation and this may come right in this birth. Contrary to this, religious leaders would declare that disease and death is truth. So pray for the mercy of God and after death one may enter into heaven. Hell, heaven and God are imaginary things which have remained as ignorance and prejudice for thousands of years. They have no real existence; they exists in the mind only. These things have been created by a few in order to rule over the majority. The real truth, the real divinity and the real bliss lies in soul, life and consciousness only. So one should give up ignorance and prejudice at once and get liberated. One should search for real truth which only give peace, beauty and youthfulness. In order to hold the truth firmly one has to practice that Yoga which may drive out ignorance throgh the dawn of right knowledge. Author practices and teaches Patanjali Yoga in its purest form. For reading more about Yoga and spiritualism readers may go through the book ‘Quest for Truth: the Spiritual and Yogic Way‘ published with Thornton Publishing, Inc. Please procure copies from bn.com or amazon.com and help the author in spreading true spiritualism and yoga worldwide.
By: Premansu Chand
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Basic Yoga Poses Asanas
In most forms of Yoga there are three components to the practice; breathing, concentration and physical poses also known as asanas. The two poses below are the most common asanas used in Western Yoga practice today. Padma-Asana: Probably the most famous and well-known pose; the Padma-asana is referred to as the Lotus Position. The root of the words to this pose mean to “bend”, and “snake”. Think of it as the maneuvering of the body into a position that requires the flexibility and smoothness of a snake. To practice this pose, sit down and place the right foot on the left thigh and the left foot on the right thigh. The soles of the feet should be facing towards the sky. Next, the palms of the hands are also turned toward the sky and placed on the corresponding thigh. It is a difficult pose to retain for long periods of time if the body is not properly conditioned. It is therefore paramount to begin with short periods and work into a longer time frame. Sirsha-Asana: The Headstand Pose. The benefits of the notorious head stand pose are to increase the physical and mental health of the person practicing it. The pose encourages balance and stability on the physical level and mental acuity on the intellectual level. Additionally, it improves blood flow throughout the body and helps to decrease tension and stress in the lower limbs. To practice this pose, begin in a kneeling position. Lean forward to place the arms, from hands to elbows, flat on the floor, and interlock the fingers of both hands. The head should be placed between the hands, flat on the floor. Push up from the kneeling position on the tips of the toes keeping head on the floor. Slowly bring the legs into an extended, upright hand stand position, keeping the entire body aligned, straight and balanced. Special breathing techniques are also employed during this pose which enhances the overall effect of the asana. Rachel Dayer runs and operates http://www.mustask.com, a health related portal.
By: Rachel Dayer
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Basic Yoga Exercises
Here are some basic yoga exercises that can easily be executed at home anytime. These exercises are so simple. People can conveniently perform them whenever they have time. FROG STAND 1. Lowly squat. Place the hands on the below ground, resting the triceps on top of the kneecaps. Then, tip forward, and lift the feet from the ground and into position similar to a balanced frog stand. Keep the position for 30 seconds. 2. Extend a leg in back, keeping it diagonally relative to the floor, at the same time elongating the neck to maintain balance. 3. Straighten the elbows, lift the legs, tip forward, then try to press up slowly into a handstand. These exercise strengthen the whole shoulder girdle. These also help build up core muscles and enhance the body?s overall stamina. 100’s Lie down, face up. Bring legs up, make sure you keep them straight. Make sure the legs are also together. Lift the head and the shoulders off the floor, pull in the abs, then bring the hands next to the thighs. Next, lower the legs to as much as you could and at the same time keep the back on the floor then press hands up and then down. Count with each press. Afterwards, inhale for about five counts, then exhale for another five counts. Repeat until 100 is hit, then lower the legs again halfway through. Tree Pose To start, stand with both feet planted, the arms at the sides and body in a proper alignment (make sure the ears are over the shoulders, then the shoulders are over the hips, and finally the hips are over the ankles). Next, inhale and then bend the right leg. Then, pull the heel up to the point that it rests on the inside of your left thigh. After, get the balance and hold on to this position, slowly pushing the arms overhead, making sure the palms are touching each other. Next, press the knee back preventing any hip movement. Keep the position for another 30 seconds before switching sides. Make sure the procedure is repeated two to three times. YOGI HURDLER’S STRETCH 1. To start up, sit comfortably on the floor. Then, pull the left heel into the groin area. Be sure the right leg is extended to the front. Reach out and then grab the toes to as as far as can be done, bend at the waist an at the same time keep the back straight. Hold to the position for 30 seconds. After, repeat on the other leg. 2. Put both hand on the toes, and then revolve the trunk sideways forming a “window” using the arms. This will provide a good overall physical warm-up. Then, stretch the hamstrings, the calves, the obliques and the upper back. Make sure the abs and the internal organs are contracted during the process. Release the stress on the hips and then on the lower back. WARRIOR LUNGE 1. Stand with the legs forming a scissor-like position widely apart as in a classic lunge. Bend the front leg at knee and then point the toes forward. After that, straighten the rear leg and then push it back as far as possible. The toes should be pointed sideways. Afterwards, lift the arms high above the head. At the same time, let the lower body sink, gradually bending the knee to a right-angle or 90-degree angle. Stick to the position for about 30 seconds, and switch to the other leg afterwards. 2. Maintaining a 90-degree or right-angled knee bend. Then, hold the arms almost parallel to ground, an arm forward. the other one backward. Twist the torso after 30 seconds. This exercise works the glutes and the quads, as well as stretches the hip flexors and lats. Jeanette Pollock is a yoga teacher and runs her own website JustYogaBasics.com If you have any questions about yoga, feel free to visit her at http://www.justyogabasics.com
By: Jeanette Pollock
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Balance Your Energy With Yoga
From energy drinks to energy bars, energy is something sought by people each day. Everything is made up of energy. Energy is pulsation - a pulsation that moves in a wave-like rhythm flowing up and flowing down. We may think we need to grab for energy outside of us in order to have more energy inside to function. What we really need is to learn how to balance the energy that is pulsing within us. While it may seem easy and convenient to purchase an energy product on the way to work, consuming it as you sit in traffic, quick energy fixes only lead to crashes later on. Instead, balance your energy with yoga a natural way to keep you invigorated throughout your day. Practicing yoga is a great way to energize your day. Yoga helps release tension and clear blockages, allowing energy to flow freely, creating an overall sense of vitality and well-being. Yoga poses don’t create energy, they release energy and they also keep us from expending energy in activities that don’t do anything for us. Often we have so much tension stored in our bodies that we are forced to use our energy for support. If we can release that tension, we will be free to use this energy for whatever we really want to do. Yoga helps you Manage Stress Stress is a natural part of life?s pulsation. Stress can be motivating or disabling. Poor stress management drains energy out of the body, leaving you tired and unmotivated. Yoga helps you manage the accumulation of stress by helping you consciously release it. The mindfulness aspect of yoga trains the mind to focus on body sensations, to bring the body-mind back into synch. Naturally stress begins to rapidly diminish. Restoration and rejuvenation arise from the body’s ability to self-regulate as the mind-body duality diminishes. Yoga Tones Muscles Life is movement and movement is life - how we move can bring balance or imbalance to our muscle tone. The practice of connecting to your breath stimulates the body?s natural intelligence to move into alignment when performing yoga poses. Therefore, the integration in the body develops balanced muscle tone and increased energy.A person?s energy level is dictated by their metabolic rate, the rate at which their body is able to convert substances into energy. The expedience of this rate is based on a person?s metabolism, a process that is contingent on their muscle mass; a person with more muscle tone will have a vastly higher metabolism than someone who has a small amount of muscle mass. In other words, a person with good muscle tone will have much more energy that someone whose muscular tone is minimal. Yoga Stimulates Blood Flow Yoga stimulates a person?s body into an open highway, unclogging avenues through which blood, oxygen, and nutrients - all elements of energy - can travel. The way yoga does this is by cultivating balanced action when performing yoga poses… Balanced action is when we engage enough muscular energy to create stability and strength in a pose balanced with organic energy, extension through the bones, to create freedom in the joints. The breath always leads the way- it is what fuels the vehicle of the body into contraction and expansion of the body?s natural pulsation. Balanced action helps your body to become flexible. Because a person may have a restriction that they are unaware of, gaining flexibility helps energy get to its destination with ease. Breathing, along these lines, helps oxygenate the blood, helping drive the life force of energy to muscles, organs, and any part of the body that is need of some reserves. Yoga is Vitality Yoga provides a direct route for tapping into your true self: a self that, by nature, is fluid and vital, not rigid and dull. All yoga postures are expressions of your true self. When the postures are practiced with mindfulness and meaning they naturally shift you out of a habitual negative rut or help you celebrate the joy that you brought to the mat. Yoga brings self awareness to our habitual patterns that either support the expression of one?s true heart or not. From this place of clarity we can then make life-affirming choices. People can find energy in many things - protein shakes, energy powders, even energy pills - but yoga remains one of the most natural and effective ways to balance the energy in your body, giving you the ability to make the most of each and every day. About us: TWISTED is a medical yoga studio at the Center for Osteopathic Medicine in Boulder, Colorado. Twisted integrates osteopathic medicine, Hatha yoga and mindfulness practices to teach optimal balance between physical, mental, and emotional health. It aims to educate and help people to live a healthy life from the inside out. Rehabilitation programs offer a comprehensive treatment regime for the whole being, empowering each person one breath at a time to stimulate the body?s natural healing potential. Jennifer Jordan is senior editor of http://www.yogatwisted.com Specializing in articles that not only teach yoga techniques, but also teach techniques on fulfillment and enrichment, she aims to educate students proudly enrolled in the school of life.
By: Jennifer Jordan
Saturday, December 29th, 2007
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Ayurveda and Yoga Ancient Sister Sciences
Ayurveda and yoga are sister Vedic sciences that have been united for thousands of years for the sake of healing body, mind, and consciousness. Generally speaking, Ayurveda deals more with the health of the body, while yoga deals with purifying the mind and consciousness, but in reality they complement and embrace each other. The ancient rishis (seers) were the original masters of all Vedic sciences. They understood that good health is a great asset on the path toward Self-realization. If the body is neglected it can easily become an obstacle to spiritual practice. Anyone who has practiced meditation for any length of time would agree to how difficult it can be to sit still for long periods of time without feeling discomfort and fatigue. Both yoga and Ayurveda are mutually supportive and offer many ways to prevent and heal various disorders as well as to cleanse and rejuvenate the body. Besides sharing a philosophical foundation, both systems have many similarities in relation to attitude, nutrition, diet, hygiene, exercise, cleansing practices, as well as spiritual practices. Traditionally, a student of yoga would first live close to and serve the guru for many years, during which time he would learn healthy habits. The basic Ayurvedic principles for health and longevity were past on in the lineage in oral form to serve as a foundation for a life of sadhana (spiritual practice). Nowadays, the teachings of yoga are easily available to all, and whether prepared or not we can leap headlong into its practice. This has its blessings, in the sense that more people can be turned on to the teachings, although much is often lost without the parampara, or close guidance at the feet of an accomplished master. With this in mind, modern yoga practitioners would most certainly benefit from a basic knowledge of Ayurveda to help establish a healthy daily routine and adjust their practice according to the constitution, dosha imbalance, season, and so on, to prevent disease and promote longevity. First, let?s take a look at the similarities between yoga and Ayurveda: * Both are ancient Vedic teachings. Yoga originates in the Yajur Veda, while Ayurveda originates in the Atharva Veda and Rig Veda. * Both recognize that keeping the body healthy is vital for fulfilling the four aims of life: Dharma (duty), Artha (wealth), Kama (desire), and Moksha (liberation). * Both recognize that the balance of doshas (humors), dhatus (tissues), and malas (waste products) is essential for maintaining good health. * Both share virtually the same metaphysical anatomy and physiology, which consists of 72,000 nadis (subtle channels), 7 main chakras (energy centers), 5 bodily sheaths, and the Kundalini Shakti (energy). * Both advocate the use of diet, herbs, asana, pranayama, meditation, mantra, astrology, prayer, puja, and rituals for healing the entire being. * Both encourage physical health as a good foundation for mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. * Both share the same view on psychology. Ayurveda embraces all six of the main schools of philosophy including the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and Vedanta (a non-dual philosophical and spiritual path). They both understand that the attachment to the body-mind complex is the root cause of all suffering and that the ultimate state of health is experienced when we abide in our true nature, which is total peace, regardless of the state of the physical body. * Both use cleansing methods for the body, all of which encourage the removal of waste products and toxins through their natural routes of elimination. Ayurveda has panchakarma (five cleansing actions) and yoga uses Shat Karma (six purification measures). Ayurvedic approach to asana practice The use of asana, pranayama, and meditation for healing is known as Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy and has been used for thousands of years by Ayurvedic and yogic adepts. In Yoga Chikitsa, a group of yogic exercises are chosen that will best support the individual and are practiced daily. This can be done over an extended period of time in conjunction with an Ayurvedic regime and herbal and dietary therapies. Yoga Chikitsa also plays an integral role in the Ayurvedic cleansing and rejuvenation process known as panchakarma. For a well balanced personal yoga practice, it is important to take into consideration the individual?s body structure, prakruti (original constitution), and vikruti (present constitutional imbalance). The following are general recommendations according to the predominant dosha. Vata predominant individuals should remember to focus on calming, grounding, stillness, strengthening, and balancing while doing their practice. Precautions for vata: * Vinyasa or flow styles of yoga tend to move too quickly from one pose to the next and can aggravate the hyper-mobile quality of vata over time. Flow sequences can be made to be more vata pacifying if they are not excessively long, the length of time poses are held is extended, and transitions are done slowly and consciously. * Those with lower back problems may find that bending the knees in standing forward bends can prevent discomfort. * Back bends should be done slowly, carefully and within one’s own limits. Pitta individuals should maintain a calm, cool, and relaxed intention while doing asanas. Pitta types may benefit from trying to cultivate an attitude of forgiveness, and of surrendering or offering the fruits of their practice to the divine of to those in need of positive healing energy. Because asana practice tends to generate heat in the body, it is best to do them at cooling times of the day, such as dawn or dusk. Also, it is useful to place some emphasis on poses that help to release excess heat from the body, such as poses that compress the solar plexus and poses that open the chest like. Kapha types tend to be sedentary and often dislike vigorous exercise. For this reason, their practice should be energetic, warming, lightening, and stimulating, providing they are physically capable. Vinyasa or flow style yoga is good for kapha because it is dynamic and moves quickly from one pose to the next, it induces sweating and gets the heart pumping. Yoga poses that address specific doshic problems can be easily added to an Ayurvedic regime and integrated into an existing yoga routine, or they can be organized as a small session with the help of an Ayurvedic clinician who knows each individual case well and can help set up a well balanced program according to the needs of each client. Ayurveda also offers Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy, for specific doshic disorders. It is advised to consult an Ayurvedic practitioner for an individualized regime. Ayurvedic Approach to Pranayama (breathing techniques). The ultimate goal of pranayama is to calm the mind and prepare it for meditation. It also has a therapeutic effect on the physical body as well. It is not essential to do a pranayama practice according to dosha, but knowing its effects on the body is a valuable tool for management of the doshas. Below is a general list of pranayama and bandha exercises according to dosha. Vata: Nadi Shodhana, Kapala Bhati, Agnisara Dhauti, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra. Pitta: Sheetali or Sitkari, Nadi shodhana. Kapha: Bastrika, Agnisara Dhauti, Kapala Bhati, Ashvini Mudra (contracting and releasing Mula Bandha), Ashvini Mudra, Ujjayi, Tri Bandha, Maha Mudra. Furthermore, the Four Purifications taught in our workshops is an ancient method from the Ashtanga Yoga for purifying the gross and subtle body in order to prepare it for more advanced practices. They are tridoshic and safe for everyone, providing they are performed correctly. Meditation According to Dosha. These spiritual paths and their meditation techniques can be practiced by anyone, regardless of their prakruti. This list is only intended to give an idea on how dosha can support or influence one?s spiritual practice. Many traditions of yoga blend various aspects of the paths listed here. * Vata: Kriya Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga and other structured techniques help to keep vata stabilized and focused. * Pitta: Jnana Yoga and Vedanta are good for pitta types because they often have sharp intellects and have a keen interest in self-study (Atma-vichara). * Kapha: Bhakti yoga is natural for kapha types because they are often loving and devotional by nature. Ayurvedic and Yogic Diet. Ayurveda is more concerned with food being constitutionally balanced, while Yoga promotes a diet that is sattwic (light and pure). A combination of both aspects is the best choice for a yogi or anyone wanting to make real progress on a spiritual path. Ayurvedic diet: * According to dosha. * Primarily vegetarian (meat is used as medicine, mainly for extreme deficiencies). * Primarily cooked (raw food in moderation, especially for vata types). * Containing six tastes. Yogic diet: * Sattwic vegetarian diet. * Easy to digest. * Simple meals (to limit desire). * Both cooked and raw. * Foods recommended in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika consist of rejuvenating substances such as wheat, whole grain, white basmati, corn, raw milk, raw sugar, butter, ghee, honey, dried ginger, mung beans, pure water, vegetables. * Fruits, roots and nuts. * Avoiding excessive hot, sour, salty, fermented, and fried foods. * Avoiding tamasic (dulling) foods like meat, onions, garlic and mushrooms as a regular part of the daily diet. Cleansing in Yoga and Ayurveda. Ayurveda and Yoga both emphasize cleansing of the body for health and support of spiritual practices. Their methods are similar and work by expelling excess dosha and ama, or toxins, using the body’s natural routes of elimination. The yogic method is known in the Ashtanga tradition as Shat Karma, or six cleansing measures. These are: 1. Neti (nasal cleansing): 2. Dhauti (washing the GI tract). 3. Basti (enema). The Ayurvedic method for cleansing and rejuvenation is known as panchakarma (pancha karma), or five cleansing actions. This program is usually done for a week or two, but can also be done for longer periods depending on the case. The five actions of this method are: 1. Basti (Enema). It is obvious that Ayurveda and yoga not only complement each other. Both sciences actually embrace each other as they share similarities and fundamental principles on many levels. Ayurveda and yoga should go hand in hand if we want to achieve optimal health, peace, and longevity. Vishnu Dass, NTS, LMT, CAyu, is an Ayurvedic practitioner and educator and the Director of Blue Lotus Ayurveda - Natural Health & Rejuvenation - an Ayurvedic clinic in Asheville, NC, that offers holistic health care, panchakarma (for deep detox and rejuvenation), rejuvenating therapies, diet and lifestyle counseling, yoga and yoga therapy, therapeutic massage & bodywork, workshops, and more. For more information, articles and products, visit: http://www.bluelotusayurveda.com and http://ayurvedayogashop.com
By: Vishnu Dass
Jala neti (salt water flushing of the sinuses).
Sutra neti (nasal cleaning with string).
Teeth, tongue, eyes, ears and forehead.
Agnisara Dhauti.
Vamana Dhauti (vomiting salt water).
Vastra Dhauti (washing with a cloth).
Varisara Dhauti (washing with water for purgation).
4. Trataka (forehead wash, gazing into a candle flame).
5. Nauli (intestinal washing, abdominal rolling).
6. Kapala Bhati (skull shining).
2. Nasya (Nasal application of herbs and herbal oils).
3. Vamana (Therapeutic vomiting).
4. Virechana (Purgation).
5. Rakta Moksha (Blood letting).
Friday, December 28th, 2007
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Ayurveda And Yoga In India
Ayurveda is the oldest surviving comprehensive medical science in the world. The term is derived from its ancient Sanskrit roots - ?Ayus’ which stands for life and ?Ved’ which symbolizes knowledge. Ayurveda offers a rich, comprehensive outlook to a healthy life and its origins go back nearly 5000 years. To when it was expounded and practiced by the same spiritual rishimunis, who laid the foundations of the Vedic civilisation in India, by organising the fundamentals of life into proper systems. Ayurvedic treatment essentially does not intend to suppress the main symptoms and create some new ones as side effects of the main treatment. The purpose is strengthen your constitution, remove the root cause and give permanent relief. There are four main approaches to tackling diseases in Ayurveda: i) shodan, or cleansing ii) shaman or palliation iii) rasayana or rejuvenation iv) satvajaya or mental hygiene. The treatment mainly comprises of powders, tablets, medicated oils etc. prepared from natural herbs, plants and minerals. Because the medicines are from natural sources and not synthetic, they are accepted and assimilated in the body mostly without creating any side effects. On the other hand, there may infact be some side benefits. Along with medicine, proper diet- rich in natural fibres, exercise and simple living style is also advised. These are imperative along with the medications. Panch Karma therapy is also used as a treatment in many diseases. This “panchkarma” or Five internal cleansing methods,is a most profound therapy in Ayurveda. Yoga teaches a very systematic and scientific way of life which is important to pursue both materially and spiritually. Therefore, Ayurveda is not simply a health care system but a form of lifestyle adopted to maintain perfect balance and harmony within the human existence, from the most abstract transcendental values to the most concrete physiological expressions. Based on the premise that life represents an intelligent unison of the Atma (Soul), Mana (Mind), Indriya (Senses) and Sharira (Body). India offers World Class Ayurvedic Spas, Yoga Centres and Medical Facilities, comparable with any of the western countries. India has state-of-the-art Hospitals and the well qualified doctors. With the best infrastructure, the best possible Medical facilities, accompanied with the most competitive pricing, you can get the treatment done in India at the lowest charges. There is no doubt that the Indian medical industry’s main appeal is low-cost treatment. Most estimates claim treatment costs in India start at around a tenth of the price of comparable treatment in America or Britain. For example, in April Madras Medical Mission, a Chennai-based hospital, successfully conducted a complex heart operation on an 87-year-old American patient at a reported cost of $8,000 (?7,000, ?4,850) including the cost of his airfare and a month’s stay in hospital. The patient claimed that a less complex operation in America had earlier cost him $40,000. Other procedures such as diagnostic services offer significant cost-savings. The health care sector in India has witnessed an enormous growth in infrastructure in the private and voluntary sector. The list of India Best Hospitals include Apollo, Fortis, Max Healthcare, Escorts, AIIMs, Wockhardt, etc. A few top Medical tourism providers are TaMedical.com, India4health.com, Mediscapes.com and Indiaheals.com. http://www.indiaheals.com Healing and Travel http://india4health.com - Medical Travel to India
By: Monica Rai
Friday, December 28th, 2007
Best Health Resources - Your Online Guide To Health Information
Awakening the Female Serpent Uplifting Divine Power
The 6 Chakras are also called the 6-fold wealth. In spiritual science it is called Sham (mental control), Dama (sense organ control), Uparati (dispassion), Titiksha (forbearance), Shradha (faith), Samadhan (concentration). Sham means serenity. It means destruction of agitation, tension, anguish and anger. Dama means mastery of the sense organs and stopping them from straying towards their respective objects. Uparati means fighting against vileness, wickedness etc of the mind. Titiksha means calmly enduring all obstacles that come in the way of attaining higher goals of life. Shradha means deep faith in all sacred activities. Samadhan means overcoming greed, delusion and arrogance. In reality awakening the 6 Chakras automatically results in purification of one?s character, actions and qualities. By warding off the separating nature of the gigantic cosmos and one?s individual body via activation of the 6 Chakras and Kundalini, it has to be correlated and by overcoming its unconscious nature, there is a method of activating it in totality. Those 8 Sidhis (divine powers) mentioned by Adi Shankaracharya in his poem ?Soundarya Lahiri?are attained by activating the 6 Chakras, Sahasrar and the inner soul. These Sidhis are 1) Janma Sidhi (seeing a glimpse of past births) 2) Shabda Jnana Sidhi (knowing the hidden meaning behind words heard by the gross ears) 3) Shastra Sidhi (true knowledge of scriptures) 4) Sahan Sakti (the power to endure hardships and obstacles in life) 5) Tapah Shakti (enduring worldly heat and calamities) 6) Shaap Shakti (the power to curse others or give a boon). 7) Vidya Shakti (knowing the thoughts of the minds of others) In reality Lord Sankaracharya in his eulogy of the Kundalini has very emotionally said: Whatever I am today is because of your grace on an illiterate person like myself. Kundalini Shakti has been described even by other religious leaders. Amongst them the Sufi school of thought is very close to Indian philosophy. Darashikoh (elder son of Shah Jehan) despite being a Sufi was also a scholar of Upanishads. He had also studied Yoga and Tantra texts and has given a commentary in the Persian language. He has commented on the Kundalini Shakti in his book ?Risala-Ai-Hukmanama? and describes 3 centers as Dil-E-Muddavar, Dil-E-Sarovari, Dil-E-Nilophari. These correspond to the Brahmagranthi, Vishnugranthi and Rudragranthi. They are also called Sahasrar, Anahat and Mooladhar Chakras. Sheikh Mohamed Iqbal in his book ?The Development of Metaphysics in Persia? writes how Hindu philosophy is food for deep thought for followers of other religious sects. A scholar called Al Brooni had translated Yoga Sutras and Sankhya Sutras in Arabic language in the 11th century. According to Tibetan texts the chief energy centers of the human body lie in the head, throat, heart, solar plexus and center of the genital organs. Even in Greek philosophy 6 energy centers have been elucidated. Great anatomists have correlated the secret energy centers, described in Yogic texts as Chakras and Kamals, to the electrical flow, endocrine glands and other autonomic ganglia. That spot and shape named ?Cusos?in Japan can be correlated to glands and Chakras. The famous psychologist Benjamin Walker in his book ?Encyclopedia of Esosteric Man? says that the endocrine glands with their hormones and energy of the 6 Chakras play a major role in rise/fall, qualities, actions, nature and personality of mankind. Kundalini is the vital force fire which when ignited like a latent spark in the pyre of vital force (i.e. the genitals), pierces the 6 worlds and reaches the 7th world of Brahmaloka. There its form becomes that of Fire of Brahman. The vital force fire radiates the special qualities of the body and mind. The demigods and Rishis drink this very Soma Juice. The Brahmarshis by sacrificing the soul in God establish the important Advaita State (non-duality) wherein the individual soul merges in God and thus becomes God. This description of Spiritual Yajna has been detailed elaborately but also with a little control and it is also called Soul Yajna. The vital force fire attracts and pulls towards itself the material potentials of the bodily power in the form of divine glories (Vibhutis) in the innermost core of the soul. It gives one a chance to drink the nectar like Soma Juice and thus transform lowliness into greatness. Kundalini is Shakti (Parvati) and Sahasrar is Shiva. Due to the union of Shiva-Shakti, 2 boons are obtained. And they are Ganesha the Lord of a wise intellect and Kartikeya the Lord of all energies. The spiritual aspirant sees his body overflowing with Vaishwanar Mahamaya and in the Brahmarandhra one can visibly notice divine consciousness manifesting just like the manifestation of the river Ganges. All this is equivalent to Soma Juice for earth denizens and for heavenly denizens it is nectar. In Spiritual Science both Soma and nectar are 2 entities of one stature. Where the human brain is said to be situated on the Sahasrar there a sort of pulpy material is seen in the bones of the skull. But its true greatness is very widespread. One major part of it is called ?Silent or Dark Area? which constitutes 87% to 93%of the head region. The Silent Area (i.e. right parietal cortex, corpus callojum and limbic system etc.) takes up much more space than both the conscious and unconscious parts of the brain put together. The centers of divine powers are within these areas. Psychological sciences can only research into the conscious and unconscious mind. This superconscious mind is totally beyond their ken and reach. Kundalini Yoga is very much a part of Hatha Yoga. Hatha Yoga is closer to Tantra Science. Its cause is many practices like Mohan, Ucchatan, Vashikaran etc with which one can attack someone and cause his downfall. When Robert Fabian a Secret Agent of Scotland Yard was in Africa he saw so many Tantrik acts being executed which led to the death of many people. He has delved deep into these incidences in a book written by him. Hence only a serene aspect of these practices is seen in direct cures. The rest is kept a top secret because if it gets into the hands of a vile charactered person, it can only result in disaster. That bomb which aids in shattering huge mountains so as to create roadways can also be misused to shatter schools, hospitals etc. so as to cause the downfall of others. The reason why certain spiritual practices are kept a secret is that it should not lead to someone?s downfall. There is a story of the churning of the ocean in Indian Mythology (Puranas) wherein the demigods and demons together churned the ocean so as to obtain 14 jewels. A dross pit has been spoken of in the cave of the vagina of Kundalini. This is Kurma (tortoise). The churning rod which was called the mount Mandarachal is in reality the Merudand. The serpent was used as a rope to churn the ocean. That is the Ida and Pingala of 3 ? snake-like coils. Due to churning and rotation a lot of energy manifested. In sexual play too there is a lot of churning and in Kundalini Yoga there is churning of the vital force (Pranas). From them, both nectar as well as poison manifest. If on misusing these secret sciences (like in Vamachar Tantrik practices) one destroys another person this means that poison has manifested and if it is aptly utilized for cosmic welfare, it definitely is nectar. Pious folks make apt use of it and vile men misuse it. Hence there is a policy of hiding it/covering it like one hides one?s genital organs. The sleeping serpentess first attacks that very person who tries to wake her up so as to harass that person. Misuse and causing harassment is like inciting the serpentess. In order to show off miracles and cause others? downfall many foolish men misuse it. The sexual passion also augments and can become lewd in that onrush. In Henry Oslo?s book called ?Notes on Spiritual Physiology? it is written that the sexual passion in men and women commences from the sacrocarxial region of the lower half of the Merudand. The laxness and onrush in this area depends on sexual passion. When this area gets distorted anyone can become full of lust with sex or become a eunuch. Hence Yogic texts ordain that this region should be made powerful via Yogic exercises like Mooladhar Bandh, Shakti Chalini Mudra, Vajrasan and Padmasan. Through these methods of Kundalini awakening the flow has to be raised upwards. If this is not adhered to, the flow falls down and thus the spiritual aspirant at a very young age feels the weakness of aged people. The word Kundalini means ?to sit in an enclosure?. The female serpent makes an enclosure and sits in it yet its hood is higher up. This is its front part. She commences running from here on and after waking up, goes to the Sahasrar Kamal of the Brahmarandhra. Then she goes to the grey matter and ultimately sticks to the reticular activating system. This spiritual practice is described in Shiva temples via various pictures and images. Kundalini is that in which one finds water. Shiva?s form is like that of the Kailash Mountain and round like a crystal Shivling. t is set up in the middle of a water pot. The living being too sits down by enclosing Kundalini. One fails to gauge as to how many things it has control over. But the reality is this that it cannot even subdue its own body. He only shoulders the burden of sins and pious deeds along with its atonements. One of the conclusions of Kundalini awakening is not to make the periphery of ?I-ness? very short. He should not continue sleeping. He should awaken himself and carry out such pious deeds wherein other people bound by the walls of selfishness too awaken. They should induce others to walk on that path wherein the awakened Kundalini goes to the Sahasrar so as to unite with Lord Shiva dwelling there. Thus the spiritual practices of a spiritual aspirant can touch the highest peaks of spirituality. Ultimately the age-old dream of great leaders and thinkers of the world viz. ?A beautiful borderless world? can definitely be realized. AUTHOR: Shriram Sharma Acharya, founder of the International Gayatri Family, was a great Yogi, seer and incarnation of God who wrote volumes of scientific literature mainly on spiritual subjects for world welfare and peace. For more scientific e-books visit: http://www.shriramsharma.com/ (GOOGLE PR 4) KEYWORDS: Kundalini Yoga Gayatri e-books biography Guru world peace mind psyche god nerve subtle consciousness soul divine trance endocrine glands ESP Chakras plexus meditation concentration intellect prophecy thought thinking Cheiro Nostradamus Aurobindo bliss brain Vedas solar sun energy sacred pure sense organs Prana Avatar Upanishad light cell hypothalamus pituitary transformation futurist prediction serpent power life human ethics integrity character vagus Tantra Mooladhar atom neutron proton. DESCRIPTION: Free e-books on Future Scientific Religion, Gayatri Science & Kundalini Yoga correlated to Neurosciences-ESP, Endocrinology, Anatomy, Psychology & Sociology for 1) material & spiritual prosperity & 2) uniting the world peacefully as a family. Aim: A beautiful borderless world.
By: Shriram Sharma
Vijnan Shakti (the power to know the secrets and mysteries of the cosmos).