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Mudras – Seal the Energy In

July 15, 2013

Mudra is a Sanskrit word which means ‘to lock’ or ‘to seal’. The word ‘mudra’ signifies hand gestures, or even symbols. Mudras are an integral part of a yoga practice in that they enable you to control the flow of prana, or the life force, thereby making you more energetic and full of vitality. In addition to this mudras help you lock energy inside your body so that you can utilize it, rather than letting it dissipate.

The fingers of the hands represent the different elements of the earth. Taken together these 5 elements are called the panch tattvas. These are:

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Up the Ante on Your Quality of Life: Practice Yoga Nidra

July 12, 2013

The Yoga

Yoga Nidra, literally translated to ‘Yogic Sleep’, is a way of consciously relaxing the mind-body complex. Regular practice of Yoga Nidra has shown positive results in cases of heart disease, asthma, stress related problems, headaches, migraines, hypertension, depression, insomnia etc. Along with quiet and calm, the practice of Yoga Nidra also brings about peace of mind. The mind is trained to go into the deep sleep phase of the sleep cycle (the dreamless state). However, this is done consciously with the use of emotions, sensations and images. The difference between sleeping and yogic sleep lies in the control of the subconscious mind. In Yoga Nidra there is a full control over the subconscious mind while in sleeping there is none. By being in touch with the subconscious mind it is possible to train the mind to let go of negativity and harmful habits. In fact, it can even be an effective tool to inculcate good habits.

The Science

To understand the difference between Yoga Nidra and deep sleep at a scientific level, it’s important to know about brain waves. At different times of the day, and depending on the brain activity, brain waves of different frequencies occur in the brain. These are:

Beta waves : associated with daily activity. Also associated with stress and tension.

Alpha waves : associated with a relaxed state of mind.

Theta waves : associated with a drowsiness, half asleep state of mind. When you’re half asleep but still conscious of what is going on around you.

Delta waves : associated with deep sleep, the state of sleep which is completely unconscious and, therefore, dreamless. These are the brainwaves experienced during Yoga Nidra. However, unlike in Deep Sleep, in Yoga Nidra, you are consciously sleeping.

In the practice of Yoga Nidra, the brain experiences a conscious and gradual shift from each of these brain waves until it reaches the delta waves consciously. However, simply the occurrence of Delta waves in the brain does not denote Yoga Nidra. It denotes deep sleep, which may also be unconscious. Yoga Nidra will always be conscious deep sleep.

An experiment was first conducted on this in 1971 by a yogi called Swami Rama in Kansas by the Menninger Foundation. Swami Rama basically relaxed into Yoga Nidra while scientists monitored his brain activity. The pattern and duration of the brain waves was pre-decided. In addition to this, scientists kept on asking Swami Rama questions. Results showed that Swami Rama was indeed able to move through the various states of consciousness at will. He was also able to tell them the questions he was asked while in that state as well as the talk that was going on in the lab during the Yoga Nidra!!!

What This Means for You

This is good news for everyone suffering deep-seated psychological issues. The origin of problems in our body is usually the brain. If you are able to tap into that part of your brain which is holding on to negativity and are able to release deep seated and deep rooted tension, then you will be rid of many problems standing in the way of a better quality of life for you.

On the physical level you will see that your sleep improves, your efficiency at work improves, your concentration levels improve. Essentially, you’re upping the ante on your quality of life. So start Yoga Nidra today!

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Gomukhasana – The Cow Face Pose

July 8, 2013

1. Start with your legs out in front of you and your back straight.
2. Bend your right leg at the knee and place the right heel next to the left buttock. Then bend the left leg at the knee and place the left knee next to the right buttock. Make sure your knees are aligned. Your buttocks should be on the floor. Make sure you’re not leaning over to any one side and continue to keep your back straight.
3. Bend your left hand and reach over your head and behind to your shoulder blades. Reach back with your right hand and clasp both hands together.
4. Keep your back straight. Awareness on the stretch on your shoulders and the expansion of your chest. Breath.

This asana is called the Cow Face Pose because in the final step your body resembles the face of a cow (visualize your legs being the lips of a cow).

This asana is great for :
*flexibility of your hips and your shoulders
*strenghthening your wrists and your fingers
*opening your chest and therefore promoting better breathing
*stretching your back therefore helping with issues of the curvature of the back

Caution:
If you’ve ever had an injury to your wrists, hands, arms and legs, then avoid this asana. That said, I believe every body is different and you should be aware of how your body feels and make your own judgement about whether you can practice this asana.

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The Fashion of Yoga

June 21, 2013

“And I’ll tell you something else,” my friend said conspiratorially, “Yoga has become fashionable now.”

Yes, in recent years people have started to frequent more yoga classes, yoga has gone mainstream and what with Nike and Reebok coming up with yoga apparel, yoga has caught our collective attention spans in a big way.

Yes, but what is making yoga fashionable? It’s an age old science, it’s a lifestyle, it’s a way of life…but the masses aren’t going into sanyas. What the masses are doing is paying their local yoga studios/yoga teachers/gurus hard earned money for an hour, sometimes hour and a half of various sequence of poses. And yes, they are reaping the benefits. Everyone does yoga, from my maid to the CEO of your company. And they have all contributed to the fashion statement that is yoga. I thought about all the yoga practitioners I’ve come across so far and came up with a few categories of new age yogis:

1. The first and foremost: The Constipated Yogi. Matsya-asana ensures that their digestive systems are unclogged, but not so for their attitude. Quick to look down upon the ‘unreal’ practitioners (i.e. anyone who doesn’t bow down before a guru they recognize to those who do yoga to lose weight) these yogis will direct their cool gaze towards you and expostulate at length about why they follow who they do and why that is the One True Yoga Path. Before you can contribute your two cents to the conversation to tell them you like nothing better than starting your day sweating it out in a Hot Yoga or Power Yoga class, they let you know their not so positive opinion of these unauthentic/new/commercialized forms of yoga, vehemently and in no uncertain terms. Before you can take a deep breath, they embark upon a detailed rant about the corruption of yoga at the hands of the vast majority of commercial yoga studios. When you’re in this situation, I suggest practice your deep breaths, clear your mind because The Constipated Yogi isn’t really interested in anything you have to say. You see, they know what real yoga is.

2. The Eternal Sunshine Yogi. These yogis are leftovers from the 70s. A lot of them are following the path their parents trod in the 70s….many of them still in Birkenstocks or flip flops. You’ll see them in diaphanous kurtas, sipping vegan chai with a somewhat vacant (spaced out?) look in their eyes. Lord Shiva used ganja as an aphrodisiac they are quick to tell you, and know their Ganesh from Govardhan. Assimilating as much of the culture as possible, you’ll see them wearing bindis, rudraksha malas around their necks and a beatific smile on their lips. You see, the Eternal Sunshine Yogis are on a quest to spread peace and happiness worldwide, and they will do so one Namaste at a time

3. The All-That-Brawn Yogi. Erstwhile gym rats, they can plank better than the best of us. Plus, they are faster, stronger, fitter than you. You can tell by the perfectly sculpted muscles under their expensive, dry-fit, ribbed, breathable body con workout gear. Or better yet, they will drop down and do 108 Surya Namaskars for you even before you can say yo-ga.

4. The Social Yogi – These yogis are the centre of attention of the yoga class….or any of the other numerous classes/causes they are a part of. There’s not a person they don’t know in the class, usually because they take it upon themselves to welcome newcomers…and to increase their circle of influence. They are easy to spot – they are loud, exuberant, gregarious, forthcoming…and get withering looks from the Constipated Yogi because…well because they know that the Social Yogi is not the real thing. But the Social Yogi couldn’t care less, they are too busy bonding with the Eternal Sunshine Yogi.

These are my observations so far. What are the yogis you’ve observed?

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