The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy.
The aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused
mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down
by practicing yoga. By keeping the body clean, flexible and well
lubricated, we can significantly reduce the catabolic process of
cell deterioration. To get the maximum benefits of yoga one has
to combine the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation.
Regular practice of asanas, pranayama and meditation can help
such diverse ailments such as diabetes, blood pressure, digestive
disorders, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, asthma,
varicose veins and heart conditions. Laboratory tests have proved
the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic
or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heartbeat and blood
pressure. Research into the effects of yogic practices on HIV
is currently underway with promising results.
According to medical scientists, yoga therapy is successful because
of the balance created in the nervous and endocrine systems which
directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body.
Yoga acts both as a curative and preventive therapy. The very
essence of yoga lies in attaining mental peace, improved concentration
powers, a relaxed state of living and harmony in relationships.
Through the practice of yoga, we become aware of the interconnectedness
between our emotional, mental and physical levels. Gradually this
awareness leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of
existence. The ultimate goal of yoga is to make it possible for
you to be able to fuse together the gross material (annamaya),
physical (pranamaya), mental (manomaya), intellectual (vijnanamaya)
and spiritual (anandamaya) levels within your being.
Physicians and scientists are discovering brand new health benefits
of yoga everyday. Studies show it can relieve the symptoms of
several common and potentially life-threatening illnesses such
as arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, diabetes, AIDS,
asthma and obesity.
Studies conducted at yoga institutions in India have reported
impressive success in improving asthma. It has also been proved
that asthma attacks can usually be prevented by yoga methods without
resorting to drugs.
Physicians have found that the addition of improved concentration
abilities and yogic meditation together with the practice of simple
postures and pranayama makes treatment more effective. Yoga practice
also results in greater reduction in anxiety scores than drug
therapy. Doctors believe that yoga practice helps patients by
enabling them to gain access to their own internal experience
and increased self-awareness.
Patients who practice yoga have a better chance of gaining the
ability to control their breathing problems. With the help of
yogic breathing exercises, it is possible to control an attack
of severe shortness of breath without having to seek medical help.
Various studies have confirmed the beneficial effects of yoga
for patients with respiratory problems.
The relaxation and exercise components of yoga have a major role
to play in the treatment and prevention of high blood pressure
(hypertension). A combination of biofeedback and yogic breathing
and relaxation techniques has been found to lower blood pressure
and reduce the need for high blood pressure medication in people
suffering from it.
Yoga is believed to reduce pain by helping the brain's pain center
regulate the gate-controlling mechanism located in the spinal
cord and the secretion of natural painkillers in the body. Breathing
exercises used in yoga can also reduce pain. Because muscles tend
to relax when you exhale, lengthening the time of exhalation can
help produce relaxation and reduce tension. Awareness of breathing
helps to achieve calmer, slower respiration and aid in relaxation
and pain management.
Yoga's inclusion of relaxation techniques and meditation can
also help reduce pain. Part of the effectiveness of yoga in reducing
pain is due to its focus on self-awareness. This self-awareness
can have a protective effect and allow for early preventive action.
Back pain is the most common reason to seek medical attention.
Yoga has consistently been used to cure and prevent back pain
by enhancing strength and flexibility. Both acute and long-term
stress can lead to muscle tension and exacerbate back problems.
Yoga's gentle exercises designed to provide relief to needed joints
had been Yoga's slow-motion movements and gentle pressures reach
deep into troubled joints. In addition, the easy stretches in
conjunction with deep breathing exercises relieve the tension
that binds up the muscles and further tightens the joints. Yoga
is exercise and relaxation rolled into one - the perfect anti-arthritis
formula.
Regular yoga practice can help in weight management. Firstly,
some of the asanas stimulate sluggish glands to increase their
hormonal secretions. The thyroid gland, especially, has a big
effect on our weight because it affects body metabolism. There
are several asanas, such as the shoulder stand and the fish posture,
which are specific for the thyroid gland. Fat metabolism is also
increased, so fat is converted to muscle and energy. This means
that, as well as losing fat, you will have better muscle tone
and a higher vitality level.
Yogic practices that reduce anxiety tend to reduce anxious eating.
In addition, yoga deep breathing increases the oxygen intake to
the body cells, including the fat cells. This causes increased
oxidation or burning up of fat cells. Yogic exercises induce more
continuous and deeper breathing which gradually burns, sometimes
forcefully, many of the calories already ingested.
Regular yoga practice creates mental clarity and calmness, increases
body awareness, relieves chronic stress patterns, relaxes the
mind, centers attention and sharpens concentration.
Yoga strives to increase self-awareness on both a physical and
psychological level. Patients who study yoga learn to induce relaxation
and then to use the technique whenever pain appears. Practicing
yoga can provide chronic pain sufferers with useful tools to actively
cope with their pain and help counter feelings of helplessness
and depression.
A common technique used in yoga is breathing through one nostril
at a time. Electroencephalogram (EEG) studies of the electrical
impulses of the brain have shown that breathing through one nostril
results in increased activity on the opposite side of the brain.
Some experts suggest that the regular practice of breathing through
one nostril may help improve communication between the right and
left side of the brain. Studies have also shown that this increased
brain activity is associated with better performance and doctors
even suggest that yoga can enhance cognitive performance.
Mental health and physical energy are difficult to quantify, but
virtually everyone who participates in yoga over a period of time
reports a positive effect on outlook and energy level. Yogic stretching
and breathing exercises have been seen to result in an invigorating
effect on both mental and physical energy and improved mood.
When you achieve the yogic spirit, you can begin knowing yourself
at peace. The value of discovering one's self and of enjoying
one's self as is, begins a journey into being rather than doing.
Life can then be lived practicing "yoga off the mat".
Pride, and especially anxiety about pride, is something which
Hatha Yoga seeks to diminish or eliminate. To one who has been
dejected because he cannot do his work properly when he becomes
tired, irritable, or haggard, any degree of refreshment may be
accompanied by additional degrees of self-respect. Furthermore,
one who has benefited from yoga may be moved to help his friends
who are obviously in need, he may instruct others and be rewarded
with appreciation due a to teacher.
But if one succeeds in achieving skill which provides health
and self-confidence, one may justly raise his self-esteem simply
by observing himself living the improved results as an achieved
fact.
Yogic theory and practice lead to increased self-knowledge. This
knowledge is not merely that of the practical kind relating to
techniques, but especially of a spiritual sort pertaining to grasping
something about the nature of the self at rest.
Knowing the self at rest, at peace, as a being rather than merely
as an agent or doer, is a genuine kind of knowledge which usually
gets lost in the rush of activities and push of desires. The value
of discovering one's self and of enjoying one's self as it is,
rather than as it is going to be, is indeed a value as well as
a kind of knowledge.
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