Yoga: The union

"You cannot always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside".

The eight different wings of yoga yama(control or restraint), niyama(self training), asana(posture), pranayama(control over life forces), pratyahara(withdrawal of senses), dharana(focused concentration), dhyana(meditative absorption), samadhi(enlightenment).

Though the aim of all these wings are self realization. The very often practiced are asana, pranayama and dyana.

The eastern world realized the importance of wellness within for wellness in outside and beyond. So all the yogic practices are designed to enhance the within so that we experience wellness outside.

Patanjali, thought to be the father of yogic science, encoded the whole practice into what is called "yoga sutras of patanjali"

How does the three wings of yoga work?

The Asanas, or Yogic postures are useful in the reduction of stress. These postures work mainly on the brain and nerve connections. There are two functional parts of the brain which are involved in the process of stress. One of them is ‘emotional’ part which serves the emotional function of the brain. Another one is a ‘logical’ part which serves the cognitive function.

The stress response and relaxing signals travel through the body along a particular path. There are some switch -like structures along this path, which are located in the neck.

Every time one holds a posture, the logical brain is activated. Also, the movements involved in the postures cause the relaxation signals to turn on. This ‘stress circuit’ gets trained when these postures are practiced regularly for a longer period of time. This helps in the reduction of stress.

Popularly known stress reducing asanas:makarasana(crocodile pose), Vajrasana(the diamond pose), bhujangasana(the cobra pose), trikonasana(the triangle pose), savasana(the corpse pose). Practicing each of them even for a few minutes have shown significant reduction in stress.

This is just about asanas. The importance of breathing techniques and dyana(meditation) can be learnt simply by it's practice for a few minutes everyday. The pranayama techniques create a connection between body and mind, important in creating a well balanced thought process, meditation helps develop mindfulness, helps you relieve the self from past and future and helps you live in the moment.

How much yoga should one perform to experience well-being?

There is no single answer for this, but an hour of early morning yoga facing the sun with an empty stomach is believed to be good. I personally follow one hour early morning yoga routine.

What Asanas are preferred?

1. 15 mins of Suryanamaskara to begin with

2. Followed by 10-15 mins of particular asanas like the ones mentioned above.

3. 10-15 minutes of pranayama

4. 10 minutes of meditation.

5. 5 mins of savasana and relaxation.

You will see the benefits of yoga just after 6 days of practicing it. Persistence and practicing regularly will help you grow your self awareness, conscious living, mindfulness. An experience one can feel only after practicing it. I urge each one of you to at least perform 30-45 mins of yoga in the morning. In the modern era of fast living, yoga is the one time solution to all the problems like stress, anxiety, depression. If we can spend some time everyday on ourselves. It enhances our performance throughout the day. If you really care about your well being, yoga is the solution. The western world has already realized the importance of it and making it an important component of their life. It's time we align our thinking and help the body, mind and the inner-self reach an union.

You can let me know about your suggestions and comments through mail or on social media. Feel free to share this with the ones whose well being you care about.