YOGA relaxation

1. YOGA relaxation Hitha.P.S I MSc Clinical Psychology

3. YOGA • Yoga refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines that originated in India. The word is associated with meditative practices in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Within Hinduism, it also refers to one of the six orthodox (āstika) schools of Hindu philosophy, and to the goal towards which that school directs its practices. In Jainism, yoga is the sum total of all activities — mental, verbal and physical. • Major branches of yoga in Hindu philosophy include Rāja Yoga, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Hatha Yoga. • The Sanskrit word yoga has many meanings, and is derived from the Sanskrit root "yuj", meaning "to control", "to yoke" or "to unite". It is also possible that the word yoga derives from "yujir samadhau," which means "contemplation" or "absorption." This translation fits better with the dualist Raja Yoga because it is through contemplation that discrimination between prakrti (nature) and purusha (pure consciousness) occurs.

4. Union refers to the unification of the mind, body, and spirit. It can also be considered a union between the lower and the higher, omnipotent states of consciousness. • Someone who practices yoga or follows the yoga philosophy to a high level of attainment is called a yogi or yogini. • In Hindu literature, the term "yoga" first occurs in the Katha Upanishad, where it refers to control of the senses and the cessation of mental activity leading to a supreme state. • Important textual sources for the evolving concept of Yoga are the middle Upanishads, the Mahabharata including the Bhagavad Gita, and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

6. HISTORY OF YOGA • The origins of yoga are shrouded in the midst of time- for yoga is regarded as a divine science of life, revealed to enlightened sages of meditation. • The oldest archaeological evidence of its existence is provided by a number of stone seals showing figures in postures, escavated from the Indus valley and thought to date from around 3000 bc. • Yoga was first mentioned in the vast collection of scriptures called the vedas, portions of which date from atleast 2500 bc, but it is the upanishads, which form the later part of the vedas that provide a foundation of yoga teaching, and of the philosophy known as the vedanta. • Central to vedanta is the idea of one absolute reality or consciousness, known as Brahman, that underlies the entire universe. • The backbone of raja yoga is furnished by Patanjali’s yoga sutras thought to have been written in the third century B.C. • Hatha yoga has three parts: a series of exercises or movements called asana (poses or postures in English), breathing techniques of all kinds, and relaxation.

7. Yoga Sutras of Patanjali • Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is a text that covers many aspects of life, beginning with a code of conduct and ending with the goal of yoga, a vision of one’s true Self. The Pantajali’s Yoga Sutras is probably the most authoritative text on yoga. It defines yoga as a focusing of the attention to whatever object is being contemplated to the exclusion of all others. Yoga isn’t only about postures, or meditation, it is a way of life, or religion. In this influencing scripture there are eight steps to awakening or enlightenment through yoga.

8. These eight astanga or limbs of yoga are: yamas, niyamas, asanas, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, and samadhi. • The yamas consist of lessons in moral and social conduct in our environment. It teaches us to restrain from lying, stealing, and greed. Non-violence and consideration toward all living things is the key. Communication with sensitivity towards others and moderation in all things we do is revered. • The niyama focuses on attitudes towards ourselves: compromising, cleanliness, serenity, devotion, and asceticism. One should study and reverence to a higher intelligence. There is an acceptance of our limitations in relation to God. It is key to have removed the impurities from the mind and body.

9. In the asanas, one focuses on posture practice, positioning the body while incorporating the breath to achieve a greater awareness in the mind. One is alert and relaxed without tension, while observing the reactions of the body and breath to various postures. This minimizes the effect of the external influences on the body, such as diet and climate. • Pranayama, or the restraint and control of the breath, helps with concentration, energizing andbalancing of the mind and body. • Pratyahara is the relaxation of the senses, where no distractions actually activate the mind. • Dharana, or concentration, is the ability to direct the mind toward a chosen object and focus in on it alone. • Dhyana, or meditation, is the ability to develop focused interactions with what we seek to understand. • Lastly, but most importantly, Samadhi is the ultimate state of Self-realization, or union with the source .

10. Goal of yoga • The goals of yoga are varied and range from improving health to achieving Moksha. • Within Jainism and the monist schools of Advaita Vedanta and Shaivism, the goal of yoga takes the form of Moksha, which is liberation from all worldly suffering and the cycle of birth and death (Samsara), at which point there is a realisation of identity with the Supreme Brahman. • In the Mahabharata, the goal of yoga is variously described as entering the world of Brahma, as Brahman, or as perceiving the Brahman or Atman that pervades all things. • For the bhakti schools of Vaishnavism, bhakti or service to Svayam bhagavan itself may be the ultimate goal of the yoga process, where the goal is to enjoy an eternal relationship with Vishnu.

11. BENEFITS OF YOGA • Yoga can help cure insomnia, as regular yoga practice leads to better and deeper sleep. • Yoga can help fight fatigue and maintain your energy throughout the day. • Yoga is an effective treatment for a variety of autoimmune diseases because it can reduce the symptoms these diseases often cause, such as stiffness, malaise, fatigue, and weakness. • A regular yoga practice helps boost antioxidants throughout your body, resulting in a stronger immune system and improved ability to heal quickly from disease or injury. • The gentler forms of yoga lower your blood pressure because the asanas (yoga poses, postures, and yoga positions) keep blood flowing evenly throughout your body while you focus on your breathing.

12. People suffering from hypertension can benefit from yoga tremendously, as hatha yoga can lower your heart rate and blood pressure. • The various yoga postures strengthen your feet, legs, hands, abdominals, lower back, legs, and shoulders. • Yoga's stretching and breathing exercises improve your flexibility, helping joints, tendons, and muscles stay limber. People suffering from osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis will see a noticeable improvement in their stiffness, pain, and other arthritic symptoms by practicing yoga poses and postures.

13. Hatha Yoga • Hatha yoga is an ancient hindu system of working with the human nervous system. Because it releases tension and endows one with renewed energy, far too many 20th century people, yoga teachers included, have come to look upon the venerable Indian physical science as solely an exercise for health and vitality of mind and body. It is that, but it is also much more. • Hatha yoga practices are more spiritual than physical, more subtle than gross, more a means of understanding than an exotic way to relieve stress or limber up the body. • The sages who developed hatha yoga designed it as a way to gain conscious control of our life energies, a way to go within, to harmonize the external so the innermost Self could be encountered. To them, it was about states of consciousness, about living a divine life, and it was a preparation for meditation. • As you perform the asanas, concentrate on feeling the energies within the nerve currents. Sensitize yourself to knowing when the body has been in each position long enough to tune the nerve currents involved. Then shift smoothly into the next asana. It's like a dance, a deliberate, fluid dance. • During all postures, inhale using the diaphragm, not the chest muscles. Do not stretch unduly or force the body. Relax into the poses. Don't worry if you can't perform them all perfectly. In time, you will find the body becoming more flexible and supple. Free the mind of thoughts and tensions. You will be more aware, more alive, more serene.

15. The scene of hatha yoga has a spiritual purpose - to balance physical and physic energies in preparation for meditation. It is not only meant to make us young, beautiful or creative, but to aid us in quieting the mind, body and emotions that we may awaken enlightened consciousness & know the Self within.

16. ASANAS • Asanas are the physical postures. The combination of asanas or postures exercise every part of the body, stretching and toning the muscles, joints and spine. • This creates great suppleness and flexibility throughout the entire body while toning the internal organs, glands and nerves, thereby the respiratory, digestive, circulatory, endocrine and reproductive systems all benefit. • Yoga works holistically keeping the whole body in radiant health. Central to the practice of yoga is the movement of prana (life force/vital energy) in the body. Through the practice of asanas in combination with the breath, energy blocks in the body are removed increasing the flow of prana taken in and stored in the body. • The removal of energy blocks and increased flow of prana increases vitality and promotes increased health. This infuses into our day today lives giving an increased sense of well-being and relaxation in both body and mind, allowing life to flow with greater ease.

17. WHAT ARE SPECIAL ABOUT ASANAS??.. • Postures  are held in order  to put sustained pressure  on the specific glands.  Breath is controlled. • Postures are repeated to maximize their effectiveness . • Postures are done when you are cool. • Postures are followed by self-massage to help with the assimilation of the glandular effects .

18. Pranayama • Pranayama is the science of breath control. Breath is the essence of life which most of us take for granted. It is the first thing we do when we are born into the world and it is the last thing we do when we leave and every moment in between is connected by breath. • As babies and young children the art of proper and effective breathing was intuitive but through the stresses of modern life our bodies and mind are continually burdened with anxiety and tension and we have lost touch with what we instinctively knew at birth. Reconnecting with the art of proper breathing can greatly enhance the quality of our health and our emotional and mental well-being. • Breath is the most vital process of the body, effecting the functioning of each and every cell, is intimately linked with the performance of the brain and our levels of vitality and resistance to disease. • Through pranayama we can re-establish natural and regular breathing patterns, dramatically increasing our energy levels. The practices of pranayama utilises breathing to influence and increase the flow of prana (vital energy/life force) throughout the body releasing blocked energy and deep and hidden tensions, supporting the whole immune system, keeping us vital and free from disease. • Furthermore as the state of our mind is deeply connected with our breath the practice of pranayama promotes a calm and contented state of mind enabling us to maintain equilibrium of mind in our day-to-day lives.

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