Page 31 - seniors today August issue
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nostrils. Although, I discovered that until to that, through the day we essentially breathe
a certain level of consistent Asana practice, ‘mindlessly’, only upto our upper respiratory
it is difficult to have the lung capacity to tract, that is, shallow breathing. The magic of
smoothly practice anything more than one set therapeutic healing, organ cleansing, hormonal
(11 rounds) of any type of classical Poorvak balance happens when we take the slight added
(complete inhalation), Kumbhak (retention effort of breathing in and out deeply, with
of breath within the lungs and chest cavity), patience until our rib cage expands, intercostal
Rechak (complete exhalation) and Shunyak and deep core diaphgramatic muscles participate.
(emptiness of breath after exhalation). This is when we catch up on all the times during
the day that we may be distractedly breathing and
Most austere form short-changing our complete breath cycle.
Having mentioned Hatha Yog, where one The most important thing to remember is that
essentially follows a clean diet, punctual, heat Asana practice is essentially that: a practice. It is
generating practice and then challenges one’s not a performance where we are more concerned
boundaries by holding postures until the about how we are looking aesthetically to others
pose feels comfortable and pleasant. This was around us in a certain posture. Yog essentially
considered the most austere form of practice, means a union of the various seemingly
where the yogi follows a strict regime, and unconnected parts of ourselves. So, it could mean
attempts to balance the mind by gaining the union of our physical body to our breath or
mastery over bodily discomforts. Ha-Tha Prana body, mind or though body (includes the
literally translates as stubborn or determined. mind, Ego and higher intellect or Buddhi) and
Today, considering our modern lifestyles, therefore reaching a state of clarity where we feel
today Hatha Yog is essentially reduced to a more connected to our inner voice, consciousness
one hour session where one tries to align, or our inner True Selves.
breath, body and mind. Other popular forms Yog as Asana practice is meant as one of the
of practice are the Vinyasa (flow of asanas techniques to attain, even a few moments of
as smooth sequences) or the Ashtanga style, Ekagrata or one-pointedness of mind within our
which is a lovely combination of variations chaotic day. Yog is the union or alignment of our
of surya namaskaram and holding postures probably erratic breathing patterns, by releasing
with mindful attention to breath and bandhas the restlessness that manifests in the form of
(a body lock done through muscle holds to unproductive physical and mental energy. Out of
retain breath within a certain area of the the 102 Yoga Sutras, only a total of 3 are dedicated
body). to defining Asanas and 4 for Pranayams. This
Zen masters, Yogis or even sportsmen and is a subtle reminder that while attaining control
magicians have been training their lung over our lower selves in the form of discipline and
capacities for centuries and amazed the physical exercise, diet and a clean mental attitude,
world with feats, endless reserves of energy we have to rise above our fixation over our
and core strength or by living long, healthy physical form in order to break the attachment
lives. Prana+Ayam or breath regulation is we feel towards our bodies. Only when we
undoubtedly a powerful tool to increase one’s have thoroughly examined the true nature and
physical and mental wellbeing. limitations of our physical selves can we be still
enough to be ready for meditation. This is how
Breathing is the key we take the first step into living more consciously,
Logically, the better we breathe, the better we mindfully and spiritually.
replenish, reenergise and detoxify the systems
within the body. It is staggering to learn that
on an average we anyway breathe at below
50% or less of our total lung capacity. To add
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