Yoga and Drug Free Living

Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind and spirit. When one is free from physical disabilities and mental distractions, the gates of the soul open.

~B.K.S. Iyengar

Kudos to the Indian Prime Minister Mr.Narendra Modi who took all the sincere efforts to make June 21st as International Yoga day!

Question: Sir, how many hours do you sleep in a day? What is the secret behind your energy not for one, two but eleven whole years?

Mr.Narendra Modi's answer: Doctors tell me I need to sleep for 5 hours but I sleep for maximum 3-4 hours yet, I get a very sound sleep. I am equally energetic from morning till night. I guess the secret behind it is Yoga and Pranayama, which I do daily. Whenever I feel tired, I just practice deep breathing and that refreshes me again!

Meaning of Yoga

Yoga is a Sanskrit word coming from the root 'Yuj' which means 'union', the union of individual self with Universal Self.

Sage Pathanjali's Yoga Suthra says, "yoga chitta vritti nirodhah", which means "Cessation / stillness of mind is Yoga".

Yoga is not merely a physical fitness / stress management program or a medical treatment routine. The ultimate goal of Yoga is 'Yuj'.

Yogi

Origin of Yoga

Yoga originated from India. But in ancient days India didn't exist as one single country... people were different by their race, language, religion, Gods and political governance. It was split into smaller kingdoms which were ruled by several kings. Still the land south of Himalayas was considered as one entity and was called as Bharath Varsha.

So somewhere, some sense of unity existed because of the common spiritual character people carried in them. It means, from king to common man, there was only one ultimate goal for everyone - liberation or 'Mukthi'.

Even today, the simplest farmer in India will talk about 'Mukthi'. This is because of the outstanding spiritual work done in this country. One person who is mainly responsible for this and who is of great significance in shaping up the human consciousness is Lord Shiva.

In Yogic culture, Shiva is not known as a God, but as the Aadhi Guru (first teacher). He is the Aadhi Yogi (first Yogi) and an enlightened one. Shiva expounded various forms of Yoga depending upon the level of preparedness and capacity of the people who were in front of him.

Shiva's first teaching was to Paarvathi, his wife. And the second set of Yogic teaching was given to Saptha Rishis, the first seven sages.

Shiva with Saptha Rishis
(Image courtesy - Kailai Bala)

These seven sages travelled to every corner of the globe, spreading the knowledge of Yoga and Eastern mysticism.

That's why if you take any religion in this world, you can find the seeds of Yoga in it. But the beauty is...Yoga is not a religion. It's pure science and a way of living !

Yoga leaves nothing untouched, it talks about all the aspects of life from the most minute to the greatest - how to sit, how to walk, how to talk, what to eat, how to eat, how to keep body & mind healthy and the ultimate - how to attain liberation or 'Mukthi'.

Pathanjali Maharishi's contribution

Hatha Yoga and benefits

Caution and tips on Yoga

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