I.   What is yoga?

A.  One of the six fundamental systems of Indian thought collectively known as Darsana (point of view).

B.  Yoga was systematized by Patanjali in the “Yoga Sutras” 500 years before the birth of Christ.

C.  Yoga was originally developed as a mental discipline and to regulate the flow of energy in the body.

D.  Yoga means to “unite” or “come together”, to direct all of our attention toward the activity, which we are engaged.

E.   Yoga is a physical and mental discipline that can be practiced by most anyone.

F.   Yoga classes consist of breathing exercises, yoga poses, and relaxation.           

1. Yoga poses align the body into a stretch that is held for a certain period of time.  Poses can range from very simple to complicated.

2. Breathing exercises are used to expand lung capacity, relax respiratory muscles, enhance the affects of a pose and sooth the nerves.

3.         The deep breathing super oxygenates the blood sending this super oxygenated blood to all the tissues of the body.  This is one of the main methods of healing in yoga.

4. Relaxation is done at the end of a yoga session to assimilate what the body has just experienced, to allow the body to recuperate and to provide stress relief.

5.         One must learn to relax before the deep benefits of yoga are realized.

II.       What yoga is not?

A.  Yoga is not a cure for anything, though it is therapeutic.

B.  Yoga is not a religion.

C.  Yoga is not a sport and, therefore, is non-competitive.

D.  Yoga is not a goal-oriented activity.

III.       Why practice yoga?

A.  Takes the person as they are.  Yoga is practiced in accordance with individual physical ability.  It can literally be practiced by anyone.

B.  Yoga is not concerned with outside goals such as a football star may face.  The football star will work his body to meet the requirements set upon him by his coach and other players.  Pushing him far beyond the point when his body and mind has had enough.  Yoga is more concerned with tuning into the self to learn what the body and mind really need. 

C.  Athletes would greatly benefit from the self-study and healing qualities of yoga.

D.  Benefits are not only physical but also mental and emotional such as enjoying a relaxed state of mind wherever you are, having a clear mind with fewer thoughts, increasing attention span and intensity of focus, not exaggerating or fearing the future, positive thinking, self-acceptance and faith in life in general.

E.   Yoga is a gradual process that can offer a sense of accomplishment and self-satisfaction.

F.   Yoga is not concerned with popular physical attributes or fad diets.  Yoga is concerned with over all good health, happiness, and stability.

G.   The yoga diet is primary plant based.

H.  Non-impact and gentle on bones and joints.

I.    Interesting and fun.

J.   With practice cultivates emotional stability and a deep sense of well-being.

K.  Yoga helps people accept themselves just the way they are.

IV.        Benefits of Yoga

A.  Improves circulation

B.  Improves flexibility, range of motion and strengthens muscles.

C.  Decreases pain of and prevents osteoporosis, arthritis, fibromyalgia, back and neck pain, chronic fatigue.

D.  Helps reduce stress and anxiety.

E.   Benefits asthmatics and bronchitis sufferers. 

F.   Expands the lungs and teaches full and complete breathing.

G.  Aides in digestion and elimination.

H.  Keeps the spine supple and flexible.

I.    Creates body awareness and better posture.

J.   Greatly improves concentration and memory.

K.  Massages organs with a fresh supply of blood.

L.   Reduces nerve impingement in spinal column.

M. Improves balance and stability.

N.  Improves athletic performance.

O.  Lessons occurrence of injury.

P.   Helps people become active again after long illnesses or surgery.

Q.              Yoga is used as physical therapy to keep joints free of pain.

R.  Can reduce blood pressure

S.   Produces deep relaxation

T.   Decreases mental chatter in every day life

U.   With training and study the mind becomes clear and more easily focused

V.       How yoga works?

A.  Frees tight muscles allowing better blood flow to muscles reducing pain and swelling.

B.  Exerts pressure on glands to stimulate the flow of lymphatic fluids.

C.  Aligns the skeleton to stretch muscle groups equally so less energy is used in daily activities. 

D.  Lengthens muscles by going to the point of resistance of a stretch, relaxing and releasing tension through the breath.

E.   Increases range of motion and lubricate joints.

F.   Physical relaxation techniques are internalized creating mental balance and emotional stability.

G.  Breathing exercises relax the respiratory muscles, expand the lungs and sooth the nerves.

H.  Improves digestion using the diaphragm to massage the digestive organs

I.    Uses specific balancing exercises to strengthen the muscles that balance the body and to find mental balance.  

J.   Holding a yoga posture for a period of time creates a steady, focused, relaxed state of mind.

K.  Stretching and breathing releases long held sources of energy, therefore, creating energy rather than depleting energy.

L.   Guided relaxation releases the mind from worry, fears, and insecurities for a period of time allowing an emotional vacation.

M. Teaches contentment and tolerance by allowing thoughts, feelings, irritating noises or discomforts to come and go while remaining steady and focused.

    N.  Releases the mind from unnecessary and harmful thinking to provide a clear view of the true self.

Yoga has a very long history dating back thousands of years.  Nobody really knows for sure when it all started.   The Aryan barbarians brought yoga and Brahmanism with them when they invaded the Indus Valley in 1500 B.C.E.   Brahamanism is a complex religious tradition.  This is the tie religion has to yoga.  But keep in mind man of every culture many years ago thought of everything in the context of spirituality, gods and divinity.  This is how ancient people made sense of the world around them.  It is the Brahman culture, actually a warring culture that gave us the first yoga.  These were hard and barbaric times, but these people still managed to create a structured and complicated civilization.  They were more than likely brilliant although warring and murderous.   They were also the first recorded scientists.  They studied the health and well being of people and recorded what worked and what didn’t based on, of course, natural means since that is all there was.

The literature of yoga is written in epic poems, stories and scripture.  They have been interpreted and rewritten by many.  They include the Vedas, Brahamanas, Upanishads, Mahabharata, Bhagavad-Gita, Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Tantra, and Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras to name only a few.  The teachings of the Upanishads, Patanjali’s yoga sutras and the Bhagavad-Gita define yoga today.   The Bhagavad-Gita is considered the most important text and is an epic poem of a conversation between a warrior prince, Arjuna and the manGod, Krishna.  Krishna instructs Arjuna on the meaning and purpose of life and existence as Arjuna fulfills his duties on the battlefield.  We cannot ignore this important works of art, literature, science and medicine.  It is far too valuable to the understanding of the world and ourselves.   Because it is from a poverty stricken, exotic and ancient part of the world, many may too easily overlook it. 

Sanskrit is one of the oldest Indo-European languages in the world and includes a rich tradition of poetry, literature, science, philosophy and religion.  It is one if the 22 official languages of India.  Sanskrit was the language of the ancient yoga texts mentioned above.  Today Sanskrit is also the language of yoga.  The yoga postures, philosophy, mantras and hymns are spoken today around the globe in yoga centers.  This seems to be a language that will never die.  More and more on the radio, television and written publications I hear Sanskrit words used in our own vernacular such as mantra, yoga, chanting, chakra, and mandala.  Yoga has become more and more mainstream over the years and for good reason.  It is a study of the beginning of the civilizing of man. 

The Sanskrit word “mantra” is a word or string of words chanted over and over to accomplish concentration of the mind.  The word mantra consists of the root man or manas meaning, “to think” and the suffix tra meaning “tool” hence the “tool or instrument of thought.   Mantras are effective sound vibrations and great emphasis is put on correct pronunciation.  This correct pronunciation has very practical benefit such as toning the facial muscles, clearing the bronchial tubes, deep breathing, strengthening of the abdominal and respiratory muscles including the diaphragm. Some of the sounds made by yoga chanting vibrate the ears and nose clearing the sinuses.   Yoga mantras would be incredibly useful in phonetics and speech therapy. 

The yogis felt that chanting the same phrase of words over and over again cleared the mind of illusion and material inclinations so that meditation can be practiced.  Mantra is practiced today to release the mind.  Yoga is so popular today because yoga meditation is learning to take the time to release the mind from cares, worries, time constraints, work, responsibility and even physical pain for a time and allow the mind to recuperate, regenerate and expand.  This mental release is accomplished by meditation and also repeating the same phrase of words over and over as in a mantra.  Mantra can also be used to invoke a feeling state or even for remembering facts.  Try this sometime.  When you are in a very relaxed state pick a short mantra to repeat over and over.  Something that sounds good to you.  The next time you are stressed repeat this same mantra and your relaxed state will be remembered. 

The benefits of all of yoga are amazing.  The problem I can see in getting people to use this useful ancient knowledge is that it takes more time than taking a pill.  You have to be willing to study and practice and be patient with the results.  In fact, you must completely let go of any expectation or desired result you wish from yoga and practice with a completely clear mind.  The Sanskrit word for this completely clear state of mind is a word you have heard many times . . . Nirvana. 

Nirvana is not a state you find yourself in but is the culmination of the practice of very definite instructions on meditation that you must study and learn.  One who wishes to accomplish Nirvana must study the yoga sutras along with other yoga texts and practice the yoga poses for physical cleansing and relaxation.  Just the yoga sutras will take you a long way toward Nirvana, a state of complete bliss. 

In America, we may see this state of bliss as weak or not useful.  We are a society built on hard work and competition.  Nothing wrong with that, but being still and not accomplishing something is very hard for us to see as useful.  We must allow the mind time to unwind and regenerate so that our energies are balanced and plentiful.   We will become depleted if we do not give back to ourselves.  Sleep is not meditation.  It is entirely different.  In sleep the mind is still active in meditation the mind is not active at all.  Sounds impossible?  Maybe but the practice is incredibly calming.

Believe me, learning to clear your mind for a good night’s sleep, learning how to seek a balanced and peaceful state of mind through the daily ups and downs of life, learning not to waste the enormous amounts of energy that anxiety, stress and negativity require, seeing each and every moment just as it really is without mood swings or the colorations of the past to mar your view of the precious present is invaluable and worth gold.

Yoga Rehabilitates the Body, Mind and Spirit                                             

When the body awakens the mind awakens when the mind awakens the spirit awakens.

Yoga rehabilitates and rebalances every system of the body from the musculoskeletal to the endocrine systems.  Yoga is utilized by many for its therapeutic effects on the body; for the many ailments and misalignments of the spine, for arthritis, heart disease, athletic injury and performance, back pain, neck pain, fatigue etc, etc.  Yoga reopens the joints so there is better lubrication of the joints, lengthens and relaxes muscle to greatly improve range of motion, strengthens bone and muscle, improves balance, improves sleep, greatly reduces dangerous stress and anxiety and can even, according the medical studies performed by Dr. Dean Ornish, reduces and remove blockages of the arteries.  To reduce blockages of arteries you must faithfully practice yoga and follow a strict  low fat vegetarian diet, which is also advised in yoga teachings.  

Now, once we have the body replenished, enlivened and pain under control, the mind can be rehabilitated.  This is the path of yoga.  How does one rehabilitate the mind?  You need the entire package of yoga to do this.  You have to want to learn all about yoga and you have to want to improve yourself.  You must begin with the Yamas, Niyamas, asanas and pranayama.  These are  first four limbs of Patanjali's 8 limbs of yoga.   

Next, to purify the mind/spirit you need the next four of the 8 limbs of yoga which are pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi.  These last four limbs are sense withdrawal, concentration, meditation and a state of blissful expansion of the mind, respectively.  The practice of deep meditation involves releasing the mind from any thought at all.  This takes education and practice.  When the mind is cleared it is creating space for new ways of thinking.  Like defragmenting your computer to clear up space for new information.  When the mind is freed the heart opens and the spirit is ready to be experienced on a elevated level.

Also, keep in mind the laws of karma.  This is very important for clearing the mind to accomplish a state of peace.  Your thoughts create your words, your words create your actions and all of this creates your karma.  So watch your thoughts carefully.  How does one practice watching their thoughts? First of all by qualifying the quality of your thoughts. You do this by thought purification.  Ask yourself from time to time, what was I just thinking?  What was that chatter in the back of my mind saying.  Is it valid?  Is it true?  Is it exaggerated with emotional fuel?  In what direction are my thoughts taking me?  Am I making myself angry, sad, frustrated or am I thinking positively and with confidence. How are you thinking is the question?  And what are you thinking?  The mind is tossed about by one thought after another.  It is the nature of the mind to constantly evaluate whatever our inner and outer senses are perceiving.  We need to reduce our thoughts so we can refocus again and create new thought waves and patterns. 

Our habitual ways of thinking have created deep pathways or deep grooves in the brain.  These deep grooves in the mind occur when we emotionally react the same way to situations over and over again or think the same thoughts over and over again.   We may react to our lives with constant negativity and depression, anxiety, fear, with low self-esteem.  And then we become depression, anxiety, fear and think lowly of ourselves.  This is very dangerous.  Just as we create negative pathways we can create pathways of happiness, fulfillment, and joy, but it is so much easier to create negative and harmful thought pathways.  So one must carefully watch their thoughts.   These habitual grooves or pathways can and will be reduced and rewired by the practice of yoga postures, relaxation and meditation.  

An advanced yogi is not someone who is super flexible.  An advanced yogi is someone who is able to intensify their focus and who has developed body awareness.

Here is a simple example of the mind/body connection: The new yoga practitioner may have thought patterns of not being strong enough or not being good enough due to past negative experiences.  They will be so engrossed in these negative thoughts that they may not even be able to absorb what the teacher is teaching and therefor not receive the benefit and quit the class.  Here is another example:  A beginner practitioner’s mind may be anxious to perform the yoga poses or the person new to yoga may unconsciously compete with the person next to them. These thoughts are not connected to their bodies but outside of their bodies.  This means they are not aware of the sensations in the body and may over stretch and deplete the body’s energy instead of replenish it.   Yoga is a deep focus on all of the sensations of the body.  Yoga is a method that teaches physical and  mental strength and also strengthens the nervous system so you are steady and calm in all situations.  This steadiness and strengthening of the nervous system helps us to decrease stress in every aspect of our lives.  It is a rebalancing and rehabilitation of the mind and body.  You can build cardiovascular strength and stamina with yoga, but this comes with practice, time and patience with the poses.

You are not separate from everything; you are everything.

How is yoga a balance of the mind, body AND spirit?   First of all what is the spirit?  According to Thomas Moore in Care of the Soul spirit is that which rises above the mundane; that which elevates our consciousness and our attitudes.  Yoga does that in so many ways but you must first start with the body and the mind.  If the body/mind is in pain, fatigued, or stuck in old habits, it is very difficult to elevate the spirit.  You must address the body/mind first.  Then we go to the spirit.  Of course, in reality we are working on the mind/body/spirit simultaneously.  You must believe in the possibility of changing of seeing yourself in a different way. You must be willing to study yourself and give yourself the time and energy to look closely at yourself.  In yoga language all of yoga is an awakening of the third eye; the OM space.  This is an understanding that we are all connected; we are all connected and we are connected to the ecology of the world  and the universe.  You need some proof?  Think about this short statement.  The rain forests are our lungs.  Practicing yoga weaves you into life.  You can never be lonely as a yogi because you are connected to nature.  The study of yoga philosophy inspires profound thought which is the spring board for new awareness and levels of higher consciousness.  Yoga helps us to get out of the way of ourselves and experience new realities.  When we practice yoga we realize that every single action from big to small is a profound ritual from making a cup of tea to performing brain surgery.  Yoga deepens your experience of life.

Yoga is a way to clear away old harmful thoughts and misunderstandings of the mind, to remold the body into a cleaner, stronger, healthier vehicle, and to bring peace of mind and focused attention on whatever subject you have your mind on.

Anyone can practice yoga because yoga is about your body and not some image of beauty or health or perfection.  The most important thing about yoga is understanding your body and doing only what is right for you. That is the whole point.  You may even come into a yoga class and need meditate more than do the poses or need to have a deep physical workout.  You are in total control of how much you stretch and how hard you work.  I will show you how to do this.  Just keep your ears and your mind open.

Insert contents.