Brij Mohan Sharma
Yoga is a system of philosophy and an art of living which was evolved, preached and practised by our accomplished saints and sages of the yore. Though the origin of this great Indian legacy is shrouded in antiquity, it was refurbished, resystematized and chiselled into the present shape of practice by the Indian sage Maharishi Patanjali more than two thousand years ago. The collection of his aphorisms is known as Yoga Sutras.
Patanjali, in these sutras, describes the enigma of human existence. He shows how, through yoga practice, we can transform ourselves, gain mastery over the mind and emotions, and overcome obstacles to our spiritual evolution. By faithful, regular and correct practice of yoga, we can liberate ourselves from the bondage of worldly desires and actions, and achieve union with the Absolute, which is the ultimate goal of every true religion.
It is, however, necessary to clarify here that yoga does not belong to any particular religion because it was evolved at such a time when there probably existed no religions on this earth planet.
Yoga, as such, is universal in nature, and anyone irrespective of caste, creed, colour or faith can practise it. In view of its universality, the science of yoga has, in recent times, gained tremendous momentum and considerable appreciation from all walks of life. Modern science has discovered the extraordinary curative or rejuvenating effects of yoga on body and mind. There is hardly any country in the world where it is not practised with all sincerity and zeal. There are thirty million practitioners of yoga in America alone.
As rightly observed by Yehudi Menuhin, the greatest Violinist and conductor of twentieth century:”There are not many practical arts, sciences, and visions of human perfection of body, mind and soul which have been in practice over so long a period without attachment to a particular religious creed and catechism. Anyone can practise yoga, and this important contribution to the history of yoga and its validity today is for everyone.”
It is also encouraging that the nature of its universality, relevance to modern age, and irrefutable significance of its physical, mental an spiritual benefits to mankind have been given due recognition by the world body, the United Nations, who have earmarked June 21 of every year as the International Day of Yoga. Needless to say how proud and jubilant we the Indians are at this historic pronouncement.
Yoga, as already mentioned, is an art, a science and a philosophy. It is a definite practical procedure which liberates man from his three-fold sufferings-physical diseases, mental inharmonies and spiritual ignorance. Yoga practice clears and stimulates the brain and strengthens the medulla oblangata; it also greatly magnetizes the body, saturating and feeding all its physical cells with undecaying light and keeping them in a magnetized state. In nutshell, it is a practical method for making one’s life purposeful, useful and noble.
The sage Patanjali has outlined the yoga system as an eightfold path -1) Yama (avoidance of injury and untruthfulness 2) Niyama (purity of body and mind) 3) Asana (right posture for meditation) 4) Pranayama (control of prana-incoming and outgoing breath); 5) Pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses from external objects); 6) Dharana (concentration) holding the mind on one thought) 7) Dhyana (meditation) and 8) Samadhi (superconscious perception).
Since it will not be possible to go into the details of all these preparatory requirements, this write up dwells on three most important aspects of yoga proper.
However, let us first listen to Krishna’s advise in this regard as enshrined in Gita; “Yoga is not for him who eats too much, nor for him who does not eat at all, nor for him who is given to too much sleep, nor for him who is ceaselessly awake. Yoga, which rids one of woe and misery, is accomplished only by him who is regulated in performing actions, is regulated in diet and recreation, and regulated in sleeping and waking”. (Gita-VI(16,17).
So, the first step on the path of yoga is to control the body, and this we can learn from yogic exercises. Apart from making us fit for our day to day activities, these exercises recharge the omnipotent instrument of our will which, in turn, can bring about any changes desired in the body, and make it a temple fit for meditation enabling the practitioner of yoga to express the inherent limitless divine power of the soul.
The second step is to control the mind through concentration. Concentration is the ability to free the attention from objects of distraction and focus it on one sole subject or thought at a time. For this, we have to achieve mastery over breath, which is the binding cord between the soul and the body consciousness. This art and mastery over breath can be gained through various scientific yogic techniques of concentration and meditation.
Mastery over breath, however, does not mean to hold the breath forcibly in the lungs. This practice taught by some misguided charlatans is decidedly unnatural and unpleasant, and cannot be termed scientific. By scientific concentration, one learns to absorb the attention on the motion of breath as it comes and goes of itself, and at the same time discipline the wandering mind in order to concentrate intently and uninterruptedly on one point.
This scientific practice of control of mind leads us easily to the third step- deep meditation.
The difference between concentration and meditation is that concentration is the power to focus the mind on any desired line of thought, whereas meditation is that specific form of concentration used only to know God.
The above mentioned three measures are not only prerequisites of yoga, but an integral part of it. Without them the practice of yoga would be incomplete.
If we follow these steps correctly, regularly and with devotion, God is sure to respond. And, this response of God, in spiritual parlance, is called Yoga-Union with the Infinite. No doubt, there are many other ways to attain this state of realization, but yoga is the most ancient, the most easiest and the most effective scientific approach to the Infinite. This probably is the reason why vast masses of men and women in East and West get drawn to the charm of yoga.
Writing about Yoga in his Autobiography, Paramahansa Yogananda says :” The yogic science is based on an empirical consideration of all forms of concentration and meditation exercises. Yoga enables the devotee to switch off or on, at will, life current to the five sense telephones of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. Attaining this power to sense disconnection, the yogi finds it simple to unite his mind at will with divine realms or with the world of matter. No longer is he unwillingly brought back by the life force to the mundane sphere of rowdy sensations and restless thoughts.”
This is the state which spiritual seeker throughout the ages have striven to attain, and which India has made into a thorough science and art of spirituality, known as Yoga.
(The writer is former Addl. Secretary to Government of J&K)
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