Yoga Module 2

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YOGA MODULE

SPIC MACAY - RAJASTHAN

Society for Promotion Of Indian Classical Music And

Culture Amongst Youth

Issue 2

1/2/2010


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Issue 2 , January 2010

2 | Property of SPIC MACAY compiled by Neeraj Sharma

ear friends,

After a long time though, here we are with the second issue of the The Yoga

Module. I extend my sincere apologies for being inactive for a pretty long time and

hope youll forgive me for that. This time we are here with four articles based on

simple indoor exercises especially keeping the chilling winter in view. The Surya

Namaskar is a very old collection of various stretches which are very effective in keeping the

body metabolism in order. Moreover its a perfect and very efficacious warm up to give the day a

wonderful start. The next too chapters deal with Meditation and Pranayam and are mainly

concentrated for tranquilizing the anxieties and depressions of daily life. The last chapter deals

with some yogasans for curing the back pain. Again the practices are quite simple but highly

productive.

In my last issue I mentioned the need for volunteers for coordinating yoga in different chapters.

But unfortunately I didnt get a single response regarding the same. I suppose that the yoga

chapter has not been such an interesting field in our movement and that is what explains the

response for the previous issue. I would like to state here that yoga is not just an exercise which ismeant for our parentage that has nothing else to keep themselves busy. Its meant for everyone as

its actually more than what we see in it. Yoga actually means union. Patanjali Yoga Sutra says:

yogah chitt vritti nirodhah

In yoga we realize our existence at different level of consciousness and ultimately realize that the

ultimate truth of this creation is our existence. We say we are sat-chit-anand(existence-concious

ness-bliss). This very essence of yoga makes it essential for each and every human being to

practice it and I personally feel that nothing can be more noble to humanity than to make this art

reach to everyone. And hence I once again call for volunteers for the post of chapter coordinators

for yoga for this session.

Once again the author doesnt claim the originality of the text which has been compiled and

revised from different sources and extend his sincere thanks for the same.

I hope your cooperation as always and will be glad to receive your comments regarding the issue.

Regards:

Neeraj Sharma

State YOGA Coordinator (Rajasthan)

E.mail: [email protected]

Ph: +91-9413632703

D


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Surya NamaskarSun salutation is also referred to as Surya Namaskar, is an effective technique for weight loss.

Surya namaskar involves thirteen movements, which ultimately involves various yogic poses. A

pace of four salutation rounds with twenty four salutations, on a daily basis, aids in loss of extrapounds. The number of calories burnt, is dependent on the pace at which your do the namaskar.

Yogic exercises prove effective, only when followed in a proper manner. If you are not able to

stick to the breathing technique, reduce the frequency of the asana. Strain or stress of any kind

also hinders with performance of yoga.

The Technique is detailed as follows:

01

Namaskar (Salute)

Start in a standing position, facing the sun. Both your feet should

touch each other, palms joined together, in prayer pose.

02

Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose)

With a deep inhalation, raise both arms above your head and tilt

slightly backward arching your back.

03

Padangusthasana (Hand to Foot Pose)

With a deep exhalation, bend forward and touch the mat, both palms

in line with your feet, forehead touching your knees.


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04

Surya Darshan (Sun Sight Pose)

With a deep inhalation, take your right leg away from your body, in a

big backward step. Both your hands should be firmly planted on your

mat, your left foot between your hands, head tilted towards the

ceiling.

05

Purvottanasana (Inclined Plane)

Hold your breath and take your right leg back to join your left leg.

Now straighten both your hands, legs and back. Your neck spine,

thighs and feet should be in a straight line.

06

Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose)

With a deep exhalation, shove your hips and butt up towards theceiling, forming an upward arch. Your arms should be straight and

aligned with your head.

07

Sashtang Dandawat (Forehead, Chest, Knee to Floor Pose)

With a deep exhalation, lower your body down till your, forehead,

chest, knees, hands and feet are touching the mat, your butt tilted up.

Take a normal breath in this pose.

08

Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)

With a deep inhalation, slowly snake forward till your head is up,

your back arched concave, as much as possible.

09

Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose)Exhaling deeply, again push your butt and hips up towards the ceiling

as in position 6, arms aligned straight with your head.


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10

Surya Darshan (Sun Sight Pose)

Inhaling deeply, bring your right foot in towards your body, in a big

forward step. Both your hands should planted firmly on your mat,

right foot between your hands, head tilted towards the ceiling.

11

Padangusthasana (Hand to Foot Pose)

Exhaling deeply, rise up and touch the mat, keeping both your palms

in line with your feet, forehead touching your knees.

12

Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose)

Inhaling deeply, raise both your arms above your head and tiltslightly backward.

13

Namaskar (Salute)

Return to stand facing the sun, both feet touching, palms joined

together, in prayer pose.

Benefits of Sun Salutation

The practice of Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation) increases strength, improves muscletone and coordination and bestows good health upon the practitioner, while increasing

body awareness. It helps burn body fat and combat obesity, helps balance and stimulateall the systems of the body particularly the circulatory, endocrine, digestive and

respiratory systems. Regular practice of Sun Salutation aids the process of elimination,

thereby ridding the body of toxins more effectively. The again, you should avoidpractising without expert guidance.

Contraindications

Sun Salutation is best avoided by pregnant women, people suffering from high blood

pressure, or those nursing back aches or injuries, chronic glaucoma, heart problems.


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MEDITATIONMeditation is a good way to Find/Lose yourself. Religion tries to Define and Confinewho we are, but we are the only ones who can truly define the variable of "Self".

Buddhism tries to say having a sense of self is a bad thing, for it is the source of conflict

and pain. But to be without a sense of self is to not even really exist. Sometimes the little

drop of water rejoins the big ocean, but the little drop is still just 1 of many that has fallenbefore. Even though it is now part of the big ocean it will recombine some day only to

become a drop of water again. Following is a well known meditation technique called the

VIRAT DHYAN. This is a wonderful mind soother for people suffering from anxietyproblems or when one is in a state of depression. The whole sequence takes about 25

minutes and is to be done in a single slot.

Procedure:

1. If you already have a regular meditation routine, do a minute or two of it to getgrounded and comfortable, and maintain your usual posture. If you're new to

meditation, find a comfortable upright position (sitting in a chair is sufficient),

take a few deep breaths, and relax as much as you can.2. From your relaxed meditation position, ask yourself to speak with your

Controller. (You'll probably feel a bit strange speaking to yourself this way, but

you're simply giving voice to the running dialogue that already exists inside yourhead.) The Controller is essentially your ego. Its job, as its name implies, is to

control. You've likely met and probably struggle with this aspect of yourself.3. Ask the Controller about its job, then probe further and ask what it controlsyour

actions, your thoughts, other people? This is neither good nor bad; the Controller

is just doing its job. A key component of the Big Mind process is gaining the

Controller'sthe ego'scooperation and not threatening it with annihilation, as

spiritual training often does.4. Once you gain the Controller's trust, you can ask it for permission to speak with

your other voices; the ego is usually glad to temporarily step aside if it has been

consulted.5. Next up is the Skeptic. Before asking the Controller to speak with the Skeptic,

however, take a deep breath; when you shift into another voice, it's good to give

the mental movement a physical correlation.6. Let the Skeptic be what it is. It's OK that a part of you is skeptical; it's actually a

good thing. If you didn't have a skeptical voice, you might find yourself

continually being hoodwinked. Ask the Skeptic what it has doubts about.7. Now take a breath and ask to speak with Seeking Mind. Shift over to this new

voice. Meditators often have a problem with Seeking Mind; they want to get rid

of it, because it creates so much desire. But Seeking Mind is doing what it's meant


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to do. It's helpful to remember that without it, you might not be meditating in the

first place.8. Take another breath and shift to Nonseeking Mind. Nonseeking Mind is the state

of meditation. There is nowhere to go, nothing to do. Again, this is neither good

nor bad; Nonseeking Mind simply doesn't seek. Explore Nonseeking Mind.

9. Take a moment here to notice how easy or hard it is to shift from one voice toanother. Moving among your different selves helps you realize the empty natureof the selfthat is, you have no static identity; you are continually changing. Youmight think your identity is set in stone (I am shy, I am angry, I am spiritual), but

these are just voices floating in space; they're not you. You're much bigger than

you think.10.Now take a breath and shift into Big Mind. This is the voice that contains all the

other voices. It is known by various names: the ground of being, Buddha Mind,

Universal Mind, God. By its very nature, it has no beginning and no end. There is

nothing outside of Big Mind, but Big Mind is a voice inside of you. Big Mind'sjob, you could say, is just to be.

11.Ask Big Mind what it does and doesn't contain. Does it contain your birth? Yourparents' birth? Your death? Can you find its beginning or end? Does it containyour other voices? How does it see your daily problems?

12.Stay in Big Mind for as long as you can. In this state, you have surrendered yourpersonal ego (with its permission) to your true and universal nature.

13.Next, find your voice of Big Heart. Explore what it does for you and others. Its job is to be compassionate. How does it respond when someone or something is

hurting? Does it take the form of tough love or tender nurturing or both? Does it

have any limits when faced with suffering? Sit with this voice for a while.14.Now shift back into Nonseeking Mind and stay with it for a couple minutes to end

the meditation. Though you might want to stay in Big Mind forever, the simple

fact is that no single voice is the stopping place; there is no stopping place.Continually working with and accepting all of your voices will, in turn, help you

accept the myriad voices of others.


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PRNAYAM

In prana, the root word "pra," meaning "to fill," is added to the root word, "an," ("to

breathe" or "to live") creating the new meaning "the life that fills with the breath."

Pranayama is derived from prana (`vital force`) plus ayama, which defines as `stretch,extension, expansion, length, breadth, regulation, prolongation, restraint or control`.

Therefore pranayama can aptly be defined as `extending prana` or increasing the life

energy.

Pranayama is the technique of hatha-yoga par excellence, which is both -"the goal" and

"the practice". The goal being to retain prana within the Sushumna. The "practice" to

achieve it is the extension of the period of retention of prana Vayu in the body. This is

achieved by incorporating the performance of very powerful breathing exercises

combined with muscular contractions and concentrated mental focus.

Following is the technique of kumbhak a Pranayam explained step by step.

Antara Kumbhaka requires the application of both Jalandhara and Mula Bandhas; in

addition the rib case gently "hugs" the lungs.

Establish Sama Vritti Ujjayi (and for this example, the vritti count is 6 OMs). To begin,

apply the two bandhas as you near the end of your inhale, and retain the breath for 2

OMs, no more. Gently squeeze the ribs against the expanded lungs. Then exhale,

concurrently releasing Mula Bandha and, when finished, raise your head to neutral.

DON'T perform Kumbhaka on successive breaths; take 2 to 3 Ujjayi breaths before the

next retention.

In general your first Kumbhakas should be one-third to one-half the length of your Sama

Vritti count. Practice at this level until you're completely comfortable, which may take

several weeks or longer.

Then gradually reduce the number of Ujjayis between Kumbhakas until you can

comfortably retain your breath for 2 OMs on successive inhales for about 5 minutes. Next

increase your Kumbhaka to 3 OMs, but again separate them by 2 to 3 Ujjayis. Again

gradually reduce the Ujjayis until you can comfortably retain for 3 OMs on successive

inhales for 5 minutes.

Proceed methodically until your Kumbhaka count matches your Sama Vritti count.

The other techniques of pranayama will be discussed in the coming isssues.


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Yoga Poses For Neck And Upper Back Pain

Back pain and neck pain is a complaint that is common amongst those of us that liveurban lifestyles. If you suffer from back and neck pain, you should realize that thereprobably isnt one single reason that causes it, but a host of reasons. These include bad

posture, sleeping wrong, using a computer, and not using the back muscles enough.

You can use yoga effectively to gain relief from neck and upper back pain. While yoga is

a holistic system which includes a complete lifestyle change, there are a few asanas, or

poses, that can specifically help you out.

Bhujangasan or Cobra pose: Lie face-down on the mat, with your palms on the

floor, under the shoulders, with the elbows touching your body. Slowly straightenyour arms and stretch your back, forming an arch with your back. Keep your feet,

knees and hips pressed into the floor. Keep your shoulder blades straight, your

chest out, and look up. Hold for ten to fifteen seconds, and slowly go back to theground. This will stretch the abdominal muscles and strengthen the spine.

Bidalasana or Marjari Asana or Cat pose: Start with your hands and knees on

the floor, parallel to each other, with the back parallel to the floor. Keep your legsand arms relaxed, and your head neutral, looking at the floor. Breathe in, and as

you breathe out slowly, arch the spine a cat stretching itself. Stretch as much as is

comfortable, and look at your navel. Hold for five to ten seconds, and inhale asyou let go. This pose is the opposite of the cobra pose, and gives a good stretch to

the spine.

Virbhadrasana or warrior pose: Named after an ancient Indian warrior, this

pose makes you strong from within. Externally, it opens up your back, hips andchest, and stretches the legs. Start with your legs wide, and arms by your side.

Turn your right foot 90 degrees, and your left foot forty-five. Keeping your

breathing neutral, raise your arms about your head with the palms joined. Then,breathing out, bend your right leg to 90 degrees, and stretch your back backwards.

Hold for three to eight breaths and release.

Savasana or Corpse Pose: while this may seem like the easiest, its among the

most difficult poses to do well. Lie on the floor, face up, with your arms by your

side, at 45 degrees, palms facing up. Start breathing deeply, and relax your whole

body. Start with every muscle, starting from the top of your head to the soles of

your feet. Feel yourself moving into a total state of relaxation. Stay in this pose

for about 20 to 30 minutes. Come out of it by moving your fingers and toes, and

roll to one side in a foetal position before getting up. This pose will help you get

rid of stress and let your muscles relax.


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