Aryasamaj

AUM.
SAINT PATANJALI: FIRST YOGA GURU
By Brig. Chitranjan Sawant,VSM
Human beings who learn Yoga today and are benefitted by it stand beholden to Maharishi Patanjali who gave us the knowledge of Ashtang Yoga or Eight-Stage endeavour to realise the Supreme Being.

By the way, Yoga is not a mere physical exercise. Yoga is a synthesis of body, mind and soul. Another myth that should be exposed is: Yoga is for the fair sex who wish to be in shape as that would help them in husband hunting. Yoga is for both men and women, not excluding adolescents and children of an age where they understand their thought and action. Yoga classes are not expensive. It is affordable by a family that keeps the fire burning in the kitchen.

WHAT DOES A DEVOTEE GAIN

In order to gain knowledge of the Principles and Practices of Yoga, one has to be a devotee.Go to the Guru with a sense of reverence and obey his or her instructions in letter and spirit. Never, not even for a moment, think that the Guru or the respected teacher draws his sustenance from the fees that you pay. A devotee should bring forward his doubts to the Guru to be dispelled at an appropriate time. Dedication to the Guru and to the Muse will take a devotee closer to the goal - Learning Yoga.
Concentration of Mind on Learning and Problem Solving will, ipso facto, come to the devotee as he or she makes progress in the learning process. Mind is the Man. If a devotee is able to control his mind and not let it wander all over the world, he would win half of the battle. The other half will be won with practising the Asanas of the Eight-Fold Yoga.

BODY BACK IN SHAPE

If an individual has practised the Yoga Asanas faithfully and continually, he and she are bound to reap the harvest. The body will be back in shape, the mind clear and the will power to achieve the aim stronger. It is the cumulative gain of practising yoga. One may be a good practitioner of the Yogic Asanas and also concentrate on a problem to seek and find a solution without a knowledge of the Sanskrit language. However, I hasten to add that knowledge of Sanskrit is helpful in unfolding the mystries of the universe when a devotee transcends the mundane world to enter the Spiritual One. One can always learn sanskrit at any age of life and be conversant with the language in a short period of time.
AUM - that is what a devotee chants while bringing the mind back from wandering in new pastures. Its sound, its vibrations, its reverberations help a devotee in concentration. AUM is the name of the Almighty as given in the Vedas. One need not be a practising Hindu to chant AUM. Any human being may learn its pronunciation and practise it himself sitting in the correct posture in a clean place in the house, in the garden or in a park.The result in the form of concentration of mind would be forthcoming sooner than expected.

PRANAYAM IS PANACEA

The Ashtang Yoga or the eight-stage Yoga to realisation of the Supreme being runs thus:
Yama,Niyam, Asan, Pranayam,Pratyahar,Dharana, Dhyan, Samadhi.
In a nutshell one can say that a devotee has tofollow some rules for upliftment of the self as an individual, as a member of the social set-up, sit in a correct posture, control one's breathing, controlling one's sensual organs, establishing godliness in one's inner self, meditating on godliness and eventually attaining the Ultimate - realisation of the Almighty. It is called Ishwar Pranidhan. Of these eight stages, it is the fourth stage, PRANAYAM, that is making waves all over the world.
Swami Ram Dev Maharaj has created an awareness in the Ashtang Yoga both in the West and the East. Millions of men and women have benefitted from the mass camps organised by him. Let us take a look at PRANAYAM and see how to practise it.

Anulom-Vilom is the name of the simplest form of Pranayam that one can learn. Just close the right nostril with three fingers of the right hand and inhale deep breath through the left nostril. Without holding the breath in the lungs, just exhale it through the open right nostril while closing the left one with the thumb of the right hand. Let this inhaling and exhaling be repeated a few times. it may be done for five minutes or so. A devotee may do it along with other forms of Pranayam daily. Continuity is an important aspect of achieving the desired result.

KAPAL BHATI - that is the name of another simple form of Pranayam. One should sit erect on a Kushasana or on a blanket cross legged, spine erect, mind concentrated on AUM and after attaining calmaround, one may throw all the air inside lungs through both nostrils forcefully. Thereafter inhale in a natural manner until the lungs are inflated again. Practise exhaling forcefully through both nostrils, inhaling through both nostrils naturally and repeat the procedure for about five minutes or so and the desired result will be ACHIEVED.

Asanas are to be seen in a Yoga class and learnt under the guidance of a Guru. ALL WILL BE WELL.