What is Yoga?
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Mind and Body How you feel physically determines how you feel mentally The body and the mind are in a state of constant interaction. The science of yoga does not dictate where the body ends and the mind begins, but approaches both as a single, integrated entity. The key is to integrate the two together, to union, thus the term yoga.
Yoga Postures, while appearing to deal with the physical body alone, actually influence the chemical balance of the brain, which in turn improves one's mental state of being.
Yoga possesses the unique ability to calm the nerves. The nerves function as the medium between the physiological body and the psychological body. Practicing yoga has the holistic impact of relaxing the body and calming the mind Yogic exercises cater to the needs of each individual according to his or her specific needs and physical condition. They involve vertical, horizontal, and cyclical movements, which provide energy to the system by directing the blood supply to the areas of the body which need it most. In yoga, each cell is observed, attended to, and provided with a fresh supply of blood, allowing it to function smoothly. The mind is naturally active and dynamic, while the inner self is luminous. However, unhealthy bodies tend to have inert, dull, and sluggish minds. It is the practice of yoga which removes this sluggishness from the body and brings it to the level of the active mind. Ultimately, both the body and mind rise to the level of the illuminated self. The practice of yoga stimulates and changes emotional attitudes, converting apprehensiveness into courage, indecision and poor judgment into positive decision making skills, and emotional instability into confidence and mental equilibrium. The skills that can be aquired and used to further
your yoga practice can also be used for all other areas of life
in general. |
