(Published in the Saugonian November 17^th 2005)

When I ask people if they have tried Yoga, the most common response is “I’m not flexible enough to do that,” or “ Is that the thing with all the stretching?” Yoga encompasses much more than just a collection of good stretches. It is a complete system of self care ranging from diet advice, cleansing practices, breathing exercises, self massage, concentration exercises, meditation, and other more specialized areas of study as well. There is Eye Yoga, Relationship Yoga, even Laugh Yoga! So what exactly does “Yoga” mean? In the ancient language of Sanskrit there are over fifty definitions for the word Yoga. Most commonly defined as “union” some other definitions are “skillfulness in action,” “the stilling of the disturbances of the mind” to name just a few. I like to think of it as putting your whole heart into what you are doing.

So what can practicing Yoga do for you? Well probably a lot more than you think. A regular Yoga practice will increase your sensitivity to your body, mind and emotions. It will build balance, strength and endurance. It tones the internal organs, nervous system, and circulatory system. Daily practice will increase the capacity and quality of breath. You may also notice fewer repetitive thought patterns, and an all around sense of well being emerging.

With all of those benefits why would someone not want to practice Yoga? There are many approaches to the art of Yoga, just as there are many ways of playing music. In the end it is all music!! Choosing the right class for you is very important. We are lucky to have such a variety of options. There are more physically demanding body based practices like Ashtanga Yoga, Power Yoga, Vinyasa and Hot Yoga. There are energy based practices such as Kundalini Yoga, Kriya Yoga, Sahaja Yoga, and Traditional Hatha Yoga. There are also a variety of blends like Kripalu Yoga, Shivananda Yoga, and Integral Yoga.

Try all different kinds of classes and teachers on for size until you find one that fits. Then, stick to it! Remember what you can from each class and practice at home on the days that you don’t take classes. Ten to twenty minutes everyday with one or two group classes a week is a great start. Within eight weeks of steady practice you will see major changes occurring. Writing a Yoga journal can also be very inspirational.

Once you begin your practice the hardest part is staying committed. Yoga is very powerful and my make old wounds resurface. Sometimes It will bring up what you have been avoiding within yourself. If this happens don’t worry, the Yoga is working and the wounds are healing! See all that comes into your field of awareness during practice. Don’t run from thoughts and emotions. Try to feel them more fully, so that you find their source. We often feel old pains that have been around so long that we don’t remember where they originated. To slowly weed the things that no longer serve you from the garden of your mind is the deeper purpose of Yoga. It aims at dismantling the “self image” you have so you can be your “Self.” It is quite an undertaking, but you can take it all at your own pace. Much luck on your personal journey into Yoga.

Om Shantih

Yogis believe that all forms of speech have an impact on the physical world. As we master more subtle layers of speech, our ability to communicate and manifest is strengthened. This can be seen when we look at speech like Ayurveda looks at everything: as a channel or flow with a beginning, middle and end (also called the root, passage, and mouth). The Root of speech is said to be in the navel, the passage is the heart and mind, and the mouth is the throat, mouth cavity and the space outside of the body. This channel is nourished by truthfulness because to speak truth means that the channel is flowing smoothly. It is blocked by truth’s absence.
Yoga and Ayurveda both look at speech as having four layers to it. The outermost layer is called Vaikhari. Its center is located outside of the body. Vaikhari is vocal speech, the speech that is heard as sound. Writing, symbols, pictures, body language, anything created, are all forms of Vaikhari. It is the manifestation of the subtlest layer of speech after it has been filtered through the other layers. When we listen to other people talking we are most often listening to Vaikhari.
The next layer is called Madhyama, the speech of the mind. Its center is located in the throat. This layer of speech contains all thoughts in the mind. This is also the place where speech takes on the form of words. Before this layer speech is purely emotional or energetic. In the mind these energies come together as thoughts. Thoughts can take the form of any sensory input. This layer of speech and the more subtle ones are the layers we use in dreams and fantasies.
More subtle than that is the layer called Pashyanti. This is the speech of the heart. Here the words have no form; they are feelings and emotions. This layer of speech transcends the language barriers that cause conflict. The language of love is spoken everywhere.
The most subtle layer of speech is called Para. The word “para” literally means before. It is centered in the navel. The navel is a very special place. It is said that all 72,000 energy channels (nadis) have their root there. When we were in the womb that was our source of nourishment, and how we eliminated our wastes. (A wonderful ayurvedic treatment is to fill your belly button with warm oil, pure untoasted sesame or sunflower, then massage around the navel and relax for a few minutes to let it soak in.) Para is the seed of all emotions, thoughts, and words. Para is felt as a pure knowingness beyond thoughts and words. In a subtle way all things, even rocks, communicate. It is said that through para you can speak with anything. A prayer spoken in the form of para has the highest vibration and most power.
Whenever anyone speaks they use all four layers. We can teach ourselves to listen to all that is being said, not just the words. Examples of this would be carefully listening to vaikhari to hear the sound that is spoken. Depending on the tone and quality of the sound, a trained ear can tell if it’s truth or not. If you look into the eyes you can learn to see the quality of another person’s mind, gaining a better understanding of madhyama. If their eyes are hard and focused, so is their mind. If they are soft and receptive, so is the mind. When the eyes are shifty and always moving, the mind is in the same state. Our hearts can perceive the love and motives in another’s heart, allowing us to listen to pashyanti. In our hearts we can find that place where we are all the same. Through learning to speak and listen in the language of para, the language beyond words, there is no limit to what we can share. We can know everything and everyone as our Self, and our Self as everything and everyone.

We can take the same care when speaking to incorporate all the layers, first by trying to be as truthful as possible to ourselves and others. This will strengthen the speech mechanism. In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali it is said, if one masters truthfulness then everything they say will come to be. When we sing or speak mantras or poetry, if we sing from our root and charge it with love and our full mental attention, then we are utilizing speech to its fullest.

Om Shantih

Yoga and Ayurveda are living sciences. They exist in the hearts and minds of everyone who allows them to take up residence. In India, there is the concept of the vidyas. Vidyas are goddesses that embody a particular area of wisdom. It is said that you must connect to the heart of the wisdom you wish to study; you must let the vidya become part of you. Representing the sciences with goddesses teaches us that they must be respected and honored, and as time passes our relationship with them will deepen. As these sciences become a part of us, we become their avatars. We give them our love and space to evolve and be expressed. Without an unbroken line of dedicated souls, the wisdom contained in these sciences would have been lost long ago. It is said that anything you give comes back to you threefold. If you give the sciences of Yoga and Ayurveda your time and love, as well as space to grow in your heart and mind, they will in turn bless you many times over with the gifts of health, comfort, knowledge, and more.

The arts of the Vedic (ancient Indian) culture are portrayed through fantastic mythical stories promising nothing short of union with the supreme and immortality. There are stories of great battles between gods and goddesses, all great yogis and warriors in their own right. There are stories of human beings elevating themselves to the same level as these great deities, and even going beyond by merging with the one cosmic vibration that births, sustains, and eventually destroys all things.

I feel it is important to include this element of these sciences when presenting this material. It provides a depth and context that is lost when the tales of it’s culture are removed. Take, for example, the goal of Ayurveda being immortality. We could easily lift our noses at such a goal, calling it primitive or childish, yet we have all- at one time or another- dreamed of living forever. There is something living in the hearts of all of us that says that “if I could just learn how, it may be possible to fight off death.” Ayurveda, being a science, understands that composite things decay, and that no body will live forever. The immortality that can be reached through the practice of Ayurveda is one of merging with the rhythms of nature so completely that “death will come with the same ease as the ripened cucumber falling from the sweet vine.” One may feel as if their life has been so rich and healthy and complete that at that perfect moment, they release all attachment and enter the realm of the great unknown. When we are established in our true nature, beyond the concepts of the mind and the limitations of our body and senses, the rishis (wise ones of old, the seers)believed we are tapping into elements of our essential nature; that we are beyond the world of time and space. They defined health as being rooted in that essential nature, and if one could merge with that nature, they would become one with the immortal essence of all life.

These rishis devised the systems of Yoga and Ayurveda so that we would be able to reach their level of heightened human potential, living in harmony with our environments. These sciences are founded on compassion; the love and understanding that everyone deserves a life balanced with love, purpose, abundance, comfort, and wisdom. Even in cases where all other forms of therapy and medicine give up, Ayurveda offers comfort and yoga offers deep wisdom and introspection. These arts are part of our nature. We are all on the path of Yoga and Ayurveda; we are all learning who we are, in essence. Through the grindstone of life we are stripped of false impressions until we are left with nothing but the truth. During this time, we learn our place in nature and some of her rules. Not all of us take these lessons with enthusiasm. Some of us drag and kick our feet the whole way. But no matter what, these are the lessons we are all made to learn. To walk the paths of Yoga and Ayurveda is to dive into the curriculum of the school of life, to be working on your “masters degree” of being alive.

There is a beautiful line in the Bhagavad Gita: “Even a little of this knowledge will protect one from great danger.” I find that oftentimes the simplest practices, done with love and attention, are the most profound. On this path, there is no end to how balanced and harmonized you can become with nature, there is no end to how deep you can dive into the depths of your own being. Every moment offers a fresh perspective on our accumulated wisdom. It is important not to let any of these teachings become stagnant. There is no real “right” or “wrong” ways to do a practice. Each individual finds their own way of expressing these ancient truths. We are the guardians and caretakers of this knowledge for our generation. It is our duty to embody these teachings and allow them to flower in us so that we can give them to our children, and their children, for many more generations.

Many blessings on this journey. Om Shantih