Awakening Kundalini - continuing sessions

So what is kundalini? 
In a simple form of representation, the best and scientific way to explain kundalini is that all humans have an inbuilt system or network through which, for example blood or breadth is circulated through the body, and for some people such network is clogged and for some it is less efficient. 

In case of blood circulation, in some people the artery is clogged or the blood flowing through it has a problem. Some people have a breathing problem; it is erratic, since there is a clog in the respiratory system because of presence of say mucus. 

Likewise humans and animals alike, a system is present where in the feed to the senses happening through the neural network by way of Neurotransmitters is cyclically sent back to the brain. This system works for all of us to some level of efficiency and happens when we sleep in an involuntary manner. In a simplified way to have this activated in a conscious state helps us tap into the feedback mechanism providing us better insights from the inputs. The higher the efficiency of the system the better is the output from the system. Some people call these physic abilities either way it is nothing but proper and efficient and appropriate processing of information which intern increases the efficiency of the neural network in totality. The memory the neural network carries for example is based on the experience in one’s life and is also depended on the experience the soul present inside every individual, which has gone through multiple levels of metamorphosis and this memory lies dormant with in us. In other world we with a properly trained center nervous system are limitless in knowledge. (For people who do not believe in the presence of a soul let us limit this to the enhanced performance of the central nervous system.) 

This feedback system happening through the neural network happening involuntarily can be channelized in a voluntary manner making the neurotransmitter pass through specific node points present in the central nervous system. These node points are traditionally called as chakras. Each of these node points have their own information processing mechanism which again happen involuntarily, giving rise to specific type of ability or sense with in the individual. In case of a fire your hand moves away from it and you later realize that the hand had moved without your conscience asking it to do so. This will be a typical example of involuntary behavior triggered by one of the nodes in the central nervous system. In a common man’s perspective taming of these involuntary behaviors and converting them as voluntary so that proper benefits can be reaped is what you may call as awakening of the kundalini, but this is not the ultimate goal and the true goal will be realized when the process is started.

As indicated in the earlier, there is a recycling that happen, for men who practice hatayoga, there is one more recycling that happens where in the divine nectar travels through the central nervous system and gets discharged through the rear of the throat into the rear of the palate. The person who has reach this level of yoga practice will not feel hunger and the necessity to eat or drink will seize to exist. Either way let us focus on the topic which is on hand. 

How can one understand that the process has initiated inside him or her. There are simple symptoms that tell us that the process has got initiated few are listed below. 

During meditation if you have divine visions, experience ecstatic smell, taste, ecstatic touch, or hear ecstatic sounds. You receive instructions from within. These indicate that the Kundalini Shakti has been awakened.

When there is throbbing or ticking like a clock ticks in-between the anus and the sexual organ, when your hairs stand on their roots, understand that Kundalini has awakened. 

When the breath stops without any effort, know that Kundalini Shakti has become active. When you feel currents of rising through the spine to the top of your head, when you experience bliss, when you repeat Om automatically, when there are no thoughts of the world in the mind, know that Kundalini Shakti has awakened.

When, in your meditation, the eyes become fixed on, the middle of the eyebrows effortlessly, know that Kundalini has become active. 
When you feel vibrations of energy in different parts inside your body, when you experience jerks like the shocks of electricity, know that Kundalini has become active. 

During meditation when you lose track of your body and the presence of your body is not felt, when your eyelids become closed and do not open in spite of your exertion, when electric-like currents flow up and down the nerves, know that Kundalini has awakened.

When you meditate, when you get inspiration and insight into things which you have never really understood, all doubts disappears and a clarity comes forth into you and you understand automatically and clearly the meaning of the Vedic texts, know that Kundalini has become active. 

When your body becomes light like air, when you have a balanced mind in perturbed condition, when you possess inexhaustible energy for work, know that Kundalini has become active.
When you get divine intoxication, when you develop excellent power of oration, know that Kundalini has awakened. 
When you involuntarily perform different Asanas or poses of Yoga without the least pain or fatigue, know that Kundalini has become active.

The awakening of kundalini is a very important, pleasant experience in life. If you can see and experience something more than what you can generally see and experience through your senses, you are indeed fortunate. But at the same time, if you have such experiences without adequate preparation, you may be startled, frightened and confused. Therefore, before the actual awakening of kundalini occurs, it is better to experience some mild awakenings in the chakras first.

Why do we call it as a risk? Imagine if a common man is asked to compete with a Olympic sprinter in a 100 meters sprint, by the time the sprint is over the person who has not accustomed his body for such a grueling task will be left exhausted, panting for poor life that may be hanging inside him with last few thin strings of thread attached. Just by pushing the body to its extremities without getting it accustomed to such a task leaves you desperate. Imaging what will happen if you push not just your body but along with it your brain and its associated central nervous system. This is for sure no one would wish for. 

So is the risk so huge? 

Nowadays, if you travel by motor car at a very high speed, you do not really feel anything unusual, but if a man did it a hundred years ago when there was no adaptation to speed, he would have felt very giddy. Similarly, if a sudden awakening takes place and you are not used to the experience, you may become disoriented. You will not be able to cope with the radical changes in perception or with the contents of the unconscious mind welling up into the consciousness. But if you have been practicing yoga and meditation, and have experienced slight awakenings previously, you will be better able understand what is happening and cope with it easily.

When the body in totality is purified by the prerequisite practice, when the mind is purified, when the breadth is brought under control through the practices of pranayama and proper breathing technique and the diet is pure and balanced, at that time, awakening of kundalini takes place without any incident. 

But with those who are in a hurry to awaken kundalini and who take to any practice in a haphazard manner without going through the preliminaries, and who do not take care of their diet, there will be some problems because they do not know how to control and utilize the fantastic energy they are unleashing.

There are so many talk about the dangers of awakening and dark hints about people going crazy or developing disturbing powers. This is not true. Everything in life is risky and there are far more dangers in ordinary daily life than what you will encounter on the path of kundalini. 

Every time you walk across the street or travel by car or plane, you take a risk. In the pursuit of desires, passions and ambitions, people take great risks every day without thinking twice about it. Yet they allow the relatively minor risks of kundalini to deter them from pursuing the supreme goal of life itself. 

When a woman discovers she is pregnant, does she think it might be dangerous for her to have a child? She might die! She may have to have a cesarian! She may lose her figure for life! She may become seriously ill! Does a woman think like this and decide she doesn't want a child at all? No. Then why to think like this about kundalini?

Kundalini practices is for sure no more dangerous than many of the activities people engage in for the sake of thrills, sport or altered states of consciousness. The risks are not nearly as great as those associated with LSD, hashish, marijuana and alcohol, which are commonly used by many people in their everyday life. Those who practice kundalini yoga are assured of attaining states of expanded consciousness which are safer, smoother, more comprehensible and longer lasting.

The science of kundalini yoga has its own inbuilt safety mechanisms. If you perform asanas or pranayama incorrectly, your body will immediately force you to stop practicing. In the same way, when kundalini awakening takes place and you are not prepared to face it, the body will puts obstacles in your way. If ever you become scared and want to stop the process of kundalini awakening, all you have to do is revert to a gross lifestyle. Just revise all your passions, dreams and worldly ambitions. 

Just imagine that you eat something that has upset your digestive system, your body immediately has an inbuilt system which will get rid of it by making you feel nausea and will purge itself by way of vomiting or by way of diarrhea or any other means. The process of vomiting and diarrhea is a system by which the body purges and cleans and is not a disease by itself. 

Likewise the body has an inbuilt system to correct its balance and this will set in to maintain the equilibrium. So please be rest assured that if you proceed slowly, sensibly and systematically being aware of your bodies needs and listening to it every step, there is no harm that can be bestowed upon you. 

 

Kundalini in the masculine body it is in the perineum, between the urinary and excretory organs. In the female body its location is at the root of the uterus, in the cervix. This center is traditionally known as mooladhara chakra and it is actually a physical structure. It is a small gland which you can even take out and press. This is done in some tantaric massage therapies as well. 

However, kundalini is a sensory perception that is dormant in a human being, and even if you press the glands or the nerve center, it will not activate. To activate this nodal point you must prepare yourself through proper techniques. You must practice asanas, pranayama, and meditation. 

Then, when you are able to force your internal breadth into the seat of kundalini, the energy wakes up and makes its way through sushumna nadi, the central nervous canal, to the brain. As kundalini ascends, it passes through each of the chakras which are interconnected with the different silent areas of the brain. With the awakening of kundalini there is an explosion in the brain as the dormant or sleeping areas start blossoming like flowers. This is why the activated sahasrara chakara is depicted with a 1000 petal lotus blossoming. Therefore, kundalini can be technically equated with the awakening of the silent areas of the brain and the central nervous system.

We are all at different stages of sensory awakening or perception. Not all of us are the same. In some of us kundalini may have already reached swadhisthana, manipura or anahata chakra. If this is so, whatever sadhana you do now might start an awakening in anahata or some other chakra. However, awakening of kundalini in mooladhara chakra is one thing, and awakening in sahasrara, the highest center of the brain, is another. Once the multi-petalled lotus of sahasrara blossoms, a new consciousness opens up. 

Our present consciousness is dependent, as the human mind and intellect depends on the information supplied by the five senses, the mind and intellect level of awareness is limited. However, when the super consciousness emerges, experience becomes completely independent and knowledge also becomes completely independent of the primary five senses, this stage is what in other words called as all Seeing Eye. 

In the Christian tradition, the terms "the Path of the Initiates" and "the Stairway to Heaven" used in the Bible, refer to kundalini's ascent through sushumna nadi. The ascent of kundalini and ultimately, the descent of spiritual grace, are symbolized by the cross. This is why Christians make the sign of the cross at ajna, anahata and vishuddhi chakras, for ajna is the center where the ascending consciousness is transcended and anahata is where the descending grace is made manifest to the world.

Whatever happens in spiritual life, it is related to the awakening of kundalini. This is the final goal of every form of spiritual life, whether you call it samadhi, nirvana, moksha, or whatever, is in fact awakening of kundalini.

Once you have reached this point, you see everything, you hear everything, you understand everything but one thing for sure this is a boon as well as a curse. Some times in this process you feel that you are struck, like a whale struck in a pond or a well this needs to be overcome mentally. This is also a reason for some people who practice its preferable to be in an ashram or in the midst of people who are in the same or higher level of development. 

The word kundalini refers to the shakti or power when it is in its dormant potential state, but when it is manifesting, you can call it Devi, Kali, Durga, Saraswati, Lakshmi or any other name according to the manifestation it is exhibiting before you.

When kundalini has just awakened and you are not able to handle it, it is called Kali. When you can handle it and are able to use it for beneficial purposes and you become powerful on account of it, it is called Durga.

According to yoga philosophy, Kali, the first manifestation of the unconscious kundalini is a terrible power; it completely subdues the individual soul. This is what is represented by Kali standing on Lord Shiva. It sometimes happens that by mental instability some people get in contact with their unconscious body and see inauspicious, ferocious elements - ghosts, monsters, etc.

When Kali, the unconscious power of human, is awakened and further refined she goes up to meet the further manifestation, being Durga, the super conscious, bestowing glory and beauty on the individual. 

there is also one more trap. A trap that is far greater and deeper. This is a trap is created by an individual onto him or herself. As the process of evolution takes place when an individual attains the ability to understand, see, hear, visualize, contemplate and govern things what a normal person is unable to comprehend, this creates a feeling inside the individual that he is superior. This intern leads to a chain of events that boost the individual’s Ego and inadvertently traps the individual and deprives the individual of the final fruit.

This is why in eastern philosophy a system is set up where in an individual seeker is always a disciple and lets goes of all his worldly belongings, whatever he may attain, whatever he may know, whatever he may gain or for the matter of fat whatever he may lose, it is not his as it is leant from or absorbed by the master.

The individual is obligated and indebted to his master all through. This way the seeker starts as a disciple, lives as a disciple and ends as a disciple, humble all through his existence.

The raising of the kundalini is the one and only spiritual thing that can happen to an individual, the purpose of our existence is to understand, enhance this process and merge with the omnipresent or cosmic conscience whatever we may call it.

Key to the path of the enlightened is by opening the chakras. The location of the chakras is indicated in the image above. However we need to note that we all are individuals and physically each one of us is different.

Not everyone has the shame shape of eyes, ears or nose. So there will be minor shifts in the locations of the charkas depending on the individuals build. However, these minor shifts are immaterial and as the process begins, the locations will be understood.

All matter and living beings have this chakra system, so what makes us human beings unique is that we spend maximum amount of the time holding our spine erect aligning it along the gravitational force of the earth. This makes us unique and the process of rising of the kundalini faster and unique in human beings. The nature of the kundalini sakthi is to flow against the gravitational pull of the earth similar to the tendency of a salmon swimming against the flow of the river.

Traditionally there are multiple ways of awaking and raising the kundalini sakthi. But it must start by opening the chakras and energizing them. By way of stating that the chakras need to be opened, we mean that the locations must be identified and by way of stating that energizing we mean that the chakras bust be strengthened. Like an athlete strengthens the bone and muscle to accomplish a specific task.

Out of the multiple ways present we will discuss few methods listed below which would be apt and easy to understand.

1. Yoga
2. Deeksha.
3. Mudras
4. Chanting of mantra Bejams
5. Meditation

Each one of these method has a specific science behind it and as we proceed further will post in detail on each one of them. 



AND NOW PART 7



As we have seen the activation of the root chakra from the five techniques let us understand the details of Mudras, Chanting of mantra Bejams and Meditation as these have been less discussed about.

Mudras:

Mudras are specific body positions that are adopted to achieve a specific result.
 As per the eastern philosophy, all mater is made up of Panchaboothas. 
The word Pancha means five and bootha in this context meaning constituents. 
These constituents are 
Earth (prithvi),
Water (appu), 
Fire (Theyu), 
Air (Vaayu), 
Space (Aakaasam)

These five constituents reflect and create and govern the following with a human being for example.

Five Sense Organs (Eye, Ear, Nose, Tongue, Skin.), Five Functions Of Sense (Vision, Hearing, Smell, Taste, Touch), Five sensory perceptions namely (Smell, Taste, Sight, Touch, Hearing) and Five Intellectual Faculties (Manam-Mind, Bhuddhi- Intellect, Siddham- Perfection, Ahankaram -Pride, Anubhava - Wisdom by self-realization or in other words intuition.)

So by balancing, re balancing and reorienting the five constituents within us the effects of theses constituents can also be altered. This is accomplished by managing these five constituents individually or in combination.

Our five fingers represent these five elements and performing specific hand pose reorients these five constituents accordingly. Additionally each of the mudras also creates and activates the corresponding nerve centers similar to acupuncture.

Chanting of mantra Bejams:

Mantr Bejams are Sanskrit words or sound that is repeated. 
The word Bejam also means seed. 
So to understand properly these sounds we make are like a seed that we sow in the soil of our five elements that intern grow and flourishes within us.

When you throw a pebble into water, it produces circular ripples. In the same way, when you repeat a mantra over and over again, the sound force gathers momentum and creates vibrations. 
When you repeat the mantra millions and billions of times, it permeates every part of your brain and purifies the whole physical, mental and emotional body.

In order to understand how sound effects, regulates and balances the energy inside us we need to understand sound further. 
Sound can be divided into four primary divisions which are,—
Para which activates and resonates only in Prana or the soul, 
Pasyanti which activates and resonates in the mind, 
Madhyama which activates resonates in the Indriyas (The five senses), 
and Vaikhari which activates and resonates in articulate expression. 
Some of these sounds are heard and some are out of the human range of hearing.

When we ask about resonation, to any structural engineer or a physics person they would say that all mater have their natural frequency with which it oscillates. 
Likewise each of our chakras have a natural frequency with which they oscillate the frequencies of the individual chakras are 
Root Chakra G -16c/3107 Hz, 
Svadhisthana or Sacral Chakra Ab +32c/3367 Hz, 
Manipura or Solar Plexus Chakra B +38c/2020 Hz, 
Anahata or Heart Chakra C# -31c/2178 Hz, 
Throat Chakra C# +33c/2260 Hz, 
Ajna Chakra A +10c/3540 Hz, 
Sahasrara or Crown Chakra F -26c/2753 Hz

So by chanting the syllables we are activating the corresponding chakras and strengthening it. 
This is how the chanting of the mantras work. 
This also is accomplished in tradition using Singing bowls, bells or the dungchen, the Tibetan long horn.

In the next post we will discuss about meditation and how this works and understand the process with a scientific perspective before we proceed further.
 
stay tuned ;-) love and peace be on to ALL 


 

The Five Principles of Yoga & some traditions

The Five Principles of  Yoga

Principle 1: Proper Relaxation

The sages and yogis of ancient India devised powerful techniques for deep relaxation. Many modern stress-management and relaxation methods borrow heavily from the yogic traditions. By deeply relaxing all the muscles, you can thoroughly rejuvenate the nervous system and attain a deep sense of inner peace.
Proper relaxation should happen at the physical, mental, and spiritual levels.
This relaxed feeling is carried over into all your activities and helps you conserve your energy and let go of all worries and fears.

Principle 2: Proper Exercise

This principle revolves around the idea that our physical body is meant to move and exercise. Proper Exercise is achieved through the Yoga Postures or Asana which systematically works on all parts of the body - stretches and tones the Muscles and Ligaments, enhances the flexibility of the spine and the joints, and improves Blood Circulation. The asanas are designed to regulate the physical and physiological functions of the body. Practicing these Yoga Poses makes your body relaxed, gives you more strength and energy, and rejuvenates the various systems of the body. The Yoga Posture goes together with Proper Breathing. Each movement and stretch should be guided by your breath, making your movement and your breath coordinated and feel like one and the same. The execution of the Asana is beneficial to the body, and at the same time contributes to spiritual and Mental growth. 

Principle 3: Proper Breathing

Control of the breath means control of the mind.
Pranayama also increases vitality and mental clarity. 

Proper breathing means breathing fully and rhythmically, making use of all the parts of your Lungs to increase your oxygen intake. Proper Breathing should be deep, slow and rhythmical. To achieve this, you need to be able to regulate the length and duration of your inhalation, exhalation, and the retention of air in your lungs or the pauses between breath. Yoga Breathing Exercises or Pranayama teaches you on how you can recharge your body and control your mental state by regulating the flow of Prana - the life force. This helps you achieve a calmer and more focused mind, and increases your energy level. 

Principle 4: Proper Diet

The food you eat has a profound effect on your mind. 

For optimal body-mind health and spiritual progress, yoga advocates a sattvic (pure), lacto-vegetarian diet. A sattvic diet consists of food that is easy to digest, nourishing, and promotes clarity and purity of mind, such as grains, vegetables, dairy, fruit, and nuts. This type of diet supports any yogic practice. This is why it is an integral part of the traditional yogic lifestyle

Improper diet results to mental inefficiency and blocks spiritual awareness. Proper Diet is one that nourishes both mind and body. It should be well balanced and based on natural foods. Proper Diet in Yoga also means eating in moderation and eating only when you are hungry. We sometimes tend to eat when we are upset, using food to fill the gap or the emptiness that we feel. Bad eating habits will cause our senses to be dull that we won't even notice how much we eat or how it tastes and may result to diet related ailments like Obesity and Diabetes. Food should sustain our body. It should keep the body light and supple, the mind calm, and it should also help in keeping a strong immune system. 

Principle 5: Positive Thinking and Meditation

This is the most important point of all and the aim of the previous four points. 
Your mind will be slowly controlled and purified by the regular practice of meditation. 
It is important to keep regularity of time, place, and practice. 
Discipline and regularity conditions the mind to slow down its activity with a minimum of delay, thus promoting deeper states of meditation over time. 
Five or ten minutes daily will be more beneficial in the long run than one hour every now and then.
The first 4 yoga principles mentioned above will strongly support your meditation practice by providing the necessary tools to maintain a healthy body and mind, and attain calmness and peace, as well as discipline and inner strength.

The way we think highly affects our way of life. Practice keeping a positive outlook in life, this will facilitate in having a peaceful mind. Positive thinking and Meditation helps you remove negative thoughts and puts your mind under perfect control. 

Branches of Yoga and traditions 

The sage Patanjali was the first to systematize the philosophy and practice of yoga into an eight step system called Ashtanga Yoga. This is the most comprehensive school, in that it embraces many aspects of other systems. Unfortunately, in the West yoga has come to mean only hatha yoga or yoga postures (asanas). In fact, this is only one aspect of the yoga system. There are different yoga paths, but they all have the same ultimate goal: the union, or rather re-union, with your divine nature. In other words, what we call Liberation, Self-realization, or Enlightenment. This cannot be achieved without deep states of meditation leading to Samadhi, or merging with the Supreme Consciousness. Ashtanga Yoga or “Eight Limb Yoga” The eight limbs of yoga are: Yama, or 5 moral restraints (dont's): ahimsa (non-violence), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (celibacy or sense control), apraigraha (non-covetousness). Niyama, or observances (do's): saucha (purity), santosha (contentment), tapas (austerity), swadhyaya (study of scriptures), and Ishwara pranidhana (surrender). Asanas: body postures. Pranayama: breathing techniques for the control of prana and the mind. Pratyahara: withdrawal and control of the senses. Dharana: concentration. Dhyana: meditation. Samadhi: superconscious state. Here non-duality or oneness is experienced. This is the deepest and highest state of consciousness, where body and mind have been transcended and the yogi is one with the Self or God. The goal of life is to achieve and remain in that state.
Hatha Yoga ("Forceful Yoga"). Basically, the first 4 limbs of the Ashtanga system are considered hatha yoga. The main focus is the physical and energetic purification and training. Its goal is to bring the physical body into a perfect state of health so the soul has a fitting vehicle of expression to work through. Raja Yoga ("Royal Yoga"). This is another name for Ashtanga Yoga and its focus and goals are the higher limbs of yoga —concentration, meditation, and Samadhi— also known as samyama. It includes systems such as siddha yoga, kriya yoga, laya yoga, sahaja yoga, and others. Bhakti Yoga ("Yoga of Devotion") is the path of devotion to the Divine. It is pure selfless love from the heart. The relationship between a bhakta and God is very internal and cannot be described with words. Devotional chanting (kirtan, bhajans), prayer, worship, ritual, and mantra repetition are important aspects of this path, since they keep the devotee's mind continuously focused on God. Karma Yoga ("Yoga of Action") is the path of selfless service. For a karma yogi, any activity of human life is an opportunity to serve God. The key to Karma Yoga is the performance of right actions and service for their own sake, without attachment to the end results or a sense of ownership of what is being performed. Jnana Yoga ("Yoga of Wisdom") is the path of knowledge. Taking the philosophy of Vedanta the Jnana Yogi uses his mind to inquire into its own nature. He uses viveka (discernment or discrimination) for moving from avidya (ignorance) to vidya (knowledge). He discerns that the world as perceived by the senses is not real, but an illusion of the individual ego or “I-sense.” Before practicing Jnana Yoga, the aspirant needs to have integrated the lessons of the other yogic paths. Without selflessness and love of God, strength of body and mind, the search for self-realization can become mere speculation. Kundalini Yoga. Kundalini is the dormant energy that lies at the base of the spine. Most realized teachers have agreed that awakening and raising the Kundalini Shakti (or Kundalini energy) to the crown chakra is essential for enlightenment. Various types of raja yogas have this aim and focus, so they may be also be referred to as Kundalini yoga. Meditation or Dhyan Yoga is the practice of turning the attention from outer awareness to inner concentration. It is considered the ultimate medicine, as it slowly but surely removes energy blocks, increasing the energy flow, promotes relaxation and peace, and burns deep impressions and negative tendencies in the mind, which according to yoga and Ayurveda are the real cause of suffering. On the physical level, meditation helps to prolong the body's anabolic process of growth and repair, and to reduce the decaying process. Each cell in the organism is governed by the subconscious mind. They have both an individual and a collective conciousness and intelligence. Positive thoughts bring positive energy to the cells. As meditation brings about a positive state of mind, it also rejuvenates all bodily cells. More importantly, it brings self-knowledge, peace of mind, and the ultimate state of merging with the Divine. Ayurveda and Yoga, Sister Sciencesby Vishnu Dass, NTS, LMT, CAyu. Ayurveda and yoga are sister sciences that have been united for thousands of years for the sake of healing body, mind, and consciousness. Generally speaking, Ayurveda deals more with the health of the body, while yoga deals with purifying the mind and consciousness, but in reality they complement and embrace each other.   The ancient rishis (seers) were the original masters of all Vedic sciences. They understood that good health is a great asset on the path toward Self-realization. If the body is neglected it can easily become an obstacle to spiritual practice. Anyone who has practiced meditation for any length of time would agree to how difficult it can be to sit still for long periods of time without feeling discomfort and fatigue. Both yoga and Ayurveda are mutually supportive and offer many ways to prevent and heal various disorders as well as to cleanse and rejuvenate the body. Besides sharing a philosophical foundation, both systems have many similarities in relation to attitude, nutrition, diet and lifestyle, hygiene, exercise, cleansing practices, as well as spiritual practices. Traditionally, a student of yoga would first live close to and serve the guru for many years, during which time he would learn healthy habits. The basic Ayurvedic principles for health and longevity were past on in the lineage in oral form to serve as a foundation for a life of sadhana (spiritual practice). Nowadays, the teachings of yoga are easily available to all, and whether prepared or not we can leap headlong into its practice. This has its blessings, in the sense that more people can be turned on to the teachings, although much is often lost without the parampara, or close guidance at the feet of an accomplished master. With this in mind, modern yoga practitioners would most certainly benefit from a basic knowledge of Ayurveda to help establish a healthydinacharya (daily routine) and adjust their practice according to the constitution, predominant dosha or imbalance, season, and so on, to prevent disease and promote longevity. Book a private Asheville yoga session for an individualized yoga regime. Similarities between the Yoga System and Ayurveda Both are ancient Vedic teachings. Yoga originates in the Yajur Veda, while Ayurveda originates in the Atharva Veda and Rig Veda. Both recognize that keeping the body healthy is vital for fulfilling the four aims of life: Dharma (duty), Artha (wealth), Kama (desire), and Moksha (liberation). Both recognize that the balance of doshas (humors), dhatus (tissues), and malas (waste products) is essential for maintaining good health. Both share virtually the same metaphysical anatomy and physiology, which consists of 72,000 nadis (subtle channels), 7 main chakras (energy centers), 5 bodily sheaths, and the Kundalini Shakti (energy). Both advocate the use of diet, Ayurvedic herbs, asana, pranayama, meditation, mantra, astrology, prayer, puja (worship), and rituals for healing the entire being.  Both encourage physical health as a good foundation for mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Both share the same view on psychology. Ayurveda embraces all six of the main schools of philosophy including the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and Vedanta (a non-dual philosophical and spiritual path). They both understand that the attachment to the body-mind complex is the root cause of all suffering and that the ultimate state of health is experienced when we abide in our true nature, which is total peace, regardless of the state of the physical body. Both use cleansing methods for the body, all of which encourage the removal of waste products and toxins through their natural routes of elimination. Ayurveda hasPanchakarma (five cleansing actions) and yoga uses Shat Karma (six purification measures).

The Ayurvedic approach to asana practice

The use of asana, pranayama, and meditation for healing is known as Yoga Chikitsa, or Yoga Therapy and has been used for thousands of years by Ayurvedic and yogic adepts. In Yoga Chikitsa, a group of yogic exercises are chosen that will best support the individual and are practiced daily. This can be done over an extended period of time in conjunction with anAyurvedic regime, Ayurvedic herbs and dietary guidelines. Yoga Chikitsa also plays an integral role in the Ayurvedic cleansing and rejuvenation process known as Panchakarma.

For a well balanced personal yoga practice, it is important to take into consideration your individual body structure, prakruti (original constitution), and vikruti (present constitutional imbalance). The following are general recommendations according to the predominant dosha. You can also learn an invidualized approach to yoga by scheduling a private Asheville yogasession.

 Vata predominant individuals should remember to focus on calming, grounding, stillness, strengthening, and balancing while doing their practice.

Precautions for vata:

• Vinyasa or flow styles of yoga tend to move too quickly from one pose to the next and can aggravate the hyper-mobile quality of vata over time. Flow sequences can be made to be more vata pacifying if they are not excessively long, the length of time poses are held is extended, and transitions are done slowly and consciously.
• Those with lower back problems may find that bending the knees in standing forward bends can prevent discomfort.
• Back bends should be done slowly, carefully and within one's own limits.

Pitta individuals should maintain a calm, cool, and relaxed intention while doing asanas. Pitta types may benefit from trying to cultivate an attitude of forgiveness, and of surrendering or offering the fruits of their practice to the divine of to those in need of positive healing energy. Because asana practice tends to generate heat in the body, it is best to do yoga at cooling times of the day, such as dawn or dusk. Also, it is useful to place some emphasis on poses that help to release excess heat from the body, such as poses that compress the solar plexus and poses that open the chest.

Kapha types tend to be sedentary and often dislike vigorous exercise. For this reason, their practice should be energetic, warming, lightening, and stimulating, providing they are physically capable. Vinyasa or flow style yoga is good for kapha because it is dynamic and moves quickly from one pose to the next, it induces sweating and gets the heart pumping.

Yoga is a vast realm of wisdom and practice..
I can't and wont even try and get it all in to these BLOGS but I hope it raises some interest in YOU and makes you want to find out more ;))

blessing and peace
SjD