Session 2 : YOGA POSTURES

Session 2 - Yoga Postures

In Sanskrit, we call yoga postures "asanas". Asana means a "posturegiving physical comfort and mental composure." Yogis in the pastobserved that animals had characteristics that were related to theirposture. In other words, the posture affects the mind.So the main effect of yoga postures is on the mind.That's because they put pressure on the internal glands, and thatbalances the hormones secreted from the glands. It's the hormonesthat affect how we feel. If the hormones are balanced, the emotionswill also be balanced.So yoga postures keep the mind calm and balanced, and prepare it formeditation.They also have many physical benefits: they increase the flexibilityof the spine and joints, massage the internal organs, as well as curemany diseases.Now we'll go through three yoga postures that are very simple andeffective. If you practice them daily, you'll soon see how they keepyour mind calm and relaxed, making it a lot easier to concentrate.

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Find a warm, clean room (usually the same one you use for meditation)and lay a blanket on the floor. Make sure there's no draught. Ifyou've eaten in the last hour or so, wait until your stomach is lessfull (2-3 hours after eating).* The first asana is called Yogamudra: Sit cross-legged. Hold yourleft wrist with your right hand behind your back. Slowly loweringyour chin, then your neck, bend down as far as you can go, breathingout as you go down. Stay there for 8 seconds with your breath heldout then rise up, breathing in. Practice eight times.* Now the Cobra: Lie down on your stomach. Put your hands facing downon the floor beside your ears. Supporting your weight on your palms,push up and raise the chest, looking up towards the ceiling. Breathein while rising, and hold your breath in that position for 8 seconds.Come down to original position while breathing out. Practice eighttimes.* Finally the Long Salutation: Kneel down with your buttocks restingon your heels and your toes pointing forward. With your palmstogether, extend your arms up next to your ears. Slowly bring yourarms and head down as one, first bending your neck then the wholeupper body, until your fingers hit the floor, keeping your buttockson your heels all the time. Now stretch out along with your foreheadand nose resting on the floor. Breathe out as you go down and staythere with your breath held out for 8 seconds. Then rise up,breathing in. Practice eight times.

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During asanas, a particular type of oil is secreted from thesebaceous glands out of the pores of the skin. This is beneficial tothe skin, so after asanas we do a skin massage to rub it back in.The skin massage increases the beauty and glow of the skin. It alsorelaxes the nerves, and increases the blood and lymph flow. It's nota deep muscle massage. It's a light going-over of the skin, as wellas some extra attention to the lymph glands - under the chin andaround the throat, under the armpits, in the groin, and behind theknee.* First rub your palms together a few times to warm them up. Start atthe head and face and work down. Rub your hands directly over thesurface of the skin, and when you get down to your feet, payparticular attention to the soles. That will indirectly give yourinternal organs a good massage as well.

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Now we'll finish this session with "deep relaxation."It gives the body a chance to assimilate the positive energy of theasanas. It also relieves stress, lowers blood pressure, and decreasesthe need for sleep.* Using the same blanket as for asanas, lie on your back with yourarms by your side, and make sure that your breathing is calm andrelaxed. Now go through your whole body, starting at your feet,consciously making sure that each part is completely relaxed - withno muscular tension at all. Go from the feet up the legs, consciouslychecking each part, into the groin area, into the abdomen (alsofeeling that your internal organs are relaxed), into the chest andshoulders, from the fingers and hands up the arms, then into the neckand up into the face, relaxing the facial muscles, including theeyes, and finally to the top of the head, feeling your brain is alsorelaxed. Check once more that your breathing is calm and relaxed, andimagine you're lying in the most soothing place you can think of: itcould be floating on top of the sea, suspended in space, on top of amountain - wherever you like. Now stay like that, fully relaxed, fora few more minutes.

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