Yoga Detox - Shatkarmas during 300 hours/500 hours Yoga Teacher Training in Thailand

Dear Yoga Enthusiasts,

During the Advanced 300 hours and 500 hours Yoga Teacher Training conducted in the Ashram of Wise Living Yoga Academy in Chiang Mai, Thailand the students performed Shatkarmas/ Yoga Cleanse techniques such as Vamana Dhauti, Sutra Neti and Shankhaprakshalasana (Varisara Dhauti).

Shankhaprakshalana is one of the Hatha Yoga practices of Dhauti kriya so therefore it is also known as Varisara Dhauti. Dhauti which in English means 'internal washing' and vari means 'water'. This Kriya is a master cleansing for the colon and it is followed by a strict diet. There are several physical, psychological and mental benefits of this practice that help the Yoga aspirant to rejuvenate, purify and strengthen the body and mind. These Kriyas make the practitioner fit for deeper spiritual practices.

Varisara Dhauti can only be perform once or twice in a year. The practices of Jala Neti, Sutra Neti and Vamana Dhauti are practiced more regularly during our course. See the photos below

For further information on our Yoga Teacher Training Course in Thailand you can visit our website and contact us by email or send us the application form online.

Namaste!!!

Yoga Hygiene: Care of the Tongue

It is not generally known that tartar and decomposing material tend to collect on the root of the tongue and are often more responsible for foul breath than stomach conditions. Most persons do not know that the base of the tongue is often the place from where bad breath arises. So it is just as imperative to scrape the tongue well as to cleanse the teeth and the mouth. 

In diagnosis, it is an accepted medical fact that the condition of the tongue acts as an index of the state of health of the alimentary canal more truly than other external organs. It is held by the Yogins that the neglected and therefore, unhealthy tongue likewise reacts unfavourably on the alimentary canal. The yoga practice of Jihvamulasodhanam or the cleansing of the root of the tongue consists of reaching the back of the tongue, as far as one can, and thus removing with the finger-tips whatever mucus and phlegm deposits that may have accumulated there. 

The practice of brushing the tongue and the root of the tongue with an ordinary tooth-brush is really not as safe as it appears, because the hard bristles if thrust too far by oversight, may lead to an injury of the oropharynx, or can cause extreme gagging or sometimes may even hit the root of the mouth.

In this respect, the yoga method is comparatively more precise, simple and effective. It is practiced thus:

Practice of Jihvamulasodhana
or the cleansing of the root of the tongue.

1. Join together the first three fingers known as the forefinger (Tarjani), the middle (Madhyama) and the ring finger (Anamika);
2. Push them into the throat deep enough and rub well till the root of the tongue is cleansed. While washing thus, simultaneous efforts should also be made to throw out whatever phlegm and mucus (Kafa), that may have surrounded the cavity.
3. After a minute or two of such cleansing, rub the tongue with butter very sparingly so that the scraping which is to follow may not lead to an irritation of the surface. Then hold the tongue scraper on the tongue pulling the same slowly downwards.           

That the practical Yogins should have realized the import and necessity of not only cleansing the surface but even the base and lower portion of the tongue most carefully twice every day, namely (i) early morning and (ii) before retiring to bed, when even the casual cleansing of the tongue was not so popular is really remarkable.

by Shri Yogendraji

Source: This text was originally written by Shri Yogendraji and posteriorly used at the monthly journal "Yoga & Total Health" issue of May 2011, edited and distributed by the Yoga Institute of Santracruz, Mumbai - India.

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You can learn this and many other techniques for the care of the body (kriyas), and experience an authentic Yogic lifestyle by attending our next Yoga Teacher Training Course in Thailand.

Namaste

Pranayama - By Shri Yogendraji

Pranayama is the controlling of Prana or the “life essence of the universe”.

A great deal of misunderstanding, however, seems to exist in relation to the various practices of this science. Some call it the Science of breath, while some call it the control of psychic Prana. But the truth is that it is both: physical as well as mental.

In Sanskrit, Prana literally means Life; it is also supposed to mean Breath. It is the sum total of all cosmic energy. It is the vital force in our body that moves us to action.“From thought to the lowest physical force, everything is but the manifestation of the Prana” (Swami Vivekananda). It is the “potential energy which remains constant, no matter what changes take place around us; it is eternal and infinite” (Tyndall, Fragments of Science).

This is what the Yogis know to be, as Cosmic Prana. This all-pervading cosmic energy, when it becomes limited in a certain body is called the individual Prana or the kinetic energy (finite) that manifests itself through the different functions of our organism. It is the same cosmic energy that the recent scientists try to control.

According to the Yogic psychological anatomy, there are five main Pranas and five minor Pranas, which have different duties to perform. The main ones are the chief nerve-currents that control certain vital organs. The minor Pranas are subordinates to the function of the higher ones, but they are independent of each other. They have also the corresponding relation with the cosmic energy. The main Pranas have a separate element and have different planes on which they chiefly operate. It is the control of this cosmic energy or Prana that is desired by the Yogis for the control of higher life.

Regulation of breath

Shri Yogendraji in suitable pose
for Pranayama practice.

Patanjali defines Pranayama as the stoppage of the inspiratory and expiratory movements. It is quite natural that, when the breath is active, the mind becomes active also. In sleep, when the mind is temporarily inactive and concentrated the number of respirations is generally reduced, so much so, that they are nearly half the number of the otherwise active condition.

It is true that the control of Prana requires steadiness of mind. The easiest way to control the Prana is to control the breathing process, because it is it’s chief activity.

The lungs are the most active part of our system that works automatically and unceasingly. It is the control over their motion, which is necessary for the control of vital energy. The essence of the techniques of Pranayama lie in the fact that if the breathing is controlled to the extend of having the capacity to stop it, if this can be done, the activity of the body is quite naturally controlled.

This article was published in Yoga & Total Health (August 1991) - the monthly magazine of The Yoga Institute.

Selfish Attachment

Very many saffron robed Sanyasis (a Hindu ascetic) in India don their clothes with motives – unconnected with spiritual interests. Sometimes it is the gain of material objects, at other times success in an undertaking – mostly a selfish utilitarian goal. Whereas religion and spirituality command total disinterest towards worldly objects, these men are grounded in them all the time. We are not against truly pious men, disinterested in worldly gains. On the contrary the author believes that attaining such a state of simplicity and disinterestedness is the only solution to our modern problems. We want more and more of such highly evolved persons. Unfortunately the society is not moving in this direction, and instead pseudo-spiritualists are on the rampage.

There is an interesting story:

"At the edge of a forest, in a small village lived a Sadhu (hermit). Among his possessions he owned a beautiful mare. In fact the mare was so much admired by people all around, that there were offers of various kinds to purchase the animal. The Sadhu personally tended the pet, fed her green grass, took the mare to the river for bathing and for quenching her thirst. In fact the hermit was not prepared to trust the mare to anybody for fear of her being stolen. A strong attachment had grown in the mind of the hermit for the mare. He remained quite engrossed and anxious about her upkeep.

A 'Greedy Renunciate'

In a near-by village lived a man who developed a keen desire to possess this mare. Knowing full well that the hermit would not part with her on any consideration, he approached the hermit once as a loyal student who would look after the hermit and attend to all his needs. The hermit accepted the student and accepted all his services with the exception that he would not permit the newly found disciple to attend to the mare. Even though gradually the disciple won over great affection of the hermit, the latter would not trust the mare to him. The disciple realized for the first time, the difficulty in his mission to get possession of the mare.

However, once it so happened that the hermit fell sick. Strangely the hermit lay in his bed most of the time, but when it came to tending the mare he would himself get up and attend to the animal. The hermit’s sickness took a serious turn. He was one day unable to get up from his bed. That day he called the disciple and asked him to lead the mare to the river to quench her thirst. The disciple jumped at the opportunity. He led the mare to the gate and asked permission to place on her back his belongings since he was afraid to climb her. The hermit in a delirium agreed. The disciple mounted the mare and sped away. He finally succeeded."

Such deep-rooted is the attachment for worldly objects even in the so called hermits and men of God!

by Shri Yogendraji

Source: This article was published at the monthly journal "Yoga & Total Health" issue of June 2012, published and distributed by the Yoga Institute of Santracruz.

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So, perhaps it would be serviceable to post here a quotation from the Bhagavad Gita:

"A man of disciplined mind, who has his senses under control and who has neither attraction nor aversion for sense objects, attains tranquility, though he may be moving amidst objects of the senses" ~BG 2.64

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You can learn more about Yoga philosophy, techniques, and experience an authentic Yogic lifestyle by attending our next Yoga Teacher Training Course in Thailand.

Namaste

Are You Following Yoga? (Words of the Master)

A considerable amount of confusion seems to prevail in the minds of many who come to this Institute (The Yoga Institute of Santacruz) for the study of Yoga. Unless such persons help themselves to remove many inhibitions, there is little scope for them to realize true Yoga.

When one wants to study Yoga, it is not for him to decide what is Yoga. 

Shri Yogendraji - Founder of The Yoga Institute
of Santacruz, Mumbai - India

First, many already hold preconceived notions incompatible with genuine Yoga which they are incapable of modifying in spite of all proof to the contrary.  Second, there is something like craze or greed to know more and more practices without appropriate habituation to what has already been learnt under conditions required by Yoga. Third, there is confusion in the mind of many who suffer from distractions and inhibitions common to the modern life and who remain subconsciously unwilling to follow Yoga under the requirements of its study.  Fourth, all are in a hurry to get all knowledge about Yoga in the shortest possible time from any place or teacher without finding out whether they have absorbed the true spirit of Yoga in their day-to-day behavior.  Each day their knowledge of Yoga and the practice of Yoga make for a wide gap which they are never able to fill up. Fifth, tagging Yoga as mere knowledge without its personal experience leads one nowhere. So while one may amass considerable information about Yoga by reading or learning it, the real achievement of Yoga evades him.

The reason for all this is that none is prepared to undertake the study of Yoga according to the requisites of Yoga (Adhikara) while at the same time anticipating the results ascribed to Yoga.

Unless one is willing to subscribe to the requirements for the study of Yoga and adopt the same into his day-to-day life, there is no chance of success by the mere mechanical study of Yoga, it does not matter how much he knows.

Therefore, the net result which should be regarded as normal is disappointment for many who search for Yoga but fail to achieve it. For this, they have only themselves to blame!

Shri Yogendra

This article was published in Yoga & Total Health (October 2012) - the monthly magazine of The Yoga Institute.

The Yogi in Sangita Dhvani - by Shri Yogendra

The later Shri Yogendra, founder of The Yoga Institute of Santacruz was also a poet. Under the pen-name Masta Mani he wrote many poems and melodiously expresses positive philosophy like in The Yogi:

Mani Haribhai Desai became Shri Yogendra
after receiving traditional training in Yoga
from Paramahamsa Madhavadasaji
at Malsar, Gujarat, India.

The banyan roots grace
A pitched dark night,
And the solitary desolate place
Is devoid of light.

But from somewhere a song arose
Like feeble lunar glow,
Round the faint dhuni, a Yogi froze
Into a mystic smiling overflow.

In his lap a lute he played,
His fingers moved on strings
And well engrossed thus he stayed,
Experiencing a mystic musing.

The voice arose the joy to keep,
His ears sensed a thrill
He stayed in this divine sleep
Ending all his worldly ills.

As transcribed in the book The Householder Yogi. Life of Shri Yogendra by Santan Rodrigues and published by The Yoga Institute of Santracruz, Mumbai - India (1st Ed - 1982)