The Enlightenment leak that is not alien science (Part 2)

Occasionally when I describe the eight limbs to students, their faces look like I just channelled alien-born science. A long stare is proceeded by the question: Yoga is what now?

The people of my nation, however, thread the eight limbs practice into their life from an early age. It’s as natural as eating fresh organic meals. The subject is taught in school, in history, as well as the morals and ethics class; It informs their entire yoga and meditation practice. As it should.

The eight limbs is synonymous with common sense. Get the character right. Then the body right.  Then the mind. In that order.

What happens then, you might ask. Well, its a life lived without sabotage, or emotionally lurched to the greatest highs and the greatest lows of our lives. We just are, seeped in felicity.

When I left my nation to travel, I noticed that people connected yoga asana (aka Hatha yoga) to enlightenment. Like they understood that the ass of an elephant meant an elephant, or sex meant fashion, youth meant beauty,  war meant freedom.

Asana, is a step. That's all.

Here are the next two limbs: Sound guidelines for the persuit of physical excellence.

(* You can read the first two limbs here)

3. Asana.

This is the limb that causes all the ruckus out there in the world. It’s the poster child for the eight limbs, but really, its just number 3 on the path. Asana is the practice of physical yoga postures.

It improves our health, strength, balance and flexibility. It calms the mind and enhances the awareness of our deeper essence of being.

We don’t need giant muscles or mile-long hamstrings to be great at yoga asana.

The key to asana success is breath control. Each asana is just a shadow of its own potential without the use of controlled and expansive breathing. Our breath is the vehicle that will deliver life force energy, or prana, to the body. It’s the glue that will reconnect our mind with our body.

When you go to a yoga class next, prioritise your breath. If your asana inhibits your ability to breathe deeply, and with a calm rhythm, then you might have forgotten ahisma – non violence.

4. Pranayama.

Pranayama means breath control. As you have just read, asana works well when practiced with deep, controlled breathing, or Pranayama. A common Pranayama technique thats used in asana class is Ujjay breath.

Ujjay was last seen alive standing behind these flames.Have you ever heard people breathing in a yoga class from another room, but you couldn't see them? Did it sound like stormtrooper auditions for the new death star? That’s the sweet sound of killer Ujjay breath. Not to be mistaken with breath-killing Ujjay (Illustrated here).

Proper rhythmic patterns of slow, deep breathing strengthen the respiratory system. It soothes the nervous system and reduces craving. It also happens to load your body with prana energy, which is the life-force energy of the whole entire universe.

Maybe it's a coffee hessian bag with a picture of a man practicing Pranayama in front of a peacock.Its mastery will guard your body from injury.

But wait, there’s more to Pranayama than breathing deeply in our yoga practice!

There are dozens of Pranayama techniques that give specific results. Some are very powerful and can not be practiced by just anybody.

Pranayama is like an energy generator, and it has to be compatible with your circuit board. One would need to upgrade their circuit board to hold the higher charge that some techniques manifest. 

I know well the back hand of one Pranayama technique, which essentially blew out my circuit board. It took days for me to recover. Lying in bed, sick with a crashed immune system, my inner medicine man confirmed,

Too much Pranayama, Mahn.

Comments

[Earnst]

I love that you are writing about this! I had heard about Pranayama techniques and that they can blow your fuses if you aren't ready for them. I wish they were more taught in classes.

[Jasmine]

I love that you are writing about this in such an accessible way. I hope that you do some books on these subjects. I love your blog. xx