mario

...erstand what their fellow musicians are playing and try to make up new, never played before music that fits in perfectly with what is going on around them.

You can play for yourself or you can go play for the enjoyment of others. This is similar to what true Yoga is like. You can study the ancient scriptures or you can go out into the World and practice Yoga in everyday life. You can practice Yoga for your benefit, or for the benefit of others.

I am not saying that going to a Yoga class and stretching for an hour is of no benefit. Not at all. There are plenty of benefits which anyone can and will get from even this limited practice. However, since their practice is on the gross or physical plane, most of the benefits will be limited to this physical plane: Better health. And so the most Yoga, or Union, they can hope to achieve is that of uniting one part of their body with another, via the flow of their Pranas. I use the plural for Prana because by definition, you cannot unite just one flow. You can only unite separate and different flows.

This is another area where most Western Yoga Instruction falls short. Most instruction is only in the placement of the various body parts. And while it is true, that the flow of ones prana will be influenced by where ones body parts are in relation to each other; this is also low level Yoga. The flow of ones prana should be directly regulated and controlled by ones mind. Of the Yoga classes that do talk about the flow of prana, they usually talk about the main flow of prana in the Asana and not the counter flow.

Since Hatha Yoga is the union of the Ha or the Sun Flows of Energy and the Tha or the Moon Flows of Energy, talking about only one flow means they are practicing either Ha Yoga or Tha Yoga. They cannot be practicing Hatha Yoga.

Most people are not aware that the practice of the asanas or stretches is actually the third step in the classical school of Raja Yoga. The first step is the practice of 5 Res...more

health Benefits of Yoga

...e, and depth perception

* increases Galvanic Skin Response (GSR)

Psychological Benefits of Yoga

* improves concentration and attention

* decreases anxiety, internal stress and depression

* improves mood and sense of well-being

* increases self-acceptance and self-actualization

* improves learning efficiency and memory

* increases somatic and kinesthetic awareness (body/mind connection)

* decreases aggression and hostility

* increases social skills

* improves depth perception<...more

The health Benefits Provided by the Practice of Yoga

...hing. It also lowers blood pressure and heart rates. It improves lung efficiency and improves other situations like chronic fatigue, diabetes and digestive disorders.

The onslaught of aging can also be relatively slowed down through yoga. Aging is the result of autointoxication. By keeping the body clean, flexible and well lubricated helps reduce the deterioration of cells. Yoga also helps in weight reduction and it stimulates sluggish glands to. Practicing positions that focus on your thyroid gland can also have certain positive effects on the body metabolism too.

The medical community agrees with a number of these benefits and funding is currently ongoing to see the efficient of Yoga in the treatment of insomnia and multiple sclerosis...more

Yoga off the Mat - A Lesson From the Ocean

... against my skin and my sun-kissed arms absorbing the nourishment of this bearer of light, I watched the tide moving in and out unfailingly dancing to its own rhythm. I observed how a single wave was its own entity and yet part of the entire ocean. It was impossible I observed to feel any kind of separation when we see ourselves in the same way. We are the wave and the ocean. The Self and Atman. Everything was contained in that one moment just like it is contained in this moment. We are re-creating ourselves each moment anew. Just as we cannot bathe in the same ocean wat...more