The word 'Yoga' reminds many people of a person wearing saffron clothes and
doing dhyana at some secluded place. But we claim that this belief is in
actuality an erroneous one, and that Yoga has relevance even to a modern-day
working man. Yoga is very important for each and every person, from a child to
an aged one. Yoga not only keeps one fit but also cures many diseases.
Yoga entered the West mainly through
the missionary work of Swami Vivekananda, who spoke at the Parliament of
Religions in 1893. Since then Yoga has undergone a unique metamorphosis.
Unfortunately, yoga in the west has come to mean "hatha" yoga which is mainly
physical exercise and postures (asanas). In fact, asanas is only one step in
the eight step path (Ashtanga yoga of patanjali). Yoga has been tailored to
suit the specific needs of their countrymen and -women. Thus, by and large,
Yoga has been secularized and turned from a rigorous spiritual discipline into
an "instant" fitness system. What is the real goal of Yoga ?
Yoga's highest purpose is to help it's practitioner in realizing true
happiness, freedom, or enlightenment.
However, Yoga has a number of
secondary goals, such as physical health, mental harmony, and emotional
balance. In its most integrated form, Yoga seeks to unlock our full human
potential. Benefits of practising yoga:
1] Physical fitness : People view Yoga only
as a curing therapy, but in reality involvement in Yoga will ward off any
disease and keep oneself fighting fit.>
2] Personality Development : by performing
Yoga one can attain peace of mind, boost self-confidence, and gain more energy
for work.
3] Freedom from Habits : Many people want to
give up habits like smoking, drinking etc. but they are unable to do so.
Practising Yoga helps to get rid of all these habits.
4] Stress relief : Today you can hear words
like Stress, Tension from everybody, from youth to an aged person. Everybody
has his own tensions of work. We advice to go for Yoga and get relief from
stress.
5] Competition : There is a lot of
competition in the education life of every student now a day. Yoga works there
too. After performing even some basics of Yoga like 'Omkar ', any student can
feel the improvement in his concentration as well as in his inherent ability to
memorize. Thus Yoga helps them a lot.
Different types
of yoga:
There are various types of yoga. Before we examine the differences, we should
Remember that all of them lead to the same goal, unification with the Divine.
The yoga paths can be broadly classified into
Bhakti yoga ("Yoga of Devotion") is the path
of devotion (to the Divine). It is pure selfless love from the heart. A bhakti
yogi feels that whenever he thinks of God, God thinks more of him. A
relationship between a Bhakta and God can never be described in words.
Karma yoga ("Yoga of Action") is the path of
selfless service. For a karma yogi, the activities of human life is a God given
opportunity to serve Him. He does not feel that the world is an illusion, does
not encounter the ego given 'highs' of success or the 'lows' of failure. Thus a
karma yogi is detached while carrying out his duties on the earth. Karma Yoga
can also be summed up in a statement by Sri Bhagavan Krishna in the Bhagavad
Gita: "Worshipping Him with proper actions, a man attains realization". One key
to Karma Yoga is the performance of right action and service for its own sake,
without consideration of the immediate or apparent results.
Dnyana yoga ("Yoga of Wisdom") is the path
of knowledge. A dnyana yogi wants to understand the transcendental truth. He
wants to solve the mystery of birth, death and the purpose of life. Hindu
scriptures describe a Dnyan yogi as one who utters Neti, Neti meaning 'not
this, not this' to differentiate between what is permanent and impermanent. He
uses viveka (discernment) for moving on from avidya (ignorance) to vidya
(knowledge). He discerns that the world as perceived by the senses is not real,
but an illusion conjured up by the mind. Dnyana Yoga is the yoga of the
philosopher and thinker who wants to go beyond the visible, material reality.
The Dnyan Yogi finds God through knowledge. Dnyana Yoga is summed up in the
Upanishads by the following statement: "In the method of reintegration through
knowledge, the mind is ever bound to the ultimate end of existence which is
liberation This method leads to all attainments and is ever auspicious."
Raja yoga ("Royal Yoga") is a science. There
is no unconditional faith required. It is similar to a person who would go to
the doctor for illness, and take the medicine the doctor gives with a faith
that it will cure him. If he followed all the doctor's orders but still wasn't
cured then it is the fault of the doctor and not that of the patient.
Kundalini yoga :Most of the saints have
agreed that the culmination of the Kundalini Shakti is essential for
enlightenment. Various types of raja yogas (including siddha yoga, kriya yoga,
laya yoga, sahaja yoga etc.) end with the activation and culmination of the
kundalini shakti at the crown chakra. They may be referred to as Kundalini
yoga. Kundalini is the dormant energy which lies at the base of spine.
