Receive in abundance

January 2017 Life Positive Magazine
By Saraswathi Vasudevan (www.yogavahini.com)

In the third of her series on right breathing, Saraswathi Vasudevan imparts the secrets of good inhalation

In normal breathing inhalation is an active process. When we are stressed out, we almost always breathe in from the upper chest, and the breath is shallow and sharp. You might even be holding your breath a lot when you are stressed. Neck and shoulder muscles are overstrained because we use these accessory muscles to breathe instead of chest and abdomen. This can also account for a lot of tension and fatigue in the neck, shoulder area, even poor sleep.

The first step in learning how to inhale more efficiently is to actively engage the chest and the abdomen in breathing in. Initiating inhalation from chest to abdomen is always far more efficient. Chest  to abdomen inhalation helps to maximise the intake of air for exchange, it helps the diaphragm movement to the extent required to fill the lower lobes of the lungs, and straightens your upper back to counter a stooping posture.

When you breathe in from chest to abdomen rather than abdomen to chest, it prevents the lower abdomen from bulging out and lower back from being hyper-arched (which is already deep for most women, causing much strain and stiffness).

When you learn to inhale better, your energy level improves dramatically, you feel more active and productive. It enhances self-confidence and helps counter feelings of depression. It improves your posture, inter-vertebral space in the upper spine and neck thereby countering and preventing neck problems precipitated from tight and stooping upper back with neck thrust forward.

Also breathing in from chest to abdomen helps open up your heart centre which is also the centre for emotions thereby helping us clear pent-up emotions!

When you learn to integrate the technique of deep inhalaltion and exhalation, you can breathe in and out almost 9-10 times the volume of air you are normally breathing in. Longer breath means longer life span and good health.

So, do you want to inhale more efficiently?

Try this, even as you read this article:

Sit up (on a cushion/chair) with back straight (not leaning on to a back support).  Place one hand on your upper chest and the other hand above your navel.

Take a few breaths slowly deepening the exhalation and inhalation. Exhalation to be initiated from lower abdomen as discussed in the last issue. As you draw the lower abdomen in and up relax your chest. After extending exhalation to a comfortable extent, deepen your inhalation.

Start breathing in from the upper chest downwards and outwards (also opening the sides of the chest). The upper abdomen is extended automatically as the diaphragm is pushed down, no need to push the stomach out. And ensure that you don’t push the lower abdomen out (portion below the navel).  When you inhale from upper chest downwards, upper back automatically straightens improving your profile with every deep inhalation.

Exhale as usual by gently drawing lower abdomen in and up, relaxing chest.

Slowly begin to extend the inhalation from 3 seconds to 4 to 5 until you reach your maximum inhalation capacity. Stay with each step for 2-3 breaths with extended exhalation. Stay with the maximum inhalation and exhalation for 10-20 breaths with gentle hissing sound in the throat. You have now started doing pranayama! We will start looking at pranayama techniques from the nest issue.

NB: It is best to take the help of a trained yoga teacher or therapist to guide you through this process.

About the author: Saraswathi Vasudevan is a yoga therapist trainer in the tradition of Sri T Krishnamacharya. She specialises in adapting yoga to the individual.  (www.yogavahini.com).

Exhale fully to receive fully

December 2016 Life Positive
By Saraswathi Vasudevan (www.yogavahini.com)

Long and deep exhalation can lower your blood pressure, reduce pain, improve sleep, and facilitate healing of the body quite effortlessly, says Saraswathi Vasudevan

Breathing is the fundamental cleansing process of the system. When we breathe efficiently, we release a lot of impurities and end products of metabolism allowing all organs, systems and cells to receive fresh nourishment through the blood. When breathing is inefficient, we accumulate the waste products that toxify the system and prevent fresh intake of nutrients.

Exhale first!

Yoga Sutra says one of the ways to calm the mind is to focus on exhalation, and retention after exhalation (YS 1.34). Good exhalation reactivates the parasympathetic response, shifting the system from sympathetic domination (stress mode). When the mind calms down and becomes quiet, we begin to conserve prana that is wastefully dispersed through incessant thinking and strong emotional reactions.

Exhalation helps relax the muscles that may be held tight because of inherent stress response. When muscles relax, flexibility improves, general aches and pains come down and the breath expels waste products from muscles and joints to be eliminated through the breath!

If you can extend your exhalation long and deep, you can lower your blood pressure, reduce pain, improve sleep and facilitate healing of the body quite effortlessly. All you have to do is breathe out long and deep!

How to exhale efficiently?

Lie down in a comfortable position with your legs bent so that your lower back and abdomen are relaxed. Pay attention to your natural breathing. When you begin to observe your breath, it is no more natural, it becomes slightly longer and deeper. Observe where you are able to feel the movement. With natural breathing – like a baby asleep – abdomen goes up on inhalation and relaxes on exhalation.

Exhalation is a passive process in normal breathing but in yogic deep breathing, we make exhalation more active! To facilitate good exhalation and emptying of air from the lower lobes of the lungs where 75-80 per cent of gaseous exchange takes place, we actively but gently draw the lower abdomen in and up, simultaneously relaxing the chest. The diaphragm gets pushed up and the lungs are emptied more efficiently. Make sure you are not holding up the chest while drawing the abdomen in.

Once you get the technique right, begin to extend the exhalation by gently slowing down the movement of the lower abdomen and chest. You can begin with 3 seconds exhalation and extend up to 6 or 8 seconds, to the extent you are comfortable and there is no strain in the body. Do this practice in seated position (on a mat/chair), extending exhalation.

 As you draw the lower abdomen in and up, the often overarched (lordosis) and strained lower back flattens and relaxes. The organs in the abdomen are squeezed out so that they can receive fresh oxygenated blood with the next inhalation. The floor of the perineum is lifted up, toning the lower abdominal muscles and reinstating the organs that are pulled down with gravity. The technique helps to pull the lower chakras up, thereby allowing the circulation of prana, and removal of impurities that are accumulated in the lower abdominal area. You start feeling lighter in your body and mind as the breath is trained to flow out slowly, smoothly, unimpeded.

Try this technique every night before you go to bed, to prepare for a beautiful day ahead!

About the author : Saraswathi Vasudevan is a yoga therapist trainer in the tradition of Sri T Krishnamacharya. She specialises in adapting yoga to the individual.  (www.yogavahini.com).

Befriend Your Breath

November 2016 (Life Positive Magazine)
by Saraswathi Vasudevan (www.yogavahini.com)

When you give your breath your loving attention you will have earned a friend who will come to your aid in all situations, assures Saraswathi Vasudevan.

“One can only understand the things one tames, the Fox tells the Little Prince. If you want a friend, tame me. You must be very patient. First you will sit down at a little distance from me, like that, in the grass. I shall watch you out of the corner of my eye and you will say nothing. … But everyday, you can sit a little closer to me” (From The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery)

The fox here presents a very important pre-condition for developing a friendship: the time you invest and the loving attention you give.

This is the kind of relationship one seeks to establish with one’s own breath through practices such as pranayama.

It might sound strange when I say pranayama is about befriending your breath. For most of us, pranayama practice means inhaling through one nostril and exhaling through the other, or breathing like a bellows! We have been conditioned to focus on these aspects so much that the real purpose of pranayama the mind being an active witness to the breath has been lost! This article is about reconnecting with the real purpose of pranayama.
Before we even try to understand how to befriend the breath, we need to know why this is important.

Do you have any friend in your life you can call for help anytime, in any situation? And also reach that friend in a moment? Yes, we know technology has advanced so much today that you can reach a friend in a moment but ironically, the same technology has also caused so much separation and isolation, has it not? But you do have one companion who will come to your aid anytime you want unconditionally (well, almost)! Your breath perhaps your only companion who comes with you from birth to death. Breath is our sole connection to life and to all life forms around us. To the extent we have nurtured this friendship with our breath, we can be assured that this friend will come to our aid in any emergency. And if you want to learn how to use your breathing to deal with stress, observe your breath in a stressful situation.

Try to observe the reactions in your body, breath, thoughts and emotions as they arise.
How comfortable are you in your body?
How is your breath? Where can you feel/hear your breath? What is the quality of your breathing?
Are you in control of your thoughts and emotions?
Just observe the complex dynamics of a stress response as you stay with your breath.
At other times, work on lengthening your exhalation systematically. Start with three seconds exhalation, and then go to four seconds, then five seconds till you reach your maximum comfortable exhalation, and maintain it for some time. Practise this as often as possible (not immediately after a meal) so that you develop a stronger relationship with your exhalation.

Try this practice at bedtime:

Sit on the bed with your back straight and eyes closed. Rewind the whole day in your mind’s eye from the present moment backward and look at everything that comes up in your memory. Exhale deeply and let everything drop clearing your mind of all residues from the day. When your exhalation is long and complete, it induces a deep relaxation response in the body and mind. Lie down and have a wonderful sleep!

Wake up feeling fresh and rejuvenated, ready to welcome a new day with a smile!

About the author: Saraswathi Vasudevan is a yoga therapist trainer in the tradition of Sri T Krishnamacharya. She specialises in adapting yoga to the individual. (www.yogavahini.com).

Exhale!

October 2016 (Life Positive Magazine)

Saraswathi Vasudevan reiterates the importance of breath in asana

Somehow, breathing in asana practice has been relegated to the background because of the excessive focus on the body and movements! How to breathe is very important in order to make the practice more efficient and effective! And when we learn how to breathe deeper and fuller, we can also make our pranayama practice more efficient!

We begin with learning how to exhale. Exhalation allows for efficient emptying of the lungs, preparing for a more efficient in-breath. It is said that through good exhalation, we remove more than 70 per cent waste products from the system. In normal unconscious breathing, exhalation is passive but in yogic breathing, we make exhalation more active than inhalation.

Start with a comfortable lying position – preferably with legs bent. Focus on normal breathing for a few minutes, checking if we are breathing naturally – like a baby breathing – abdomen pushed out on inhalation, relaxing on exhalation. Next, initiate a conscious exhalation by drawing the lower abdomen in and up, simultaneously relaxing the chest. It will take some training to gently contract the abdomen muscles inward and upward (without creating any tension in the lower-abdomen-back area), while dropping and relaxing the chest at the same time.

Thirdly, extend the exhalation step by step while keeping inhalation free. This will give us an opportunity to refine the exhalation technique and have better control over it.  Start with 2 seconds  or 3 seconds and slowly extend till you reach your maximum comfortable exhalation. Once you reach your maximum comfortable exhalation – maybe 5-6 seconds – stay with that ratio for 6-10 breaths, further refining your technique of exhalation. You will also observe that your inhalation has also considerably improved in depth, length and smoothness.

Ensure you are not pushing out the lower abdomen during inhalation – which counters your exhalation movement. 

For people with heaviness in the lower abdomen, this technique may be difficult initially as we hardly ever use the lower abdomen muscles to breathe! Also with the constant downward pull of gravity on the abdominal organs and weight gain in that area, this technique does not come so naturally. However, it is a great way to counter the effect of gravity, and prevent or address mild prolapse of bladder, or uterus. It also helps to flatten and relax the lower back with every conscious exhalation – especially for women with deep lordosis (lower back curvature). This technique helps with efficient movement of the diaphragm and provides parasympathetic activation, relaxing the body and mind. Each exhalation is also a detoxifying process.

Tataaka mudra 

Lie down on the mat with your legs stretched, feet close together, arms by the side of the body, chin down, eyes closed. Lock your fingers together and turn your palms out – hands on the abdomen. As you inhale, raise your arms up, fingers locked and stretched, bring the hands to the floor above, palms facing out. Stay in this position and slowly begin to extend exhalation with each breath, drawing the lower abdomen in and up and flattening the lower back. Hold the breath after exhalation for 4-5 seconds with the abdomen in, lower back flat and legs stretched, neck, arms, shoulders relaxed. Stay in this posture for 5-10 breaths before lowering the arms on exhalation. Relax with legs bent.

It helps with better circulation, massaging and detoxifying organs in the abdominal area.

Originally published in Life Positive Magazine.

Farewell to Sir

September 2016 (Life Positive Magazine)
Saraswathi Vasudevan pays rich tribute to her yoga teacher, Sri TKV Desikachar, who passed away recently

On August 8, 2016, at 2.45 am our teacher, Sri TKV Desikachar, “Sir” to all of us, breathed his last. Son of Sri T Krishnamacharya, acclaimed yoga guru of the 20th century, he had been ailing for sometime and we knew that the end was near. Despite this, the pain of losing him is immense and difficult to deal with. As we grieve the loss and try to cope, using all the ways he equipped us with, we also realise that he has left a big part of himself in each one of us to cherish, nurture, preserve and share!

Our teacher was not out in the world, proclaiming great knowledge or demonstrating extraordinary yogic powers. What was most inspiring and endearing about him was his quiet, unassuming nature, clarity of mind, and subtle strength that anybody in his presence could draw from. Over the 17 years I studied with him, he has been available for all of us anytime we wanted his help and support. For a teacher who had students spread across the world, with a busy schedule and strict personal discipline, how he managed to give everybody quality time – one-on-one – is still a great mystery!

Yoga is a “relationship”

What Desikachar lived and taught was a simple, yet profound philosophy. He defined yoga as a “relationship”. “When you establish a heart-to-heart connection with a person, and offer what is appropriate, from that space, healing happens,” he would explain. And we saw this happening all the time.
Whether we went to him with our own problems or witnessed him working with people who came for healing, he always held unwavering attention, reverence and compassion for the person in front of him. It did not matter if it was a playful child, a rebellious teenager, or a sceptic; the person walking out of the consultation room was not the person who entered.

Please don’t get me wrong. I am not talking about faith healing or magic here. My teacher knew how to calm the person and awaken his healing force within most effortlessly. With an almost clairvoyant intuition and absolute precision, he brought in a rare kind of beauty and freshness to the yoga practices he offered each person. Even a simple asana-pranayama routine helped in healing the most complex problems people came in with.

Yoga is resourcefulness

All that he taught, he said, was what he had learnt from his father, quoting his “Appa” often. But we know that the very precise method of course planning in asana, or building ratios in pranayama, or creating highly specific meditative practices for each individual that were creative and quite unconventional, were perhaps his own innovations. He prescribed special diets that he also taught us to cook. He drew from a rich repertoire of tools of yoga, offered with great thoughtfulness, even negotiating with the student rather than imposing. “Yoga is yukti” he would say, “we have to be resourceful!” He taught us to keep this creative spark alive in us so that we could develop the most appropriate practice for a student.

Our teacher could hold so many of us together, inspire us to continue to study, practice and offer only the best of ourselves to our students.

Even when he was ailing and lost to the world, he was, and continues to be, very much alive in our life and work each day. When I receive a student into my class, I remember how he would greet and make somebody meeting him for the first time feel so much at ease! When he walked with them to the gate after the session and said goodbye, he left people feeling they had already overcome most of their hurdles!

About the author : Saraswathi Vasudevan is a yoga therapist trainer in the tradition of Sri T Krishnamacharya. She specialises in adapting yoga to the individual. (www.yogavahini.com).

Originally published in Life Positive Magazine.

Temper the 'pause'

August 2016 (Life Positive Magazine)

By Saraswathi Vasudevan

Saraswathi Vasudevan draws up a yogic regimen to ease the pain of menopause

I wonder if yoga teachers/therapists two generations ago had to deal with menopause-related issues! Today, if you are lucky, you glide through these years quietly and uneventfully, but most women struggle through various levels of physical, physiological and psychological disturbances. From hot flushes, sleep disturbances, stiffness in joints, exacerbation of pain, migraines, mood swings, anxiety, depression, weight gain, each person's experience of perimenopause/menopause can be very different, and sometimes highly disruptive, affecting one's quality of life.

Thankfully through a regular and intense asana-pranayama practice with attention to diet and lifestyle, we can possibly get through menopause with minimal discomfort. When I say intense, please don't assume it is about doing several rounds of surya namaskar! In fact, during peri menopause/menopause, excessive physical movements will aggravate vata (imbalance in the wind element).

Here are a few guidelines for practice:

Start with some breathing practice like sitali (inhaling through the tongue with sides rolled like a tube/through the mouth like drawing through a straw while raising the head, exhaling through nostrils while lowering chin to the chest). Sitali helps with hot flushes by cooling the system.

Spend 20 minutes with an active standing practice including back arches, twists, lateral stretches, forward bends, sequences like surya namaskar ? always moving into and out of postures with regulated breathing. Keep inhalation at least 4-5 seconds and exhalation longer than inhalation. Movements have to be coordinated with the breath.

A short lying rest to relax the spine and legs can be followed by lying postures with extended exhalation and hold after exhalation. If accompanied with active contraction of lower abdomen, it will help regulate functions of the apanavayu and keep the lower abdominal area light and toned. Inversions like viparitakarani or sarvangasana will also help. After lying postures and inversions, back arches in prone position will help strengthen the back and legs and compensate for inversions. Spend at least 20 minutes with forward bends, back arches, twists and lateral stretches in seated/kneeling positions to keep the spine, hips and lower abdomen supple and strong. Again, extended exhalation and holding the breath after exhalation will help improve the functions of the postures.

Eat warm, cooked food that is less spicy and sour and only when hungry. Avoid snacking or binging. Salads and dry foods which have a tendency to increase vata (wind element) will increase many of the symptoms. Walking or swimming can also help with improving your sleep, and keeping a check on weight gain. Avoid any intense physical activity after 8 pm at night.

Janu Sirsasana

This is considered important for many menstrual issues as well as during menopause. Sit with your back straight, legs stretched forward. Fold one leg placing the foot against the opposite thigh. Raise both arms from front on inhalation, extending the spine up. On exhalation, bend forward towards the stretched leg and hold the foot, slowing with extended inhalation and exhalation. Try to reach the forehead to the knees. Spine is stretched, abdomen contracted, leg stretched, especially calves and ankle. Stay for 10-16 breaths on each side. This posture helps regulate the apanavayu in the lower abdomen, keeps the organs in the abdomen healthy, and keeps the spine and hips supple. It also stretches the ankles, which will prevent/address heel pain, a common menopause symptom. This posture also checks weight gain around the abdominal area.

About the author : Saraswathi Vasudevan is a yoga therapist trainer in the tradition of Sri T Krishnamacharya. She specialises in adapting yoga to the individual. (www.yogavahini.com).

Published: Life Positive 

The sacred circle

Life Positive 

June 2016

By Saraswathi Vasudevan

On the occasion of International Yoga Day, Saraswathi Vasudevan advocates an immersion in the foundational yama-niyama through the formation of supportive sanghas, before moving full throttle into asanas.

Now that the whole world is going gaga over yoga, and yoga practitioners often sport a halo over their heads, it will be good to revisit the question of why we are doing what we are doing with yoga. As a yoga teacher and practitioner, this is something I have to ask myself everyday so that I don’t get swept off my feet with the frenzy of “yogic” activities we seem to be consumed with all the time!

What is our goal in yoga?

At the highest level, yoga is about being established in our true nature: to understand that we are in essence the imperishable, pure Self. This appears to be a distant dream, even beyond our imagination. So we have to begin with realistic goals that are tangible at some level. It may be that we want to improve our health and well-being, reduce stress, or acquire peace of mind and clarity. And these actually unfold quite effortlessly, if we practice regularly. However, if we were to stop there, we would stagnate or even regress. For many of us, despite our search for happiness and the avoidance of pain, our yoga journey can often taper off inconclusively.

A more diligent practitioner is no better off! In doing my asana practice with great zeal, I could get obsessed and indulgent with my body. In practising meditation, I could get attached to the identity of a “meditator” and build barriers around me, separating the very “special” me from the “ordinary” world! We could get so strongly identified with our “practices”, “mantra”,  “tradition”, “guru”, even with the accessories of yoga, that what is meant to liberate us actually traps us!

So it is absolutely important for any serious seeker to know if she is on the right track…

Am I moving in the right direction? What are the signposts on the path of yoga?

Patanjali, the author of Yoga Sutra, expounds the fundamental principles of right action through the concept of yama and niyama. Yamas are boundaries of right action and engagement with the world. Non-violence, honesty, non-stealing, seeking the highest truth, non-grasping are the five yamas. Niyamas are personal observances that, when practised constantly and consistently, will facilitate the yamas. Purity of body and mind, contentment, austerity, study and self-reflection and surrendering to Divinity are the five niyamas.

Are my feelings, thoughts, actions and responses to the world in alignment to what I am seeking through yoga?

Do you know that while Patanjali has only allocated three sutras out of 195 for asana, he has talked about the yama-niyama in 18 sutras?! It is not that asana is irrelevant, but that yama-niyama are of paramount importance. Without cultivating these character-building qualities, there is no yoga (union with the Divine)! But how conveniently we have magnified the physical aspect, and allowed it to eclipse the yama-niyama!

How do we practise yama-niyama? Is it really possible to be established in them?

Yama-niyama are to be practised each day, but we are not expected to perfect them overnight. These are habits of the mind and character traits that will take lifetimes to perfect. Unfortunately, in our zeal to prove that we have “arrived”,  we suppress, or deflect feelings, thoughts or even actions that run counter to them. Our unwillingness to look at ourselves separates us from our deeper self and forces us to sport a façade of false piety! Even more deviously, we engage in intellectual discussions about yama-niyama, convert them into attractive slogans, or into instructions with which to terrorise others. We are very good at making others do what we ourselves cannot or will not.

The soft target is always the other! Even before I understand what non-violence is, I want the other to treat me with unconditional kindness. Even if I have only just set off on the road to truthfulness, I already expect others to be unconditionally honest and trustworthy towards me. One of my teachers once wrote in jest: “I fully believe in ahimsa, nobody should hurt me”.

Our incapacity to work on ourselves emerges from our desire for pleasure and aversion to pain. And that keeps us stuck!

What is the way out?

Patanjali uses the word swadhyaya – study and self-reflection. Unless yoga practices are coupled with self-reflection, they can spell danger not just to the practitioner, but to others too, who have to tolerate and live with the self-obsessed “more evolved beings”!

Self-reflection is not self-analysis or self-judgement! It is to learn to honestly look into ourselves, and maintain a non-judgmental awareness of everything that is happening in the moment. It also means becoming aware of our thoughts, intentions and feelings, listening to ourselves when we think and speak, taking responsibility for our actions and inactions.

And for this we require the support of a strong sangha – spiritual community.

And we also need to create contexts for this exploration that will help us cultivate the yama-niyama. We need to take time off from our frenzied activity, regularly and periodically. We need to create a quiet space within our sangha that we do not fill with mindless activity and chatter. We need to make this space safe and nourishing for each other.

In this sacred space:

Can we bring to this circle our experiences and insights from practice, our gifts as well as our struggles?

Can we practice equity and self-disclosure, without the fear of judgment and rejection?

Can we listen with compassion and learn to reflect for each other what we may be blind to within ourselves?

Can our sharing help to break illusions of being more or less evolved, and give hope and inspiration for all of us?

This deep work, of course, has to be actively supported by our daily practice. Right practice of asana is meant to reduce rajas and improve our tolerance. Pranayama reduces the heaviness of tamas, sensory and mental indulgence. Meditative practices help in sharpening the mind to stay with our enquiry. Such a mind can observe the inner and outer realities without much distortion. Such a mind is aware of our feelings, intentions, thoughts, actions and reactions, while assuming active responsibility. Only such a mind can practice yama-niyama and inspire others too!

Even if it is painful, it is important to stay with the yamas and niyamas. Through this work of shifting and changing our thoughts, feelings and behavior, we become the person we are meant to be; or rather, we let go of the person we are not. We slowly learn to recalibrate our aspirations and expectations. We see more and more that it is not about having the right answers, but staying with important questions. It is not so much about “doing the right thing” but enquiring into our compulsions for unwholesome actions. We slowly begin to understand what the yama-niyamas mean and this very understanding helps us to refine our thoughts, intentions and actions.

Together, we can work towards creating a more wholesome life that is reflected in all our thoughts, actions and responses to life situations. Such active, practising communities are the need of the hour. As a collective, when we shift our focus from result to quality of actions, from purpose to meaning, yoga comes alive… and a better world is born.

The Gift of Yoga Therapy

Working in the amazing field of yoga therapy, we come across not only miraculous recovery stories but also witness profound transformation of the human spirit. A gift and a privilege to stand at the threshold of somebody’s healing experience, to feel their joy and gratitude, once again affirming, “Yes, yoga works!”

Krishnamacharya said, “if you can breathe, you can do yoga” and that is the scope of yoga therapy. A field that is emerging and gaining prominence around the world as more and more people begin to see how yoga can impact our health and life in such powerful ways and provide sustainable solutions to the problems of mankind.

This article summarises the basic principles and process of yoga therapy for maintaining a healthy body and mind, preventing illness and imbalance and supporting healing when illness takes over.

The Yogi and healer

The healing science of yoga must be as old as yoga itself. All great yogis were themselves healers. In an ancient prayer to Patanjali (the author of Yoga Sutra, the earliest and most authoritative text on yoga), he is venerated for three important contributions to mankind: yoga for the mind, grammar for speech and vaidya sastra (Ayurveda) for the body.

While yoga is very popular around the world, there is a lot of confusion around the various application modalities of yoga. In ancient times, all these practices were well streamlined with a clear purpose, specific tools and means of application. Children were taught active, dynamic practices (Srsti krama) taking into account their needs and potentials, progressing to young, healthy adulthood where practices were designed to be very intense and challenging (Siksana krama). When the person becomes a householder with less time and more commitments, practices were designed to protect and sustain what they have already achieved earlier (Raksana krama) and slowly one progresses towards higher spiritual pursuits (Adhyatmika krama).

According to Patanjali, vyadhi (illness) is considered an obstacle for spiritual progress and hence one of the main goals of yoga practice is to remove these obstacles that impede spiritual growth. Yoga therapy (Cikitsa krama) is therefore an important application of yoga where specific therapeutic needs are addressed so that one can overcome obstacles to spiritual progress. It is hence a very highly evolved system of healing with a very strong spiritual component that cannot be separated from it.

 Personalised Yoga Therapy

Since each individual is special and unique, his/her therapeutic needs are also specific and unique. Yoga therapy addresses these unique and changing needs of each individual at all levels – physical, physiological, mental, emotional and the deeper spiritual. The complex canvas of a person’s life begins to unfold only when we learn to step beyond the conventional scientific paradigm that is disease-centric. Yoga therapy offers a 360-degree perspective of the person, inside-out – figuratively and literally.

Being a complimentary system of health, it works very well in tandem with main-stream medical system or any alternative healing modality.  Unlike conventional medicine, it provides the person an opportunity to take responsibility and participate actively in their healing and recovery. The main focus in yoga therapy is to influence the mind – even the smallest shift in the state of mind of an individual opens up immense possibilities for healing and inner growth.

The Therapeutic Process

         How does a yoga therapist work with a student ?

1. An initial consultation will help the therapist to understand the individual at all levels – physical, physiological, mental, emotional, their personality and life circumstances and also the impact of the illness at all these levels.
2. In consultation with the student, set clear goals to be achieved in the process – both short term and long term.
3. Select appropriate tools and techniques and suitably adapt them to address the individual’s abilities, requirements and circumstances.
4. Design effective practices for the person that can be integrated into their daily routine
5. Suggest appropriate lifestyle and dietary changes to support healing
6. Check progression, making appropriate changes over time to address higher goals
7. Guide the person to a state of better health and well-being
8. Empower the individual to take responsibility for their own health
9. Instill confidence and strength to deal with road-blocks and obstacles of any nature that might stall or delay the healing process.

A minimum of 3 to 4 sessions per month spread over a period of 6 months can take care of setting off the person on the healing journey. Following this period, a periodical review (once a months) and progression with practice is of course essential to incorporate changing needs and movement towards higher goals. Depending on the condition, how severe or chronic it is, frequency of sessions may vary. It is important to understand that the steps can vary from person to person, condition to condition and life circumstances.

When somebody comes with, let us say, back pain:

•         the first goal is to relax the person physically and mentally and reduce pain
•         next step will be to improve mobility and flexibility,
•         then to strengthen the back and associated structures,
•         then maintain that strength and flexibility

This might progress from a few weeks to months. Once the person has achieved so much, then regular practice can help him maintain what he has achieved. Ideally, the student becomes less and less dependent on the therapist. With regular practice, they develop better awareness and understanding of their system, their strengths and challenges and are able to use their strengths to overcome potential challenges with a little guidance from the therapist.

The role of the Therapist

The role of the therapist in healing is very important. While a yoga teacher works with individuals or groups teaching suitable practices for health & wellbeing or spiritual progress, a yoga therapist uses yoga as a tool to aid in recovery from ill health. When somebody comes to a therapist, they are not coming to learn yoga; they are coming for relief from pain and suffering. The technique or tool is not important here, the individual is. The therapist should hence be equipped with a sound knowledge base in therapeutic application, be able to assess and understand the individual and also know how to apply the tools of yoga and guide the person through the path of recovery. A strong desire to help some one in pain is of course, the basic prerequisite.

But know that the therapist is not the healer. He/she is only a guide, a catalyst in the healing process, and a very privileged witness to the transformation. His/her strength does not lie in knowledge of postures and techniques alone. That is like giving a layperson a set of surgical tools and asking her to perform a complicated surgery.  The skill of the surgeon (here, the therapist), lies in how intelligently he/she uses the tools. Krishnamacharya called Yoga Cikitsa  “Asastra sastra cikitsa” meaning “surgery without instruments”. More important than the tools is the ability of the therapist to understand and utilize the unique strengths hidden within each individual for the healing process. The therapist also holds a safe and loving space for the healing to happen. A non-judgmental attitude, patience, humility and an immense faith in the strength of the student to heal herself is the skill-set of the therapist.

Becoming a Yoga Therapist

 Training to become a yoga therapist is a very intensive process involving:

• basic training in the fundamentals of yoga philosophy and practice
• study of human anatomy & physiology
• study of principles of Ayurveda, Ayurvedic understanding of the human system, diagnosis and approach for maintenance of good health and therapy
• learn how to observe and understand an individual at physical, physiological, mental, emotional and the deeper spiritual levels,
• study pathology of all common illnesses and how they impact at different levels
• how to modify/adapt the tools and techniques of yoga to address the needs of a specific individual with a particular combination of problems. 
• how to design effective practices and teach them
• how to guide the student progressively through the process of recovery.

Healing is never complete if it does not pervade and impact the entire human structure – that includes physical, physiological, intellectual, emotional, behavioral and spiritual dimensions. At every level, you see the challenges and also discover the hidden strengths - valuable inner resources that can be deployed appropriately to heal. Illness is hence both an obstacle and an opportunity to transform our lives. Healing itself is the process of transformation, where you not only learn to reduce the symptoms, and deal with the cause but also discover a whole range of thought/emotional/belief/behavioral patterns that have been holding the illness and its many ramifications in place. You then learn to systematically disentangle yourself from these binding forces.

The process of healing in yoga is therefore not just rewarding in the sense of getting rid of a problem, it is an interesting and most exciting exploration of your life, so that you can slowly peel off those unwholesome, unhealthy layers that have hidden your inner light from yourself.

Just like a skilled surgeon or master craftsman, a yoga therapist can bring alive the most simple tools and techniques with such ingenuity and care that inner healing and transformation happens almost effortlessly.

The making of a Yoga Acharya: process and milestones

There is a myth that a yoga teacher has to be a symbol of perfection, we have to “look” like a yoga teacher, be always happy and smiling, peaceful and grounded and very “wise” (certainly not in the worldly way of course). I had no idea of all this when I got into learning and teaching yoga. It was a sheer accident and still remains an interesting mystery of how it all happened. I was a good student in school and college, and did well with the yoga studies too… the intellectual kind who could effortlessly pick up threads from the sutras and make beautiful yoga stick figures on paper (still far from doing them on the mat). It was not until years later that I actually understood what being a teacher actually means!

To know what makes you a good yoga teacher, we don’t have to look beyond the first word of the first sutra of the first chapter of the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali: Atha.

Are you ready to take up this study?

It is not the readiness in terms of the time and resources you have in hand, that is only a small part of it. It is not the intellectual curiosity you maybe holding, “let me see what is in it for me…” It is not even the desire to learn yoga and “walk the path”, which is of course important.

It is the readiness and willingness to now move inward, exploring the uncharted territories of the mind-body complex; taking responsibility for all our actions and experiences. Letting go of blaming and complaining about how the world is treating you. Letting go of also self-reproach and guilt, rather being willing to transform these negative energies into productive action, ready to be in the “here and now” and taking responsibility to create a better future.

So, the question is, are you really ready?

And if you are, the very first commitment we need to make is time for yourself: for your personal practice. I never understood the value of it when I started studying yoga, except for the excitement of learning new postures and techniques. Since I was not the very flexible kind, it often frustrated me to see, in comparison, how well others can do it.

In this tradition, each trainee works with a mentor who will assess and design a very unique and special practice for the person taking into account his/her physical constitution, flexibility, strength, mental-emotional patterns, time availability and when they can practice during the day.

After each session with the mentor, I remember the joy and excitement of carrying home a fresh, new practice that will now take me a step ahead, progressively getting better and deeper into the experience of yoga. The integration of body-breath- mind slowly begin to play to secret magic into your being. The energy levels got better, aches and pains diminish, self-awareness improves, reactivity reduces and you can actually experience more peace and joy.

Today, when I look back, I wish I had been more serious about my personal practice then. The study of the Yoga Sutra is perhaps the most fascinating part of the study quenching and creating more intellectual curiosity. After dabbling for years in Sanskrit definitions and concepts that made me “appear” very intelligent, I finally got down into the actual essence of the teachings which was and still is mind-boggling. I can’t have enough of it.

Layer after layer opens up deeper meanings and possibilities… so much lies beneath, waiting to be discovered! Learning classical postures and techniques helped to understand meanings from which the function of a posture is derived and how to intelligently adapt or modify a posture or pranayama technique to address a very specific and unique need of the student and achieve a desired function. The skill of a surgeon and creativity of an artist comes into play here.

Yoga borrows heavily from Ayurveda the understanding of the human constitution, how to create individualized diet and life style changes that will help harmonize the energies within. It becomes exciting to study the basis of Sankhya philosophy that underpins yoga and Ayurveda and discover that the mind and body share a unified field of existence, cannot be addressed in isolation, and how every aspect of the universe is connected and striving to progress in a state of dynamic equilibrium. The question of personal and universal dharma and the quest for an integral balance arises.

Meditation as a process of refining and concentrating the mind, methods and techniques and beyond these methods and techniques, touching and experiencing glimpses of insight – from that part of the mind which is beyond thought is exciting!

Course planning helps to integrate the tools and techniques into a meaningful structure for practice that can be progressively adapted to changing needs and goals. It is in deed very exciting to see the progress in the student at all levels.

Understanding the Yama, Niyama and learning to apply the understanding in daily life often brought up great excitement and resistance and as a community working with these attitudes and boundaries has been quite intensive and also fun!

Exploring the connection with God, presented as the highest teacher, Ishvara, by Patanjali and toying with the “idea” of surrender has been frustrating and frightening. When we let go of the “ideas”, perhaps the real surrender can happen?

The entire repertoire of tools and techniques yoga offers and playing around with them and remembering to reconnect with the breath, our life line and learning to listen to its wisdom and knowing that this is more important than “doing” something right… a reality check.

The training is a life long process though the course comes to an end in 12 months. The desire to learn and grow keeps our practice and teaching alive.

The milestones are:

Am I now more connected with my body, can I understand and respect my body more?

Is my conscious breath long, deep and subtle? Can I allow my breath to guide me into the present moment, and help me understand my current reality?

Do I have the necessary skills to teach, observe, adapt practices to the changing needs of the student?

Am I willing to learn from the students, accept and work on my apparent limitations?

Can my mind be open to learning and unlearning? Can I hold my thoughts, my “borrowed” knowledge and beliefs lightly?

Has my threshold for reactivity gone up? Am I now aware of my judgments?

Can I go beyond my self and touch another person’s pain? Can I feel true love and compassion?

Am a ready to continue to learn and evolve my skills and my practice knowing that this is just the beginning?

Dealing with Stress through Yoga

Stress reduction through yoga is not just about relaxation practices as it is commonly understood. In one of my consultations, I was listening to a student who was suffering from so much stress. The source of her stress was her great aunt who seemed to have such a strong control over this girl.

This aunt was over 90 years, recovering from a broken hip, completely dependent on my friend, always “complaining, clinging and trying to control me”. She was visiting her aunt everyday (while holding a full-time job, taking care of her family) and every visit was getting more and more unbearable for her. She said, “when I am with my aunt, my skin starts to burn all over and I am full of anger and negative thoughts”. She was aware that this is not something she can put up with longer considering her health history of just having recovered from cancer a few years ago. 

“How can I deal with this situation? What practices can help me cope with this burning of skin and stress?” For her it is her great aunt, for somebody else it could be a mother-in-law, partner, boss, teacher, parental conflict or illness, financial problems or just any issues in life that impose enormous strain on the psyche that gets reflected on the body through myriad range of illnesses. Most often, we need a diagnosis even to recognize that the body has been ravaged by the stress.

But is the source of stress really only outside? Can it be countered just with relaxation practices? While we continue to fight in our mind with whatever is happening in our life at the same time try to fix issues with our health that are cropping up from time to time, we are just allowing the wound to fester within and attempt to heal the pain.

Yoga addresses stress through a multi-pronged approach. Becoming aware of the problem and its impact on the body, breath and mind and how it creates a ripple effect into our immediate environment affecting life style, relationships, work etc.,

Acceptance of the reality, coming to terms with it is an important step towards resolution of the problem. For example, this student struggling with her aunt’s behavior had to first understand that her aunt cannot be expected to change her ways, not at 90, not with all the issues she has and the insecurity she must be experiencing that has led to the clinging-controlling behaviour.

The next step would to learn how to clear the conflict ridden mind and relax the body through actions that are positive and most appropriate. For this person, it is about reclaiming her personal space and time, moderating her energy expenditure and knowing and communicating clearly what is beneficial for herself and her aunt. 

Practices to help release the tension accumulated in the body and clearing the mind so that it can perceive with better clarity and enjoy some peace. It will involve working with asana (again addressing the specific needs of the body and personality, not any practice). Using the breath actively in asana is imperative to achieve any substantial change at the physical, physiological and especially mental- emotional level. 

Pranayama practices help us connect more deeply with the breath, our most intimate friend and ally in healing.

In asana and pranayama, varying the breath ratio has different effects, whether you want to be energized or want relaxation for body and mind. Body being the receptacle for all our experiences in life, we need to pay special attention to those parts which tend to accumulate a lot of tension like the neck, shoulders & upper back, also precipitated by a sedentary desk job.

Those who don’t have time for an active practice in the morning (being very stressed out also means “I am running against time” right?) will benefit from a 20-30 min. evening practice before dinner or bedtime (at least 2 hours after dinner, which means you have an early dinner). The evening practice comprises of seated and lying postures with focus on extending the exhalation. Relaxing the eyes, and gentle movements for the shoulders, elbows, wrists, finger joints, neck, spine and legs help release the accumulated tension especially for computer professionals people on the move most of the day. 

Long exhalation activates the parasympathetic nervous system countering the sympathetic domination that happens in stress response. Through exhalation we can intend and choose to release all the negative thoughts, emotions & judgments from the system, clear your body and mind and drift off into a blissful state of sleep. Wake up feeling fresh, rejuvenated and looking forward to a new day. Each day, this way can be a gift.

Yes, stress can be a great source of wisdom, and a motivation for change. It teaches you what is most important in life. But the question is, are you ready? Are you ready to take charge of your life? Take responsibility for your state of health, quality of life? Or do you want to continue to blame the outside circumstances for your suffering?

Yoga is a state of mind, a mind that is calm, unperturbed and clear. A mind that can perceive with clarity, take right decisions and direct the most appropriate actions. The usual monkey mind requires training, practice has to be regular (daily) and uninterrupted. A free mind has free will, it can make choices. It means, in any moment, I can choose peace instead of conflict or argument. Good health is more than fitness, it is this state of mind that is peaceful and clear. 

Yoga philosophy and practice urges us to grow in this inner strength and resilience so that we can deal with any eventuality in life, develop immunity to stress-inducing situations.