Posts Tagged ‘True Nature’
Top 5 Yoga Myths
It is not surprising to those of us who are long time yoga practitioners that the popularity of this profound spiritual science is now exploding on a world wide scale. Unfortunately though some of the authenticity and truths about yoga are being lost and some myths are creeping in with regard to what yoga is and how it is to be practiced. In this article I will look to clear up what I find to be the top 5 myths about yoga.
Top 5 Myths About Yoga:
1. Yoga is a Form of Physical Exercise:
This is perhaps the most common view of yoga. That it is a form of physical exercise. This certainly needs to be clarified and I am going to provide some details about right yoga practice in order to do this.
Yoga is really has 8 parts to it, with the physical aspect being just 1. These 8 parts, include yoga dos, yoga don’ts, physical exercises (asana), breathing exercises, sense control, concentration, meditation and divine union.
So you can see from above that although the physical aspect of yoga, which is called asana, is an vital part of yoga, yoga as a whole is certainly more that just a series of postures and movements. Yoga is essentially a spiritual science whose objective is to still the mind of thoughts, so that the truth of Oneness hidden behind the waves of the mind can be clearly seen and embraced.
2. Yoga is a Religion:
The other extreme and incorrect view on yoga is that is it a religion. Commonly yoga is considered part of Hindu religion, but yoga is not a religion. It is a time tested spiritual science with the goal of revealing the right nature of reality. As indicated above, yoga practice is a step by step process with the end goal of calming down the thought waves in our mind and thus prevent them from distorting the truth.
3. To Practice Yoga You Must be Vegetarian:
There is a notion floating around that in order to practice yoga you must not eat meat and be a vegetarian. This is not right. Although there are tremendous benefits to being vegetarian and this is being more and more validated by the mainstream medical community, there is no requirement of vegetarianism in order to practice yoga.
One point I want to add here is that, vegetarianism is consistent with the non-violence which yoga advocates and it certainly would be to your benefit to reduce meat intake, nevertheless, you don’t have to be vegetarian in order to be a fantastic yogi.
4. You Need to be Initiated by a Guru:
I have also come across this notion that many believe you need to be initiated and have a guru in order to learn and practice yoga. This is not right. According to yoga, the right guru is within and although it would be to your benefit to learn yoga from an accomplished teacher, this is not a requirement.
5. You Have to be Flexible to do Yoga:
Not so. No doubt yoga will improve your flexibility, along with your strength, balance and overall health, but in order to practice yoga you do not have to be flexible. Yoga is designed to be practiced by all.
Different bodies have different degrees of flexibility and in this case one size does not fit all. For most of the complex yoga posture which require fantastic flexibility to do, there are plenty of modifications which allow you to get the same benefits for those who are less flexible. In fact one of the original reasons I took up yoga because I was not flexible and wanted to improve this aspect of my physical dimension.
Summary:
So there you have the top 5 myths about yoga. Essentially, what these myths do is prevent people from taking up this wonderful science. So if you feel you will have to change faiths, find gurus, stop eating meat or are too inflexible to take up yoga practice, you are incorrect. Don’t pass up the wonderful opportunity to learn and practice this incredible science, which helps you learn your right divine and eternal nature.
By: Anmol Mehta
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Jhana Yoga
Jhana yoga is a form of meditation that allows you to reach enlightenment, with fantastic practice you can obtain this state of mind all the time. This is a type of knowledge and understanding for you to live by using you’re energy, thought, emotions in a more effective way.
What is this enlightenment and how you find it. They say enlightenment is to follow the path of truth. People search everywhere for the right path, but they forget to start within themselves first. Not looking in your thoughts, but in your heart. When you find the truth within your heart, you’ll then find it in life and as well as in the universe. We can find truth by observation, looking through the heart and letting it lead you into meditation where your mind is in a peaceful state of being.
This is a very hard form of meditation to constantly achieve and it can only come from practicing deep self-inquiry. In doing so, you will learn to know the right nature of our mind and go beyond what you perceive as reality. Learn to live moment by moment and all the truth in that moment alone.
Meditation originated from Asian religious practices, in India, China and Japan. There is no specific date recorded, but it is rooted back to ancient times with techniques dating from over 5000 years ago, even dated back in the Bible with Moses. Its purpose was for religious believes and the health factors that come with it.
Buddha was the first to make an icon in meditation, around 500 B.C. Then the Easter-styles of meditation expanded; Buddhist, Hinduism even Christianity. They still practice strongly to this day. It didn’t become well loved in the West till the 1960’s and 1970’s. That’s when it vastly expanded into many different forms as we know of them today.
By: Sarah Freeland
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