Asanas (Postures):
If you ask most people what comes to mind when they first think of yoga, they might respond by saying, “a person sitting in the lotus position, with the palms of their hands facing toward the sky.” There is good reason for this. But postures need not to be tough or hard to practice. Any pose which you can hold with comfort & stability is a posture. Proper postures (or asana, in Sanskrit) are hugely important for achieving mindfulness.
Our bodies are almost always in a state of restlessness. Endocrine glands secrete countless biochemicals called hormones; and their permutation and combination determine how you feel and, frequently, how you act. If you do not take charge of these secretions, they will take charge of you. Your body is the most essential tool for achieving your goals, but too many people default to letting their hormones rule and thus the body becomes an obstacle rather than a vehicle. The spirit might be willing but the hormones will rule. Therefore, it is very important to take mastery of the body.
Yoga, drawing upon thousands-year-old mystic knowledge, provides a tool—asanas—to channel those hormonal secretions and thus take control of your body. Once you’ve learned various asanas, you will feel a huge improvement in the way your body talks to you. Your body will have more respect for your mind. Your body will stop preventing you from achieving your goals and will instead become your accomplice in helping you to achieve these goals.
Therefore, practicing specific, prescribed asanas is essential in the practice of meditation. And despite all the various postures you see practitioners assume, they all share three points of focus: stability, comfort and balance.
Maintain stability, balance and comfort in your physical posture, and stability and composure of mind will follow.
Pranayama (Breath Control):
चले वाते चलं चित्तं निश्चले निश्चलं भवेत् ।
योगी स्थाणुत्वम् आप्नोति ततो वायुं निरोधयेत् ॥
cale vāte calaṁ cittaṁ niścale niścalaṁ bhavet
yogī sthāṇutvam āpnoti tato vāyuṁ nirodhayet.
Translation: When breathing is unsteady, mind is also unsteady. But when the breath is steady, the mind attains steadiness. Then, one attains long and healthy life. Therefore, the yogi should practice Pranayama.
Breath is fuel for life. And like other fuels, the more refined it is, the more potent it becomes; yielding improved performance. The quality of your breath determines quality of your life. Pranayama (breathing exercises) fills your body with new energy. (Many brand new yoga students express surprise that simple breathing exercises turbocharge their well-being immediately!) As you develop more breath control you will find that your body and mind share this new energy, simultaneously. Your mind and breath are closely connected. As your breath is refined and your body filled with new vigour, you will feel negative thoughts, emotions and moods drain away. The more you train your breath to fuel your mind, the easier and more rewarding the practice will be.
Meditation/Transcendence:
We are all floating in an ocean of vibrations. Countless subtle vibrations across the entire universe control everything, including our bodies and mind. At the same time, we are all very tied tightly to our own egos. And hanging on to that ego—or false sense of control—inserts an almost insurmountable roadblock along the road to mindfulness. Through postures, breathing and meditation, you can learn to unleash your ego and resonate harmonically with all the vibrations around you. This state is called transcendence; and once you’ve achieved transcendence, you can tap into your limitless and fearless self. When you let go of your ego and cede yourself over to the bigger power outside the ego, you will find serenity. Immense inner reserves of energy open within you.
