THE MIND, BODY AND SOUL (IMPORTANT LIMBS OF MEDITATION)

PRANAYAMA , PRATYAHARA AND DHYANA YOGA

💫❤💫

❤ PRANAYAMA ❤

<script async='async' src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-609EYHS62T'/>

<script>

window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];

function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}

gtag('js', new Date());

gtag('config', 'G-609EYHS62T');

GENERALLY TRANSLATED AS BREATH CONTROL, THIS FOURTH STAGE CONSISTS OF TECHNIQUE DESIGNED TO GAIN MASTERY OVER THE RESPIRATORY PROCESS WHILE RECOGNIZING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE BREATH, THE MIND, AND THE EMOTIONS. AS IMPLIED BY THE LITERAL TRANSLATION OF PRANAYAMA, "LIFE FORCE EXTENSION". YOGIS BELIEVE THAT IT NOT ONLY REJUVENATES THE BODY BUT ACTUALLY EXTENDS LIFE ITSELF. PRANAYAMA IS MADE OUT OF TWO SANSKRIT WORDS "PRANA" (BREATH) AND AYAMA (RESTRAINING, EXTENDING, STRETCHING).

PRANAYAMA IS THE PERFECT CONTROL OF THE LIFE-CURRENTS THROUGH CONTROL OF BREATH, AND IS THE PROCESS BY WHICH WE UNDERSTAND THE SECRET OF PRANA AND MANIPULATE IT. YOU CAN HARDLY MAKE ANY SPIRITUAL PROGRESS WITHOUT THE PRACTICE OF PRANAYAMA. ONE WHO HAS GRASPED THIS PRANA HAS GRASPED THE VERY CORE OF COSMIC LIFE AND ACTIVITY. THROUGH VARIOUS EXERCISES AND TRAINING IN PRANAYAMA THE YOGI TRIES TO REALIZE IN THIS LITTLE BODY THE WHOLE OF COSMIC LIFE, AND ATTAIN PERFECTION.

BREATH IS A PHYSICAL ASPECT OR EXTERNAL MANIFESTATION OF PRANA, THE VIRAL FORCE, AND THUS PRANAYAMA BEGINS WITH THE REGULATION OF THE BREATH. STUDIES HAVE REVEALED THAT THE RATE AT WHICH ONE BREATHES VARIES WITH THE KIND OF EMOTION ONE EXPERIENCES OR ACTIVITIES INVOLVED. FOR INSTANCE, THE RATE OF BREATHING VARIES WHEN ONE IS UNDER INFLUENCE OF ANGER, FEELS LUSTFUL, SCARED, CONFIDENT ETC. SIMILARLY DIFFERENT EMOTIONS ALSO CONTROL THE RATE OF BREATHING SUCH AS LOVE, JEALOUSY, ENMITY, ETC. BREATH, LIKE ELECTRICITY, IS GROSS PRANA, WHILE PRANA ITSELF IS SUBTLE. BY CONTROLLING THE BREATH YOU CAN CONTROL THE PRANA - JUST AS YOU CAN CONTROL THE OTHER WHEELS BY CONTROLLING OR STOPPIG THE FLY WHEEL OF A DIESEL ENGINE, AND JUST AS YOU CAN CONTROL THE HAIRSPRING, COG WHEELS AND THE MAIN SPRING OF A WATCH BY CONTROLLING THE MINUTE HAND.

CONTROL OF BREATH IS ACHIEVED THROUGH MANIPULATION OF THE LUNGS AND THE BREATHING PROCESS. THE PROCESS CAN CONTROL WHAT WE FEEL AND THE RESULTANT ACTIONS. NO WONDER, PRANAYAMA IS CONSIDERED AS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LIMBS OF YOGA.

❤ PRATYAHARA ❤

PRATYAHARA, THE FIFTH LIMB, MEANS WITHDRAWAL OR SENSORY TRANSCENDENCE. PRATYAHARA IS A COMBINATION OF TWO SANSKRIT WORDS PRATI (TOWARDS) AND AHARA (BRING NEAR, FETCH). PRATYAHARA IS ALL ABOUT FETCHING AND BRINGING NEAR ONE'S AWARENESS COMBINED WITH ONE'S THOUGHTS TO WITHIN. IT CAN BE EXPLAINED AS A PROCESS OF WITHDRAWING ONE'S THOUGHTS FROM VARIOUS EXTERNAL OBJECTS, THINGS, PERSON, SITUATION ETC. PRATYAHARA ALSO TURNS ONE'S ATTENTION TO ONE'S TRUE SELF, OE'S INNER WORLD LEADING TO THE PROCESS OF EXPERIENCING AND ASSESSING SELF.

IT IS DURING THIS STAGE THAT WE MAKE THE CONSCIOUS EFFORTS TO DRAW OUR AWARENESS AWAY FROM THE EXTERNAL WORLD AND OUTSIDE STIMULI. KEENLY AWARE OF, YET CULTIVATING A DETACHMENT FROM OUR SENSES, WE DIRECT OUR ATTENTION INTERNALLY. PRATYAHARA PRACTICE PROMISE A CHANCE TO STEP BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT OURSELVES. THIS WITHDRAWAL FACILITATES OBSERVING ONE'S CRAVINGS. HABITS THAT MAY BE DEVASTATING TO HEALTH AND INTERFACE WITH ONE'S INNER GROWTH.

PRATYAHARA MARKS THE TRANSITION OF YOGA EXPERIENCE FROM FIRST FOUR LIMBS THAT PERFECT EXTERNAL FORMS TO LAST THREE LIMBS THAT PERFECT INNER STATE, FROM OUTSIDE TO INSIDE, FROM OUTER SPHERE OF BODY TO INNER SPHERE OF SPIRIT. REGULAR PRACTICE HELPS GAIN DEEPER AND HEALTHIER CONTROL OF BODY ORGANS.

❤ DHYANA YOGA ❤

DHYANA YOGA IS ONE OF THE EIGHT LIMBS OF YOGA. AS THE SEVENTH LIMB, IT CONCENTRATES UPON A POINT OF FOCUS WITH THE INTENTION OF KNOWING THE TRUTH ABOUT IT. DHYANA MEANS MEDITATION. IT IS DERIVED FROM THE SANSKRIT ROOT "DHYAI" WHICH MEANS "TO THINK OF". IT IS THE CONTEMPLATION AND MEDITATION OF SPIRITUAL THINGS. A POPULAR FORM OF DHYANA YOGA IS THE KUNDALINI YOGA.

YOGA EXERCISES ARE ALSO PART OF THE DHYANA YOGA AS WELL AS BREATH AND MENTAL CONTROL. WHEN WE PRACTICE DHYANA YOGA, WE ARE MEDITATING ON A SINGLE FLOW OF IDEA. WE GO INTO A STATE OF REVOLVING ONLY ON THAT CHOSEN OBJECT AND AT THE SAME TIME DEEPENING OUR PROCESS OF CONCENTRATION. ASANAS, PRANAYAMA, AND ALL FORMS OF CONCENTRATION AID THE CATEGORIES OF THE MIND.

THERE ARE DIFFERENT FORMS OF DHYANA YOGA. THE AIM IS TO WITHDRAW ALL SENSES FROM VARIOUS OBJECTS OF INTEREST AND FOCUS OBJECTIVE IS TO CLEANSE THE SUBCONSCIOUS, DEVELOP CONCENTRATION, CLEAR THE MIND, AND BRING ABOUT VARIOUS STAGES OF UNIFIED COMMUNION WITH GOD.

DHYANA YOGA IS BASICALLY PRACTICING MEDITATION. PRACTICING DHYANA YOGA ALLOWS THE PRACTITIONER TO CALM HIS MIND AND ALLOW HIM TO LOOK IN THE OUTSIDE WORLS WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS. IN DOING SO, HE IS ABLE TO REACH A HEIGHTENED LEVEL OF AWARENESS. MEDITATION, CONSCIOUSNESS, AND EXPERIENCES, ARE ALL BUT A SINGLE UNITY. IN DHYANA YOGA, IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THREE THINGS :

💟💟💟

ONE - POINTEDNESS OF MIND - CONTROLLING MOVEMENTS
SETTING BOUNDS TO ONE'S LIFE TO HELP ACHIVE THIS - DOING ACTIONS AFTER WEIGHING AND MEASURING THEM
STATE OF LEVEL - HEADEDNESS OR EVENNESS OF VISION - HAVING THE NOBILITY TO THINK IN TERMS OF THE WHOLE WORLD

💟💟💟

DHYANA YOGA IS A SYSTEM OF SILENCING THE BODY, MIND AND INTELLECT IN THE FORM OF MEDITATION. WHEN WE MEDITATE, WE CALM THE MIND AND HELP REALIGN OUR INNER SELF TO THE RIGHT PATH. IF WE HAVE LESSER THOUGHTS, WE HAVE LESSER WORRIES. IT ALSO MEANS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO LIVE A SIMPLE LIFE. TOO MANY DISTRACTIONS ARE NOT GOOD IN OUR LIFE. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE ARE ABLE TO CONTEMPLATE ON IMPORTANT THINGS AND THAT WE ARE CONNECTING WITH THE INNER SELF.