Yoga Insight On The Net

Meditation comes from intense concentration, where the individual focuses so thoroughly on a single object that he or she thinks of nothing besides his or her awareness of that object.  In this audio accompanied article, see how yoga takes that further, making meditation the highest element of the Eight Limbs of Yoga.

[audio:Better Your Heart and Brain Power - Yoga as Meditation.mp3]

Yoga developed as a worldview, as a lifestyle. It integrates the asanas (bodily poses) and pranayamas (breathing exercises) with the concept of meditation to make the yogi at peace with the world.

Meditation comes from intense concentration, where the individual focuses so thoroughly on a single object that he or she thinks of nothing besides his or her awareness of that object (Some religions may find that their idea of prayer could fall under this definition). Yoga takes that further, making meditation the highest element of the Eight Limbs of Yoga.

These “eight limbs” define Yoga as a lifestyle: your attitude to the world around you is followed by your attitudes towards yourself, physical posturing, breathing exercises, withdrawing the senses, concentrating, contemplating, and finally enlightenment. Enlightenment, better known as a state of bliss, comes only as a result of full use and development of the other seven. Meditation combines withdrawing the senses, concentrating, and contemplating to be the final state that can be accomplished before bliss.

At any rate, meditation calms the mind and offers a number of health benefits even before enlightenment. Regular meditation can help reduce anxiety and stress, lowering blood pressure and decreasing risk of heart attack. It can improve concentration, clarity of thought, and release your creative side.

Some research suggests that meditation with yoga increases matter in the brain’s cortex, specifically in the areas involved in processing cognitive, emotional, and sensory data. Meditation may also slow natural shrinkage of the frontal cortex due to aging. The 20 participants on average meditated for 40 minutes a day. Most change happened in their brains’ right hemispheres.

That’s not to say that meditation is easy. Clearing the mind of extraneous thought is difficult, and all thought even more so. Learning to meditate will take work.

To start, sit comfortably somewhere with your back and head straight. You may find a basic breathing exercise useful to help. Close your eyes, breathe through your nose, and focus on that breath. Cool air enters; warm air leaves. Keep your focus on your breathing, redirecting wandering thoughts that way. Start with short meditations of a few minutes and work your way up to longer. Beginners might find it easier to start with an intermediate method of counting their breaths, counting to four before restarting.

There are several medical conditions that can be improved by practicing yoga. It can be used to lessen the negative effects of infertility, lung disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, cancer, high blood pressure, and joint pain. The beneficial effects of yoga practices are well recognized not only by the yoga community but also by medical doctors.

One of the main elements that lead to an illness is stress. Being responsible for a huge number of sicknesses, this item, which we develop in our minds, can be reduced through a good usage of yoga techniques. Here are just some of the problems that are related to an over active stress response: depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, some types of diabetes mellitus, cardio-vascular disease, several autoimmune diseases, irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, reproductive problems, and an aggravated suppression of the immune system.

The response of the sympathetic nervous system can trigger stress in our metabolism. The reaction to various outside stimuli is also known as the “fight or flight” response – the mind and body, faced with an endangering or disturbing element, prepare for one of the two options. Physically, this is manifested through an instantaneous heart rate increase, together with a high ascent of blood pressure. Breathing gets shallow and the muscles tense in anticipation to the following action. Internally, this response reduces the blood flow to internal organs and processes that are not essential in that particular moment (such as digestion and elimination) are shut down.

This state of increased awareness and readiness is beneficial on a short term, preparing our body to react to the outside interventions and stimuli. Both in a “fight” and in a “flight” situation, the body is physically and mentally prepared to act. The problem arises when long-term exposure to similar stress takes place. This “fight or flight” response is only meant to help on short periods of time – the longer it is activated the less resources will the body have to function normally.

There is a natural countermeasure for the “fight or flight” response. It is called the parasympathetic nervous system or the “relaxation response.” It is automatically activated when the elements that caused the stress are gone but it is also possible to increase its effects by breathing deeply and relaxing your muscles. By increasing the length of this process we allow our body to recover faster, enabling it to eliminate the harmful effects of stress in a prompt and efficient manner.

Yoga highlights the idea that by using breathing and relaxation techniques you can reduce the harmful effects of stress factors on your body. A lessened “fight or flight” response can also be achieved by looking at adverse factors as challenges rather than threats. This approach allows your mind to focus on finding a solution, rather than creating an abrupt response. Another concept employed by this technique is that of acting versus reacting, of taking initiative versus responding to outside factors.

The positive effects of yoga during a healing process are undeniable. However, these techniques should only be used as a form of support and the healing shouldn’t rely solely on them. The best results are achieved by combining yoga with traditional and modern medicine and by addressing a problem both from a mental and physical point of view.