Why is the West Interested in Yoga

SR No.: 250373
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: B K S Iyengar
Publisher: Z_Pushkarmuni_Abhinandan_Granth_012012.pdf
Total Pages: 3
Language: English
Classification: Article & Yoga
File Size: 524 KB

Page 3

Why is the West Interested in Yoga ? ES * elude them. The West thought that the soul could be realized through intelligence. Now India must teach that the head can take us only so far and no further ; we must instead hitch the wagon to our heart. There should be co-ordination of head and heart. The proper mental approach and a firm moral background are essential factors; without them, a spiritual approach is an impossibility. The West seems to have realized that Yoga is the only path which is universal in its nature, and which can bring about a fundamental change in their way of life. When I came in contact with Westerners, the first thing they told me was that they are tired of lectures on Indian philosophy and weary of so much endless theoretical knowledge ; they wanted something practical and tangible, of which they were ignorant. We do not distinguish between the body and the mind. There must be an integrated approach. I then had to teach the Yogasanas and Pranayama with this wholesome approach. At every step, it had to insist and make them understand how the body and the mind work in co-ordination, how each asana and each breath is treated with a kindred spirit. Their bodies, being very supple and elastic, could perform the asanas very easily, but I had to make them aware that it is not merely a physical movement, but that the mind has also to be kept alert, living all the time in the present, and how the current of spiritual awareness has to flow in each movement, in each action, in each breath. The family structure in the West, their habits, conventions, and social living, are all opposite in nature to the Yogic way. Smoking and drinking have never been regarded as unacceptable behaviour. Their idea of morality is such that they never considered it necessary to give up smoking, drinking etc., for spiritual life. Yet after beginning the regular practice of Yoga, many of them stopped smoking and drinking, and even attending so often social parties. The only solution for mental and psychological problems is Yoga, and this is the main reason for its becoming so popular. It is of course true that popularity can sometimes damage the real and original nature of a subject : and it is here that I have found the second stage of my work. In the fifties and sixties I worked hard to popularize the subject of Yoga ; now I must work to correct the distortions that have appeared since that popularization. On television especially, in classes such as "Keep Fit", Yoga is being presented, not in its true form, but in a Westernized version that is more like any other form of physical exercise. Whenever I appeared on Western television, it became my duty to point out the discrepancies between these adapted versions and the true original Yoga, and to emphasize that Yoga is not done merely to "keep fit". If one practises well health will be an inevitable by-product. Today I am happy to say that at least my pupils have remained faithful to me and to my work; they are carrying that work in its true form to their brothers and sisters abroad. There are now hundreds of teachers trained by me working in centres throughout the west. Many are teaching in the Inner and Greater London Educational Authorities, (ILEA), Local Educational Authorities, and in the Universities, The scientific Western mind is also greatly interested in the medical effects and application of Yoga. While we in India only claim that Yoga is beneficial in the treatment and curing of such diseases as heart trouble, high or low blood pressure, diabetes and so on; the Western doctors are actually testing these claims in hospitals, with the result that they have concluded that Yoga can and does help to a great extent to cure many physiological, psychological, and psychosomatic illnesses. In America, Britain, and other places, I have several doctors as pupils, and they have made observations and experiments during classes I was conducting, to assist them in their research into the effects of Yoga. Their research has led them to conclude the asanas and pranayama done merely in the name of Yoga do not help, and that only that which is practised in the genuine and correct way, can have a beneficial effect. I fear that one day these doctors may prove to the world that it is they who are (Continued on Page 107)