Jain Spirit 2005 12 No24

SR No.: 529004
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jain Spirit UK
Publisher: UK Young Jains
Publication Year: 2005
Total Pages: 102
Language: English
Classification: Magazine, UK_Jain Spirit, & UK
File Size: 21 MB

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Now that America is the world leader in obesity, with much of the rest of the world close behind, many experts have tried to stress the importance of fitness as a way of life. While there are many reasons for obesity, one thing is certain - exercise alone does not eliminate the problem. Many doctors are beginning to advocate what they call a 'lifestyle change'. In addition to exercise, this kind of programme often calls for stress reduction strategies such as meditation and breathing exercises, addressing emotional issues, elimination of toxic habits like drinking or binging. Add a vegetarian diet and you have prescribed a Jain lifestyle! Jain monks and nuns utilise an integrated approach that includes meditation, pranayama (breathing exercises), fasting, plenty of walking (thousands of miles a year) and Hatha Yoga practice. Yoga? The hot, new fitness fad? Which kind?
Bikram Yoga is done in a room heated to over 100 degrees Farenheit. Bikram Choudhury is, in the process of trying to patent the 5000-year-old asana (yoga postures) and has even initiated law suits to stop teachers from using 'his postures'. Ashtanga Yoga, originally developed for overactive 12-year-old boys in Mysore, India, is now taught as Power Yoga in gyms with names like Crunch. Then there's Iyengar Yoga, Viniyoga, Anusara Yoga, Yogalates (no, it's not a coffee drink, but a blend of yoga and Pilates - another workout regimen.) There are yoga clothes, yoga props, yoga snacks. Yet yoga began as part of a spiritual practice, which now seems to have been forgotten in the rush to live.
The word yoga, which comes from the Sanskrit word for 'yoke' signifying union, has undoubtedly introduced many people to a more spiritual lifestyle. But for countless others, it's just another fitness fad or marketing opportunity. What distinguishes many contemporary yogis and yoginis from Jain monks and nuns is the intent of the practice. Inner and outer fitness for Jain
THE HUMAN ORGANISM IS NOT JUST ABS OF STEEL, A FIGURE TO DIE FOR OR A GORGEOUS 'BOD'. MENTAL, SPIRITUAL AND
attitude can provide a path toward enlightenment. In Zen there is a saying, "Chop wood, carry water." And the
EMOTIONAL FITNESS Native Americans try
ARE EQUALLY IMPORTANT.
to walk as if "every step is a prayer."
saints is a spiritual practice. Contrast this with using a spiritual practice to get fit and fabulous. Even meditation for some is merely a means to help you focus on 'getting what you want' instead of being with what is.
WIL
Like Yoga, there are other physical disciplines that have links to 'inner fitness'. The deeply meditative martial art Thai Chi was originally developed by monks as a way of using chi (energy) to repel bandits who raided monasteries. Aikido, a Japanese martial art, was called by its founder 'The Way of Peace'. In Aikido, one uses the energy of the attacker to disarm without
harming. Like many of the samurai arts, it demands that one develop the body, mind and attention. Nia is a new form of dance developed in the US. The name is an acronym for Neuromuscular Integrative Action. It combines dance, martial arts and healing arts into a dance form designed to get the participants in touch with body, mind and spirit. The Feldenkrais Method is a form of movement education that guides students' attention to their habitual holdings and tensions. In fact, The Method's founder, Moshe Feldenkrais, once said, "It's not flexible bodies I'm after, it's flexible minds." Many times people begin one of the above disciplines for physical reasons, then discover that it can provide a contemplative path as well. Really, any kind of physical activity with the right
Which brings me
back to pilgrimage. People undertake pilgrimages for
various reasons - from wanting
a boon granted to deepening their spiritual experience. Is one desire more noble than the other? Are those who choose to renounce the material world better than those who want beauty and success? Can I be in the world and still evolve spiritually?
Any aspect of a spiritual practice can be perverted. Hitler considered himself a spiritual man and was a strict vegetarian. Chanting for a new car or doing asana to lose weight is a detour on the path to enlightenment. For many, that detour will lead to a spiritual dead end. But for some, it is the beginning of a journey. One can begin by training the body and discover the ineffable connection to the spirit along the way.
The holy men and women of various religions serve the community in multiple ways. Their example of inner and outer fitness is a standard towards which we can aspire. Or we can be satisfied to tone the body for merely temporal results. Whether undertaking a pilgrimage, a meditation practice or a fitness regimen, the important questions to ask are: What is my aim? What do I serve? Is there inner peace?
Lavinia has spent 35 years researching and teaching how movement - from dance to the martial arts to somatic studies - enhances quality of life. Her book, What Are You Afraid of? A Body/Mind Guide to Courageous Living is now available in paperback.
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