Family and Nation

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya, A P J Abdulkalam
Publisher: Harper Publications India

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THE FAMILY AND THE NATION
samadhi, the complete integration of the Self with God. Traditionally, yoga consists of eight fundamental paths (ashtamargas): Karma yoga, Bhakti yoga, Jnana yoga, Hatha yoga, Purna yoga, Tantra yoga, Maha yoga and Ashtanga or Raja yoga. Yoga entails mastery over the body, mind, and emotional self, and transcendence of desire.
Patanjali's text sets forth eight parts of yoga practice (ashtanga yoga), namely: (1) Yama (the five abstentions), violence, lying, theft, sex, and possessions; (2) Niyama (the five observances)-purity, contentment, austerities, study, and surrender to God; (3) Asana (seat)-originally referring mainly to seated positions; (4) Pranayama--control of prana or vital breath; (5) Pratyahara (abstraction)--that by which the senses do not come into contact with their objects and, as it were, follow the nature of the mind; (6) Dharana (concentration)-fixing attention on a single object; (7) Dhyana (meditation); and (8) Samadhi-superconscious state or trance. The two principles of physical exercise of postures (asanas) and the exercise of breathing (pranayam), and the first two principles of Jain spiritual practice, namely, fasting and physical postures, offer a very effective yoga system.
Asanas help us to achieve physical health, but they also bring about a change in a person's attitude. Any physical activity, in general, causes production of lactic acid in the system which in turn causes tension. Its cure lies in suspension of activity through kayotsarga. It comprises relaxation of the body together with awareness of every limb and renunciation of the feeling of attachment towards one's body. Shavasana (a posture in which a person simulates a corpse) of Hatha yoga is a good exercise for relaxation.
Hatha yoga classifies the seven benefits of practising asanas: (1) prevention of obesity; (2) cheerfulness on one's face; (3) clarity and sweetness of voice; (4) health; (5) virility;