Yoga Sutras of Patanjali – Asana – Shatkarma – Body Cleansing
Posted: Tuesday, April 19, 2011
by Drunken Mystic
http://drunkenmystic.wordpress.com
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Aum Asatoma sadgamaya |
Tamasoma joythirgamaya |
Mrityorma amrithamgamaya |
Aum Shanti Shanti Shanti ||
- Lead me from untruth to truth.
- Lead me from darkness to light.
- Lead me from death to immortality.
That is the light, which shines within, which shall outdo the darkness. This inner light slowly spreads over the dark recesses of the mind which is clouded by unhealthy sub-conscious memories and slowly removes the illusion which the mind has created, and brings us to the everlasting nectar of immortality. Yoga is about realizing that the body is not the everlasting reality – the consciousness is.
The process is long and hard and it can only be attained with constant practice and detachment – Abhyasa & Vairagya. There are many factors in the body which we need to take care of to attain clarity of the mind. The principles of Yama and Niyama are dependent on Asana and Pranayama and so are these practices dependent on the former two.
All the eight steps of the Yoga Sutras work on the body, mind and soul simultaneously. The main reason for this is that all of them are nothing but energy and energy gets transformed in varied levels. Now, coming back to ensuring that we make good progress with Asana, it is essential that we maintain a regular routine of yoga everyday. Apart from just maintaining a regular routine of yoga, we also should ensure that our body is eliminating all the toxic waste which we ingest into our digestive system.
The third step Asana is basically taken from portions of “Hatha Yoga Pradipika” which contains “extensive” knowledge on practicing yoga and different practices associated with developing the body and mind to prepare it for “higher” stages of spiritual evolution.
The most basic practice of Asana starts with the Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutation. There are many variations of the ‘Sun Salutation’ and different schools of yoga teach their own variations. While the Sun Salutation and other yogic postures help body cleansing through sweating, there are other practices of yoga which involve rigorous cleansing of the body through intake of lukewarm saltwater, Ghee (clarified butter), honey and milk etc.
There are six basic practices for body cleansing known as – Shatkarma (Six actions)-1
a) Neti – This is a basic technique of cleansing the nostrils on a regular basis. To practice neti, you need a neti pot. The pot is made with a nozzle through which you need to pour lukewarm salt water into one nostril and let the water pour out through the other. Some people use lukewarm ghee, or honey, or even milk. The practice involving salt water is jala neti. There is also another practice called as sutra neti. In this practice they use a thin cotton thread which is inserted through one nostril and then pulled out through the other and you tug both ends with your fingers in a gentle to and fro motion to cleanse the mucus.
b) Dhauti – Dhauti basically is divided into three groups of cleansing. The first one is antar dhauti, which means internal cleansing. The next one is sirsha or danta dhauti – head cleansing, and the third one is hrid dhauti or thoracic cleansing. Internal cleansing practice is further divided into four sections which focus on cleansing every part of the body flushing out the impurities in the alimentary canal from the mouth to the anus. They are:
i) Shankhaprakshalana and Laghoo Shankha Prakshalana. – These practices cleanse the intestines thoroughly and increase immunity in the bowels and digestive tract. You have to drink salt water constantly and practice certain yogic postures to enhance bowel movement.
ii) Agnisar Kriya – This is a practice which enhances digestion by increasing heat in the stomach. This is mainly to do with the Manipur chakra (navel center) which is activated to cure indigestion, constipation and other stomach ailments.
iii) Kunjal – This is a beautiful practice which can be practiced more often than the other two and is very good for removing chest congestion, curing indigestion and also improves quality of voice. It involves systematic swallowing of lukewarm salt water and vomiting it out by rubbing two or three fingers on the tongue.
iv) Vatsara Dhauti/Vastra Dhauti – Vatsara practice should be done under expert guidance of a teacher as it involves swallowing the air into the stomach and holding it tight and slowly releasing through the anus. Vastra dhauti also requires guidance of the teacher because it involves swallowing a long thin piece of cloth right into your stomach and then pulling it out slowly.
c) Nauli – This is a unique method which involves massaging the abdomen. This is very good for the abdominal organs. It is done without using the hands. This practice can be performed only by those who have perfected Jalandhara Bandha. You also have to practice pranayama which involves internal retention of air. Both practices have to be done under the guidance of the teacher.
d) Basti – This is another difficult practice which takes a long time to perfect. It involves sucking water through the anus into the bowels and cleaning the colon.
e) Kapalbhati – There are three ways of performing this practice. First one is using the air and it is a part of the pranayama. The abdomen is filled with air by deep breathing and then a deep exhalation follows by stressing the abdominal muscles. The other methods involve inhaling lukewarm saltwater through nostrils and spitting it out through the mouth. The third variation is to intake salt water through the mouth and expelling it through the nose.
f) Trataka – This a technique followed by hypnotists to gaze a single point to develop concentration. You can use a candle flame for instance. When you gaze a particular point that is when maximum thoughts get flushed out, which, can be called as a mental cleansing to increase clarity.
These were the introduction to body cleansing techniques to improve the performance of Asana. After regular practice of Asana, it would be good to lubricate your joints and even massage your body with oil once a week. You can apply lukewarm oil before taking a bath. Let the body absorb the oil for about thirty minutes to an hour. You can spend your time in the sun during that time. This helps to strengthen the joints and even loosen the veins and muscles. It is very refreshing to have an oil bath. Always better to use hot water, whether summer or winter. Massage your hair with oil too. It cleans the dandruff.
There are so many beautiful ways to enhance not only our body performance but also our minds which are constantly clustered with too many unwanted thoughts. One only needs perseverance until they attain perfection. What is known is just a little drop, but let us hold on to that little drop till we can understand that it is the drop that makes the ocean whose depth still remains unknown to us.
Note: Please do not perform any of the cleansing practices on your own until you have received expert guidance of a teacher.
1- Ref : Asana, Pranayama, Mudra, Bandha by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Bihar School of Yoga Publication.
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