Practical Applications of Yogic Philosophy - Perception and Myth

Where does a student of yoga start his or her practice? What is the foundation of yoga practice? Why do so many yoga classes and teachers avoid approaching the foundation of Yoga?

Where does a student of Yoga start his or her practice? Much like the desire to learn Yoga, the practice of any form, or style, of Yoga, comes from within the self. You should seek a yoga teacher to act as a guide. Not all forms of yoga are physical, but if physical mastery is what you seek, there are Hatha, Raja, and kundalini, Yoga to consider. These are just three of the nine main forms of yoga and there are many sub-styles to consider, as well. You must also take the availability of styles within your local area into consideration.

Researching may take some time before visiting a yoga teacher. When you make an appointment for a discussion, find out what your yoga teachers methods are. Does this teacher have patience, understanding, and compassion?

A yoga teacher is a guide, who teaches you to eventually become your own teacher. This does not mean to visit a yoga teacher every so often, but it does mean to practice what is learned in each lesson by bringing it home.

Unfortunately, many yoga instructors do not place enough emphasis on the value of home practice. If a student practices in Yoga, casually, once a week, takes the summer and Christmas season off, that is thirty-three lessons per year, without any home practice. After three years, how much has this student learned?

What is the foundation of yoga practice? The foundation of Yoga is to be totally present within the lesson, and if possible, to be without distractions. If there are any distractions going on in the mind, you should learn not to judge yourself harshly because you were not mentally present in your Yoga class.

To be in the moment, or to be mentally present for your Yoga practice, is the key to advancing your practice in Yoga. In fact, physical postures (Asanas) are part of the practice, but they are not the primary emphasis of most forms of Yoga.

Why do so many Yoga classes and teachers avoid approaching the foundation of Yoga? People are stimulated by superficial things. In the case of Yoga, the results of Asana practice can be felt immediately. Many Yoga instructors give up on teaching meditation and the deeper aspects of Yoga. The result is the perception that Yoga is an exercise class only. The myth stems from the classification of asanas as beginner, intermediate, and advanced.

It is true that Yoga posture should be classified according to difficulty level, but Asana has little to do with classifying a Yoga student. Consider this: Is a gymnast who is completely stressed out, and who knows nothing about meditation, an advanced Yoga practitioner?

If this is so, then we do not need Yoga teachers at all. Yoga studios can hire teenage gymnasts to perform physical feats, and wow the students, with their prowess. This would be very cost effective for Yoga studios, and most young gymnasts would love to perform physical feats to impress crowds of adults for a salary.

This may seem riduculous, but it does bring your view full circle. People have been duped into seeing Yoga as a gymnastic event. asanas are one component of Yoga, but they are one of the eight limbs. All of the eight limbs of Yoga, described by Patanjali, should operate together for a complete practice.

If we practice asanas without higher forms awareness, and that is it, we are not practicing Yoga. We are then focusing on muscles and breath, which is fine for weight resistance. In truth, Yoga requires the eight limbs described within the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

The many healing aspects of Yoga are barely realized, when we consider it a physical competition.

Copyright 2007 Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, has written many books on the subject of Yoga. He is a co-owner and the Director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA. http://www.riyoga.com

He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. To receive a Free e-book: "Yoga in practice," and a Free Yoga Newsletter, please visit: http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

Teacher Training Yoga Retreats

The Diet Based On Common Sense

In this article I am going to describe what I believe is the perfect diet, a diet built on common sense. I have attempted a number of different weight loss programs over the last few years, most with very little success. The problem with most of these diets was the fact that what they were expecting me to do and eat was just not practical and in certain instances, possible. I am more than happy with this common sense diet as it has not only helped me to lose a lot of weight, it has also enabled me to keep the weight off. I hope this diet proves as successful for you as it has for me.

The Common Sense diet

The first thing that you need to do with the common sense diet is to keep a diary or log of what you eat and drink in a typical week. On the first week, therefore, you need to eat and drink as normal. At the end of the first week you need to assess what you have eaten and drank, this is actually quite scary and eye opening. I could not believe how much I actually ate per week, I felt such a slob when I read it. You then need to think about which items you could do without for the second week, the aim is to reduce your food and alcohol intake by just ten percent.

Fatty foods must go

I decided that I could, I thought, quite easily do without chocolate, crisps and peanuts. I would also attempt to not drink alcohol on the Friday night as this would lead to a multiple of sins, calorie wise. On paper it seems so easy but in reality it was actually very difficult. I had to be very disciplined and determined as my demons regularly tried to tempt me to be naughty.

To be successful with any project you need to work hard and at times sacrifice certain things and attempting to lose weight is no different. I was desperate to attain a lower weight and therefore was willing to do almost anything.

What I had to remember was the fact that I was only going without ten percent of my normal food intake, this surely was not that dramatic.

I am happy to report that I have now reached my target weight and I have never felt so good.

Stephen Hill runs The How To stop Stammering Centre, he has a number of websites including:

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