10 week course, 1 session per week.

Starts Monday 16^th January 2012,

7pm – 8:45pm

FREE presentation and practice session Monday 9^th January 2012,

7pm – 8:45pm

Wells Museum Conference Room, Cathedral Green, Wells. BA5 2UE

Suitable for:

• Complete beginners in Yoga
• Those with some Yoga experience who enjoy the structure that a course offers.
• Those with experience (even extensive) of other Yoga systems, who’d like to experience the VKY approach.

Yoga is a holistic practice that nourishes every level of your being, contributing to your overall wellbeing. Increased flexibility, core stability, tone and stamina, enhanced vitality, stress reduction and a calm and clear mental disposition are some of the benefits.*

This unique course will give you a complete overview of the Vinyasa Krama Yoga system, a classical, authentic approach derived from the teachings of the Indian Yoga Master Sri Krishnamacharya.  You will learn to master the essential parameters and sequences, including posture modifications appropriate to your individual needs.

Cost: £75, including full course notes and workbook.

“The sequences were effective and enjoyable. The course content was very informative and we covered a good selection of postures. Good pace. There wasn’t anything I didn’t enjoy.” Marilyn

“I enjoyed the detailed explanation of the system and the demonstrations. Very clear – also good fun!” John

Your tutor: Steve Brandon. IYN Yoga Elder.

For further details and to book: steve@harmonyyoga.co.uk, 01749 677470

or download a booking form: Intro to VKY booking form

*Structural Yoga Therapy, Mukunda Stiles, University of California, 2002

10 week course, 1 session per week.

Starts Monday 16^th January 2012,

7pm – 8:45pm

FREE presentation and practice session Monday 9^th January 2012, 7pm – 8:45pm

Wells Museum Conference Room, Cathedral Green, Wells. BA5 2UE

Suitable for:

• Complete beginners in Yoga
• Those with some Yoga experience who enjoy the structure that a course offers.
• Those with experience (even extensive) of other Yoga systems, who’d like to experience the VKY approach.

Yoga is a holistic practice that nourishes every level of your being, contributing to your overall wellbeing. Increased flexibility, core stability, tone and stamina, enhanced vitality, stress reduction and a calm and clear mental disposition are some of the benefits.*

This unique course will give you a complete overview of the Vinyasa Krama Yoga system, a classical, authentic approach derived from the teachings of the Indian Yoga Master Sri Krishnamacharya.  You will learn to master the essential parameters and sequences, including posture modifications appropriate to your individual needs.

Cost: £75, including full course notes and workbook.

“The sequences were effective and enjoyable. The course content was very informative and we covered a good selection of postures. Good pace. There wasn’t anything I didn’t enjoy.” Marilyn

“I enjoyed the detailed explanation of the system and the demonstrations. Very clear – also good fun!” John

Your tutor: Steve Brandon. IYN Yoga Elder.

For further details and to book: steve@harmonyyoga.co.uk,

01749 677470

or download a booking form: Intro to VKY booking form

*Structural Yoga Therapy, Mukunda Stiles, University of California, 2002

Krishnamacharya states this as one of the yamas in Yoga Makaranda. It is one of the elements of tapas in Kriya Yoga.

In Yoga practice we are seeking to gain control over the senses so control over food is an obvious requirement. We want to become sattvic. Over eating and eating the wrong kinds of food do not support this goal.

In the Yoga Sutra the obstacles to Yoga are stated in chapter 1 verse 30. The first obstacle is illness. The commentary states that;

‘Bodily disturbance and illness should be removed by wholesome and measured diet taken only after the food previously taken is digested. This is the sure way of killing illness.’

To support your practice of Yoga and cultivate good health begin with these two challenging but crucial practices.

1)   Measure your prtions of food and ensure you are not feeling full after the meal .

2)    Only eat at meal times.

The next blog post will continue this theme with what a Yoga practitioner is advised to eat and what to avoid.

The first thing I teach people in Yoga or in therapy work is
to breathe through the nose as I believe this to be a basic foundation of
health.

There are more than 20 known functions of the nose and nasal
cavity from a physical perspective, but there are three primary reasons to breathe
through your nose that render the external air harmonious for the respiratory
system.

1)     The incoming air is filtered.

2)     The air temperature is regulated.

3)     The moisture content is regulated.

From the Yoga viewpoint the subtle body behind the physical
system is of most importance. The Pranic sheath envelopes and rules over the
physical aspect.  There are also many subtle body functions of the nasal system.

A few important ones are:

1) The nostrils are a main site for the absorption of Prana which stimulates the master Prana
in the brain area and so exerts a regulatory effect over the five major Pranas that control the
body’s functions and so maintain health and vitality.

2) The health of the brain and the whole nervous system rely upon the efficient absorption of Prana
through the nostrils.

The common cold, the first symptoms of which often begin inthe head,
indicates a breakdown of immunity due to the connection between the
Pranic and physical sheaths being weakened.

It is recommended that you practice some asanas breathing
through the nostrils and regulated by ujjayi.

Follow asanas with 3 rounds of kapalabhati.

Practice pranayama for 10-15 minutes.

Ideally this should be done twice a day as a minimum to
maintain health.

Check at other times that you are breathing through your
nostrils.

If you are not familiar with these practices I recommend you find a teacher
who is competent to instruct in breath work and pranayama to assist you
in developing your practice.

For a more in-depth article on the Vinyasa Krama method of
practice see:

http://www.harmonyyoga.co.uk/2011/04/19/breath-of-yoga/

And on Asthma:

http://www.harmonyyoga.co.uk/2010/05/08/yoga-and-bronchial-asthma/

Breath well, it’s an infinite source of energy and vitality.

An opportunity to study with Dr. Ruth Gilmore, exemplary anatomy and physiology teacher. Ruth will cover the major bones and muscles of the body, their location and function and specifically how they can be utilized in various yoga postures. The respiratory and cardiovascular system will be included.  The course consists of 12 hours of lecture sessions with Ruth, incorporating hands-on work in the postures. The programme also includes Vinyasa Krama Yoga sessions, taught by Steve Brandon.

Cost: £135 per person. Non-residential.

Venue: Wells Museum, Cathedral Green, Wells, Somerset, BA5 2UE

For further information and to book, please email Steve or call 01749 677470

A 45 hour training programme run as a 7 day intensive Summer school (non-residential). Available in Wells, Somerset.

This module will cover the complete Vinyasa Krama series of 11 classical sequences including all important postures and around 700 vinyasas.

This module gives you 45 hours towards our Vinyasa Krama Yoga Teacher Training Course.

Teachers with an existing Yoga teaching qualification will receive a Vinyasa Krama Yoga Teaching Certificate on completion. You will then be eligible to register on the Vinyasa Krama Yoga website as an affiliate teacher.

Costs: £295, non-residential.

For further information and to book, please email Steve or call 01749 677470

Testimonials.

When I was a student I had to study a course in Mathematics (or was it
Physics or Engineering?) titled, “Statics and Dynamics.” That was the
time Mathematics left me but I liked the name of the course which I am
using as the title of the article.

When I was young I used to be called “Soni Ramaswami” by many
relatives, friends and many who were not very friendly. Soni means
puny. I used to be very thin, even so I used to be very interested in
outdoor sports activities. I managed to get onto the college/ school
teams in Tennis and Cricket. In fact, I was coached for several years
by the father of the National Tennis Champion in India at the time and
the father had coached the champion. I thought I did well in spite of
a lack of the required physique and stamina. I was the college
champion in Tennis for three years and also won the district
championship for college students. My best moment was the match I
played against the All India number 3 ranked player at that time.
Barely 18, I came close to beating him. In the close match, in the
final set I could not cope with the physical demands. My coach told me
later that I had a good ball sense and talent (please bear with me on
this, old men like me need some bragging for sustenance) but with my
kind of physique and lack of stamina I had little chance of making the
grade.

Much earlier  I had started learning Yoga from my guru, Sri
Krishnamacharya. Prior to that I had learned some Yoga asanas from my
father, several people in my school and a few other teachers. In my
school the physical education teacher usually doubled as a yoga master
as well and several students were familiar with yogasanas and many
were able to do several poses like sarvangsana, padmasana, etc. I used
to do asanas randomly, no coordinated breathing, no pranayama, more
interested in the form alone.

But when I started the studies with my guru the whole picture was
different. Slow synchronous breathing, the counter-poses, the
sequencing, the adaptations, pranayama, chanting, text studies were
all new and it was  astounding studying with him.  Initially I was
continuing to engage in outdoor sports which he was aware of, but did
not ask me to choose between the two. One day he said that the
philosophy of Yoga and outdoor sports were very different. He would
say that while Yoga is considered as a sarvanga sadhana or  practice
for all parts of the body (and mind) modern sporting activities were
anga bhanga sadhana as they affect different parts of the body
differently producing disequilibrium and asymmetry. I remembered at
that time I came across a story in a sports magazine about the left
wrist of Rod Laver an outstanding Australian Tennis player. It was
said that the wrist size of his playing left hand was twice as large
as the right one. Sri Krishnamacharya also used to say very
interesting things during the rest pauses between different asanas and
sequences.  Once he said that the Yogi should be thin or krisa.  One
should not be overweight

Overweight is bad
Lean (muscle) or fat.

Carelessly developed fat bellies and cultivated oversized biceps one
should guard against. It suited me as I refused to put on weight when
I was a young adult. After I became a senior citizen, of course I
started putting on weight growing sidewards.

He also emphasized individual home practice. Merely studying with the
teacher may not be sufficient. Regular comprehensive practice was
emphasized. He would quote the following sloka

anabhyase visa ham vidya
ajirne bhojanam visham
Visham sabha daridrasya
Vridhddhasys taruni visham

Knowledge without practice (application) is toxic. Food during
indigestion is poison. Partying is poison(ruinous) to the poor, while
to the old a young spouse is disaster indeed.
By then I had a copy of his Yoga Makaranda, the Tamil version.
Fortunately this book, a treasure of information and instructions for
everyone who wants to know the Krishnamacharya system is now at
everybody’s fingertips, literally. Yes you can click the following
link Download Krishnamacharya’s Yoga Makaranda
with your fingertips and the whole text faithfully translated into
English will pop up.

Modern day yoga asana practice follows two different streams. There
are old schools which teach different asanas and require the
participants to stay in the pose for a long time, no appreciable
movements or breathing but just stay in the pose for a long time. They
emphasis the steadiness definition of yoga  even though many find long
stay in the poses painful and boring.  There is no ‘sukha’ in it. Then
there is another stream, more modern, in which the asana practice is a
continuous flow of movements like a train going at breakneck speed not
stopping and looking at at any of the beautiful stations and places
called asanas in between. A set of regimented  routines on a graded
scale of difficulty is done at a hurried pace without coordination
with slow breathing,  day in and day out.

In the Yoga Makaranda of  Krishnamacharya and the way I learnt Yoga
from my Guru, the asanas are described in two perspectives. The book
contains  pictures of a number of asanas. Krishnamacharya also in most
cases mentions that one should stay in these poses for a long time:
Chaturanga dandasana (10mts), Adhomukhasvanasana (15mts),
Urdhwamukhaswanasana(15 mts) Mahamudra/Janusirsasana (15 mts),
sarvangasana (niralamba)10mts, etc. It is clear that many of the
static poses require time to confer the intended benefits to the
abhyasi. He also details the benefits that accrue from the long stay
in these classic poses.

One  also finds that Krishnamacharya has described in the  Makranda a
number of Vinyasas  leading to an asana and then the return sequence.
These are not illustrated though. It it is gratifying to know that
Yoga Makaranda’s English version published by Krishnamacharya yoga
Mandiram has sketches to illustrate most of the Vinyasas which along
with the beautiful asana pictures of Krishnamacharya makes it a very
useful companion to understand the Krishnamacharya system of asana
practice. Further the required breathing also is described in the
Makaranda, whether a particular movement is to be done on inhalation
or exhalation or occasionally holding the breath. However the book
does not contain the several vinyasas done in the asanas or ‘in situ’
vinyasas mainly because the book is a small one. He has though
mentioned that several of the asanas like sarvangasana, sirsasana,
padmasana, etc. have a number of vinyasas emanating from the basic
poses. These vinyasas, as many and as varied as possible, should be
done. These vinyasas make the system of yoga a sarvanga sadhana as my
Guru mentions in the Makaranda.  In my book  ‘ Complete  book of
vinyasa yoga’, I have attempted to include almost the complete range
of vinyasas in all the major asanas as I had learnt frm my guru. When
one exercises the body with deep vinyasas one is able to squeeze as
much of the venous blood as possible from the various tissues and thus
enhance the muscle pump effect. Then the deep associated breathing
used in Krishnamacharya’s system helps to enhance the respiratory
suction pump effect on the heart thereby increasing the rakta sanchara
or blood circulation especially the venous blood return  to the heart.
More and more  vinyasas help to stretch the blood vessels as well
keeping them more elastic.

The practice of vinyasas itself is made very interesting by my Guru.
Each expansive vinyasa would be done on slow ujjayi inhalation and
every contraction movement would be done on slow smooth exhalation.
What should be the length of the inhalation and exhalation as compared
to our normal breathing of about 2 seconds of inhalation and 2 seconds
of exhalation? He would ask us to take a slow inhalation, say about 5
seconds  and another 5 seconds for exhalation. It is the minimum. One
could slowly increase the time for inhalation from 5 to 6 and even up
to 10 or twelve seconds. The vinyasas were never done at the breakneck
speed with which they are done these days. The slower the movements
the better and more beneficial it is. A rate of five to six breaths
per minute in vinyasakrama is in order. At this rate the
suryanamaskara  routine of 12  Vinyasas would take about 2 to 3
minutes. By studying Yoga with him one could realize  how different
Yoga is from workouts, aerobics, outdoor sport activities and even
fast paced Yoga where the slow, mindful breathing is compromised.

So Sri Krishnamacharya’s system of asana practice, as evident from the
Makaranda and also from how I have studied with him,  is a judicious
combination of dynamic Vinyasas and  classic asanas. Vinyasas also
help to achieve perfection in poses. A few years ago when I was
conducting  the teacher training program, we went through the entire
gamut of  vinyasas centered around Padmasana. We continued the
practice for several days gradually adding more and more vinyasas.
Then we did a number of movements staying in Padmasana. At the end of
it all, a participant came to me and said that it was the first time
he could do padmasana even though he was a yoga practitioner for more
than ten years. The quality of his padmasana improved  day by day as
he started practicing more and more vinyasas in padmasana which all
helped to make the final posture more secure.  And he could stay in
the posture for a longer period of time, say 10 or 15 mts, as Sri
Krishnamacharya would want the abhyasis to be able to do.

How can one stay in postures like paschimatanasana, sarvangasana,
sirsasana, etc. for 10 to 15 mts or even 30 mts as some yogabhyasis
do? Will it not be painful, won’t the limbs go to sleep and what about
the mind, does it not get bored?  It will be interesting to know the
way Sri Krishnamacharya taught Sarvangasana to me. First do the
preliminary poses like desk pose, apanasana and urdwa prasarita pada
hastasana, slowly with the appropriate breathing. Then get into the
more relaxed viparitakarani position. Keep the legs relaxed -even
limp- for a while watching the unhurried  breathing. Then come down.
Do it  for a few days and then after getting into the viparitakarani
position straighten the body, support the back behind the ribcage with
the palms placed close to each other. Stay for a few minutes, come
down, do an appropriate counterpose and do the routine a few more
times for a total of about 10 minutes. From then on try to increase
the duration of stay in the pose until you are able to stay for 10 mts
in one try. After a few days of comfortable steady stay in
sarvangasana, increase the stay to about 15 minutes the ideal duration
in sarvangasana. Now start concentrating on the breath. Your
inhalation can be short say 3 seconds or so in this pose as the
inhalation is a bit more difficult because of the cramped nature of
the chest. But one can have a very long exhalation. After a few days
practice try to introduce the bandhas as you start your slow
exhalation. Start drawing in the rectum and the abdomen in tandem  as
you exhale finishing the exhalation with mulabandha and uddiyana
bandha in place. Hold the breath out and maintain the bandhas for
about 5 seconds. Then release the bandhas and start the next slow
inhalation

After a few days practice count the number of breaths that you take
for the entire duration of your stay in the posture. Then try to
reduce the number of breaths you take for the same 15 minutes stay.
The aim is to reduce this number until you reach a steady state that
you can maintain consistently. There are people who are able to
maintain a breath rate of about 4, 3, 2, or even one breath per minute
staying in a static yoga posture as sarvangasana.  It is better to
learn these procedures from a teacher.

Many years back I used to teach in Houston for several weeks at a
time. It was a time when asanas like sarvangasana  and pranayama were
taboo and padmasana was a dreaded asana. I tried to encourage the
class to practice sarvangasana, learning it an orderly fashion through
preparatory Vinyasas and finally the posture. It took a while and then
the participants were encouraged to try to stay in the asana for a
while doing slow smooth breathing. They were able to stay for longer
and longer duration and towards the end of the program more than half
of the class could stay for the full fifteen minutes maintaining at
best a breath rate of  3 or 4 per minute. In my teacher training
programs the participants are encouraged to develop endurance to stay
in some of the important poses like the inversions, paschimatanasana,
mahamudra, etc. even as they learn several hundred Vinyasas in the
course.

Further while asanas are a necessary routine for a yogabhyasi it is
not sufficient. A well rounded yoga practice should contain other
angas of yoga like pranayama because they between them help to reduce
the systemic excess of rajas and tamas.
Day’s yoga practice should consist of a proper combination of dynamic
vinyasas and static asanas.  Add a stint of pranayama practice and
some meditation or chanting, and you have a wholesome daily yoga
practice.

A wonderful opportunity to immerse yourself in practice for a few days with kindred spirits, a lovely environment and superb organic vegetarian food. The practice rooms have underfloor heating so you will not have to sit in Maha Mudra with a cold bottom!

There will be tutor led sessions, presentations and personal practice time, along with time to relax, enjoy the Somerset countryside and sip tea slowly.

The retreat has been organised on a not for profit basis. The cost for 3 days full board is around £225 depending on the type of accommodation you choose.

E-mail Steve to receive your booking form.

You can pay your deposit for this event online here.

For most people January is a very busy month. They work hard to put in
place a schedule to implement their New Year Resolutions. Admissions
to Yogic schools, Music schools, gyms show increased activity before
stabilizing at more realistic levels in later months. For me this
January was very sedate. I was forced to cool my heels, awaiting an
elusive appearance in a local court in Chennai, India. But I used this
enforced idleness to rummage through my old small book almirah here in
Chennai, which contains a few notebooks of the notes I had taken
during my studies with Sri Krishnamacharya. Some of them were as old
as the 1960 and as late as 1980s. I also was able to lay my hands on
old copies of the Tamizh version of Yoga Makaranda, the Kannada book
titled Yogasanagalu and two tiny albums of my Guru doing asanas, I
think in his 80s which he had given to me. It was refreshing visiting
those notes again. Some of them were in the form of dictated articles
by him. Some are not very linear but still informative. I thought I
could translate one of them—it deals with two topics. It is as
follows, which was dictated to me during December 1967.

Thus spake Sri T Krishnamacharya

Several acharyas from the South of India have written about Ashtanga
Yoga under difficult circumstances. However, many of the highly
practical works of these acharyas were destroyed by people not
belonging to the orthodox vedic disposition.

Adi Sankara wrote three texts on Yoga. He wrote a text called “Yoga
Bashya Vivarana” as a commentary to the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali. When
he was busy writing these outstanding works and teaching/preaching, he
faced many obstacles, like being set fire to his hands, by his
detractors. But just 30 years old, he created a divine work called,
“karavalamba stotra”, a prayer to Lord Lakshmi Narasimha and got his
hands restored and thereafter wrote some works on sushumna nadi. Then
when he was barely 32, he decided that he need not live in this world
any longer and became a complete recluse (vairagya). He also taught
the right path (sanmarga) to 500 of his students. Then due to his
enormous yogic powers, he effortlessly left his mortal body and
attained his true swarupa or form/status. Before that he called five
of his important students and taught his work, called  “dasa avatara
stotra (work on ten avataras of the Lord) , on Paravasudeva. Then he
told them that only the worship of the Lord will help them get
released from samsara bandha (bondage of repeated births).

It is found that many successive great heads of Sankara Mutts
established by Sankara have not shown much earnestness in the matter
of Ashtanga yoga. But, due to the grace of God, the Advaita Ashram
that was dear to Adisankara  and also quite well known viz., the
Sringeri Mutt had Sri Narasimha Bharati as the head. His leadership at
the Mutt was helpful in the propagation of Yoga. His disciple and
successor,  the well known Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati was my dear
friend. We practiced Yoga together in Bangalore Sankara Mutt for some
time.

Now let me explain  the works and observances of  (Vaishnava) Yogis
like Parankucha Muni, Nathamuni and Vyamana Muni.

Parankusamuni, Satakopa, Nammalwar are the different names of the same
Yogi. The work that he did on Yoga was “Yoga Tatwa”. His propagation
of Yoga under the patronage of the Chola king was important. “By this
Yoga, the cool grace of Lord Sriman Narayana will become a protective
shield to your dynasty” said the sage. “ However if you violate the
dharma (apachara), the same power of yoga will prove to be a killer
sword for your dynasty” warned the sage. It is known that subsequently
the Chola dynasty lost a lot of its lustre due to certain adharmic
activities of the ruling class.

There are twelve topics covered in “YogaTatwa”. Why did the
compassionate Lord create the world that tends towards sin
(papa).Having created it, why did the Lord create groups that force
people to follow the path of adharma? He is the Lord of everyone, but
why does He create opportunities for some to follow the path of
adhrma? Is it proper?  As the text discusses these immensely weighty
issues and also solutions to them, it is called “Yoga Tatwa”. It is
our duty to explain and propagate these great secrets for the benefit
of the world. Sri Satakopa Muni for the benefit of the great souls
along the Tamraparani river wrote the first chapter himself.

The famous three munis wrote nine works. Once, Sri Nathamuni  while
resting in a state of Samadhi had the vision of Parankusa Muni in his
dream. In that state he learnt many secrets of Yoga from Parankusa.
The essence of that teaching was the famous Nathamuni’sYoga Rahasya.
In this text, not only the routine Yoga principles are discussed but
also methods  treatment of diseases or Yoga chikitsakramas.

The third of the trio was Yamunacharya. He wrote several works, but
four were famous. viz.,
Agamapramanam, Iswarasiddhi, Sampathsiddhi and Yoga chulakam. They
give instructions for easy practice of Yoga. The source books for the
works of these great sages were the Bhagavat Gita, the eleventh skanda
(section) of the Srimad Bhagavata, Uddava-Sri Krishna Dialogues,
several Upanishads, Yoga Yagnyavalkya Samhita, Sri Rahasya, Yogasana
Mahodadhi and many others. For Sri Nathamuni his parents and
grandparents the most important and dear Yoga text appears to be Yoga
Yagnyavalkya Samhita and also the Gita and the 11th section of the
Bhagavata. Discussing about the wonders of God’s will, he talks about
issues like  should lay people be taught to practice yoga and similar
issues in considerable detail. Many yogis of the present time, with
high ahanta(ego), I should say without any fear, have not had the good
fortune of reading  Sri Nathamuni’s yoga works and other supporting
texts.

Now let me give a comprehensive treatment of practice krama of yoga.

There are several essential factors that should be kept in view by
both the yogabhyasi and the teacher. The student, as instructed by the
teacher should check the quality of recaka and puraka (exhalation and
inhalation). Are there any obstructions in the airways? It is mainly
because asanas unaided or synchronized with breathing is of no use.
For instance, the teacher and the student should check the number of
matras (measure of time) the breath takes while inhaling, exhaling. If
there is considerable difference in these durations, the teacher
should first ask the abhyasi to practice controlled rechaka-puraka
even prior to the practice of asanas.

Then one should start practicing asanas as per instructions. There are
many asanas–sitting, standing, supine, prone, lying on the sides—
there are thus many starting positions. Further there are upside down
positions, like Sarvangasana. If the students has good well
proportioned body the teacher can teach the inversions, Sarvangasana
and Sirsasana even in the beginning of study.  And such a person
should also possess very long and  smooth inhalations and exhalations.
Further he should learn to maintain the inhalations and exhalations of
even duration. If one does 8 to 10 recaka-purakas in sirsasana, then
one should practice sarvangasana for the same number of recaka-puraka
and of the same duration. Sarvangasana and sirsasana are like the two
eyes of yogabhyasa. These help to maintain “bodily freedom” (sariraswatantriyam). The various vinyasas of these poses also have similar effects. Only by these two poses the acuity of the senses and capacity of the lungs increase. Even as Sarvangasana is an essential pose for persons with heart ailment, it should be done with
the help and involvement of the teacher/trainer. While teaching
Sarvangasana to such persons, the teacher should stand behind the
trainee and at the end of each exhalation should gently nudge the
trainee’s back a little forward and hold for a second. After about a
month’s such practice, the trainer should check the strength of
recaka, the general health or growth of the body the duration of
recaka-puraka and then if they are good should help the trainee stay
for about a minute or so. Thereafter the abhyasi should be given rest.
If one has some ailment the posture should be repeated two or three
times. For instance to an asthmatic doing even half a dozen breaths in
Sarvangasana will be difficult. So the trainee should make the abhyasi
practice atleast 12 breaths over a number of tries. Trying to do many
breaths in one go could create some chest pain and discomfort. So,
with a relaxed approach in four or six tries one should do the
required number of breaths. One should return to the lying down
position slowly. The same will apply to obese people while learning
sarvangasana, they should be taught the asanas with a lot of care. In
this manner the teacher and taught should learn to remain in an asana
for several minutes without any doubts about the pose. With
sarvangasana and sirsasana other asanas like paschimatanasana,
purvatanasana, chatushpada peetam; Parvatasana, vajrasana,
Bhujangasana etc can also br practiced.

When one starts to learn Yoga, in the beginning the duration of
practice can be as little as 15 to 20 minutes. One can gradually
increase the duration. The teacher should check the breath every day
and then increase the duration of practice. Whatever be the posture,
if one could stay for a long time without the limbs going to sleep (or
numb) or any pain or discomfort then such a practitioner is known as
jitasana (the conqueror/master of an asana.) While staying in an asana
one should not unnecessarily shake the body, bend or contort or move
and if one can stay for hours then such a yogi is a jitasana. We learn
from the works and sayings of yogis that in the olden days the rishis,
every day would remain in any one asana for three hours and do
pranayama and meditation. Then if the yogi is able to remain doing
long inhalation, exhalation and kumbhaka without feeling any kind of
fatigue and for a long period of time such a person would be called
“Jitaprana” or Jitaswasa, or one who has conquered the breath.

Remaining in a posture and gazing at one’s favorite (ishta) icon and
experiencing a feeling of bliss is called “trataka”. It is of two
types, anta and bahi. To gaze at an outside object like an icon is
external trataka. Closing one’s eyes and ‘imaging’ the object
internally and continually focusing attention  in between the eyebrows
is the antah(r)trataka or internal gazing. One can practice this
between one to ten minutes.

In the yogasana practice it is good to include a Mudra as well
everyday. Mahamudra and Shanmukhi mudra may be done. Further one
should do a kriya called plavana (jumping/stretching). For instance,
remaining in the same place after a particular asana practice, one may
place the palms on the floor, lift the body  and then stretch the legs
one by one . Then in recaka one should bend the leg and in puraka
return to the floor If one stays in an asana for a long time, the
muscles could slightly cramp and the plavana would help restore the
muscles attain normal tone. The yogabhyasi should practice asana,
pranayama, mudra and kriya together even from the beginning. Only then
all the benefits mentioned for the varied asanas will accrue. Likewise
if one by Pranayama becomes known as Jitaswasa, and then by meditation
is able to conquer the mind such a yogi is known as jitamanaska. All
the three are necessary. One should practice the same duration for
both asana and pranayama and then twice the duration for dhyana or
meditation. In the olden days the sages did yoga on three occasions
everyday, at dawn, noon and dusk. The time and regulation in Kumbhaka
are essential. With regulated time, one should practice all aspects of
yoga, like asana, kriyas, pranayama and mudra. One should do a few
asanas that one enjoys doing for about 15 mts and then do the
pratikriyas or counter poses.  For instancee one may do 15 mts of
sirsasana followed by 15 mts of sarvangasana,. Or perhaps 15 mts of
viparita dandasana followed by 15 mts of uttana mayurasana.

Asanas like sirasasana done while the body trembles or unsteady will
not be beneficial. Done correctly, it helps to maintain prana in
sushuna. Without proper practice one will not get faith in Yoga, nor
will one get the benefits mentioned in the sastras. One should know
the kriyas (like plavana) and there is a relationship bertween asanas
and plavana(jumping/stretching) kriya. As mentioned earlier, one
should bring under control the body by asana, with recaka kumbhaka the
prana and by meditation or dhyana the mind. For dhyana it may be
useful to choose a charming icon.

Quoted from Vishnu Purana. Sri T. Krishnamacharya in Yoga Rahasya

Svatmarama states in Hathayogapradipika that “the hatha-yoga is a sheltering monastery for those scorched by the three types of pain.” Ch.1 v.10

Who are ‘those’ that are scorched by the three types of pain? We all are, any living being is subject to these three sufferings.

The teaching of three-fold suffering also appears in the Vedas and Samkhya texts.

So what are these three kinds of pain, how can we recognise them and how can we be free from them?

Adhyatmika is the first kind of pain. It is pain arising due to one’s self. Any bodily or mental pain that arises; illness, fatigue, cold and hot, depression, confusion and anger are examples. Death will ultimately come to us also.

Adhibhautika is the second category of pain. Pain caused to us by other beings. A harsh word, physical violence, a dog or insect bites are examples.

Adhidaivika is the third category of pain. This is caused by nature and supernatural forces. A flood, landslide, snowstorm, gale or earthquake. Many cultures believe that devas (angels) demi-gods etc. can influence human and natural affairs so the effects from these quarters are included here.

First let us examine if this proposition is correct. I suggest this simple exercise; observe people’s conversation for one week and notice how much of their talk (usually complaining) is concerned with one of these three types of suffering. Then try for one week not to speak on any subject that falls into one of these categories. Observe the news and see the stories in terms of these three categories.

The founder of Samhkya philosophy, Kapila, observes at the outset of his aphorisms that all human activity is directed towards the avoidance or removal of this pain. Food, houses, clothes and medicine are necessities of life without which we would be most uncomfortable and these things protect us from various sufferings. He then points out that none of these expedients is a certain or permanent remedy, medicine does not always work, houses can be flooded. Even if the remedy works in the short term the three pains will arise again. Losing ourselves in pleasure and distraction is a way of avoiding this uncomfortable truth. As nations living in fear, we even invent nuclear bombs as a supposed remedy.

Kapila admits that to grapple with this truth is difficult. If we do engage with it the insight gained will lead one to a solution. You may be aware that, like Kapila, Lord Buddha began his teaching with the truth of suffering; “There is this suffering, Oh monks….” Buddha pointed out that these pains are an inevitable and unavoidable consequence of birth. The cure offered by the sages was the path to liberation. If we have the insight into the truth of suffering and understand the reality of our situation, then the desire for liberation will be awakened in us. Along with this, great empathy will arise for all beings, as we all suffer, more or less.

The gloomy part of this teaching is the universal nature of three-fold pain, the bright side is that the sages offer a cure. Like a doctor that diagnoses your illness correctly, the sages also developed the medicine.

In Vyasa’s commentary on the Yoga Sutra the release from the three sufferings is stated as a result of Yoga practice. “Worldliness entailing births is full of misery. Enlightened Yogins of pure character finding this cycle of births to be full of sorrow, try to bring about its cessation”. “The fruits of Yoga are the cessation of the three-fold misery”.

Liberation is the stabilisation of Purusa in its true form and the Yoga-darsana of Patanjali gives the practical methods to attain this. Those who have attained this state, praise it as the greatest good and highest aim of man.

If you asked these sages what is the meaning of life, they would say; “Life exists to set you free.” Absolute peace and freedom are the fruit’s of Yoga, three-fold sorrow is the compost.

May all beings be liberated.

Bibliography:

Hathayogapradipika Adyar Library
The Basic Tenets of Patanjala Yoga by Srivatsa Ramaswami
Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras by Pam Hoxsey
The Sankhya Aphorisms of Kapila trans. by James R. Ballantyne
Yoga Philosophy of Patanjali by Swami Hariharananda Aranya
Classical Samkhya by Gerald James Larson
The Holy Science by Swami Sri Yukteswar