Yoga - an ancient form of practice that developed thousands of years ago in Indian society and has been practiced continuously since then. It involves a variety of exercises to keep a person healthy and to get rid of various diseases and disabilities. It is also considered as a strong method for meditating which helps to relax the mind and body. Yoga is being practiced all over the world. According to a survey, around 2 billion people in the world practice yoga.
Yoga derives from the Sanskrit word, 'use' (YUJ). It means to connect, connect or unite. It is the union of individual consciousness with universal consciousness. Yoga is 5000 years old Indian philosophy. It was first mentioned in the ancient sacred text - the Rigveda (Vedas were a collection of spiritual information, songs and rituals used by Brahmins, texts of Vedic priests).
Yoga has been practiced in Indian society for thousands of years. A person doing yoga performs different activities called asanas. Yoga benefits those who practice it regularly.
Exercises done in yoga are called 'asanas' which are capable of bringing stability of body and mind. Yoga asanas are the simplest way to reduce excess body weight and keep fit.
Origin of yoga
Yoga was born thousands of years ago in ancient India. First of all even before the birth of religion or belief system. It is believed that Shiva is the first Yogi or Adiyogi and the first Guru. Thousands of years ago, Adiyogi on the banks of Lake Kantisarokar in the Himalayas shared his knowledge with the great seven sages because it was difficult to keep so much knowledge in one person. The sages spread this powerful yoga science to different parts of the world including Asia, North Africa, Middle East and South America. India has been blessed to achieve the Yoga system in its entirety.
The fossil remains of the Indus-Saraswati civilization are evidence of the presence of yoga in ancient India. This presence is mentioned in folk traditions. It is included in the Indus Valley Civilization, Buddhist and Jain traditions. According to studies, yoga was being practiced under the direct guidance of a guru and great importance was given to its spiritual value. Surya was given supreme importance during the Vedic period and Suryanamaskar was invented later.
Maharishi Patanjali is known as the father of modern yoga. However he did not invent yoga as it was already in various forms. They assimilated it into the system. He observed that it is becoming too complicated for anyone to understand meaningfully. He therefore assimilated and incorporated all aspects into a certain format called the Yoga Sutra.
The role of breath is very important in the practice of asana or yoga positions. Breath is an important force based on our actions and oxygen changes are the requirement of our body. If we exercise, we need more oxygen, so we breathe faster and if we rest, we breathe more comfortably. When doing slow asanas in yoga, the entire focus is integrated on the breath. Yoga practice promotes relaxed breathing and exhalation.
Benefits of yoga
Improve muscle flexibility
Heals body postures and alignment
Provides better digestive system
Strengthens internal organs
Treats asthma
Cures diabetes
Helps to cure heart problems
Helps skin glow
Promotes strength and endurance
Improve concentration
Helps control mind and thoughts
Keeps the mind calm to overcome anxiety, stress and depression
Helps reduce stress
Helps in blood circulation and muscle relaxation
Weight loss
Protects from injury
These are the benefits of yoga. Yoga focuses on your natural tendency towards health and self-healing.
Yoga sessions mainly consist of exercises, meditation and yoga asanas that strengthen various muscles. It is a good option to avoid drugs, which are harmful to our mental and physical health.
One of the main benefits of practicing yoga is that it helps in reducing stress. Stress is a common practice these days, which has a devastating effect on the body and mind. Stress causes people to have severe problems such as pain at bedtime, neck pain, backache, headache, rapid heartbeat, palms sweating, heartburn, anger, insomnia and inability to concentrate. Yoga is really effective in treating these types of problems with the passage of time. It helps a person to reduce stress through meditation and breathing exercises and improves a person's mental well-being. Regular practice creates mental clarity and peace, which relaxes the mind.
Yoga is an art that connects our body, mind and soul together and makes us strong and peaceful. Yoga is essential because it keeps us fit, helps reduce stress and maintain overall health and a healthy mind can only help in focusing well.
Yoga is important because by practicing yoga you can gain on the following points:
Inner peace - Yoga helps in achieving inner peace and fight against stress and other problems. Yoga increases the level of peace in a person and helps to increase his self-confidence and make him happy.
Health - A healthy person can do more work than an unhealthy person. Nowadays life is very stressful and there is a lot of pollution around us. It is the cause of many health problems. Just 10-20 minutes of yoga every day can help your health to be good. Better health means better life.
Activism - Nowadays people feel lazy, tired or lack of sleep due to which they miss most of the fun in their life and are not able to complete their work properly. Being proactive, you are more aware of the things happening around you and are able to complete your work more efficiently and quickly. One way to do all this is to practice yoga regularly.
Flexibility - People nowadays suffer from many types of pain. They face difficulties while touching the toes or bending downward. Regular practice of yoga helps in relieving all these types of pain. By doing yoga, the effect of all these things can be seen to decrease in a few days.
Increase blood flow - Yoga helps in making your heart healthy and it works more efficiently by increasing the flow of blood in your body and veins. It helps to keep your body oxygen rich.
Power to concentrate - Yoga helps to calm and relax your body which means less stress and you can focus on your work. This is why children and adolescents are encouraged to do yoga as it helps them to concentrate better in their studies.
Classification of Yoga
To understand the four main routes of yoga and their importance, see briefly:
Karma Yoga- It is also known in Western culture as 'discipline of work'. It is one of the four important parts of yoga. It teaches to do any work without engaging with selfless activities and duties and without worrying about fruit. This is the main lesson taught to a Karma Yogi. It is for those who seek the spiritual path and want to meet with God. It can also be practiced in their regular life by performing their duty in an honest manner without worrying about the outcome. It is the path of spiritual development. Actually, what we do is action and the result is its reaction. A person's life is governed by his karma chakra. If that person has good thoughts, good deeds and good thinking, then he will live a happy life, whereas if that person has bad thoughts, bad deeds and bad thinking, then he will live a sad and difficult life, it is very difficult to live such a selfless life in today's world. Because before doing human actions, one starts worrying about fruits. This is the reason why we are facing problems like high stress, mental illness and depression. Karma yoga gets rid of all materialistic paths and leads a happy and successful life.
Jnana Yoga- It is also known as 'Wisdom Yoga'. It is a very difficult and complicated path between all. It teaches a person to merge with the inner self by practicing various mental techniques by meditating with a deep conscience and conducting self-questioning sessions. It teaches a person to distinguish between a permanent conscious and a temporary materialistic world. This path teaches to stabilize the mind and emotions by focusing on 6 fundamental qualities - peace, control, sacrifice, tolerance, faith and focus. It is advisable to practice Jnana Yoga under the guidance of a competent guru to achieve the goal and do it in the best way.
Bhakti Yoga- It is also known as 'Spiritual or Bhakti Yoga'. It is associated with divine love because it is the greatest path to spiritual enlightenment through love and devotion. In this yoga path one sees God as the supreme expression and embodiment of love. Its main features are - chanting the name of God, singing his praises or hymns and engaging in worship and rituals. This is the easiest and most popular. Bhakti yoga is associated with purification of mind and heart and can be attained by many mental and physical yoga practices. It gives courage even in adverse conditions. It basically makes one feel kindness and focuses on purifying the divine with divine love.
Kriya Yoga - This is a physical practice in which many body postures are performed through meditation techniques of energy and breath control or pranayama. In this, body, mind and soul develop. By practicing Kriya Yoga, the entire human system is activated in a short time. All internal organs such as liver, pancreas, etc. are active. The hormones and enzymes required to keep the body healthy are brought into active state. The blood absorbs high amounts of oxygen and is quickly de-carbonized which usually reduces the number of diseases. The brain cells are activated through more circulation in the head, which increases the brain's working capacity and memory, and the person does not feel tired quickly.
Thus, it can be said that yoga is a miracle and if done it will guide your whole life. 20-30 minutes per day Yoga can change your life forever by promoting a balance between your physical, mental and spiritual health
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