Following the 5 pillars of yoga can lead us to a state of bliss
When, Lord, will this unrest come to an end?
Crushed under the dead weight of oppression
The whole world, O Lord, is in agony.
Peace and happiness are gone. (Tagore, World Unrest)
The poet’s cry echoes the cry of millions of human beings today. We all know the value of peaceful living, but today we are constantly at war with ourselves, with our dear ones, or with communities or nations. Stress, worry, and a feeling of loneliness are part of our life. It seems so strange, that after fulfilling the basic needs for survival, all other species remain quite happy except for human beings. Our cravings and desires are unending, which always lower our gaze downwards. It is a common sight that the dog walking with his human owner looks happy, wags his tail, and looks up joyfully towards the human but the human walks with his head down, depressed.
Our general belief is, that the cause of our unhappiness lies outside of ourselves. So we think by changing external circumstances we can be happy; and when that does not happen, we become increasingly stressed. For this wrong diagnosis of our unhappiness, we are paying a heavy price in our life. What is diagnosed as a psychosomatic disease are often caused by our negative thinking and attitudes towards life. Swami Yogananda says outside events are neutral, but how we react to them is what is important. Our happiness depends on our reactions, not on events.
The great scriptures of yoga, The Bhagavad Gita, the yoga sutras, and Upanishad clearly describe that the real causes of war with ourselves and others are rooted in the individual’s unwillingness to listen to the voice of the heart, his inner conscience.
According to the yoga system, the only way to solve these problems lies in applying spiritual tools and committing ourselves to disciplines that can lead to self-realization and transformation. Through transformation of our internal experiential life we find the immediate effects on our external circumstantial life - on our relationships, our families, and our work. Individual transformations also lay the ground-work for societal transformations as well as the culture that will shape the lives of future generations.
According to yoga philosophy, there is a definite method to attain inner peace, harmony and illumination. Our ancient masters discovered methods that create a bridge between our body, mind and soul; our inner and outer world, our worldly life and spiritual life. By taking good care of 5 basic things, we can make life blissful. They are; proper exercise, proper breathing, proper relaxation, proper healthy diet, and positive thinking through meditation.
Yoga regards the body as a vehicle of the soul in its journey toward perfection. So yogic asanas (exercises) are designed, not to create muscular limbs, but to stay flexible and disease free. They also deepen our awareness of the subtle energy body, and keep our organs and glands healthy. When the functions of glands and thereby hormones are rejuvenated, they help balance our emotions and improve our mental outlook. These exercises are performed gradually and at an individualized pace, and their benefits can be seen in our physical, mental and spiritual lives.
Next is pranayama. Prana means breath and yam is control. Yogic breathing is deep abdominal diaphragmatic breathing, so when the abdomen contracts with exhalation it helps to oxygenate at higher levels than shallow breathing. In this process, one feels more energetic, has better oxygenation, and remains disease free. Breathing has a direct impact on our mind. If the mind is restless, the breath is short and shallow. So also, is the mind stabilized by deepening and lengthening our breath - the connection between mind and body, is thus an immediately demonstrable one.
Next is proper relaxation. To recharge our body and mind in a yogic way is to withdraw our identity from body and mind consciousness, and with auto-suggestion, send prana to every cell in the body and all organs. That relaxation method is called savasana “corpse pose”. Through savasana, the yogi identifies himself and with all pervading, blissful, and pure consciousness within, finds total relaxation.
The yogic diet always includes food that is natural, fresh, easy to digest, and balanced with the right quantity of protein, vitamins, minerals, etc. The yogic diet is vegetarian and includes fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy products, whole wheat, nuts, etc. All foods leave a subtle effect on our mind. So when our food and livelihood do not create any disturbance in our hearts or in the lives of others, it is considered good. So a serious seeker on the path of yoga will exclude meat, fish, eggs, coffee, alcohol and any ingestion of drugs.
As proper foods are essential pillars to maintain a healthy body, positive thoughts can nourish a healthy mind. As Swami Vivekananda warned us not to touch any thought that weakens our mind. To recharge our mind is a two way process. First is to clean up all the negative thoughts – driven by ego, anger, attachment, greed, etc. from our mind. The second is to fill up the mind with positive thoughts like honesty, compassion, humility, non-attachment, etc. The mind is an energy field; it can never remain empty. If we consciously fill up with positive and creative thoughts, then every mode of expression in life will be benevolent. We should not forget that we are on an eternal journey of self-realization; to realize divinity in us and in all. We will be grossly mistaken if we think that our existence is only for hand to mouth living and cycles from our office to our bed.
By meditation, we calm, concentrate and expand our mind. Touching the divinity within, we will be liberated. And that state only can bring lasting peace and happiness in life. Yoga teaches us that by transforming ourselves, we can bring transformation in a positive way around us. Desire to have yogic union between creations and creator echoes in these lines of the Upanishad:
Lead me from the unreal to the real.
Lead me from darkness to light.
Lead me from mortality to immortality.
Edited by Megan Petra Wheeler and Prodeep Bose
