Chapter 4 - Physical and Moral Conditions of Yoga Training
Yoga training re-educates our vital instincts and thereby it tends to lead us back to the normal physiological condition of human nature and thus to rid us of a host of physical ills, to prolong youth and the span of a useful, active life.
You have perhaps heard that certain Yogis have lived several hundred years. This is not the place to investigate the authenticity of such claims, but we can attest that the disciples of Hatha Yoga, as a rule, enjoy splendid health and maintain all of their physiological and mental faculties up to a ripe old age.
There are, of course, individual differences of success here as everywhere else. While not everybody can become a champion, it is certain that the practice of Yoga will, in any and every case, be of great advantage. The extent of success depends, in part, upon the student's natural disposition and to a perhaps even greater part, upon the method that is being followed. It must, above all things, be remembered that Yoga has nothing in common with the systems of physical culture such as they are being practised in Europe and America. Their aim is muscular development; their ideal is the formation of athletes. The aim of Yoga is entirely different.
According to Hatha Yoga, the mechanism of life depends mainly upon the two currents of force, one positive (Ha) and the other negative (Tha), like the two poles of an electric current. The balance of these two currents assures the perfect functioning of the vital mechanism. When there is a lack of balance, it functions badly or ceases to function. The aim of Hatha Yoga is the maintenance or, if necessary, the re-establishment of the balance between the two currents, and that not only in one part of the organism, like the musculature, but in all its parts.
As a tree is judged by its fruits, so the doctrine of the ancient masters of Yoga is judged by its results. Yoga does not form athletes, but well-rounded human beings.
This notion of balance is, in a way, the soul of the whole system of Hatha Yoga. We have already mentioned that the training consists of physical, as well as mental exercises. According to Hatha Yoga there is complete solidarity between mental, moral and physical balance, like the solidarity which exists between the hands of a clock and its wheels. It has become trivial to say that the mind influences the body and vice-versa; it is a constantly repeated slogan, but no western educational system that we know of takes it into account. Yoga on the other hand, makes the widest possible use of this truth which it considers one of its fundamental principles. Even the simplest exercises, which seem to be of an exclusively physical nature have a mental side to them. It is called "attention". To pay attention seems to imply a positive effort, an effort of the will. This tension of the will is, in fact, more a hindrance than an aim to real attention. What is needed is much more a negative effort, the elimination of all ideas foreign to the object we have in mind. It is not a positive effort which is required for the perfect execution of Yoga exercises, but rather the exclusion, as far as possible, of any thoughts or ideas that would interfere with what we are doing. We say "as far as possible" because if you were really able to think exclusively of the task in hand, if you were master of your thoughts and ideas, then you would need no further instruction; you would be a perfect Yogi.
All human enterprise is habitually accompanied by desire and fear, the desire to succeed, the fear of not succeeding. These feelings, however, are negative, and must, as far as possible, be eliminated. They are a source of distraction which waste a part of the nervous energy which should be used exclusively in the execution of the enterprise. The emotion of fear, the feeling of apprehension, is more dangerous even than the desire to succeed, inasmuch as it exercises a depressing and paralysing influence. But even the desire to succeed, while it exercises a dynamic and toxic action is to be avoided, since it turns the attention from the present to the future.
The ideal mental attitude is one of complete emotional neutrality, the attitude of a neutral spectator. The Yoga exercises should be performed as though by someone else, as though by a person whose success or failure were a matter of indifference to you. This mental attitude, once understood, can be attained with patience and practice. It will be of great help to you, not only in the practice of Yoga, but in all your actions, whether it be the passing of an exam or the conclusion of a business deal. It is an attitude of detachment from the fruits of action which exercises a liberating action.
It is best to practice alone, in a quiet place, in the nude or as lightly clad as possible. While this may not be always easy to accomplish, at least the approximation of the ideal solution will be found. Of course, if the services of a competent teacher are available, progress will be more rapid, although even then it will be found profitable to exercise and to study alone at times, for reasons which you will come to understand later.
What is the best time to practise? The Yoga tradition indicates the hour before the sunrise, midday and sunset as the most favourable times. While this is unquestionably true, there is nothing rigid about it and these rules can and may be adapted to circumstances. A person disposing freely of his time may follow the above rule to great advantage. Another may be able to practise in the morning before breakfast and in the evening before retiring. The important thing is to incorporate the practice of Yoga into the daily schedule like the bath, cleaning one's teeth or shaving, so that Yoga practice will become an inalterable, indispensable habit.
Remember that the advantages in health and happiness to be gained from this habit are so important that no initial effort is too great. We say "initial effort" because once that habit is established, it will by itself, become an indispensable and cherished part of the daily routine. All that is necessary, in fact, is to rise half an hour earlier than usual. This may be easier said than done, but it is the condition that cannot be dispensed with. And if you find that you cannot do without those thirty minutes of sleep, why not go to bed thirty minutes earlier?
Fifteen to twenty minutes in the morning and fifteen minutes in the evening are enough to begin with. Who wouldn't give that much time when a sense of well-being, of increased vitality, of a hitherto unknown zest for life, of a constantly growing awareness of being on the threshold of discoveries touching at the very questions of life and death are at stake? Give that much time to Yoga regularly and Yoga will make up for it a thousand times over. Many people have reluctantly done so and have said later on: "Why haven't we heard of this before?" But it is never too late to begin. One of the most wonderful things about the practice of Yoga is that the time given to it, the effort made, whether big or small, will show definite and certain results practically from the first moment you devote to it. Very soon you will consider it the most important part of your daily life, without which you simply could not do any more.
Still remains the "how" of Yoga. The conditions under which the exercises are to be carried out play an important role in the progress to be accomplished. But while it may be of advantage to begin the training in the spring, between the new moon and the full moon, ie. during an ascending moon phase, turned northward for standing exercises, with the head towards the north and the feet to the south in lying down exercises, all these rules, after all, are of minor importance. If you can do the exercises in the open air, all the better. Otherwise see to it that your practice room be well aired and that the temperature be neither too warm nor too cold. More important is to practise with an empty stomach, either before or two hours after a meal. Bladder and intestine should be unencumbered. Start only when your mind and body are tranquil and calm. Use a rug, blanket or cover for your exercises in order to isolate yourself against the radiations of the earth. Use this rug or cover for nothing else; all the better if it be white.
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