In recent years the asanas (postures & stretches) of Hatha Yoga have become extremely popular in the West as a form of physical exercise. There are tremendous benefits to adding this aspect of yoga into your lifestyle. However many of its practitioners don’t realize that the asanas were developed by the ancient yogis as a means to condition the body so that it could sit perfectly still for long hours of meditation.
The word Yoga in Sanskrit means union and it describes a state of mind to be achieved or more accurately a state of no-mind. The ancient sage Patanjali wrote the Yoga sutras, a book of verses that describe the entire 8 fold path of Yoga philosophy, somewhere between 1700 – 2200 years ago. Patanjali described Yoga as the thought-free state. And it is by attaining that thought-free state, where the union of our human consciousness and the consciousness of the universal magnetic field takes place.
The road to the thought-free state begins and ends with the art and science of meditation. Meditation is the culmination of several steps which include pranayama, which was introduced earlier in the section on respiration and craving control. Pranayama or life force control is the key to controlling the mind or more specifically the thoughts that arise in the mind.
Once our focus is no longer disturbed by what is going on around us, we can begin the process of trying to concentrate, which in Yoga is described as Dharana. When the object that is being concentrated on and the subject or the one is doing the concentrating becomes one, then you are meditating, this is described by the term Dhayana. This state is a truly wonderful state, and all it takes is a taste of it to keep you coming back for more.
Practicing even a little meditation each day has tremendous health benefits including:
• Normalizing Blood Pressure
• Lowering Cholesterol Levels
• Improved Bronchial Asthma Symptoms
• Relief from Insomnia
• Relief from Anxiety
People who meditate have more energy, sleep better, and have less stress and tension in their life. Many find it easier to reduce alcohol use, stop smoking, and let go of unhealthy habits. Research also shows that they have lower medical costs, fewer doctor visits, and less hospitalization.
Excerpted from The Magnetic Diet. http://www.magnetic-diet.com/book
Nick Smith is the author of The Magnetic Diet a book about weight loss through diet, exercise, and meditation.
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