Most people have erroneous ideas about classical Yoga. Yoga was a spiritual discipline. There were moral precepts and prohibitions that disciples had to follow. In addition, there could be dietary restrictions. Yoga had other paths to enlightenment besides asanas, breathing and meditation, such as, prayer, faith and knowledge. The chosen path was determined by the Guru after analyzing the individual. In some instances any form or exercise was contraindicated. No connection to physical conditioning or health appears in the Vedic literature. You could not pay for Yoga lessons and only received new instructions when your Guru thought you had made sufficient progress. See-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga

Be cautious about recommending so-called Yoga to patients, especially the elderly. Patients with injuries from practicing Yoga are a common occurrence in our Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) clinic. Many teachers have made-up their own style ranging from almost no stretching, extreme contortions, not holding postures, practicing in a sauna-like room, using weights, etc.

Generally scientists have little knowledge of Yoga and so cannot select qualified teachers for their subjects. The sample size is frequently too small and there is no control group. For example, recent research shows that regular, moderate stretching improves sport's performance, probably by increasing muscle strength. A control group that just stretches could be used. Finally, experiments are difficult to duplicate because many teachers have their own style.

Another reason why such clinical trials are difficult to evaluate is the subjects are not tracked daily. Anyone who has taught any subject that requires daily practice knows that some people do not practice at home while others are fanatical. In addition, the pupil's report of the amount of daily practice is often erroneous.

The rational use of "Yoga" as a therapy requires research into incorporating it with Ayurvedic medicine, just as Qigong is a branch of TCM – see

http://www.banyanbotanicals.com/yoga/yogaandayurveda/

Postures should be individually assigned after an Ayurvedic diagnosis. This requires training in Ayurvedic medicine to examine the patient. The diagnosis consists of a past medical history, looking, feeling, questioning the patient and examining the patient. This includes Ayurvedic pulse taking. Then you must know the effects of the postures in Ayurvedic terms (pitta,vata,kapha) in order to select proper postures. The same procedure should be used for selecting proper breathing and meditation exercises.

Finally, to satisfy western doctors, the results should be explained in terms of western science.

Author's Bio: 

By profession, Dr. Eisen was a university Professor specializing in constructing mathematical models used for studying medical problems such as those in cancer chemotherapy and epilepsy.

He has studied Judo, Shotokan Karate, Aikido and Tai Chi. He taught Judo in a community center in Toronto. Dr. Eisen was the founder and chief-instructor of the Shotokan Karate Clubs at Carnegie-Mellon and Dusquene Universities and the University of Pittsburgh

He has taught Tai Chi at community centers in New Jersey, the Chinese Community School of South Jersey, Temple University, a Master's Dance Class at Glassboro State College and Triton High School and also Qigong at some of these locations. He taught a Qigong course at Lehigh U. He helped teach Yoga at Graterford Prison.

One of Master Mark's students introduced him to Master Mark and Praying Mantis. He found the system so interesting that he devoted most of his time only to this art. He taught Praying Mantis at Master Mark's School in Philadelphia and at Temple University. He became a Disciple of Master Mark and teaches Praying Mantis, Qigong and Tai Chi at the Cherry Hill branch of Master Mark's school.

Master Mark fostered his interest in acupuncture, herbology, Chinese massage and Qigong. He took correspondence courses in Chinese herbology and studied other branches of Chinese medicine with a traditional Chinese medical doctor. Dr. Eisen was the Director of Education of the Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Institute in Upper Darby, P.A.

Dr. Eisen has written many articles on Kung Fu, Qigong, Eastern exercise and Chinese medicine.

He was honored by the University of Pittsburgh in 2001, on the 35th anniversary of the introduction of Shotokan Karate, as the founder, for contributing to its growth, popularity and also to students’ character development. He was selected as one of the coaches for a world competition of the U.S. Wu Shu team in 2001. Dr. Eisen received meritorious awards from Temple University National Youth Sports program in 1980 and from Camden County College for participation in a student sport program in 1979.