Yoga Myths 9 & 10

Myth 9: Yoga = Religion.

I had two Muslim friends who were interested in the teachers training course at TYI but were wary or joining thinking it was all about the Hindu religion. I assured them that was not the case and when they joined, they saw for themselves that Yoga is universal.

Although our gurus refer to many Hindu mythological stories to make a point, they also talk about Muslim and Christian leaders who walked on the same path that Yoga proposes.

I quote my guru Hansaji's words "There was a group of people who came here to learn Yoga from Pakistan." They went back extremely happy and hungry for more.

Yoga also talks about faith in God, but it welcomes anyone with any kind of belief. (or no belief at all).

I was a hard core atheist and believer in Science. I was totally against the concept of God and Karma Theory. Yet, I was welcomed with open arms, given all the knowledge and when I did further research, I became a believer in Higher Reality by choice, based on proof.


Myth 10: Yoga = You are Invincible

"You fell sick?? But you do Yoga!!" Sigh. It really is sad that people think practicing Yoga makes you invincible.

The body has its limits after all. It can catch infection from anywhere even if you are really careful.

Yoga helps in improving immunity and preventing most illnesses. But sometimes, seeing we live in a highly polluted material world where we are allowed to indulge in outside food sometimes, we can fall sick.

But the more you advance, the lesser the frequency of illness. It's true.

I hope that these 10 points helped remove some wrong notions that are popularly flying all over the world. If there are any more points or experiences anyone wants to share in relation to this topic, you are most welcome to post your comments.

Stay Healthy!

Myth 8: Yoga means staying away from everything you like

There was a student once who really got scared when introduced to the concept of Tapa.

"But I love eating cakes. I don't want to stop eating them!" she looked as though she regretted coming to the class.

After calming her down it was explained to her that Tapa does mean restraining our desires. But we are not Yogis. We are normal people who have to live in this world. So for us, what Tapa means is to limit our indulgence in everything. Just don't overdo anything.

Enjoying a cake or shopping once in a while is great! Go ahead and enjoy life!

Oh and Yoga does not mean running away from the world, going to the silence of the Himalayas or staying away from people. In fact, Yoga talks a lot about socializing with people, while following certain basic rules called Yamas and Niyamas (in layman terms we can consider these are etiquette rules and attitudes).

Myth 7: Yoga is all about stunts

Before saying anything more, let me add a disclaimer here- There are many different types of Yoga, including Hatha Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga etc. All have different sets of beliefs and methods.

The Yoga I’m talking about is Ashtanga Yoga which I feel is ideal for us householders. We all may not be completely fit and healthy and we don’t have ideal lifestyles which allow us to perform straining asanas of Hatha Yoga. (Although we all have a choice to practice these different forms if we want and are capable of it).

The definition of an asana according to Maharshi Patanjali is “sthiram sukham asanam”.

This means that a posture in which we can remain still for a long time and feel peace of mind is known as an asana. Standing on your head or twisting your body in unnatural ways is not required for this.

But as time passed on, we developed dynamic variations of asanas which included movement, breathing patterns and repetition. This is all fine as we need exercise. But according to me, considering some fast strenuous exercise as ‘asana’ is wrong.

I feel that an asana is that, after performing which you feel energized, calm and peaceful.

This is my own personal opinion which I’m not forcing on anyone but I feel that even Power Yoga cannot be considered ‘Yoga’. It is purely physical exercise that helps us lose weight and become stronger but it does nothing to take us to a higher level of consciousness. It is called ‘Yoga’ because its exercises are based on the original asanas described in Yoga.

My mother, being a Yoga teacher too, had tried Power Yoga. She wanted to know why there is so much craze about it and to learn for herself so she can teach it.

After two sessions, she (who is very flexible and healthy, by the way) started getting pains and sprains. She stopped learning it and decided not to teach it inspite of it being popular and in demand.

And remember- Asana is only the 3rd step out of 8 in Yoga.