yogsutras

SAMADHI PAD



अथ योगानुशासनम्।
atha yogānuśāsanam|

Atha yoga anushasam (Chapter 1, v।l)

Now the discipline of yoga (is being presented)

First, it implies that now the student is ready to hear and now the teacher is available and willing to teach. It implies additionally that the student has learned a great deal on his/her own before this point and is now willing to undertake the difficult and sometimes very demanding teaching of classical yoga. Finally it implies that the understanding of now is the most important thing that can be learned from the study of yoga. In its most simple and pure form, yoga brings one deeply into the present, into the now. This is at the heart of the teachings of yoga and its profound significance can be found in the very first word of the Yoga Sutras.

The word “anusasanam”अनुशासनम्(anuśāsanam) is an interesting one। It is variously translated as “exposition” of “discipline”। It concludes the verse as “now yoga is explained” or “now the discipline of yoga is presented”। The important point here is to remember that yoga is considered a coherent discipline which requires focus and determination. Therefore Patanjali states clearly in verse one that progress in yoga does not come by accident.Far from being a mere introduction along the lines of “Once upon a time”, this is an important verse. Especially important is the use of the word “now” to begin the sutra. This “now” implies several things.

INTRODUCTION TO AYURVEDA

"Ayurveda"is a holistic system of medicine that is indigenous to and widely practiced in India.It is the first life science. The word Ayurveda is a Sanskrit term meaning "science of life." Ayu" means "life" or "daily living." and "veda" is "knowing." This system of medicine has been practiced in daily life in India for more than 5,000 years.

Every human being has four biological and spiritual instincts, religious, financial, pro-creative and the instinct toward freedom. Balanced good health is the foundation for the fulfillment of these instincts. Ayurveda helps the healthy person to maintain health, and the diseased person to regain health. The practice of Ayurveda is designed to promote human happiness, health and creative growth (suprajanan)

Ayurveda is a truly holistic medicine whose great wealth is not merely a kind of folk medicine as it is sometimes considered to be. It is a science in its own right, with its own rationality and way of experimentation that is extraordinarily intricate and complete. It is based upon the observation of living beings and their actual reactions to their environment, not on mere laboratory experiments that seldom address the living being.

Ayurveda classifies all the factors of human life in an organic and energetic language that reflects the entire living biosphere around it. It shows how our individual constitution and disease tendencies reflect the forces of nature. It shows how foods, herbs, emotions, climates and lifestyles impact the dynamics of our own physiology and psychology that may differ for each person. It reflects a deep study not only of the body but also the mind and the spirit beyond the mind and the body. It describes the diet, medicines, and behaviors that are beneficial or harmful for life and consciousness.

Ayurveda is not only a system of medicine in the conventional sense of a methodology for treating disease but it is a way of life that teaches us how to maintain health and improve both our energy and our awareness, how to live life to our full human and spiritual potential.

Ayurveda shows us not only how to eliminate disease but how to promote longevity so that we can realize our goal of life, which is not just gaining material happiness but achieving profound spiritual realization. Ayurveda remains linked to a spiritual view of humanity and contains methods for connecting us to the greater universe that lies both within and around us. It treats the human being as a whole- a combination of body, mind and immortal soul.