Do you practice yoga or you live yoga?
When you practice something, it means you do it for few hours in a day. But when you live something it means you just do not it for few hours in a day rather you live it in every through moment. It also applies with yoga.
How long/many hours of yoga do you practice in your daily life?
If we practice yoga one or two hour in a day, that means we actually not practicing yoga. We are into the some kind of practice which is influenced by yoga. Yoga is a lifestyle, so should be adopted as a way of living. Lifestyle is something which we live 24×7 not just for few hours.
Sounds nice! But question comes in the mind that how can we practice yoga all day along. Fundamentally it is a wrong question yet most of the people have this question. why? Most of us know yoga as a mat practice but that is not all.
Because most of us know yoga as just practice of Asana (physical postures), Pranayama (breathing) and Dhyana (mediation) but it is not all. Ashtang yog of Patanjali begins with lifestyle. So it is very important to take your yoga out of your mat and studio.
Yoga is not just few hours practice but the lifestyle. Here is three basics ways to adopt which makes yoga a lifestyle.
AAHAR – the food
Aahar means food. What are your thoughts about impact of food in our daily life? Do you think food can change our life? Undoubtedly everyone accept that food can change the life.
Yes it is right that yoga lifestyle includes conscious choose of food. Because food is not just some substance it is the source of life sustaining energy. The food we eat releases the nutrients and energies stored in it which is get absorbed by our body.
The energy which we gate from the food nourishes our physical, emotional and spiritual aspects and play a big role in determining our health and quality of life.
I must drag your attention to possible threat of our modern food and our eating habits. A big part of modern food is full of white flour, sugar, caffeine, artificial and junk food with little nutritional value that brings artificial and poor quality of energy into your body and mind.
So choose your food wisely. “Health requires healthy and balance food”
Vichar – the thoughts
Vichar means thoughts. How thoughts effect our life? By changing the thoughts pattern can you change your life?
In the yogic understanding nothing happens in the body without its first happing in the mind. Each thought once placed in the mind becomes the raw material for further thoughts.
For example let’s assume your thought is a seed which has been planted in the field of mind. Each thought has its impression in the mind which becomes the raw material for a subsequent thought. Some other thoughts will arise out of it, consciously or unconsciously, directly or indirectly, depending on how much this seed (thought) is nourished. Every act you perform from your body and speech too, is a thought planted in your mind.
It is nicely said that “Quality of the life depends in quality of thoughts”
Whatever you attract in your life depends on the kind of thoughts you have in your mind. That is why it is always advice to be positive. You must develop a strong positive thought pattern in order to live the kind of life you want to live. Through changing your food and environment you can change your thought pattern.
Vyhara – the behavior
Vyvhara means behavior. Behavior is the potential and expressed capacity of human (physical, mental, and social activity) to respond to internal and external stimuli throughout their life. Behaviors change as one moves along different stages of their life and also highly influenced by what we eat and think.
Always be aware how do you behave towards the society and yourself. In the yoga sutra Sage Patanjali explains Ashtanga yoga (8 limbs of yoga) which begins with the practice of Yama and Niyama . Yama means self- control/ self- regulating behaviors which involve our interactions with society.
Yama includes practices like non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, non-temptation and non-possessiveness. Niyama means personal practice that relate to our inner world. Niyama includes practices like purity, contentment, self-disciple, self-study and surrender.
