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By Yogi Ashwini
We spend one-third of our life sleeping or resting. A person who is seventy, taking the average of 7-8 hours of rest daily, would have spent 23 years of life sleeping! But then, if you thought these 23 years were wasted, you are wrong.
Ayurveda says, nidra or rest is one the three fundamentals to ageless health and stunning glow. There are three states of mind - conscious, subconscious and unconscious. In the state of sleep one can access the subconscious mind. It is this aspect of brain which helps one to connect with the people and things that have left you or are not with you.
People who suffer from sleep disorders like insomnia, are unable to rest the body and mind and succumb to plethora of ailments. Below are some tips and techniques to help overcome the problem of insomnia.
Ayurvedic Tip
Every day before going to sleep fill a tub with lukewarm water. Keep a jug of very hot water nearby. Put some drops of pure eucalyptus oil in the water. Dip your feet in the tub and slowly keep on adding hot water to the tub till it reaches a temperature that you can bear. The practice has the instant effect of relieving heaviness and excessive blood collection in the brain. As a result, you are able to relax and sleep better.
Yog Nidra, is a simple technique to rejuvenate and rest the body.
For this, lie down in shavasana keeping your body loose, feet slightly apart and palms on either side of the body, facing skyward. Close your eyes and watch your breath at the tip of the nostrils. With one deep inhalation, take your awareness to the left big toe, then all the toes in the left foot and instruct them to relax. Now slowly move the awareness upwards, relaxing the foot, ankle, shin, knee, thigh and the entire left leg as you move up. Repeat the process with right leg. Feel a gentle soothing current flowing in both legs.
Now bring your awareness to the left hand and move upwards very slowly from fingertips to the shoulder observing each and every body part. Repeat on the right side. Next take your awareness to the abdomen, all the internal organs, lower back, upper back, up to the top of the head, visiting each and every cell and organ and relaxing and nourishing it with the strength of your awareness.
Next be aware of the weight in the body and drop this weight in the core of the earth, leaving your body light and weightless. Be aware of a whitish blue light at the top of the head and sweep your body seven times with this light, from head to toe.
Now take your awareness to the center of the chest cavity (Anahad chakra) and from here, holding the hand of your Guru, drop all your awareness, let go. Let there be no thoughts or movements beyond this point. Come back when you feel like. Whenever you come back, enter the body through the Agya (crown) chakra, pay reverence to the Guru and once again become aware of the entire body brimming with youthful strength and glow. Open your eyes and look at the centre of your palms first, then the whole body.
Yog Nidra has the instant effect of soothing and calming the body and also replenishing it. It is advised that you visit your nearest Dhyan Foundation center to learn the correct way to practice Yog nidra. The effect of any sadhna becomes manifold when practiced under the guidance of your Guru who channelises energy into it.
Yogi Ashwini is the Guiding Light of Dhyan Foundation and an authority on the Vedic Sciences. His book, 'Sanatan Kriya, The Ageless Dimension' is an acclaimed thesis on anti-ageing. Log onto to www.dhyanfoundation.com for more
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- Denis Giles
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With airline passenger, Dr David Dao, being dragged out of an aircraft and severely beaten up by the crew of United, an American airline, the World Fliers Association realizing that the safety of passengers is at stake has issued a set of guidelines that they hope will help see others do not get the same unfortunate treatment the poor doctor was subjected to.
Guideline One: While shopping in duty free, before entering the aircraft, pick up a small gift for the crew. Find out how many crew members there are and include the captain and co-pilot too, as surly pilots have been known to give their passengers bumpy rides and frightful landings.
Guideline Two: Do not carry any hand baggage onto the aircraft. Baggage of any kind irritates the crew, and immediately puts them in a bad mood, even before takeoff.
Guideline Three: When the food trolley goes by, politely decline to ask for anything, as that extra effort to serve you could cause them to get unnecessarily unnerved. Hunger pangs while flying, are still better than being thrown off a flying aircraft.
Guideline Three: Do not stare at the pretty airhostesses while they are explaining safety precautions, as they are highly tense at this juncture, instead on behalf of fellow passengers insist they do not need to go through it, and that you and all the passengers would rather die than put them through this unnecessary hassle.
Guideline Four: Do not use the aircraft bathrooms. It is not just about using the bathrooms, it is the inconvenience the poor crew face while you walk down the aisle, accidentally brushing past them, unnecessarily having them make eye contact with you, and then not giving them the opportunity of using same rest room, whenever they need a smoke, which could be any time in the flight. If you have to go, do so before the flight, otherwise use yoga or meditation to control bladder and bowels. Our next issue will give you some excellent exercises that you can practice doing at home, before any flight.
Guideline Five: Smile! Yes, your smile could be the key towards successfully reaching your destination: Smile when the aircraft goes through turbulence, smile if she drops hot tea on you while serving your neighbor, smile when they announce that non-vegetarian food is over, smile when the crew make jokes about your hair or size. That smile could just be your ticket to safety.
We ask each flier to study these guidelines, but we are also enclosing a detailed brochure with details of ships that have started plying to the same places you fly to.
These ocean liners may be slower, but you can rest assured you will not be manhandled, will reach your destination in one piece, and your peace of mind will be looked after, not just that of airline and crew..!
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“We need to write a new script,” growled white beard to black beard with streaks of grey, as they sat, looking at the map of India, “One which will make me the most popular leader this country has ever had!”
“Your religious policies have got you a twenty-five percent base!” said black beard with streaks of grey.
“Not enough!” said white beard, “I need a huger following, something like an eighty percent base!”
“Eighty percent!” exclaimed black beard, with streaks of grey. “The only people who form such a large majority are our country’s poor! And to get them you will have to lift them up with populist measures!”
“I will not lift them up, but will pretend I am pulling down those they envy!”
“The rich?”
“Yes, first the rich!”
“But they are the ones who support you!”
“And they will continue to do so. I will not pull them down, I will only fool the poor.”
And so, after demonetization the poor stood in long queues outside banks, weary and tired, but grinning as they’d been told the rich were suffering more.
The learned, condemned the move, but India’s poor loved it!
“Get the King of Good Times arrested!” said white beard to black beard with streaks of grey.
“But he is in England, and there are many in India who owe more to the banks?”
“But the poor will love seeing this international road show!”
And the poor clapped and applauded as the man was arrested, but did not know he was let off on bail a few minutes later.
“What next?” asked black beard with a streak of grey.
“Who else do the poor look up to with envy?”
“Doctors!”
“Let them be bashed! Don’t let the police do anything! Then say they are cheating the poor prescribing costly medicines!”
And the poor clapped and applauded as some of them bashed up doctors.
And the poor voted with glee for white beard and for the beard with streaks of grey.
Ten years passed. One day there was a noise, a huge noise throughout the nation.
“Sir, there is a clamoring at our gates,” said one white beard to the other who had once had streaks of grey, “I think it is the poor!”
“Run!” shouted the original white beard to the other, “You can fool some people some time, but not all the people all the time! Run, the poor have found out..!”
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By Yogi Ashwini
Yoga was conceived millennia ago; it is a science which has stood the test of time, survived invasions from races across the globe. Yoga has survived because it is shashwat (eternal), what it was, it will remain. Invaders and plunderers can destroy all the records, but they cannot destroy Yoga for it is a blessing straight from the creator. The gyan of Yoga is handed down from the Guru to the shishya, the reason its theories are being rediscovered by modern scientists.
As per Yoga, it is possible to maintain vision in the eyes along with good hearing abilities till the last. We have occipital lobes at the back and temporal lobes in the front of our brain, sides of the brain, right behind the temples. These two are directly connected to the sight and hearing abilities. Actually when you hear, it is not the eardrum that is resonating, it’s the lobe and when you are seeing, it is not the retina, but the lobe which is responsible for the vision. If your lobes are healthy, then the hearing ability is phenomenal and the sight is near perfect.
Yoga is about being in sync with nature. If you are doing yoga then chances are that problems like glaucoma and cataract will never touch you. Below are simple techniques from Sanatan Kriya to keep your eyes and ears healthy.
For the Eyes: Interlock your fingers and stretch the arms forward with both the thumbs pointing upwards. Focus your eyes on the nails of the thumbs. Gently move both the hands to the left and let the eyes follow the thumbnails without blinking. Move the hands back to the center and then to the right and then back to the center. Now move hands in a large circle on the left side and then on the right side. Then move them both upwards and then downwards. The eyes follow the thumbnails as they move.
Agni manifests as vision in your eyes. The seat of Agni is at the Manipoorak chakra in the body (the navel). Rub your palms and place them one on top of the other at the level of your navel for some time. Rub your hands after you finish. You will feel a lot of heat in your palms. Now place your palms over your closed eyes. This has a relaxing effect on the eyes and nervous system. Remain in this position until the eyes have absorbed the heat from the hands.
This very simple set will ensure, problems of the eyes are kept at bay. Only practice can make one understand the efficacy of the techniques of Sanatan Kriya and Ashtang Yoga.
For the Ears: Bhramri Pranayam - The humming sound of the male bee is bhramri. In this pranayam we use the power of Manipoorak to generate the sound of brahmri (not the throat). Simultaneous effect is felt on the eyes and the ears. Brahmri pranayam acts on the brain and produces quick and lasting relaxation by reducing stress and anxiety. For this, plug your ears with thumbs, take deep breaths and internalise. Your fingers placed at the back of your head. Close your eyes and make the humming sound of a bee. The lips remain closed. Do for as long and comfortable. Repeat this seven times.
The pranayam invigorates the thyroid gland and increases the metabolism. It also triggers serotonin release, resulting in balanced moods and balances blood sugar. It is also recommended for those suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
Rub your palms together and place them on your ears for some time. You will feel an awareness descend from somewhere. This helps you go deeper into the realms of clairvoyance and improves the hearing ability as well as the eyesight.
Yogi Ashwini is the Guiding Light of Dhyan Foundation and an authority on the Vedic Sciences. His book, 'Sanatan Kriya, The Ageless Dimension' is an acclaimed thesis on anti-ageing. Log onto to www.dhyanfoundation.com for more
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By Yogi Ashwini
In the previous article we learnt a pranayam and a cleansing technique for keeping asthama at bay. When the allergens irritate the lungs, our body secretes certain anti-allergens as a natural defense mechanism. Below are certain asans as entailed in the sanatan kriya through which these secretions can be directed to the lungs effectively. It is recommended that you visit a Dhyan Foundation center near you to learn the correct way to practice these asans.
Start by paying reverence to the energy of the Guru and Lord Ganesh.
Bhujang Asan: Lie on your stomach and place the palms on the floor on either side of the chest. Rest your forehead on the ground and keep the heels joined. As you inhale, look upwards and raise your upper body (chest, shoulders, neck and head) with the strength of your back, using your hands, just for support. This needs to be done very gently. Hold the posture for a count of seven and exhale as you come down. Repeat this seven times. Ensure the navel touches the ground every time you lift your body.
Bhoonaman Asan: Clench your fists and with the help of your knuckles and knees slowly go down on your belly. Allow only the knees, knuckles and forehead to touch the ground. Stay in the pose for as long as possible. Repeat this seven times.
These asans work wonders when performed in tandem certain ayurvedic remedies.
Ayurvedic cure: Take 1 year old pure desi cow ghee. Put 6 black pepper corns in it and leave overnight. Next morning put 1/8th tsp of this ghee in each nostril, position of the head should be such that the ghee does not flow back into the throat. This medicated ghee helps in making the allergen ineffective and then it can be thrown out of the body for which gently inhale and as you are exhaling bring your head down by bending the neck, without giving any jerk.
Another effective remedy to clear out allergens from body involves adding a pinch of saffron to one year old pure and organic honey (preferably single flower honey). Leave the mixture overnight and have it next morning.
All of these techniques are tried and tested for thousands of years by the vedic masters, and in present times by sadhaks at Dhyan Ashram. It is highly recommended that one does not perform them by reading from books or on television, but practice them under the guidance of a Guru.
Yogi Ashwini is the Guiding Light of Dhyan Foundation and an authority on the Vedic Sciences. His book, 'Sanatan Kriya, The Ageless Dimension' is an acclaimed thesis on anti-ageing. Log onto to www.dhyanfoundation.com for more