By Chétana Panwar

Yoga is an ancient spiritual art developed by sages and saints in India who observed the effects of subtle postures on the psycho-physical and spiritual body. Essentially yoga asanas were performed to prepare the body and mind for long sitting meditation, and for realization of the divine. From its inception, yoga has been experiential; teachers transmit the seed of knowledge, but true understanding comes through independent practice and mindfullness of the resultant shifts on all three levels, physical, mental and spiritual. Teachers and students alike are on the quest for self-realization and together create a community that promotes and reflects this goal.

The benefits of yoga are incalculable if practiced with dedication and while in a positive state of mind. Yoga asanas (postures) and pranayama (breathing exercises) regulate the hormonal secretions of the glands, while massaging and detoxifying the internal organs, thereby allowing the practitioner to achieve optimum physical and mental health. Yoga provides relief from even chronic conditions like depression, constipation and asthma. Postures also gradually realign the spine and other joints, keeping the body supple and youthful. Most stretching exercises used by athletes, from hockey players to ballerinas, are derived from yoga. Doctors also prescribe yoga-derived exercises for conditions like slipped disc. As it is a self weight-bearing exercise, yoga tones and builds long muscles without compromising body flexibility.

Daily practice improves lung capacity and the ability to slow the breath, a technique that has the effect of quieting the mind for meditation. And yet, asanas in and of themselves are a moving meditation, performed in a clean and peaceful environment so as to encourage complete concentration on one's breath and the flow of vital energy in the body. Through concentration on what is constant and changeless, the soul, all mundane thoughts and material concerns are pushed aside. The yogi cultivates an awareness of what he/she in fact already is - a manifestation of divine consciousness.