Right Choice – An integral part of Yoga

Our choices determine the direction of life. Our present state of life is purely set by the choices that we made in the past. Future life will be determined by the choices of the present. We are always confronted with the choices at every stage of life. Right choice sets the right direction in life.

How do we know that the choices are right? It is an act of discrimination. The power of discrimination comes from the intellect ( Bhuddhi). So, if one sets his intellect right then the choices that follow stay correct for a blissful life.

Human fundamental entities: As per yoga, we are made up five sheaths. Technically, they are called as Annamaya (physical), Pranamaya (energy),Manonmaya (mental) ,vygnanmaya (intellectual)& Anandamaya( blissful) Koshas.

We move in life with the real purpose and meaning only when the human system within operates optimally. The system comprises of hardware, software and power to boot up. Our physical body (Annamaya) is the hardware, mental body ( manonmaya) is the software and is powered by the energy (pranamaya)body.

Intellect: A well balanced system at the physical, mental & energy level gives rise to a healthy intellect body ( vygnanmaya).With this , the right choices are initiated that set the blissful ( anandamaya) life.

Health: Health is nothing but the balanced physical, mental & energy states. For the choices to be right, a well-balanced healthy state is required to set the right type of intellect. Health is the basic foundation for the life. So, let us work towards health not only at the physical level but in all the three different layers. It is important for each one of us to have a structured program that trains our physical, mental & energy bodies. So, pay attention to the detail while picking up the right program to train you to grow holistically.

My Story - On the International Yoga day

In this blog , I would like to share my personal story and the powerful influence of yoga in my life.

My Short Story - My driving force - Where I come from….

I belong to a very humble family from a remote town of Tamil Nadu. As per my parent wishes, in the mid 80’s; I joined a reputed engineering college from which many popular personalities such as the former president Abdul Kalam had graduated. I built up my wonderful engineering career in Tatas in the late 80’s and moved on to Singapore, Belgium & Britain to expand my exposure in the engineering field. I roamed around the world covering half the countries in the world map for about 2 decades. Finally, I returned back to India in search of my lost identity in the year 03 & helped MNCs to set up businesses in the famous IT hubs of Bangalore. As a person in the industry, I was very aggressive, a ‘go-getter’ & a very rational minded fellow, ready to jump in and risk myself to generate revenue for the business. 

As a byproduct of the above development, I had a handsome pay cheque which was multifold by industry standards in comparison to that of similar people in the same profession. I had a hefty bank balance, complete financial freedom, cars, great villas in Bangalore and other places & other perks like club memberships etc, offered in the society because of my corporate title. Another byproduct was on my Health condition which initially appeared to me as a nasty setback but after few years, I realized that it was nothing but a blessing in disguise. My bad health darkened my world by 87%. Yes, you guessed it correctly. I started developing a bad hazy poor eye sight because of the malfunctioning of my human internal engineering system. This happened to me to setup a beautiful platform to experience the ‘liveliness’ of life.

My regular routine of meeting the same kind of people, thinking the same kind of thoughts, and doing the same kind of stuff had conditioned my mind in a way that created the environment which was always a WIN in the business. But, it was a terrible LOSS to my health. Family, friends, society & parents have created a ‘default’ path because of their conditioning and we all believe that the secret to become successful is to follow the path that has already been set: Going to a good college, getting a great GPAs, becoming an employee of some great company, building your own mansion, raising your kids with all kinds of facilities & living happily ever after. So, due to this conditioning, I started following the same path and landed in a conflicting ‘nowhere zone’ .In spite of this development, I set the same path for my kids, raised my daughters, put them in great schools, expected great grades from them, let them get employed & married to someone who is most probably again a product of this ‘default’ path as well. This model of living has been passed on from generation to generation and thus, has been imposed on us, Now, the question is – “Has this given us the kind of happiness which we are really looking for?”

In my opinion, the answer is a definite NO, at least based on my experience. This is because; this is an externally forced goal which has been set on me and which honestly led me nowhere. Now, I have realized that this is a conditioned state that has been imposed on us by the society. Otherwise, almost all of us who follow this conventional model would have by default lived happily every day.

As the platform established firmly for me, I started changing my priorities in my life and had set a STRONG DESIRE to become Healthy. I started looking around and used every resource available at that time to get the right solution. I spent a lot of time researching on the human body, its physiology & psychology aspects and I continued to dig deeper into these areas; only one thing had become very clear to me. “ This human system is DAMN complicated . “So, my inner energy guided me to follow the holistic approach and that was the reason, I picked up this 5000 years old ancient wisdom called Yoga. Initially, when someone explained about chakras, it was like an alien language & didn’t make any sense to me. As I explored further, I realized that these chakras are located exactly where the endocrine glands are present. As known to you, these glands control the entire hormonal system. Medical science evolved just a few hundred years ago but yogic science had identified this concept thousands of years ago. This had really BLOWN AWAY my mind and set the rhythm to go deeper into this science. As I explored & practiced further, the interaction of the body & the mind, the play of emotions & feelings became crystal clear to me. As I continued further the practices, tremendous changes happened within me. 

“DESIRE should be really STRONG for a change to happen. Again, I repeat the word STRONG”

“Pick the goodness of whatever offered from outside but go by the internal force which originates from you. Things WORK GREAT.” 

Within a period of few months, my excessive weight (close to 30Kg) radiated out into the space & I had become lighter. My inner world changed dramatically leading to the magnificent changes in my perception of the external world. It was like a BIG LEAP JUMP & all of a sudden, I was in a state of expansiveness and thrown to live in a completely different world. People around me, my neighbours & friends started to see difference in my external appearance. Some general questions from them were,” How have you changed?”  What is the secret?  How have you become younger?  How did you change your grey hair to black? , Some said, “You are a damn lucky person”. But, what they failed to notice were my invisible INTERNAL CHANGES. Day by day, I started experiencing tremendous happiness, my immunity system boosted up multifold and words like ‘doctor’ & ‘disease’ lost its meaning in me. I started experiencing multifold increase in my wealth and health & many different people from different walks of life (from taxi driver to CFO, MDs of the companies) started coming to me. As I started to see a very different world around me because of the goodness which people brought to me & hence, I started to experience MERE BLISS.  

Again back to the topic of ‘conditioned Model ‘ , as I live now, I can say that at least from my experience, it is not an ideal model ,as happiness is not at the end of the journey as depicted but is in the experience of the journey itself. The actual goal of human being is experiencing each and every moment of life, understanding the value of each brand new day as it unfolds & living to his highest potential by understanding and experiencing the true meaning & purpose of life. My goals have been sharply redefined after my transformation & all of a sudden life’s mission has become crystal clear in HIGH DEFINITION to me. For the first time in life, I felt a razor sharp focus that has generated every day, avalanche of goodness not only in my life but in the life’s of people around me. I have now realized that happiness is an innate state of my being itself and is etched clearly in my DNA.   

“Changes in my internal world and my mindset have changed my body, health & so my external reality.” 

“Whatever changes we try to do to the body, on the long run body always WIN& get back to equilibrium. So, just align to this higher intelligence which governs the body.”

My journey still continues. I don’t know how the destination is going to be at the end and I don’t really care about that but all I know now for sure is that the journey is beautiful. Please visit http://www.gigayoga.com/aboutus.html to read my transformations at Physical, mental & emotional Levels.  

My core values & belief systems have changed dramatically because of the above transformation. Let me summarise here my learning, values & my faith in few lines.

1. STRONG desire is important for a CHANGE. 2. Use the goodness of whatever offered from outside but go by the internal force which originates from me. Things WORK GREAT. Let the external flow or the force of the society not influence me. 3. Changes in my internal world and my mindset have changed my body, health & so my external reality. 4. Human system, especially the internal stuff is damn complicated. It is a life long journey to explore this human machine & is very fascinating. 5. Whatever we do, on the long run the winner is higher intelligence. So, just align to this higher intelligence. 6. Happiness is our true nature of our ‘self’ but we were taught to look for the favorable result on every outcome of our actions to become happy. When the expected outcome is not conducive, we become sad. The locus of happiness is internal. 7. Life is so short. We live only 29,000 days of our life out of billion years of human evolution. So, I live everyday to my best so that I move one step closer to my clear well focused goal, making my existence meaningful & purposeful. 8. If I do the same stuff, same work, deal with same people, think the same type of thoughts then I get the SAME RESULT. My thought process has evolved for good, I am now engaged in work which I always have loved to do & I am meeting wide varieties of people from different backgrounds. This is really a GOOD STUFF. 

“My thought process has evolved for good. I am now engaged in work which I have always loved to do & I am meeting wide varieties of people. This is really a GOOD STUFF.” 

As I complete this write-up with thanks to both my daughters for correcting my erratic English, I wish to express a BIG thanks to the saints who had taken Yoga to the western world in the early 19th century. Yoga has reached the length & breath of the world just because of the extraordinary marketing capability of the western world especially America. Because of them, Yoga had reached my ignorant mind at that time when I was badly in need of a solution otherwise yoga would have lived in India as a hidden treasure known only to a handful of people. I am pretty sure that in India the land of wisdom, has many more such hidden treasures which are beyond the reach of the common man. Big question: Where are the marketing teams for the other hidden treasures to get exposed? But, all I can say for sure now is that I am damn lucky that my soul has taken a root in this present birth in the land of great ancient wisdoms. 

So, join in and take the incredible path to this great journey &I can say that this is really GREAT STUFF. JUST GO FOR IT to create a more meaningful, Healthier& happier life. I AM WITH YOU ON THIS JOURNEY.  

Value and the role of the mind

Recently I received a whatsapp forwarded message. The message was a 30 second short speech from the Coco Cola former CEO. Here is the message.

“Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air.  They are Work, Family, Health, friends and Spirit and you’re keeping all of these in the air.

You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball.  If you drop it, it will bounce back.  But the other four Balls – Family, Health, Friends and Spirit – are made of glass.  If you drop one of these they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered.  They will never be the same.  You must understand that and strive for it.

Work efficiently during office hours and leave on time.  Give the required time to your family, friends & have proper rest.”

The message ended with the statement “Value has a value only if its value is valued”

Profound statement: The last ending line is such a profound statement. The value is applicable only when one values the value. This is true for anything that we do in life. We get the benefit of the food when we really value the food that we consume. Our relationships with the people get enhanced only when we really value the association with the people. Our health improves only when we start to value our wellbeing.

Mind & Value Mind originates the thoughts and our thoughts have a distinctive pattern. Our thoughts are always centred by our interest and priorities. Yes!! Just observe your thoughts that occur at this moment and you will see the thought patterns revolve with your own interest and priorities. Our interest could be anything such as life goals, ambition etc. Our interests give raise to negative emotions such as fear and worries or positive emotions such as joy and happiness.

So, when one values an action or thing, it implies that he makes a very conscious effort to develop interest or setting up priority for the action or the thing. If we value the food that we consume then it is a conscious effort to appreciate our association with the food. Naturally, we get the benefits of the food that we have consumed. On the other hand, if we think of something or involved in some other actions such as watching a TV while eating the food then our association with the food is detached and the return value that we get from the food will become insignificant.

Present state Awareness: The present state and the direction of our life is setup by the present state of awareness. A deliberate attempt to value things such as our life goals, food, health, body etc direct our awareness to work towards our growth. The deliberate effort in setting up importance and priorities in life aids in making using of the mind and the associated thought process to work in our favour.

Such a small shift in the way we value the things in life makes such a tremendous change in the way how our minds work that alter the present state of awareness. So, the question is that what you value now in your life? Make a conscious effort to value the thing to get the real value from it. That is the real return energy from the energy that we have shaped it by valuing the things.

The rhythm of Yoga Practice - My findings from Heart Rate Monitor

A year before, I was looking for some sort of test platform to check the performance of my respiratory and cardiovascular systems. I was introduced to the long distance running by one of my client. Running is a powerful endurance sport and perfectly fits into my real needs. Within a year of this running practice, I got an opportunity to participate at least ten 10K runs and two Half Marathon runs. I feel that for the regular yoga practitioners, long distance running is a good test platform to check the respiratory and cardiovascular systems.

I bought a Heart Rate Monitor from USA few months before. This is a chest strap heart rate monitor and the data is plotted in the mobile using the Bluetooth. I would like to see and compare the behaviour of my heart while doing my daily yoga routines and running. Here are the plots of my personal yoga practice as well as 10K run at the speed of 10Km/hr.

Run HR Plot: My 10K run comprised of an initial warm up routine followed by the run at the speed of 10Km/hr followed by a cool down session. The initial resting heart rate (HR) was above 60 beats/minute (BPM). As I performed warm up for 15 minutes , it jumped to a peak of 120 BPM before settling back again to 70BPM. As I started to run, my HR raised to 120BPM in less than two seconds. As I retained the run speed of 10Km/hr , the HR gradually raised from 120 BPM and hit the peak of 158BPM after an hour. As stopped running, the HR dropped to 120BPM in few seconds and further cooling down exercise brought the HR back to 70BPM.

During the run, the HR was a simple positive gradient plot from 120 to 158 BPM.

Yoga HR Plot: My yoga session usually comprises of 4 segments i.e Mindfulness exercises, Sun Salutation, Static Postures & Pranayama. There were some very interesting observations of HR plot during the yoga session.

1.       From the plot, one can observe the cyclic rhythm of the heart beat half way from mindfulness exercises, all the way to the end of the practice. There was no such rhythm in 10K run workout. 

2.       The heart rate returned back every time to the resting heart rate after sun salutation, Static segment & pranayama respectively. This was almost like resetting the system back to the normal state before the start of next state. In case of running, even though we noticed recovery, after warm up & cool down but it never reset back to the resting rate.

3.       I noticed two positive gradients that were built during Sun salutation as well as kapalabhati. There was a cyclic pattern of HR when the positive gradient was built. I think, this is a healthy way of ramping up heart beat with the cyclic stimulation & relaxation. In case of running, it was all one positive gradient built all the way from 125 to 158 BPM.

4.       In yoga practice, we ended the practice almost at the same point 60BPM point from we started the practice, a powerful way of completing one cycle of practice. In case of running, the HR was still in an excited state at the end of the session.

5.       In addition to the Corpse posture, there was yet another posture such as Child posture that generated complete relaxation. Whereas postures like camel, shoulder stand, locust spiked the heart beat above 100 BPM (almost twice the resting HR).

6.       In the medical world, Heart rate variability (HRV) is considered the parameter to determine the good health. More the HRV is, better the health will be. Based on the pattern of HR plots of yoga & running, Yoga is certainly a clear winner when one wanted to train the heart to improve HRV.

Secrets of Sun Salutation - Part 5

Increase the range of movement: As mentioned in the earlier, the primary focus must be on the range of movement rather than the speed of the movement.  The practice in itself and how we move from one posture to another are preconceived. In general, a fixed practice may lead to boredom. To enjoy the practice, one needs to experience varieties. One way of experiencing the varieties is by the way how we experience the sensations. The sensations are not fixed. Sensations change as per the person’s body, state of mind and his emotional state. As we increase the range of movement of the body, we tend to open up joints and trigger tissues (that were dormant earlier). This process heightens person’s sensations and changes the way how he feels the body.

Let me summarise certain pointers corresponding to the postures. With consistent practice, you will see the improvement in the range of movement.

Postures	Pointers
Resting Posture	Feel the movement of diaphragm muscle by deep breathing.
Posture 1	Push front the lower part of the spine gently with the support of the palms. Do not bend the elbow.
Posture 2	Take the forehead close to the knees ( without bending the knees)
Posture 3	Rest the knee to the ground and push the hip down towards the floor
Posture 4	Stand on the toes and take the weight of your body on the arms
Posture 5	Keep the butt close to the heel ( to extend the spine)
Posture 6	Keep the Palms & Chest to the floor
Posture 7	Look at the sky and push the Lower spine to the front
Posture 8	Put the heels to the floor & head close to the floor
Posture 9	Keep the butt close to the heel ( to extend the spine)
Posture 10	Rest the knee to the ground and push the hip down towards the floor
Posture 11	Take the forehead close to the knees ( without bending the knees)
Posture 12	Push front the lower part of the spine gently with the support of the palms. Do not bend the elbow.

This is a renewed way of experiencing the body by simply increasing the range of movement. Over period of time, the body moves seamlessly from one posture to another and breathing guides in establishing a free movement of the body.

Power of concentration: The renewed way of experiencing the body is a good start point to increase the power of focus. In yoga, the eye gazing is called Dhristi . A fixed gazing without random movement of eyeballs help in improving the power of concentration. In my study of neuroscience, I was taught by the brain scientist that the eye is just not a sensing organ but an extension of the brain. The blood capillary pressure in the brain can be tapped by observing the pressure of the blood vessels in the eyes. This is the reason why the doctors check the eyes with the torch light to see the characteristic of the brain through the eyes.

During the practice of sun salutation, it is good to keep the eyes closed or the least gaze at certain point to increase the concentration level. Random eye ball movement leads to the distraction. Below table summarises the gaze points for the corresponding postures.

Postures	Gaze Points
Resting Posture	Towards the Knees
Posture 1	Look Back ( fix a marker behind you)
Posture 2	Towards the Knees
Posture 3	Towards the Sky/Roof
Posture 4	Straight ahead
Posture 5	Towards the floor
Posture 6	Straight ahead
Posture 7	Towards the Sky/Roof
Posture 8	Towards the Navel region
Posture 9	Towards the floor
Posture 10	Towards the Sky/Roof
Posture 11	Towards the Knees
Posture 12	Towards the Knees

Practice precautions: Some of us do not get the right benefits of the sun salutation practice and we tend to give up the practice. How we apply ourselves to the practice is the key to get the full benefits. There are important key points to be observed during the practice of sun salutation. Here is the table that describes those.

Postures	Precaution/key points
Resting Posture	Concentration of breathing & body movement (chest & abdomen) with respect to breathing. The seamless flow of breathing with increased rounds of sun salutation.
Posture 1	Keep the parts of the body below the hip stable. Do not bend elbows and the knees.
Posture 2	Push the buttock to the back & extend the spine while bending forward. Do not bend the knees.
Posture 3	Keep the upper part of the body vertical to ground. Push the hip down bringing the quadriceps inclined towards the floor.
Posture 4	Body in one straight line from toes to the shoulder joints.
Posture 5	Extend the spine. Keep the butt to the heels. Hands away from the body. Do not bend elbows.
Posture 6	Keep elbow close to the floor. Butt above the floor.
Posture 7	Thighs above the floor. Upper part of the body vertical to ground.
Posture 8	Put the heels down. Head closer to the floor.
Posture 9	Extend the spine. Keep the butt to the heels. Hands away from the body. Do not bend elbows.
Posture 10	Keep the upper part of the body vertical to ground. Push the hip down bringing the quadriceps inclined towards the floor.
Posture 11	Push the buttock to the back & extend the spine while bending forward. Do not bend the knees.
Posture 12	Keep the parts of the body below the hip stable. Do not bend elbows and the knees.

Secrets of Sun Salutation - Part 4

In this blog, let me cover the significant points for the practice of sun salutation.

Rhythmic flow: Movement of the Body generates energy. Movement is the fundamental aspect of any form of exercises. In sun salutation, you are in constant movement navigating from one posture to another posture in a cyclic way. This repetitive movement causes the energy to move in the body. It is not only the blood temperature increases but also aids in shuffling the blood throughout the body. The blood circulation aids in transportation and distribution of oxygen to all the parts of the body.

Speed vs Range of movement:  In general, the beginners tend to practice sun salutation focussing on the speed rather than the range of movement of the body. In my personal opinion, it is not effective to increase the speed especially at the beginning stage of the practice. It is primarily important to increase the range of movement of the body before trying to increase the speed. As the range of movement increases, the blood gets circulated to every corner of the body. The blood circulation gets restricted with the small range of movement.

The practice aids in decreasing the stiffness of the body. Wait for the stiffness to fade away before increasing the speed. Increasing the speed with the stiffness in the body builds tension to the body & the practice becomes counterproductive.

Breathing Flow: Body is moving in synchronicity with the flow of the breathing. Even though, sun salutation is a stimulating exercise, relaxation can be induced within the practice of sun salutation by altering the breathing pattern consciously. This can be done by forcing to have a longer duration of exhale than that of inhale.

This duration of exhale is also the duration of relaxation within the practice. This relaxation eases out the tension in the body and makes the body lot more fluid.

Concentration points: Since each posture is defined to target certain areas of the body, it is good to focus on certain areas of the body while doing the practice of sun salutation. Here is the list of concentration points for the respective postures.

Your concentration is the key in enhancing the muscular skeletal movement, extension of the spine and optimising the functions of the endocrine glands.

Postures	Focus Points
Resting Posture	Breathing, Heart Beat & warmness between the palms.
Posture 1	Back of your spine , thyroid region
Posture 2	Hamstring, calf & abdomen
Posture 3	Quadriceps , thyroid region
Posture 4	Weight on the arms
Posture 5	Extension of spine
Posture 6	Palm & Chest (to the floor)
Posture 7	Lower spine , thyroid region
Posture 8	Ankle, calf & abdomen
Posture 9	Extension of spine
Posture 10	Quadriceps , thyroid region
Posture 11	Hamstring, calf & abdomen
Posture 12	Back of your spine , thyroid region

I will cover some other key aspects of the practice of the sun salutation in my next blog.

Secrets of Sun Salutation - Part 3

In this Part3, let me cover few more key aspects of sun salutation.

Progress & effectiveness: In general, the effort that we put takes us in the growth path to reach the final goal. The practice of sun salutation is also an effort that we put so that we set ourselves in the growth path. The effectiveness of the practice can be determined by the following factors.

The range of movement of the body

The feel of the subtle sensations of the body

Range of movement: The range of movement increases in each posture by repeated practice of sun salutation. Some of the practitioners target for the speed of the movement to increase the cardio and thereby to lose weight. I feel that when it comes to the range of movement and the speed of movement of the body, it is good to improve the range first followed by the speed to make the practice more effective.

The range of movement improves primarily due to the increase in the flexibility of the body. The body flexibility improves mainly due to two factors.

1.       The heat that is generated during the practice. ( stimulation)

2.       The longer duration of exhale in comparison to that of inhale.(relaxation)

Because of the cyclic movement of the body, the blood circulation gets shuffled throughout the body and the movements generate heat and hence the blood temperature is increased. This increase in the blood temperature loosen up the muscles and joints which aids in enhancing the flexibility of the body and hence the range of movement of the body.

Since, the body movement is rhythmic and slow and in complete synchronisation with the breathing pattern during the practice of sun salutation, a calm relaxation state is established in spite of the simultaneous stimulation due to the raise in the blood core temperature. Here, the voluntary longer exhale plays such a crucial factor in relaxing the body that in turn helps in improving the flexibility of the body.

Subtle sensation: The calmness of the practice helps in expanding the awareness and in turn increases the degree of our perception. During the initial days of practice, one might experiences pains and aches. Once the body is trained to this flow, you start to experience subtle sensations. These could be in the form of feeling your breathing not only at your chest and tummy but also experiencing at the back of the spine and every other parts of the body. You might experience your heart beat throughout the body. With the further development in sensitivity, one might experience even finer sensations such mild electric flow movements throughout the body.

Backbend: Most of the animals in this planet cannot do backbend as human. We have the ability to bend backward. In the medical sports, there is a parameter called V02max. V02max is the aerobic fitness level of an individual. It is the maximum oxygen uptake during the incremental exercise. Back bend such as the 2^nd posture in sun salutation aids in opening up the lungs and the heart. This helps in improving the V02max.

Also, backbend is one of my favourite postures as it is a measure of checking the flexibility and range of movement of the body. This in turn is a measure of the progress of the sun salutation practice. So, the best way to measure the progress of the practice is to keep the pointer of what you see behind you during the backbend and see how the pointer moves down with the practice.

I will cover some other key aspects of sun salutation in my next blog.