Scripture or science that deals with yoga, esp. by Patanjali. (Glossary for the Vahinis)

The seers of ancient India professed and practised Yoga with its eight components of Yamas, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi. Though India is the homeland of Yoga, it gains popularity in foreign lands. Indians have neglected Yoga, nourishing the mistaken notion that Yoga is meant for the ochre-robed forest-dwellers who feed on tubers. They think that only recluses and renunciates are worthy enough to practise Yoga. They deluded themselves, entertaining the wrong idea that an ordinary man has nothing to do with Yoga.

Man in his frantic scramble for amassing wealth has lost proper sleeping habits. Man forces himself to take sleeping pills and intoxicants to induce sleep, into his worried mind. Pills and drugs take a heavy toll of his health and make him a target for blood pressure and heart ailments. The hurry and insatiable greed of man have brought in their wake a host of mental maladies.

The Healing Power Of Yoga:

Some intellectuals began to think whether there could be a remedy for the heated nerves and worried minds and diseased bodies afflicted by blood pressure and lung diseases.

Yoga Shastra of Patanjali shows a sure remedy for the malady of the modern man. Inspired by the investigations of Carlton Cane, the Professor of Hawai University like Elliot, Shuton and Johnson began researching into Yoga. Professor Johnson in the beginning doubted the efficacy of Yoga; but as his research progressed, he realised the great power of yoga. He concluded that the clue to the problem lay in controlling the vagaries of the mind. He along with other Professors further stated that the practise of Yoga fosters physical and mental stamina and people could remedy their mental afflictions without spending a pie. The professors determine that the joy that one derives from two hours of undisturbed deep sleep can be obtained by twelve minutes of Yogic practise.

In their frantic hurry to ensure more production, the farmers and labourers in advanced countries like America, Germany, France etc. neglected their health by forgoing sleep. The stress and strain, the worry and the tension of modern life and the lack of proper environment, damage the health of the modem man. There is an increase in the number of people suffering from physical ailments and mental maladies all over the world. Experiments were conducted on the prisoners in a jail in Old Mexico to find out the exact cause for the rapid rise of mental patients amongst the prisoners. They concluded after thorough investigation that the problem was caused not by food, but by tension and worry. The professors made the prisoners undergo Yogic practises, to rid the prisoners of their mental tension. In a short time the patients became normal. The patients not only made a total recovery, but gained great happiness due to the practise of Yoga.

The practitioners of Yoga began to shun drugs, intoxicants and even stimulants and evinced a keen interest to intensify their Yogic practice. Today, there are about four lakh students who practice Yoga in Mexico. Though India is the homeland of Yoga, the people ignore the efficacy of Yoga and thereby fail to benefit from it. Though Devaki was the mother who nurtured Krishna in her womb, it was Yashoda who enjoyed the pleasure of Krishna’s company as a foster mother. Sitting under a tree Devaki lamented her misfortune thus:

It was not for me to see the wondrous

deed of your sucking away the life of Putana

while she suckled you;

It was not for me to kiss your wondrous belly,

which ropes failed to bind;

It was given to me to suffer the labour pains

to deliver you to the world;

It was given to Yashoda to fondle you in fond joy:

Though fertile, I became a barren woman’.

Without begetting a son,

Yashoda became the mother of a Great Son.

The plight of the Indians today is similar to that of Devaki. Though India is the mother of Yoga and Shaddarshanas, it is the foreigners who foster Yoga in their countries and derive immense benefit thereby. The Indians are reduced to the pitiable condition of learning Yoga in foreign lands. They do not strive sincerely to benefit from the marvellous, sacred and unique wisdom contained in the sacred texts.

Sage Patanjali devoted his entire life to the study of Yoga and declared that health is most essential for life. He stated that the well being of the body depends on discipline. He defined Yoga as ‘the observance of discipline for the physical, mental and spiritual well-being.’ (SSB 1993, pp. 90-91)