Yoga & Ayurved - The Master key for Healthy living

By Girish M Shanbhag (RYT)

Yog-Sadhana in the morning is the first thing in my daily routine for last several years. So much
that tea does not taste good without doing yoga. My passion for Yoga and completion of
certification as Yoga teacher gives me immense satisfaction. I am grateful to Sant
Dnyaneshwar Mandir, Shree Ganeshyag Pariwar and KAO for giving me opportunities to teach
Yoga to the community. I am happy to see students of different ages from kids, middle aged to
seniors who come to learn for healthy and stress-free living. More number of people from
different religions are practicing yoga now than before and they are quite interested in taking
meditation classes.
Three things are important to make yoga as part of daily routine. Resolve, continuity and
patience. Sage Patanjali says in Yog Sutra ATHA: YOGANU SHASANAM, which means be
focused and keep worldly thoughts aside while doing Yoga. Rather than making big plans and
not following it, start on a small scale by giving few minutes to yourself daily. In this fast food
and high speed age people expect very quick and easy results. Yoga is alike any other art
which requires good practice and guidance from a mentor.
There are eight limbs in the Ashatnga-yog. Although important, the first two Yama & Niyamas
are not emphasized. The five Yamas are Ahimsa, Satya, Astheya, Aparigraha and
Brhmacharya. Most know the meaning however practicing it needs determination. And English
translations do not carry the weight and proper value of many Sanskrit words. E.g. Ahimsa
which is generally translated as non-violence. And we think by not rioting, killing, fighting, or
causing destruction means practicing Ahimsa. It is deeper than that; more appropriate word
would be non-harming.
In the West killing animals to eat meat is not considered as violence. Those who have
understood the meaning of Ahimsa and want to practice it do not eat meat [or chicken] even if
born and brought up in the Western culture. On the other hand those born and brought up in the
Indian culture nowadays started believing killing animals to eat meat is not Himsa. More than
culture or modernity one needs to scientifically study and find out is meat really necessary and
useful to our body. After completing Nutrition and Cooking for Cancer prevention course it got
very clear to me that meat eating is not at all necessary. In fact it is proved by research that
chances of Cancer is 9 times higher for meat eaters. That proves the importance of having
Satvik food besides Yoga.
In the last ten years Yoga has gained widespread popularity around the world due to good
results it has produced. Yoga is practiced in at least 100 countries. People in thousands get up
early to participate together in a Yoga Session. That credit goes to Baba Ramdev and Acharya
Balkrishna. Because of them Yoga has reached to every corner of India including villages and
also in the foreign lands. In the USA 15% population do regular Yoga. It is good that scientific
research is being done on the benefits of Yoga.
Yoga is better practiced than being merely spoken. After working in IT for more than 20 years I
have concluded that Yoga has helped me to concentrate and keep cool particularly while doing
production support. Due to busy life, studies, job, kids and social activities it is difficult to make
time. Most are more interested in the outer appearance than the inner strength and good
immune system. As age increases the body loses flexibility and there is apprehension or doubt
about ability to do Asana. So it is better to start doing Yoga and get the Master Key for Healthy
Living as early as possible. It is never late to start rather than not doing it. We save money to
take care of retired life. Similarly, it is important to take care of our physique and have a stress
free life by doing regular yoga or exercise and having good food.
Try it out, we are there to support your efforts !