Yoga means to “yoke”, to unite opposites. In fact, one of the seminal texts of yoga – the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali state that, when yoga asana (posture) is practiced correctly, the pairs of opposites cease to exist (Sutra 2.48).
Any practice can be yogic, if it serves to reduce the destructive effects of OPPOSING forces on our well being, restoring BALANCE.
According to Ayurveda, the universal law of OPPOSITES BALANCE applies to our health maintenance as it’s main tenet.
But, in order to know HOW to balance, we must first know WHAT to balance. Here is where yoga comes in (specifically, meditation, thanks to which we develop enough self-awareness to make conclusions about our own state of wellbeing).
As humans, we can only KNOW things by EXPERIENCE.
In the case of disease – we experience SYMPTOMS. How do we KNOW them? By their qualities, of course!
By the time you are in pain, however, it can be overwhelming to tell a knee from an elbow – I know, believe me. BUT: if you can describe what you FEEL, you can know how to HEAL.
Yoga helps you FEEL. What you can feel, you can heal. Bear with me… Let’s consider a chronic inflammation, such such as in the case of
Wet Ezema
Whatever inflammatory symptoms we have, if we can describe them by their qualities, then, following the logic of Nature, we can remediate them by cultivating the OPPOSITE qualities in our system.
For example…
If you have WET eczema, you would benefit by cultivating DRY qualities in your system. This can be done with:
- food (think astringent: bitter greens)
- stretching (targeting the “wet” spots in the body, such as in Janu Sirsasana stretch, or any of it’s variations)
- herbs (NEEM is very helpful when taken appropriately)
- lifestyle routines (less body lotions, before considering any alternatives!)
- sensory experiences (maybe steam bath is not the best choice here)
- choices of recreational activities (walk, not run – for example)
Sounds complicated? Not really. Just a series of baby steps taking you in a more DRY direction, drying up that excess puss that you may be experiencing on your skin (as in “wet” eczema).
…This was just an example with wet eczema….
The same principle of OPPOSITES BALANCE applies to all other inflammatory conditions.
You know why I like it? Because it’s LOGICAL, very tangible, and has no side effects – it follows logic of Nature, which does not waste, makes no mistakes, and is gentle on our system. You just have to know it and be well versed in it.
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Natasha Schaffer
Founder and Head Coach of Calm Accelerator, LLC and all of its programs, Holistic Health Coach, Ayurveda Wellness Counselor, ERYT500, Meditation Coach and Yoga Mentor
Read more about Natasha here
