What
inspired you to follow the path of
Swara Yoga?
In
1993 I was a studying for
my B.Sc
degree,and that
was when I became interested in
yoga,in
yoga, spiritual sciences and
sciences which deal with different
planes of existence,
I was also
doing Mritunjay sadhana.
That was the beginning of my
spiritual and yogic life. One day,
I was walking near Shiva Ganga,
the sacred pond of Lord Siva in
Deoghar. Opposite the pond I saw a
tantric, with no clothes on and
his body, which was smeared with
ash. He called me and
I went to him. He asked
whether I knew swarodaya. When I
answered in the negative, he said
that I did know, but had
forgotten. He reminded me that
this was the science of the breath
as founded by Lord Siva, and I was
the one who was chosen for this
knowledge. He gave me a book on
Swara Yoga and a basic out line of
swara sadhana. He asked me to read
the book and to do my sadhana for
three days. Thereafter, if I had a
doubt, I was to go back to him.
When I went to look for him, there
was no trace of such a person and
no one in the vicinity had any
knowledge of him. I realised then,
that he did not want to give me
this knowledge directly. He wanted
that I should practice sincerely.
As I started my swara yoga sadhana,
I wondered whether this practise
could be scientifically supported.
After practising continuously I
realised that this valuable
science enables us to enrich our
lives not only materially, but
spiritually as well. It was thus
natural for me to pursue this
course of study at Bihar Yoga
Bharti. Specifically, I studied
the psycho physiological effects
of swara rhythm.
Etymologically,
swara means 'the sound of one's
own breath'. Sound creates
vibrations. Yoga means 'union'.
Therefore, swara yoga is the
science of understanding the union
of different vibrations of breath
that alters our
psycho-physiological activity. By
becoming aware of the breathing
patterns, we can understand the
effect that it has on our body and
mind. Once this understanding
takes place, the breathing pattern
can be altered at will to make our
life harmonious and balanced. The
practice of swara yoga makes one
realize that the breath is a
cosmic life force. Therefore,
swara yoga enables the state of
union to be reached by means of
one's breath.
2.
Astrology - yogic astrology and
yoga vastu
3.
Ayurveda
Can
you give brief history and
scientific prospective of swara
yoga?
Swara
yoga, however, should not confused
with pranayama. Pranayamas are
used to strengthen, purify and
balance the nadis. Although both
deal with breath and prana, Swara
Yoga emphasizes the analysis of
the breath and the significance of
different pranic rhythms and
understanding their effect on body
and mind. The different patterns
of the breath either in right,
left or both nostrils can
influence our worldly affairs,
either positively or negatively.
It also influences the spiritual
aspect of life.
Is
any modern research being done
currently which justifies the
ancient concepts of swara yoga?
Different
laboratories suggest a close
relationship of the brain rhythm
with the nasal cycle.
The
ancient concept of dual nature of
our personality that is symbolized
as Ardhanariishwar - half Siva and
half Shakti - also finds place in
Swara yoga, where the nasal cycle
is connected with the brain
hemispheres. The right nostril is
connected with the left
hemisphere, and the left nostril
is connected with right brain
hemisphere. During the flow of
Pingala or the right nostril, the
left brain hemisphere is active,
and during the flow of Ida or left
nostril dominance, the right brain
hemisphere becomes active. Studies
have indicated that the
performance efficiencies of verbal
and spatial tasks during both
phases of the nasal cycle
demonstrated that verbal
efficiency is greater while the
subjects were breathing primarily
in the right and that spatial
skills were enhanced during left
nostril dominance. This supports
the theory of contralateral
dominance in the nostril
hemisphere relationship, and the
different functions of nadi.
Can
you give
us
some applications of swara yoga in
our daily lives?
Swara
yoga influences our mental
patterns. The right hemisphere,
governed by the IDA nadi, is
responsible for experiences, which
are intangible to the external
sense receptors. Thus it is
responsible for psychic and extra
- sensory perception, and it
stimulates creative, artistic and
musical abilities, as also the
experience of intuition and
psychic perception. The left brain
hemisphere or PINGALA nadi,
governed by the flow of breath
through the right nostril, is
responsible for the rational,
analytical, logical and
mathematical intellect. It has
been suggested that left nostril
dominance stimulates the Pineal
gland, and findings suggest that
the pineal is the psychic gland
connected with Ajana Chakra. All
the psychic phenomena such as
clairvoyance, telepathy, pre
cognition, etc are controlled and
guided by the pineal gland.
Therefore, nadis are closely
connected with the neuro-endocrine
function of the body. Once the
physiological connection and the
functioning of the brain with the
nadis is understood, it is easy to
understand that both the nadis
have different effects on our body
and mind. Each of the brain
hemispheres is active at different
times. Therefore, only half of the
brain is being used at any given
time. If both hemispheres of the
brain, and both the nadis can be
used together, then all these
forces can be combined for
creative and productive work in
all dimensions of life. If both
faculties can be used together and
reason and creativity can be
combined, then it is possible to
understand all underlying
phenomena of situation in any
dimension.
There
are some important applications of
swara yoga, which can be used in
daily life to save the vital force
and to avoid negative influences
in daily life. For example:
Swara
Yoga Sadhana on rising in the
morning:
Swara
yoga is the science of becoming
aware of the subtle vibrations of
the elements, which we experience
when we breathe. By practicing
swara yoga one can become aware of
subtle changes which take place
all the time in the body and mind.
By knowing and becoming aware of
these patterns, a sadhaka can
experience consciousness behind
these subtle changes and
understand the dual nature of the
universe. We can experience our
deeper psychic being through the
practice of swara yoga, which will
unite the ida and pingala nadis
and lead to the awakening of the
sushumna. The real purpose of
swara yoga is self- realisation.
By practicing swara yoga we are
transforming our material mind
into subtle consciousness and
experiencing our being beyond the
realm of elements.
The
ancient rishis and saints were not
familiar with the anatomy and
physiology of the body
as it is understood today, but
they were worthy of being called
true scientists. They were experts
in manipulating the subtle forces
in our body through the swara
(breath).
The science of swara is unique in
itself, as it is not developed by
the limited mind of some
individuals. It is a science,
which was gifted to worthy
recipients by the divine, for the
welfare of humanity. The glorious
and valuable science of swara yoga
should be utilised by all sadhakas,
to improve the quality of their
lives and to hasten the process of
human evolution.