From this practice
all the obstacles disappear and simultaneously dawns knowledge of the Inner
Self
The
main point of doing yoga is a union of the mind and body or the physical world
with the meta-physical world. This is achieved through many physical and mental
exercises over a long period of time. When performing yoga, the world stands
still and focus is all that matters. There can be no greater feeling that can
be felt spiritually than that of true realization. Thus, yoga is…peace.
Through personal experience and contextual evidence, I
can definitively state that, to me, yoga is peace. The mind and body are both
at ease while practicing yoga to a point everything else clears from thought.
No matter which stage of yoga is being performed or has been realized by an
individual, peace cannot help but be felt. Peace can mean any number of things
to each person but the core idea behind peace is the same. The idea of yoga is
to be one with your surroundings, to realize and to feel everything. Once that
is achieved, there are no more concerns or problems therefore peace is all that
is left.
Speaking from a truly personal experience, I felt
peaceful every time I performed my yoga exercises. I used yoga every night to
help calm my mind so I could sleep well. I have had insomnia my whole life and
when doing yoga beforehand, I would fall asleep much quicker. One night I was
swamped with papers and studying, all due the next day. It was not until well
past midnight by the time I finished and had to be awake at seven the next
morning. I performed the Sun Salutation right before going to sleep and I was
asleep within minutes which has never happened to me before. By no level of
imagination am I able to completely able to unionize my mind and body but
simply doing the first steps of yoga, one can notice the calming affect it has.
True peace is an idea, easy to understand but very challenging to accomplish.
This is why it fits perfectly into yoga. The entire process of achieving
Samadhi is one of the hardest things a person can accomplish, just like true
peace. The final step of the yoga process, Samadhi, is a pure concentration
while still having the mind and body at ease. Imagine being in that state,
having no side thoughts, doubts, or conflicts in the back of the mind. Peace
may not be the best word that can be interchangeable with Samadhi but personally,
these two ideas are one in the same. “Normally, the mind and body limit you,
but by holding something infinite, you slowly raise yourself from the finite
objects that bind you and transcend them. Through that you get rid of all the
obstacles and your path is made easy” (Satchidananda pg. 46). This expressly
suggests that yoga removes everything that stands in the way once the limits of
the mind and body are removed. This creates a state of being that is calmer,
easier and better than one’s previous state. Peace can be a word that describes
exactly what is obtained during the final step of yoga using this sutra.
The majority of people are at conflict with their Inner
Self and are not completely peaceful inside. This is not to say that this
conflict is very harmful to one’s daily life but everyone experiences it. There
are very few people who have no regrets or a completely clear conscience. Once
Samadhi is achieved or realized, those are removed from thought and the mind
becomes clear.
I personally believe yoga is peace in both mind and body.
I challenge anyone to perform yoga for a week and find it not more peaceful
than a normal week. Through personal experience as well as textual evidence it
has become clear that I associate yoga with peace more than any other word.
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