Traditional Medicine in Asia

Traditional Medicine in Asia
stimulates the pelvic nerves and tones the
urinary and genital systems. As a result, it
raises low libido and helps erectile
dysfunction in men, and vaginal dryness
in women. It relieves the symptoms of
depression and can also immediately
neutralize other emotions. For example, if
a person wants to control crying, laughing,
or even coughing, applying moola bandha
will stop it.
The practices of hatha yoga combined
with the techniques of meditation form the
foundation of Yoga Therapy. The blockages
– mental, emotional, physical, psychic and
spiritual – that stop us from realizing our
fullest potential, are the same ones that
cause most illnesses. The yoga practices
were developed for spiritual evolution, but
they can be just as easily applied to relieving
illness. There are a number of advantages
of yoga used in this way:
� After we have learnt the practices, they
are free of charge. So if we benefit from
them, we do not have to continue
paying for medicines. This can be
reflected at a national level where vast
amounts of money, which would have
been spent on pharmaceutical drugs,
can be saved by governments.
� The practitioner gains mastery over
whole areas of his/her life, becomes
independent of outside sources of
treatment, and is able to apply the
practices at any time they are needed.
For instance, a person with asthma who
masters vaman dhauti has a means to
stop an early attack any time. The
person with anxiety that leads to panic
attacks, can settle the anxiety with many
practices such as bhramari pranayama,
ujjayi pranayama, and yoga nidra and
avoid the panic. Then by a virtuous
circle effect, because they know they
have the practices, their anxiety about
the possibility of panic also reduces.
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� A person who has mastered yoga can
teach the practices to other people
when the need arises. In some cases
it can be used as a form of yogic first
aid. Many a time a yoga teacher has
taught vaman dhauti to a person in
the early stages of an asthma attack
and stopped it.
Raja Yoga
Until we can calm the disturbances of the
mind, we will always have problems with
our mental and emotional states, difficulties
in our behaviour and relationships, and be
unable to attain our true potential. Raja
yoga, the yoga of meditation, shows us
how to calm the mind and realize who we
really are.
The principles of raja yoga are set out
in the Yoga Sutras written by Sage Patanjali
about 2,500 years ago. As it is laid out in
eight consecutive steps, it is also known as
ashtanga Yoga (eight-fold path), which has
sequential steps through:
(1) Yamas
(2) Niyamas
(3) Asanas
(4) Pranayamas
(5) Pratyahara
(6) Dharana
(7) Dhyana
(8) Samadhi.
The yamas and niyamas are recommended
moral codes, which the
practitioner is to integrate into life more and
more as time goes on:
Yamas
The purpose of the yamas is to harmonize
the external environment and our
responses to it:
Ahimsa – Feeling of non-violence
towards all things, from thoughts, words