Dear Friends,
Namaste!
So far we have seen the limitless expanse of this science called Yoga. Although there are literally infinite Yoga types, we said we will limit ourselves to the discussion of the four major types, viz., Yoga of Faith, Yoga of Action, Yoga of Acquiring Knowledgeand Yoga of Internalizing Knowledge.
We have also discussed the eight limbs of Yoga, viz., Value System, Discipline, Postures, Breath Control, Sense Control, Concentration, Meditation and Blissful Existence. Each limb, in turn, has huge expanse of its own. For example, any posture that is steady, comfortable and done with awareness qualifies to be called an ‘Asana’. As such, there is no limit to the number of possible ‘Asana’s. Also there is multitude of techniques for breath/sense control/meditation. Value system can potentially comprise hundreds of life enhancing and enriching principles. There is no limit to how many observances one can follow to make life more disciplined. However, we will limit our discussions to only the primary aspects of each limb.
There are two reasons for this. First, it is impossible for any human being to do justice to each and every detail of this science given its infinite expanse like any other branch of knowledge. Secondly, if we cover the major and most relevant aspects, it is almost tantamount to covering the entire breadth and the depth. Therefore, we will have to make do with this ‘compromise’, if compromise it can be called!
Once upon a time, in an ancient village, a student went to his teacher asking, “O teacher, I have heard so much about the ocean. My curiosity is fully aroused. Pray show to me what ‘ocean’ is all about.”
In response to this, the teacher went to the ocean, picked up a bucketful of sea-water and returned to the village. When the student turned up next, the teacher pointed to the water and said, “This will give you a very good idea about what an ocean is like.”
“But Sir,” cried the student, “I have heard that the ocean is very big. There are large animals such as whales that live in it. What you are showing to me is neither big nor does it contain any flora or fauna that I have heard so much about. No, this cannot be the ocean.”
“You are right my dear fellow,” sympathized the teacher, “however, it is not within my capacity – or anyone else’s for that matter – to show you what you are looking for. You will have to take this as a representative sample and extrapolate to get the full idea.”
We are attempting to do something very similar. This jig-saw puzzle is too huge to be constructed fully. However, if we put the big pieces together, filling in the blanks using common sense, hopefully, would not be a problem.
But even after limiting our focus, the playing field remains quite big. There still are these eight limbs and four types to study and practise. (We have seen the hierarchy among the eight limbs. We can also logically deduce that there would be a hierarchy among the four types as well. For example, we cannot hope to internalize knowledge unless we acquire it first!)
Also, this world we live in has enormously diverse Homo Sapiens in terms of age, gender, profession, country, religion, color, physical/intellectual capability, emotional structure, likes/dislikes, beliefs/non-beliefs, maturity, priorities, so on and so forth. Indeed, each one of us is a unique individual!
The question that arises at this point is, should everyone follow all Yoga types/limbs or are certain limbs/types more relevant for a given individual?
Surely, we cannot have ‘One Size Fits All’ approach. Hence it is necessary to also categorize people into broad types (just as we categorized Yoga) and establish mapping between the Yoga types/limbs and people types.
But if each person is unique, how can we categorize people into various types? Fortunately, this task is not as difficult as it initially appears. Just as there are a few differentiating characteristics among human beings that make every one of us unique, there also are characteristics that are common. And we can use this commonality to broadly categorize people so as to have a manageable number to deal with.
Once we identify people types, then can we map Yoga types to people types. And once this mapping is available, it would be easy for us to prescribe Yoga practice to an individual (or to ourselves!) provided we figure out the ‘person type’.
Therefore, in our next few articles, we will take these steps one at a time. This is like laying down the complete map (including the destination) and also establishing the current position (“You are here”) so that the route to destination becomes crystal-clear.
So long…
No comments:
Post a Comment