A review
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A review
The therapeutic use of yoga is widely known. In fact, today, yoga is
considered a global phenomenon and an essential part of modern
civilization. It has become common knowledge that yoga is good for
everyone. Currently yoga is being used as a therapy for Cancer, lung
and respiratory diseases, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease,
insomnia, high blood pressure, joint pain, diabetes. However, yoga,
when practiced in the wrong manner, and without professional guidance,
can do more harm than good.
Practicing yoga in the wrong manner can aggravate the negatives, rather
than developing positive changes in the body and mind
Concept of Yoga has been changing as more people take it up. In the
last half of the century Hatha Yoga has become the most well known and
widely practiced embraces Asana, Pranayama, Mudra and Bandha.
Shri Purohit Swami's commentary on Patanjali Yoga Sutra in his book
"Aphorisms of Yoga" sounds the warning that people forget Yama, Niyama
from the foundation, and unless it is firmly laid, they should not
practice postures and breathing exercise. It says first purify and
control the mind and then body. Rajayoga claims that Yama and niyama
must be practiced before commencing Hatha yoga but Hatha yoga does not
place much emphasis on them.
In India and Europe hundreds of people suffered permanently from wrong
practices. The doctors, on examination found there was nothing
originally wrong and consequently made wrong prescription because most
of the people including the medical doctors take it for granted that
Yoga is harmless. They rarely consider its possible relevance to any
side effects, among those who practice yoga.
Richard Kieninger, in "The Spiritual Seekers' Guidebook" says, "A
women upset her hormonal balance doing yoga exercise and it produced a
malfunction in her adrenal gland. Doctors didn't know how to reverse
the effects and she soon died.
Swami Rama warns that advanced form of patterned breathing, which is
common yoga practice, can cause a person to harm himself irreparably.
Shri Chinmoy admits in "Great Masters and the Cosmic Gods" that without
real guidance, practicing Pranayama is very dangerous. Those who
practice Pranayama without proper supervision and proper method can
suffer a disease which no known science or doctor can cure. It's
impossible for medical person to diagnose such illnesses.
Swami Prabhavandana in his book "Yoga and Mysticism" warns and shares
his experience. "A young boy of 16 or 17 years of age who had began
to practice Hatha yoga, started acting very strangely. He would
prostrate fully on the ground, rise to full height, then repeat the
performance-over and over again. The Swami said that he had lost his
mind. ... Finally, however he became so unmanageable that he had to be
confined.
Sri Ramakrishna, Maa Sharda, and all the disciples of Ramakrishna have
warned us again not to practice Pranayama without proper guidance.
Yoga authority Hans Ulrich Rieker admonishes in "The Yoga of Light"
that Yoga is not a trifling jest if we consider that any
misunderstanding in the practice of yoga can mean death and insanity.
In Hatha yoga the breathing exercises are more strenuous, attended by
some abnormal positions of the chin, the diaphragm, the tongue, and
other parts of the body to prevent expulsion or inhalation of air into
the lungs in order to induce a state of suspended breathing. This can
have drastic effects on the nervous system and the brain, and it is
obvious that such a discipline can be very dangerous.
Even in India, only those prepared to face death dare to undergo the
extreme discipline of Hatha yoga. A standard authority on Hatha yoga,
The Hatha Yoga Pradipika (chapter 2, verse 15), warns, "Just as lions,
elephants, and tigers are tamed, so the prana, should be kept under
control. Otherwise it can kill the practitioner. The specific physical
and mental consequences arising from yoga practice are also listed in
other authoritative yoga texts.
Sir John Woodroffe (Arthur Avalon) in "Serpent Power" admonishes that
Yoga practices without expert guidance could lead to considerable pain,
physical disorder, and even disease...
Rieker(Yoga of Light) observes that cancer of the throat, all sorts of
ailments, blackouts, strange trance states, or insanity could result
from even "the slightest mistake...."
In The Seven Schools of Yoga, Ernest Wood warns of "the imminent risk
of most serious bodily disorder, disease, and even madness." He
observes that many people have brought upon themselves incurable
illnesses or insanity by neglecting Hatha Yoga prerequisites, and "by
any mistake there arises cough, asthma, head, eye, and ear pains, and
many other diseases.
This indicates that practicing yoga postures, breathing exercise
especially Pranayama, guided by TV, books or without proper instruction
of well versed yoga person, is the main reasons of emergency room in
stable medical condition like diabetes, hypertension, asthma, cardiac
problems. If you have Hypertension, asthma, cardiac problem, mental
disorder, headache or any serious injury or surgery before, you need to
be very much cautious practicing any yoga technique. These special
conditions need individual and proper consideration. We need to
understand also the limitations of yoga as therapy. Yoga therapy is a
complementary medicine, which can't replace medicine, especially in
above-mentioned conditions. Therapeutic yoga techniques should be
initially practiced with medicine. Medication should be cut off in
proper instruction of medical practitioners with the improvement only.
We can, therefore, conclude that physical, mental, and spiritual
dangers supposedly can arise from "wrong" yoga practice. Standard yoga
books, Yoga practitioners warn of the serious dangers arising from
incorrect techniques. Yoga therapy offers an alternative approach by
using body awareness, breathing practices, physical postures,
meditation and relaxation techniques focus on holistic treatment for
people with various somatic or psychological dysfunction, but For the
harmonious development you must have the guidance of a teacher with
comprehensive knowledge of yoga and enough sensitivity to recognize
what your individual needs are. Yoga is not just asana, Pranayama or
meditation; it encompasses vast body of moral, ethical precepts, mental
attitude and physical practices.