In common perception, Yoga is basically practicing of a few twists and twirls of the body – which increases metabolism, reduces weight and may have some healing powers i.e. ability to cure diseases etc. I became curious about Yoga a year ago, after reading a review in Times of India about the book named Sanatan Kriya: The Ageless Dimension.
I bought the book from the Oxford book store at Kolkata and started practicing a few techniques according to my own needs. In this context, I would like to refer that I was suffering from hypothyroidism (used to take 100mcg of Eltroxin everyday), depression and myopia.
During night time my vision was badly blurred and even with the help of spectacles, I was unable to read bus route numbers or the letters on the glowing sign boards easily. The situation used to get worse after spending all day in front of the computer at work. At that time, I started doing Tratak at a stretch only for seven days religiously, and miraculously I regained the eyesight I had in my childhood. Today, I don’t use spectacles anymore and request everyone I find with minor eye problems like redness or dryness to try Tratak.
Moreover, I also started doing Surya Namaskar and gradually entered into the world of Sanatan Kriya. Today, depression does not have any relevance in my day-to-day life. I also stopped taking medicine for hypothyroidism few months ago. We have only one life to live. There are so many things to do, so many new things to explore, where is the time to devote in negative thoughts or negative feelings. Yoga is indeed a journey. My life has a purpose now. I can feel a self growth in me in the last few months and I know that I am a different person from what I was six months ago. People around me find me a lot more calm, more focused and not so quick to lose my temper; while I feel that my ability to sustain pressure whether official or emotional has increased largely.
We have learned to use our five senses. But beyond that in context of developing our mind or exploring the sixth sense we all find ourselves largely confused and less motivated. In the path of Yoga those who are blessed with Guru kripa are more fortunate. They feel more secure in the knowledge that someone is there to hold their hand while they are in trouble. For them there is a constant flow of energy emanating from the Guru which guides and supports them, understands them and over and above believes in them.
In the language of a common individual with an accounting mind, it can be said that Yoga can never be understood as a waste of time, rather it may be counted as a valuable investment of your energy in yourself, which will promise you health, vitality and growth in physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of your life.