Yoga for all
YOGA has become the new quick fix for people with a host of ailments. With its growing popularity, comes a range of books that teach yoga, ranging from a beginner's manual to erudite ones. Whether it is backache, blood pressure, insomnia or difficult pregnancy, the potential patient is advised, "Why don't you try yoga?"
Regular practice
However it requires regular (read every day) practice. People may go to the gym and workout every day but doing yoga asanas somehow seems to be difficult. But yoga involves more than just behaving like a professional contortionist. Bharat Thakur's Yoga For The Family: A Holistic Approach explains the approach in the first chapter. Thakur, a new age yoga guru, points out that while yoga can be used to improve physical well being, proper practice can awaken one's inner consciousness.
The book is divided into various sections — for the body, for the mind, for couples, for pregnant women, for the body ... Apart from photographs, each asana is accompanied by lucid explanations of how to do it and the benefits it brings. Quite a few also have cautionary notes. The photographs are clear and, in some cases, there are close up shots to illustrate clearly how the asana should be performed. There is also a section devoted to children with the benefits relating to growth and digestion. The last chapter Kayakalpa is meant for regeneration and rejuvenation. A 41-day course, it has detailed instructions of do's and don't's.
The benefits of regular practice of yoga are well known. But the whole genre of self-help books on yoga raises some disturbing questions.
Doubts
Is it wise to allow an inexperienced person to practise asanas based on photographs and some explanatory notes? A first-timer may get hurt. To be fair, Thakur has cautionary notes against many — those with cervical spondylosis and vertigo cannot do jalandhara bandha, those with weak knees cannot do vrikshasana, those with high blood pressure and a history of heart disease cannot practise surya namaskar or dhanurasana etc. But what about people who do not know that they have problems? What about those who develop problems after doing these exercises?
Also yoga asanas, if practised under the guidance of a trained teacher, can be modified and adjusted to suit individual needs. Isn't that a better way of learning than to try it on one's own?
Yoga For The Family: A Holistic Approach, Bharat Tahkur, Roli Books
R. KRITHIKA
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