21. Hatha Yoga to the rescue |
The regular practice of select Yogasanas and Pranayama exercises will help considerably in one’s effort to check the sexual impulse. Sirshasana and Sarvangasana will help you a lot in making you an Oordhvaretas. They are also termed as Vipareeta Karani Mudras. They are specially designed by our Rishis of yore such as Gheranda, Matsyendra and Goraksha to make us Oordhvaretas. And by Pranayama, the mind gradually proceeds from the gross to the subtle. It therefore exercises a wholesome check upon sexual irritation. When some evil thought disturbs your mind, at once take to Padmasana or Siddhasana and practice Pranayama. The thought will leave you immediately.
Siddhasana This Asana is highly eulogized by Yogins for the practice of Brahmacharya. It will help one in controlling his passion and checking nocturnal discharges and in making him an Oordhvareta Yogi. This Asana is useful for sitting during Japa and meditation. Place the left heel at the anus. Keep the right heel at the root of, or just above, the generative organ. Keep the trunk, neck and head straight. Place the hands on the right heel. Sit for half an hour to start with and then slowly increase the period to three hours. Sitting for three hours in one Asana is termed Asana Jaya or mastery over Asana.
Sirshasana This is the king of all Asanas. The advantages that are derived from this Asana are incalculable and indescribable. This is specially designed for stopping nocturnal discharges and helping the flow of semen towards the brain in the form of Ojas Sakti or spiritual energy. Spread a folded blanket on the ground. Make a finger-lock and keep it over the blanket. Now place the top of your head between the two hands. Slowly raise the legs up without any jerk till they become vertical. Get the help of a wall in the beginning of your practice or ask one of your friends to catch hold of your legs. After due practice, you will be able to keep up balance. When the Asana is over, bring down the legs very, very slowly. When you remain in the Asana, breathe only through the nose. Irregular Kumbhaka, Rechaka and Puraka—retention, exhalation and inhalation—will make your Asana unsteady. Do this Asana when your stomach is empty or light. Many chronic, incurable diseases of the stomach, bowels, lungs, heart, kidneys, genito-urinary system, ears and eyes are cured by the regular practice of this Asana. When you find your legs tossing, retain the breath for a short time. Then the legs will become steady.
Sarvangasana This is an important pose, which can help you assuredly in the practice of Brahmacharya. The digestive, circulatory and nervous systems are at once toned up in a mysterious manner by the practice of Sirshasana and Sarvangasana. This is no Arthavada or Rochak Sabdha or mere eulogy, my dear friends! Practice and feel the beneficial influence yourself. This is the best remedy for wet dreams and various other diseases. There is a healthy glow in the eyes of the practitioner and a peculiar lustre, charm, beauty and magnetic aura in his face. Spread a blanket on the ground. Lie on the back quite flat. Slowly raise the legs. Lift the trunk, hips and legs. Support the back with the hands on either side. The whole weight of the body will now rest on the shoulders and elbows. Keep the legs steady. Press the chin against the chest firmly. Breathe slowly, only through the nostrils. Begin with five minutes and try to remain in the Asana as long as you can.
Matsyasana This must be practiced soon after Sarvangasana. It will relieve stiffness of the neck and all crampy conditions of the cervical region caused by long practice of Sarvangasana. This gives a natural massage to the congested parts of the neck and shoulders. Further, it ensures that the student derives the maximum benefits from his practice of Sarvangasana. Sit in Padmasana over the blanket by keeping the right foot over the left thigh and the left foot over the right thigh. Then lie flat on the back. Stretch the head back so that the top of your head rests on the ground firmly on one side and the buttocks only on the other, thus making a bridge of the trunk. Place the hands over the thighs or catch hold of the toes. You will have to give a good twist to the back. Matsyasana is the destroyer of many diseases. This is very useful for general health also.
Padangushthasana Place the left heel right in the centre of the perineum—the space between the anus and the external organ of generation. Put the whole weight of the body on the toes, particularly the left big toe. Place the right foot over the left thigh, near the knee. Sit carefully now, keeping the balance. If you find it difficult to practice this Asana independently, you can take the help of a bench or sit by the side of a wall. Place the hands on the sides of the hips. Breathe slowly. The perineal space is four inches in breadth. Underneath this space lies the Veerya Nadi that carries semen from the testes. By pressing this Nadi with the heel, the flow of semen outside is checked. A steady practice of this Asana removes wet dreams and spermatorrhoea and makes one an Oordhvareta Yogi. A combination of Asanas such as Sirshasana, Sarvangasana and Siddhasana is very conducive to keeping up Brahmacharya. Each has its own specific action. Siddhasana acts on the testes and its cells and prevents the formation of semen. Sirshasana and Sarvangasana help the flow of semen towards the brain. Padangushthasana acts on the spermatic duct effectively. Instruction on Asana practicePhysical exercises draw the Prana out. Asanas send the Prana in. Asanas are not only physical, but also spiritual. They help a long way in controlling the senses, mind and body. The body, nerves and muscles are purified. If you do Dhand and Bhaitak five hundred times a day for five years, they will not, in any way, produce any spiritual experience. Ordinary physical exercises develop only the superficial muscles of the body. One can become a sandow with a beautiful physique by practising physical exercise. But, Asanas are intended for physical as well as spiritual development. Spread a blanket on the floor and practice Asanas over it. Use a thin pillow under the head when you do Sirshasana. Wear a Langoti or Kaupin or loin-cloth when you practice Asanas. Avoid using spectacles and too many clothes. Those who practice Sirshasana for a long time should take some light tiffin or a cup of milk after finishing the Asana. Be regular and systematic in your practices. Those who practice by fits and starts will not derive any benefit. Regularity in the practice is very necessary if one wants to realize the maximum benefits of Asanas. Generally, people practice for two months in the beginning with great interest and enthusiasm and then leave off. This is a sad mistake. Asanas should be done on an empty or light stomach or at least three hours after food. You can advantageously combine Japa and Pranayama during the practice of Asanas. Then it becomes real Yoga. Asanas can be practiced on the sandy beds of rivers, open airy places, and by the seaside also. If you practice Asanas and Pranayama in a room, see that the room is not congested. The room should be clean and well-ventilated. In the beginning of the practice, do each Asana for a minute or two only and then gradually and slowly increase the period as much as you can. Avoid too much exertion when you do all the Yogic exercises. There must be joy and exhilaration throughout your practices. Here I have given you instructions for a few select Asanas that are very useful for maintaining Brahmacharya. For detailed instructions on nearly ninety Asanas, refer to my book "Yoga Asanas". Mula BandhaPress the Yoni or the space between the anus and the generative organ with the left heel. Contract the anus. Place the right heel at the root of the organ of generation. This is Mula Bandha. The Apana Vayu, which does the function of ejection of excreta, has a natural tendency to move downwards. Through the practice of Mula Bandha, the Apana Vayu is made to move upwards by contracting the anus and forcibly drawing it upwards. Mula Bandha is highly useful for maintaining Brahmacharya. This is practiced during inhalation in Pranayama and during Japa and meditation also. Mula Bandha is a Yogic Kriya, which helps the Yogic student to take the Apana and the sex energy upwards. The tendency of the Apana is to flow downwards. This downward flow of Apana and the sex energy is checked by the practice of Mula Bandha. The Yogic student sits on Siddhasana and takes the Apana and the sex energy upwards by contracting the anus and practising Kumbhaka or retention of breath. By long practice, the downward seminal flow is checked and semen is sublimated or transmuted into Ojas Sakti or spiritual energy, which helps contemplation. This Bandha checks wet dreams and helps in maintaining Brahmacharya. Such a beneficial Yogic practice prescribed by the Rishis and Yogis of yore is misused by the people and misprescribed by some inexperienced, ignorant Yogic culturists of the present day. They teach this Kriya to the lay public to achieve their selfish ends and to have a comfortable living. They pompously advertise that people can retain the vital fluid for a long time and have intense sexual enjoyment for a protracted period through this Kriya. They teach this Bandha to the rich householders. Some of the deluded householders are allured by such statements of these Yogic charlatans - whose goal is money-making for comfortable living - and they take recourse to this Kriya. They indulge more on the strength of this Kriya, lose their vitality and come to grief and destruction in a very short period. By injudicious practice of this Kriya, the Apana is dislocated and they get various diseases like colic, constipation and piles. These Yogic culturists have done intense harm to the public. Instead of prescribing this useful Kriya of the Rishis and Yogis of yore for the attainment of Brahmacharya, and for success in Pranayama in the form of Brahmacharya these deluded souls have excited the householders to become more passionate and to have more indulgence. They have brought a slur on the science of Yoga and Yogis. They argue: "We must move according to the modern times. People want this. They like such Kriyas. They are benefited. They are more happy by practising this Kriya." Wonderful philosophy indeed! This is the philosophy of the Epicureans and the Charvakas. This is the philosophy of Virochana. This is the philosophy of flesh. O ignorant man! Open your eyes. Wake up from the deep slumber of ignorance. Do not be carried away by the sweet speeches and indecent demonstrations of these Yogic charlatans or pseudo-Gurus. You will be ruined. Give up such practices. Preserve the vital fluid. Turn it into Ojas through Japa, Kirtan, Pranayama, Vichara. Lead a pious life. Life is meant for a higher purpose. Life is meant for Self-realization. O Yogic culturists! Do not mislead people. Call yourselves as the noble followers or disciples of the revered Rishis of olden times. Do not prescribe these Kriyas for base ends. Be noble and magnanimous. Aim high. Become true Yogis. Sensible and cultured people will laugh at you if you disseminate Yogic knowledge in this manner. Give them knowledge of the ways to maintain Brahmacharya. Make them real Yogis. People will revere you and appreciate your selfless work. Jalandhara BandhaContract the throat. Press the chin firmly against the chest. This is practiced at the end of Puraka and at the beginning of Kumbhaka. Next to this comes the Uddiyana Bandha. These Bandhas are something like three stages of one exercise. Uddiyana BandhaEmpty the lungs by a strong and forcible expiration. Now, contract and forcibly draw up the intestines and also the navel towards the back so that the abdomen rests against the back of the body high up in the thoracic cavity. This Bandha can be practiced in a standing posture also. In this case, bend a little forward, resting the hands on the thighs and keeping the legs a little apart. These three Bandhas are a good combination. The description of Nauli Kriya can be taken as the next stage of Uddiyana Bandha.
Nauli Kriya Uddiyana Bandha can be done in a sitting posture also, but Nauli generally is done while standing. Keep the right leg a foot apart from the left and rest your hands on the thighs, thus making a slight curve of the back. Then do Uddiyana Bandha. Now allow the centre of the abdomen free, by contracting the left and the right side of the abdomen. You will have all the muscles in the centre in a vertical line. Keep it so as long as you can do it comfortably. Do this much only for a few days. After some practice, you should contract the right side of the abdomen and allow the left side free. Here you will have all the muscles on the left side only. Again, contract the left side and allow the right side free. By having such gradual practices, you will understand how to contract the muscles of the central, left and right sides of the abdomen. Now comes the final stage of Nauli Kriya. Keep the muscles in the centre. Slowly bring them to the right side and then to the left side in a circular way. Do this several times from the right to the left and then do it in the reverse order, from the left to the right. You should always turn the muscles with a circular motion, slowly. You cannot derive the full benefits of this Kriya when you do not do it slowly and gradually. Beginners will feel a slight pain in the abdomen in the first two or three attempts. They need not fear. The pain will vanish after two or three days of regular practice. Maha MudraSit on the ground. Press the anus with the left heel. Stretch out the right leg. Take hold of the toe with the two hands. Inhale and retain the breath. Press the chin against the chest firmly. Fix the gaze at the Trikuti or the space between the eyebrows. Retain the posture as long as you tan. Practice on the other leg also.
Yoga Mudra Sit on Padmasana. Place the palms on the heels. Exhale slowly and bend forward and touch the ground with your forehead. If you retain the pose for a long time, you can breathe in and out as usual. If you do it for a short time only, retain the breath till you raise the head and come back to your original position and then inhale. Instead of keeping the hands on the heels, you can take them to the back and catch hold of the left wrist with your right hand. This Mudra is useful in keeping up Brahmacharya. It reduces excessive fat in the belly and removes all disorders of the stomach and the bowels. Constipation is removed. The gastric fire is increased. Appetite and digestion improve. If you cannot retain the pose for a long time at one stretch, repeat the process several times. Take rest in the intervals. Easy and comfortable PranayamaSit on Padmasana or Siddhasana with an empty light stomach in your meditation room. Close your eyes. Close the right nostril with the right thumb and draw in the air through the left nostril. Close the left nostril also with the right little and ring fingers and retain the air as long as you can. Then remove the right thumb and exhale very, very slowly. Again, in the same manner, draw in the air through the right nostril, retain it as long as you can; and then exhale through the left nostril. The whole process constitutes one Pranayama. Do twenty in the morning and twenty in the evening. Gradually and cautiously increase the period of retaining the air and the number of Pranayamas also. When you advance in the practice, you can have three or four sittings and you can do eighty Pranayamas in each sitting. Bhastrika PranayamaSit on Padmasana. Keep the body erect. Close the mouth. Inhale and exhale quickly twenty times like the bellows. Constantly dilate and contract. The practitioner should start with expulsions of breath following one another in rapid succession. When the required number of expulsions, say, twenty for a round, is finished, the final expulsion is followed by the deepest possible inhalation. Retain the air as long as you can keep it comfortably and then very, very slowly, exhale. This is one round of Bhastrika. Take a little rest and then do another round. Do three rounds in the morning and three in the evening. This is a very powerful exercise, beneficial for Brahmacharins. You can do this even when you are standing. Hints on Pranayama practiceDo not take bath immediately after Pranayama practice. Rest for half an hour. Have one sitting only in the morning during summer. If there is heat in the brain or head, apply cooling oil or butter before you take a bath. Always inhale and exhale very slowly. Do not make any sound during inhalation. In Bhastrika, do not produce any violent sound. Breathe only through the nose. A neophyte should do Puraka and Rechaka only, without any Kumbhaka, for some days. You must so nicely adjust the Puraka, Kumbhaka and Rechaka that you do not experience a feeling of suffocation or discomfort at any stage of Pranayama. You must not unnecessarily prolong the period of exhalation. If you prolong the time of Rechaka, the following inhalation will be done in a hurried manner and the rhythm will be broken. Gradually increase the period of Kumbhaka. Do Kumbhaka for 4 seconds in the first week, for 8 seconds in the second week, for 12 seconds in the third week and so on till you are able to retain the breath as long as you can. Repeat ‘Om’, Gayatri or any other Mantra mentally during the practice. Have the Bhav, feeling, that the Daivi-Sampat such as mercy, forgiveness, love and so on enter your system during inhalation and that all Asuric Sampat or devilish qualities such as lust, anger, greed and jealousy are thrown out during exhalation. When you inhale, feel that you draw energy from the divine source, cosmic Prana, and that your whole body from top to toe is saturated with abundant, fresh energy. Stop the practice when you are seriously ailing. Vajroli MudraThis is an important Yogic Kriya in Hatha Yoga. You will have to work hard to get full success in this Kriya. There are very few people who are experts in this act. Yogic students draw water first through a silver tube, a specially made catheter, passed into the urethra twelve inches inside. After due practice they draw milk, then oil, honey and so on. They draw mercury in the end. Later on they can draw these liquids directly through the urethra without the help of the silver tube. This Kriya is of immense use for keeping up perfect Brahmacharya. On the first day you should send the catheter inside the urethra for one inch only, the second day for two inches, the third day for three inches, and so on. You must practice gradually till you are able to send twelve inches of the catheter inside. The way becomes clear and blowing. Raja Bhartrihari could do this Kriya very dexterously. Even a drop of semen cannot come out of the Yogi who practices this Mudra. Even if it is discharged, he can draw it back through this Mudra. The Yogi, who draws his semen up and preserves it, conquers death. Good smell emanates from his body. The late Trailingaswami of Benares was an expert in this Kriya. Sri Swami Kuvalayanandaji of Lonavala used to teach this Mudra. Practice of Mula Bandha, Uddiyana Bandha, Maha Mudra, Asanas and Pranayamas will naturally enable one to understand Vajroli and to get success in its practice. This must be done under the direct guidance of a Guru. The object of practising Vajroli Mudra is to be perfectly established in Brahmacharya. When aspirants practice this Mudra, they unconsciously divert their mind to sexual centres and thereby they fail to get any success. When you see the description of this Mudra, you will clearly understand that strict Brahmacharya is absolutely necessary. For practising this, there is no necessity at all for a woman or for any sexual intercourse. Since the Grihasthis have their wives and since they think that Vajroli Mudra is a device for birth control, they have a keen desire to practice this Mudra. It is all mere foolishness and delusion. They have not understood the technique and object of this important Kriya. Your motive in learning the Vajroli Mudra must be pure. You must have the one idea of getting Self-realization through absolute Brahmacharya. Have sex sublimation. You must not misuse the power gained through this Yogic Kriya. Analyze and scrutinise your motive thoroughly. There are very many temptations and dangers on the Yogic road. Beware, my child Prem! I again and again warn you. |
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