By Bhavan Kumar

In Yoga asana practice, gravity is always at work upon our body exerting its pull on many vital organs and glands and causing the blood to flow in a predominantly downward direction. Performing the inverted asanas such as shoulder stand, headstand actually works against gravity. Since the heart is always pumping against gravity to circulate the blood into vital organs and glands situated above it, with the body in the inverted position, these organs are now lower than the heart’s position, relative to the floor, there will be a marked increase in blood circulation to these organs and glands.

Yoga asanas are designed to free all the body’s different joints, opening them up to relieve pressure on the protective cartilage and restore correct alignment of the bones. By keeping muscles and ligaments healthy, and posture correct, we can prevent problems of damage of joints. It increases flexibility of joints. Only through daily routine practice that the tendons and ligaments are stretched which give rise to flexibility of joints in our body. Yoga attaches great value in terms of both health and beauty to a strong, elastic spine and an ancient yogic adage proclaims, “You are as young as your spine is flexible”.

The other important work of yoga asanas is in strengthening and purifying the nervous system, particularly the spinal cord and nerve ganglia, as these correspond to the routes of prana in the subtle body. The different asanas systematically stretch and tone all the peripheral nerves, helping to strengthen them and to stabilize neuro-chemical transmission. The asanas also massage and stimulate all the endocrine glands. When we want to do asanas, there must be the will that triggers the nerve cells neuron. These groups of neurons will contract and slowly perform the asanas up to the holding position. Hence, the entire nervous system is made to response in a comfortable and steady manner.

With proper exercise, our body tissues are nourished, wastes removed, vital organs returned to full efficiency and the metabolism of health is restored. The postures also help to focus the mental awareness of the physical body and allow the physical system to slow down.

© Copyright 2010 – Bhavan Kumar / Aura Publications