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Yogic
Diet
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| Instinct
or voice within will guide you in the selection of articles of diet. You are
yourself the best judge to form a Sattvic Yogic menu to suit your temperament
and constitution. Further information is given in the Appendix.
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Mitahara
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| Take
wholesome Sattvic food half stomachful. Fill a quarter with pure water. Allow
the remaining quarter free for expansion of gas and for propitiating the Lord.
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Purity
in Food
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| Ahara-suddhau
sattva-suddhih, Sattva-suddhau dhruva-smritih, Smritilabhe sarvagranthinam
vipramokshah. By the purity of food, follows the purification of
the inner nature, on the purity of the inner nature the memory becomes firm and
on the strengthening of memory follows the loosening of all ties, and the wise
get liberation thereby.
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| You
must not practise Pranayama just after meals. When you are very hungry, then
also you must not practise. Go to the water closet and empty the bowels before
you begin Pranayama. A Pranayama-practitioner should observe Samyama (control)
in food and drink.
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| Those
who are-strict and regular in diet derive immense benefits during the course of
practice. They get success quickly. Those persons who suffer from chronic
constipation and who are in the habit of defecating in the afternoon can
practise Pranayama in the early morning without answering the calls of nature.
They should try their level best by some means or other to get an evacuation of
their bowels in the early morning.
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| Food
plays a very important role in Yoga Sadhana. An aspirant should be very, very
careful in the selection of articles of diet, in the beginning of his Sadhana
period. Later on when Pranayama-Siddhi is obtained drastic dietetic
restrictions can be removed.
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Charu
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| This
is a mixture of boiled, white rice, ghee, sugar and milk. This is a wholesome
combination for Brahmacharins and Pranayama-practitioners.
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Milk
Diet
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| Milk
should be scalded but not too much boiled. The process of scalding is that the
milk should be immediately removed from the fire as soon as the boiling point
is reached. Too much boiling destroys the vitamins, the mysterious nutritive
principles and renders it quite useless as an article of diet. Milk is a
perfect food by itself, containing as it does, the different nutritive
constituents in a well-balanced proportion. It leaves very little residue in
the bowels. This is an ideal food for Yogic students during Pranayama practice.
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Fruit
Diet
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| A
fruit diet exercises a benign, soothing influence on the constitution and is a
very desirable diet for Yogins. This is a natural form of diet. Fruits are very
great energy-producers. Bananas, grapes, sweet oranges, apples, pomegranates,
mangoes, Chikkus (Sappota) and dates are wholesome fruits.
Lemons possess anti-scorbutic properties and act as restoratives to blood.
Fruit-juice contains vitamin C. Chikkus increase pure blood.
Mangoes and milk is a healthy agreeable combination. You can live on mangoes
and milk alone. Pomegranate juice is cooling and very nutritious. Bananas are
very nutritious and substantial. Fruits help concentration and easy mental
focussing.
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Top
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Articles
Allowed
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| Barley,
wheat, ghee, milk, almonds promote longevity and increase power and strength.
Barley is a fine article of diet for a Yogi and Sadhaka. It is cooling too. Sri
Swami Narayan, the author of ‘Ek Santka Anubhav’, who wears a Kaupin of gunny
bag, lives on bread, made up of barley. He recommends barley bread to his
disciples. It is said that Emperor Akbar lived upon barley.
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| You
can take wheat, rice, barley, milk, bread, cow’s milk, ghee, sugar, butter,
sugar-candy, honey, dried ginger (Soont), green pulse, Moongdal, Panchashaka
vegetables, Peypudalai, potatoes, raisins, dates, light Khichdi of green dal.
Khichdi is a light food and can be agreeably taken. The food should be reduced
in proportion to the increase in Kumbhaka. You must not reduce your food much,
in the beginning of your practice. You must use your commonsense, all
throughout the Sadhana. Toor-ki-dal can be taken. The Pancha-Shaka belongs to
the species of spinach. They are excellent vegetables; the thick succulent
young leaves are boiled and seasoned or fried with ghee. They are five in
number, viz., Seendil, Chakravarthi, Ponnangani, Chirukeerai and Valloicharnai
keerai. When the Pingala or Suryanadi runs in the right nostril, you must take
your food. Suryanadi produces heat. It will digest the food well. You may take
jack-fruit, cucumber, brinjal, plantain-stem, Lauki Parval and Bhindi (lady’s
finger).
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Articles
Forbidden
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| Highly
seasoned dishes, hot curries, chutnies, meat, fishes, chillies, sour articles,
tamarind, mustard, all kinds of oil, asafetida, salt, garlic, onions,
urad-ki-dal (black gram), all bitter things, dry foods, black sugar, vinegar,
alcohol, sour curd, stale foods, acids, astringents, pungent stuff, roasted
things, heavy vegetables, over-ripe or unripe fruits, pumpkins, etc., must be
avoided. Meat can make man a scientist, but rarely a Philosopher, Yogi or a
Tattva Jnani. Onions and garlic are worse than meat. All food-stuffs contain a
small quantity of salt. So, even if you do not add salt separately, the system
will derive the necessary quantity of salt from other food-stuffs. The giving
up of salt will not produce deficiency of hydrochloric acid and dyspepsia as
allopathic doctors foolishly imagine. Salt excites passion. No ill-effects are
produced by the giving up of salt. Mahatma Gandhi and Swami Yogananda had given
up salt for over thirteen years. Giving up salt helps you in controlling the
tongue and thereby the mind also and in developing will-power too. You will
have good health. Sitting before fire, company of women and worldly-minded
people, Yatra, long walk, carrying heavy burdens, cold bath in the early
morning, harsh words, speaking untruth, dishonest practices, theft, killing
animals, Himsa of all kinds either in thought, word or deed, hatred and enmity
towards any person, fighting, quarrelling, pride, double-dealing, intriguing,
back-biting, tale-bearing, crookedness, talks other than those of Atman and
Moksha, cruelty towards animals and men, too much fasting or eating only once
every day, etc., are not allowed for a Pranayama-practitioner.
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A
Kutir For Sadhana
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| The
Pranayama student should erect a beautiful room or Kutir with a very small
opening and with no crevices. It should be well pasted with cowdung or with
white cement. It should be absolutely free from bugs, mosquitoes and lice. It
should be swept well everyday, with a broom. It should be perfumed with good
odour and fragrant resin should be burnt therein. Having taken his seat,
neither too high nor too low, on an Asana, made of a cloth, deer-skin and Kusha
grass one over the other, a wise man should assume the lotus-posture and
keeping his body erect and his hands folded in respect should salute his
tutelary deity and Sri Ganesa by repeating ‘Om Sri Ganesaya Namah’.
Then he should begin to practise Pranayama.
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Matra
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| The
time taken in making a round of the palm of the hand, neither very slow nor
quickly snapping the fingers once, is called Matra.
Each time-unit is called Matra.
The twinkling of an eye is sometimes taken as the period of one Matra. Time
occupied by one normal respiration is considered as one Matra. Time taken up in
pronouncing the mono-syllable, OM, is regarded as one Matra. This is very
convenient. Many Pranayama-practitioners adopt this time-unit in their
practice.
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Padmasana
(Lotus Pose)
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| This
is also known by the name Kamalasana. Kamala means lotus. When the Asana is
demonstrated it presents the appearance of a lotus in a way. Hence the name
Padmasana.
Amongst the four poses
prescribed for Japa and Dhyana, Padmasana comes foremost. It is the best Asana
for contemplation. Rishis like Gheranda, Sandilya, speak very highly of this
important Asana. This is highly agreeable for householders. Even ladies can sit
in this Asana. Padmasana is suitable for lean persons and for youths as well.
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Technique
Sit on the ground by spreading
the legs forward. Then place the right foot on the left thigh and the left foot
on the right thigh. Place the hands on the knee-joints. You can make a
finger-lock and keep the locked hands over the left ankle. This is very
convenient for some persons. Or you can place the left hand over the left knee
and the right hand over the right knee with the palm facing upwards and the
index finger touching the middle portion of the thumb (Chinmudra).
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