Taking care of your body

[Guest guest]

This article by Kiwi Kid from Veritas was a great read and I think

some on this group would appreciate it.

 

http://forums.vsociety.net/topic/10274.0

 

*Copy and paste in case you can't see if not member, I don't feel like

checking*

 

On Care of The Physical Body

 

It should not be necessary for one to write on such a subject as the

care for one of the closest companions a person can have in life, but

in our current `civilized society' many people have inevitably turned

away from nature and proper care of their bodies. This must at all

costs be remedied, the luxuries of our society are of no good if we

are so unwell as to be unable to enjoy them properly. Such should be

of even more importance to people concerned with practical

metaphysics, for although primarily such studies delve into mind and

soul, the body is the container of these (though they surely can

escape!) and ought to be kept looked after, it is not hypocritical to

delve to purify the murky waters while keeping the container without

cracks, otherwise you may find yourself with no water left to purify.

The physical temple is the springboard to the higher realms, and it

has a distinctly evident relationship to the mind, which the

meta-physicist aims to control.

 

Exercise through Asanas

 

Thusly, we shall move on to look at something that our society has not

forgotten, the muscles. Certainly some strength is wanted, however

unlike a lot of society our concern is not with size but with

flexibility. An occultist's body must be flexible and relaxed,

otherwise the mind shall be more difficult to calm, blood flow is

potentially restricted and our health shall not be at optimum level.

The below outline is based on certain yogic asanas and its specific

set together as is I first saw given by Swamji Sivananda, I have found

it to be the best group of asanas practiced at any one time I have

found for someone on an occultists path.

 

The first exercise useful for a warm up to the asana set is surya

namaskar otherwise known as Sun Salutation, this exercise can be done

fast paced or at a slower pace depending on your own tastes.

i. Stand with feet together and hands in the prayer position in

front of your chest. Exhale.

ii. Inhaling, stretch your arms up, palms still together and arch

back from the waist, pushing the hips out, legs straight.

iii. Exhaling, bend forward, and press your palms down, fingertips

in line with toes - bend your knees if necessary.

iv. Inhaling, bring the right leg back and place the knee on the

floor. Arch back and look up, lifting your chin.

v. Retaining the breath, bring the other leg back and support your

weight on hands and toes.(as in after the pushing up of a push up)

vi. Exhaling, lower your knees, then your chest and then your

forehead, keeping your hips up.

vii. Inhaling, lower your hips and bend back. Keep legs together and

shoulders down. Look up and back.

viii. Exhaling, raise your hips and pivot into an inverted " V " shape

(downward facing dog) Try to push your heels and head down and keep

your shoulders back.

ix. Inhaling, step forward and place the right foot between your

hands. Rest the other knee on the floor and look up, as in position 4.

x. Exhaling, bring the other leg forward and bend down from the

waist, keeping your palms as in position 3.

xi. Inhaling, stretch your arms forward, then up and back over your

head and bend back slowly from the waist, as in position 1.

xii. Exhaling, gently come back to an upright position and bring

your arms down by your sides.

 

Those 12 steps constitute half a round, repeat again but take back the

left leg first on the second half. When completed that then makes a

round, do at least 4 rounds before starting the asana set. Now the

body is nicely warmed up and proper asana practice can begin to be

undertaken.

The asanas we are concerned with here are sarvangasana, matsyasana,

paschimothanasana, bhujangasana, salahbhasana, dhanurasana, ardha

matsyendrasana, Mayurasana, pada hasthasana and trikonasana. These 10

asanas overall offer a good workout to the whole system and can be

learnt fine I believe online without much harm possible except through

extreme carelessness, in which case one should not be on this path

anyway! Let us get onto the description of their performance then.

These descriptions I take directly from Sivananda's `Kundalini Yoga'

and `Practical Lessons in Yoga' because I myself cannot word how to

perform them as well as he eloquently has in his text, which is freely

available online as a PDF for anyone interested anymore in the subject.

Sarvangasana

 

Lie on the back quite flat. Slowly raise the legs. Lift the trunk,

hips, and legs quite vertically. Support the back with the two hands,

one on either side. Rest the elbows on the ground. Press the chin

against the chest (Jalandhara Bandha). Allow the back-shoulder portion

and neck to touch the ground closely. Do not allow the body to shake

or move to and fro. Keep the legs straight. When the Asana is over,

bring the legs down very, very slowly with elegance and not with any

jerks. In this Asana the whole weight of the body is thrown on the

shoulders. You really stand on the shoulders with the help and support

of the elbows.

Concentrate on the Thyroid gland which lies on the front lower part of

the neck. Retain the breath as

long as you can do with comfort, and slowly exhale through the nose.

 

Matsyasana

 

Spread a blanket and sit on Padmasana by keeping the right foot over

the left thigh and the left over right thigh. 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 or an arch of

the trunk. Place the hands on the thighs or catch the toes with the hands.

 

Bhujangasana

 

Spread a blanket on the ground. Lay on it face down and the muscles of

the body completely

relaxed. Place the palms on the ground just below the shoulders,

bending them in the elbows. Touch

the ground with the forehead and raise the head and the upper part of

the body slowly just as a cobra

raises its hood. Bend the spine backwards. Let the lower part of the

body from the navel downwards

right up to the toes touch the ground. Breathe normally through the

nose. Retain the breath till the

head is raised and the spine bent nicely. Then again exhale. Then

retain the breath while bringing

the head down and as soon as the head touches the ground, slowly

inhale again. Repeat this process

of raising the head and bringing it down half a dozen times or more.

 

Salahbhasana

 

Lie on the blanket face down and the arms touching the ground. Let the

palms face upwards

with the fingers clenched. Inhale slightly. Then stiffen the whole

body and raise the legs the hips

and the lower abdomen up. putting the whole weight of the body on the

chest and the hands. Raise

the head also slightly. Remain in this pose for 10 seconds in the

beginning and prolong the time

little by little as long as you can retain the breath. Bring the legs

down slowly, relax the muscles of

the whole body and exhale. Repeat this pose four or five times taking

care to see that the lungs are

not unduly strained.

 

Dhanurasana

 

As you did in the previous two poses, lie on the blanket face down.

Relax all the muscles of

the body. Bend the legs slowly at the knee-joint until the hands catch

hold of the ankles. Raise the

head, chest and knees. Keep the arms and the forearms stiff end

straight. Try to keep the knees close

together. Now the whole body rests on the abdomen A good convex arch

is formed resembling a

bow with a string. You can either breathe as usual or retain the

breath according to your

convenience. Remain in this pose as long as you can comfortably do so.

Do this Asana four to six

times. When you have done this, lower the knees and the chest first.

Then bring the hands and legs

down and stretch flat on the ground.

 

Paschimothanasana

 

Sit on the ground and stretch the legs stiff like a stick. Catch the

toes with the thumb and

index and middle fingers. While catching, you have to bend the trunk

forwards. Fatty persons will

find it rather difficult to bend. Exhale. Slowly bend without jerks

till your forehead touches your

knees. You can keep the face even between the knees. When you bend

down, draw the belly back.

This facilitates the bending forward. Bend slowly by gradual degrees.

Take your own time. There is

no hurry. When you bend down, bend the head between the hands. Retain

it on a level with them.

Young persons with elastic spine can touch the knees with the forehead

even in their very first

attempt. In the case of grown-up persons with rigid spinal column, it

will take a fortnight or a month

for complete success in the posture. Retain the breath till you take

the forehead back, to its original

position, till you sit straight again. Then breathe.

 

Mayurasana

 

Kneel on the ground. Sit on the toes. Raise the heels up. Join the two

forearms together.

Place the palms of the two hands on the ground. The two little fingers

must be in close touch. They

project towards the feet. Now you have got steady and firm forearms

for supporting the whole body

in the ensuing elevation of the trunk and legs. Now bring down the

abdomen slowly against the

conjoined elbows. Support your body upon your elbows that are pressed

now against the navel or

umbilicus. This is the first stage. Stretch your legs and raise the

feet stiff and straight on a level with

the head. This is second stage.

 

Ardha Matsyendrasana

 

Place the left heel near the anus and below the scrotum. It can touch

the perennial space. Do

not allow the heel to move from this space. Bend the knee and place

the right ankle at the root of the

left thigh and rest the right foot well on the ground close to the

left hip-joint. Place the left axilla or

arm-pit over the top of the vertically bent right knee. Push the knee

now a little to the back so that it

touches the back part of the axilla. Catch hold of the left foot with

left palm. Then applying pressure

at the left shoulder-joint slowly twist the spine and turn to the

extreme right. Turn the face also to

the right as much as you can do. Bring it in a line with the right

shoulder. Swing round the right arm

towards the back. Catch hold of the left thigh with the right hand.

Retain the pose from 5 to 15

seconds. Keep the vertebral column erect. Do not bend. Similarly you

can twist the spine to the left

side.

 

Padha Hasthasana – This is the same as paschimothanasana except it is

performed while standing up and bending forward, rather than sitting down.

 

Trikonasana

 

Stand up straight, and place your feet slightly more than shoulder

width apart. Stretch your right arm up, then bend to your left,

sliding your left hand down your thigh. To eventually grasp your

ankle. Do not twist your body. Repeat the pose on the other side. Your

body forms a straight line, parallel to the floor. from your waist to

your fingertips.

 

So I have now given the performance of the asanas, I admit such from

the textual level may look overly complicated, but on the contrary,

when in practice they are quite simple. Such asanas should be done in

the order given if they are to be done. To make sure asana is not just

idle physical exercise, mind must also be involved. When breath is

controlled and mind is focused, then it becomes proper asana,

otherwise it is just physical exercise. To do this a mantra should be

taken, Om is the simplest and most ideal from my point of view, but

you may use anything you want. The breath should be rhythmical and

calm, not rushed. So during asana one shall inhale for say four om's,

hold for four om's and exhale for four om's (or one may skip retention

of breath) each om equating to about a second. Thus one shall keep the

mind focused and the breath controlled. In asana the body must always

be kept still, it must not be allowed the luxury of moving. One can

then know how long they are holding the asana for as well through such

breathing. For our purposes, we have no real need to go beyond 5

minutes for every asana. At the beginning you can do just one minute

for each, that is about 8 breaths without retention (using the above

counting of mantra). If one is retaining the breath for asana which

can improve efficiency but which I personally do not recommend for the

average person reading this article, at least not at first, they can

keep repeating om until they can no longer hold their breath WITH

EASE…this does no mean you hold your breath until you gasp for air, if

you do this there must always be slow inhale and exhale.

 

After such asana performance one can move on to performing Shavanasana

which I have described in another article elsewhere, and will go into

more detail on later in this article.

 

Breathing

 

Now then we can move on to control of the more subtle muscles, the

diaphragm and intercostals. This part shall not concern with the

pranayama practices, I may deal with them in another article, I am not

sure, but now is not the place. This shall be simple. Breathing should

be slow, steady, deep and rhythmical. That is the essence. One should

sit with back quite straight, body in a specific asana, then take

one's mind to breath. First observe the breath as it is, one must be

able to observe the breath without affecting its flow. After some

moments of observation move on to deliberate control. First gently

expand the lower abdomen forward, then the upper abdomen, the lower

chest and finally the upper chest should expand up and out. This is a

full breath. The breath should not be drawn in forcefully through the

nostrils, it should flow naturally as a result of the movement on the

muscles and their subsequent creation of a change in volume/air

pressure. This is all to be done in a relaxed, wave like fashion,

connected, not disconnected. Then exhale in the opposite fashion,

starting again from the lower abdomen. This may take some practice at

first, but it will come. Once the fashion of breathing is established

one can move onto the rhythm. Pick some point to reach to and use

that. First use just inhale and exhale, one may inhale for 4 counts

and exhale for 4 counts, or one may inhale for 4 counts and exhale for

8 counts. Afterwards one may add some retention of breath between

inhale and exhale, and another retention after exhale before the

subsequent inhale. All up to your own discretion. This is not

pranayama, it needn't be excessive, do not increase the count to a

high point, this is just minor. This results in calming the mind, all

the lung is used so the body is more charged with oxygen and prana,

and removal of wastes is more effective. Do like this for a few

minutes each day, say 10. You will notice some good results on your

health if such is not already normal to you, of this I am sure, if it

is persisted with. This breathing can be elaborated on for more than

mere technical effects, but this is beyond the scope of this article,

you can look them up yourself. This is fine for general good health

and a calm mind.

 

Eating

 

I will not go into dietary disciplines here. There are plenty others

who go into that around, and I trust people are intelligent enough

(against my often pessimistic view of society, I admit!) to know what

is best for them to eat, and that eating 5 eggs and 7 steaks a week is

not overly healthy. You can choose your diet as you believe it is

suitable. What is of more importance than what you eat, is how you

eat. Many will go on and on about what you should eat, but that is

relatively pointless and wasted time, since many people are not even

eating properly to get the full nutritional effects of such.

 

A person should eat slowly, with a focused attention on what they are

eating. Before eating one may, if they have such an impetuous offer

some thanks. Consider how the food has been produced and brought to

their table, the labour of others in its procurement etc. Then one may

impregnate it with a certain desire using the Will and Imagination,

but here we are concerned primarily with physical care.

 

The food consumed should be chewed slowly with attention on it, and

its taste. One should not swallow until the food has been properly

masticated. As a rule, one may assume, so long as food still has some

taste it can be chewed for longer. When properly masticated almost any

food will become some liquid, normally white, which as it were will

dribble down the throat easily. Only then can one be sure the

potential nutritional value will fully be taken advantage of. The

taking of food ought to be sacred where possible, and always done

slowly with attention. If you are in a position where you cannot eat

slowly, then you do better to give your digestive tract some time to

rest, gulping down food in a hurry means the rest of your digestive

system will have to work harder, and full nutritional benefits will

not be taken advantage of, so it should in all cases be avoided where

possible.

 

The focus of mind is threefold. Firstly it allows one to acknowledge

when the food is properly masticated, otherwise one will gulp down

without thinking due to habit. Secondly it has to do with magicians

and mystics thoughts on prana, and when mind is directed to food, more

prana will be assimilated from it and so the astral body will also be

more nourished from the subtler parts of the food. Thirdly it is a

good chance to practice concentration in everyday situations, so

meditation later will come quicker. For our general purposes, the

first is the only reason it is stated here, the other two are mere

beneficial side effects.

 

Drinking

 

Drinking follows practically the same method above as for eating. The

drink should also not be gulped down, but should have mind focused on

it, and swirled around by the tongue for a second or two before being

swallowed. Upon rising in the morning, and directly before going to

bed, a glass of water should be taken. Throughout the day, one does

well to have water by them at all times, and to occasionally sip, but

not gulp altogether, from the bottle or cup. The simplest test is to

check your urine, if it is yellow, then you need to take more water.

Where possible, try and keep from soda, and keep to as pure water as

possible, or otherwise fruit juice, containing pulp preferably. All

liquids, particularly colder (but not ice cold!) water can be

impregnated in a similar method to the food. A specific

mini-ritualistic method involves taking the glass of the liquid in the

left hand, held by the bottom if possible, while taking the right hand

over the top and sprinkling the fingers over it, using Imagination to

see droplets of prana emit themselves into the water, along with the

Will for a particular effect. The symbolism in this is actually quite

potent when understood. The cup is the general symbol for the female,

while the fingers are phallic and symbols of the male. The liquid

inside composes the `tears of the white gluten' while the prana

emitted from the fingers is `the blood of the red lion' These then

combine through such actions. The right hand is electrical and thus

used for the emission of prana, while the left hand is magnetic and

ensures the equal distribution of the charging throughout. Thus the

idea is impregnated in the womb through the seed, and it's subsequent

birth into reality takes place when it takes birth, in other words,

when it leaves the glass and enters your mouth.

 

General Cleaning

 

I shall take it for granted that you all brush your teeth, shower etc.

Now then we shall focus on the showering aspect. Of our concern and

primary importance for the general public is scrubbing of the body

with a firm bristle brush, perhaps along with a rubbing of the body

with particular oils, most favourably among many is almond oil. The

body should be scrubbed all over with the brush until it begins to

turn faintly red. This helps remove old dead skin cells. Normally this

would have naturally happened to man, but civilized life has changed

this, we are normally beyond the harsher environment which would have

naturally exfoliated us. So then we must artificially imitate this

state of nature using the natural bristle brush. After the skin is

scrubbed we can take to a cold shower, the shower needn't be

excessively cold, we may gently decrease the temperature if necessary.

During the shower, you should take to massaging the body quite firmly,

you might also chant a mantra (om) while doing this, combined with the

above breathing method. Of particular importance is under the armpits

and the throat should also gently be massaged. Make a point to get the

feet well in the spray, but try and keep the thighs out of direct

spray. The face also should be focused on under cold spray. This

tightens the pores and improves blood circulation, the skin is through

such well taken care of. This is also very refreshing for someone who

is involved in certain rituals, meditations etc and who arises early

to fit them in, there are other more `occult' reasons for this, but

they are not our concern.

 

Another important thing people should occasionally do is cleansing of

their gut. This can be achieved through fasting, excessive drinking of

water and such, but all of these can be considered when taken to

extreme's rather unnatural so we shall go with something that while

perhaps not natural, is better than these in my opinion, if perhaps

rather `gross' to average senses. This involves simply taking water

into the anus, holding it in for a small amount of time and then

eliminating it. This cleanses the large intestine well and

particularly the rectum which is of our concern. This is basically a

self-enema. Use a syringe or such to insert the water, or if one is

able, one may take it up through their own bowel movements after

inserting some pipe/straw. Shortly (though not straight) after,

defecate. This shouldn't be taken to excess, but is beneficial if

occasionally done. This removes any build-up of shit, occultists are

often claimed to be full of shit, let us remedy this then. This can

act as a blockage to proper release of it later, and can basically sit

`fermenting' in the intestine, in effect, poisoning the body slowly.

Many people go around in a semi-constipated state. As a rule you can

check any success in that you will eliminate very easily without any

effort needed when desired and when wiping the toilet paper will be

almost bare. This may not altogether be the nicest area to have gone

into, but it is part of your system and of utmost importance to its

maintenance. I hope some will at least try to keep it clean, it is not

difficult to get a syringe.

 

Tratak

 

Nowadays, our eyes are often in a constant state of tension and it is

of importance that we devote some time occasionally to allow them to

relax, Tratak allows us to do just this. The technique is itself

relatively simple, take some point and steady the gaze on it, keep the

mind on it, in affect it is meditation. The eyelids must not blink,

the eyes should not move. The item will morph and change but you must

keep the eyes still if it is to work. So far as you can easily, do not

blink, but do not strain to not blink either. If the mind is focused

well the want of blinking shall not be present so strongly. Allow the

eyes to tear, then close them and relax for a few minutes. Afterwards

you may rinse them with cold water. This has many good effects on the

eyes and purportedly people have `thrown off their spectacles through

this exercise'…I myself have not made much use of this, but when I do

its relaxation to my eyes is evident. I however do wear glasses, but

my vision has improved through such and my glasses have been slightly

lowered. I trust you can see any benefits it may have for yourselves.

 

Along with the above things there are a few more general things that

may be taken advantage of and one is sun bathing. While this shouldn't

be taken to excess, it is beneficial for one to get direct sunlight on

as much of the body as possible, in occult theories the best time for

this would normally be in the early hours of the morning when it is

still cooler. I myself live in an almost always clear skied area, and

have my own private pool etc so this is easy for me. For those who

live where it is rather the opposite this may not be so, but when you

can it can be taken advantage of to good results. Another thing is

fresh air, some people spend a lot of time indoors, in the morning if

possible, open all your windows and let the sunlight and fresh air in

for the day, also try and spend plenty of time outside, this does not

mean walking between classes or going out for a cigarette, it means

spending time outside just for the sake of being outside, not in some

hurried manner where you are expected back somewhere soon. Though any

is better than none.

 

Relaxation

 

Our society is very stressful and so we need an effective way to cope

with this, physical relaxation is of utmost importance to people to

participate in. It is very simple. Lie down on the back, at first it

is better on a harder surface. Have the feet fall outwards and the

hands palm up to the sides at about 45 degree angle to the body. Tense

the various areas of the body starting with the feet, hold it, then

suddenly relax them. Go through all the areas of the body like this.

Then take to mental focus alone. Take all your concentration to the

feet and tell them to relax mentally, develop a heavy feeling in them

and feel them sinking into the floor. Do this for about 30 seconds in

one area, then move on to the next area, say shins. One should do this

through all the body. 30 seconds is ideal, it is long enough to allow

proper sinking and focus, but not too long as to allow the mind to

easily wander. Keep going through the whole body like this multiple

times, at some point the mind will begin to stop thinking almost

altogether, or will drift off into other concerns and forget what it

is doing. If you do it well with some small practice you may enter

yoga nidra. You will be constantly on the brink of consciousness and

may not come to until a few hours, so make sure to do this properly

when there is some good time. An excellent time for this is while in

bed before sleeping, do it on back, then move to left side and do it,

then right side and do it etc.

 

Now I conclude my article. It will be noted that practically none of

the material is entirely my own and in fact has merely been a drawing

from my brain, and pretty much a culmination of certain yogic

techniques for the most part in maintaining bodily health. I have no

doubt you can find all of it elsewhere. But nonetheless I present it

here, I have tried to keep its focus on practical work, rather than

theoretical jabbering. Its importance is in being put to use. If all

this is done I am quite sure that good health will be had among the

general population.

 

Namaste