The Five Tibetans #40307

[Guest guest]

This past post from chrism is a great refresher on the

Five Tibetans.

 

Love, dhyana

 

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5 Tibetans

 

The Five Tibetan Rites is a yoga routine based on a ritual of

exercises discovered in the early 1900s by a British army colonel,

Colonel Bradford, who was living in a Himalayan monastery.

They are practiced around the world and are said to prevent aging.

 

In 1939, Peter Kelder published The Original Five Tibetan Rites of

Rejuvenation, which helped spread the rites in the western world.

Mr. Kelder has since updated the book The Eye of Revelation -

The Original Five Rites of Rejuvenation, Borderland Sciences Research

Foundation, 1989, ISBN 0-945685-04-1.

 

The rites are comprised of five different movements (with a sixth

added for good measure), with each movement performed up to 21 times

(Tibetans believe 21is a perfect, mystical number).

 

It is best to start with 3 repetitions of each exercise and

gradually increase the repetitions. The entire routine can be

completed in less than 10 minutes.

 

For thousands of years, medical practitioners have maintained that the

body has seven principal energy centers which correspond to

the seven endocrine glands, also known as chakras. Chakras are

essentially energies within spinning vortexes. As a vortex is

increased, the life force becomes stronger and more directed.

 

Recent medical research has uncovered convincing evidence that

the aging process is hormone-regulated. The five ancient Tibetan rites

are said to normalize hormonal imbalances in the body,

thereby holding the key to lasting youth, health, and vitality.

 

The rites stimulate the energy system in the body, wake up the

chakras, and get energy moving from your core outward to your

extremities. The theory behind the rites is that your kundalini

(spiritual energy) is stored and lies at the base of your spine

and that these rites access that energy in a very efficient,

fast, and user-friendly way.

 

An important part of the Tibetan exercises is a conscious

synchronization of breathing while performing physical activity.

Before beginning the exercises, practice the basic 4 -stage

breathing technique (inhale, hold, exhale, hold empty lungs).

 

No exercise should be so intense that it makes you feel exhausted.

For example, if you are " loosing your breath " , it indicates that

your body is in an anaerobic (low oxygen) condition and that you

should slow down. If you can not talk normally after performing an

exercise, you should slow down. When performing the exercises, the

main emphasis should be on breath synchronization and fluency,

rather than on speed and number of repetitions.

 

Some call these rites isometric exercises. Although they are helpful

in stretching muscles and joints and improving muscle tone, this is

not their primary purpose. A slow vortex causes that part of the

body to deteriorate, while a faster one cause nervousness, anxiety,

and exhaustion. Abnormal vortexes produces abnormal health,

deterioration, and old age. The rites normalize the speed of the

spinning vortexes by keeping them spinning at the same rate and

working in harmony.

 

Here are the Five Tibetan Rites and how they work on the body

(remember to breathe deeply using the diaphragm during the movements).

 

Rite 1

 

The first rite is the practice of spinning, which effects the

emotional body by speeding up the vortexes. Children naturally

spin while playing. As one spins clockwise, Lamas say that negative

residues are flung out of the body and the bridge is strengthened

between the left and right hemispheres. Spinning stimulates the body's

energy system and wakes up the chakras.

 

Rite 1

Spinning.

 

Extend your arms out to the sides and spin (in a clockwise

direction). Go as fast as you can without losing control

(slow down or stop if you get dizzy). Try to do 21 revolutions.

Follow your right arm so that you spin around to your right. As you

begin to spin, focus your vision on a single point straight ahead

and continue holding your vision on that point as long as possible.

Eventually you have to let it leave your field of vision as your

head spins with the body. As this occurs, turn your head around

quickly and refocus on your reference point as soon as

possible. Using a reference point helps prevent dizziness. Stop

spinning as soon as you feel slightly dizzy. Lie on the floor and

breathe deeply before you begin the next rite. Raise your hands

above your head to stretch the back.

 

In India, the Maulawiyah, or whirling dervishes, spin unceasingly

in a religious frenzy. They always spin clockwise. The older dervishes

are virile, strong, and robust, far more so than most men of their

age. Lamas say that this excessive spinning may be detrimental as it

over-stimulates some of the vortexes, which

first accelerates the flow of energy but then blocks it. This building

up and tearing down action causes the dervishes to experience a kind

of " psychic rush, " which they mistake for

something spiritual.Lamas do not carry the whirling to an excess.

While the whirling dervishes may spin hundreds of times, the Lamas

only do it 21 times, just enough to stimulate the vortexes into action.

 

Rite 2

 

Rite two is similar to Western abdominal exercises. By raising the

head to the chest, you create an extra stimulus to the solar plexus

chakra and the conception vessel moving through the center of the

truck. Use a thick rug or pad to protect your back as you lie on the

floor. Lamas perform the rites on what Westerners call a prayer rug,

which is about two feet wide and six feet long. The rug is fairly

thick and is made of wool and a natural fiber. It is used solely to

insulate the body from the cold floor, but since religious

significance is attached to everything the Lamas do, it is called a

" prayer rug. "

 

Leg Raises.

 

First lie flat on the floor, face up. Fully extended your arms

along your sides, and place the palms of your hands against the floor,

keeping the fingers close together. Then, raise your head

off the floor, tucking the chin against the chest. As you do this,

lift your legs, knees straight, into a vertical position. If possible,

let the legs extend back over the body, toward

the head; but do not let the knees bend. Then slowly lower both the

head and the legs, knees straight, to the floor. Allow all the muscles

to relax, continue breathing in the same rhythm. Breathe in deeply as

you lift your legs and breathe out as you lower your legs.

Upon sitting up, stretch your legs out in front of you. Starting at

the thigh area, stroke down the outside of your legs with your hands

until you reach your feet. Grab your feet on the outside, pulling your

head as close to your straight knees as possible.

 

Rite 3

 

Rite three opens the solar plexus and heart. We begin life by drawing

energy in through the umbilical area. Lamas believe we continue the

habit of sucking into the solar plexus, which is the seat of the

emotional body, without being aware of what we are taking in. All

kinds of emotional energies enter in this way. Psychically, we attract

negative emotions that relate to those we ourselves are carrying.

Thus, fear or anger inside us acts as a magnet to people

who are carrying the same kind of energies. Contraction interferes

with the functioning of the solar plexus ganglion that relays messages

to the brain relevant to our sense of safety and stimulates the " fight

or flight " reflex. This rite provides an extension and a powerful

lifting of the entire trunk, which is the opposite of a defensive,

contractive stance. By performing this motion, you are reversing the

energy flow and raising the energy to the heart

area.

 

Camel.

 

This is a classic back bend. Kneel on the floor, knees under your

hips, toes flat, with the body erect. Place hands on back of legs just

under the buttocks. Tilt the head and neck forward, tucking the chin

against the chest. Then, tilt the head and neck backward, arching the

spine backward, and look upward. After arching, return

to the original position, and repeat 21 up to times. Inhale deeply

as you arch the spine, exhale as you return to an erect

position. This rite opens up the front of the body and spine.

Establish a rhythmic breathing pattern. Breathe in deeply as you

arch the spine. Breathe out as you return to an erect position.

When you are finished with this series of motions, extend your arms

at shoulder level straight out in front of you and lean back without

arching your back. You will feel this stretching the facia lata at the

outer thighs.

 

Rite 4

 

This rite causes a pleasant stimulation throughout the sacral area

which stirs the meridians and the energies going to and from the groin

and down the legs. This rite strengthens and tones the legs

and glutes.

 

Tabletop.

 

Sit on floor with your legs extended, body erect, feet flexed and

about 12 inches apart, palms flat on floor next to your hips,

fingers pointed toward your feet. Tuck the chin forward against the

chest. Now, tilt the head backward as far as it will go. At the same

time, bend your knees and push up to a " tabletop " position, arms

straight. Let your head fall back gently. The trunk of the body will

be in a straight line with the upper legs, horizontal to the

floor. Then, tense every muscle in the body. Finally, relax your

muscles as you return to the original sitting position. Rest before

repeating the procedure. Breathe in as you raise up, hold your breath

as you tense the muscles, breathe out completely as you come down.

Continue breathing in the same rhythm as long as you rest between

repetitions.

 

Rite 5

 

Rite five brings an immediate change in the energy currents of the

body. It makes one feel strong and invigorated and brings a happy glow

to the face. This is the most powerful rite in terms of speeding up

the chakric vortexes.

 

Up Dog and Down Dog.

 

Begin on all fours, toes flexed, palms on floor, weight distributed

evenly among your knees, your palms, and the balls of your feet.

Throughout this rite, your hands and feet should be kept straight.

Start with your arms perpendicular to the floor, and the spine arched

downward, so that the body is in a sagging position. Slowly lift your

buttocks toward the sky, with a flat back, lowering your head, so your

body makes an inverted " V. " Tuck your chin to your chest. Pause, then

lower your buttocks while pressing your palms into the floor, until

your legs are in a plank position (parallel to the ground), moving

your chest out and shoulders back. Inhale on your way up; exhale on

your way down. Repeat, up to 21 times. In the rite, your body is

moving in concert, moving energy up the spine. Follow the deep

breathing pattern used in the previous rites. Breathe in

deeply as you raise the body, breathe out fully as you lower it.

[Guest guest]

I have a couple of questions:Rite #1: I thought we were supposed to keep focused on our hand and let our vision blur, not focus on a single point and whip the head like a dancer?Rite #2 & #5: From a yoga perspective, the recommended breathing feels completely wrong to me. Isn't it usually better to breath in on expanding and out on a contracting motion? These instructions state the reverse.-alicenovalees <dhyana

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5 Tibetans

Rite 1

Spinning. As you

begin to spin, focus your vision on a single point straight ahead

and continue holding your vision on that point as long as possible.

Eventually you have to let it leave your field of vision as your

head spins with the body. As this occurs, turn your head around

quickly and refocus on your reference point as soon as

possible.

 

Rite 2

Leg Raises.

Breathe in deeply as

you lift your legs and breathe out as you lower your legs.

Rite 5

Up Dog and Down Dog.

 

Breathe in

deeply as you raise the body, breathe out fully as you lower it.