Crippled Yogi

Meditationtime Forum Post

Date:  Posted 5 years before Mar 08, 2017

MiBeloved 5 years ago

In spite of the superficial surgery and the limitations that has put on my exercise session, I was able to get some air infused into the subtle body. One thing is that as this body gets older the time may come when the asana postures cannot be done by it. Who knows, this body might be destined for a crippled state anyway.

As I was doing mostly the breathing infusement only, I began to observe that some persons who are either disinclined from exercising the body or who just cannot do it due to pain in the joints, can just do the breathing exercises. That would rely on a willingness to exercise the diaphragm which is involved in breathing. One would also have to be willing to give the lungs a good working over.

Doing the asana postures are an added benefit for getting the infused energy to spread throughout the physical and subtle bodies, but if one cannot do the asanas, one would derive a benefit by just doing the breathing exercises.

In the West we are generally disinclined from doing the rapid breathing. We mainly want to do exercises which tone the muscles. We breathe just enough to subsidize the oxygen which is used up in muscular exhaustion.

To change this approach and to infuse the physical and subtle bodies would take some mental adjustment. But if one is willing, and if one can push the self, one can certainly do it.

neil 5 years ago

The mental adjustment you speak of Michael is the realization that we are not a body.  Being attached to the body is suffering.  Being attached to the mind is also suffering. It is not "the time may come" but rather "the time will come" when asanas cannot be done.  The fear of death is the cause of 99.999 % of all suffering.  Once we understand that we are more than a clay pot we can get on with living without fear.  I'm not there yet but I'm working on it.