Yoga Fails the Elderly?

As the body ages, one may find that yoga asana postures are of little assistance with certain ailments, which are due to worn out parts in the vehicle called a human body. For one thing some postures which one could do in a youthful body easily, may not be performed in the elderly years, or may be done partially only.

However, there are inner functions of the body which will malfunction because after all is said and done about the magic of yoga, nature will take its course in the aging process. The kundalini lifeForce becomes more and more incapable to servicing an old body. A yogi, like everyone else, faces the fact that in time some organ(s) will irretrievably malfunction. This will cause death of the body. What will happen then? How will the practice committed so far, help the entity who was known as that body?

I noticed recently that at seventy-one years of this body, its bladder sphincter valves do not operate as efficiently as they did. When a mental effort is made to check the valves, they operate partially such that sometimes if the bladder is filled, the valves leak slightly. My assumption is that this will worsen as the body ages and the muscles which comprise the valve lose elasticity. Can postures fix this? Actually, it is a stupid question because to expect that at seventy plus years in a body, one can repair everything in it by doing postures or muscular contractions and flexes, is merely a way of avoiding the reality of the upcoming death of the body, when several functions in it will cease permanently, thereby causing the rest of the body to shut down entirely.

I noticed that the intestinal track, the colon and rectum operate their peristaltic movements more slowly, such that I must make a daily check to be sure that waste reaches the rectum and is evacuated. This is despite doing nauli stomach contractions twice per day. The sensitive triggers in the rectum are not as responsive as before. They do not give alerts as they use to. This increased my chore of checking to be sure that whatever reaches the upper rectum valve does not remain in the colon but it transported into the rectum and is evacuated promptly.

Once I noticed that the downward pressure applied with the rectum was insufficient for pushing gummy waste from the body, but then after making two years of effort, those muscles began to operate again. On some days, infrequently, I did a finger (of the left hand always) clean out of the rectum. I had to pair down the nail and dull it and also use an anti-biotic lubricant, and water.

If the rectum does not function properly, if in addition, there is constipation, dried stools or hardened matter, then that will affect the base chakra which will support the lower aspects of nature. The tamah guna influence will increase. The sleep vritti dulling feature of consciousness will assert itself more vehemently. Meditation will be in the stupor plane of consciousness.

Yes, there is concern about the elderly years and the practice of postures. Breath infusion is a great help in this matter but most modern yogis are not trained in it. Some have a mind not to do it.