Yoga Asano Ki Prasangikta Vishishtta

Here is a comprehensive summary in English of the provided Jain text from "Yoga Asano ki Prasangikta Vishishtta" by Shantilal Surana:

The text, "Yoga Asano ki Prasangikta Vishishtta" (The Relevance and Uniqueness of Yoga Asanas) by Shantilal Surana, emphasizes the profound benefits of yoga asanas and pranayama for human well-being in today's polluted and stressful world. It presents yoga as a scientific, natural, simple, accessible, and life-giving consciousness that can lead to freedom from stress and promote the easy movement of breath and strength in every organ.

The book begins by outlining the ten main systems of the human body: skeletal, joint, muscular, circulatory (heart, arteries, veins), respiratory (nose, windpipe, lungs), digestive (mouth, teeth, stomach, intestines, pancreas, liver), urinary (kidneys, bladder), nervous (brain, nerves, nerve fibers), sensory organs (ears, eyes, nose, tongue, skin), and reproductive systems.

To maintain these systems, the author suggests:

1. Practicing yoga asanas and pranayama for physical and mental health, along with a sattvic diet, simple living, and regular sleep patterns.
2. Promoting personal health and inspiring others to do the same.
3. Regularly practicing yoga not just for personal learning but also to teach others.

The text then delves into the eight limbs of yoga (Ashtanga Yoga) for purifying the body, mind, and life force: Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi.

• Yama (restraints) are listed as Ahimsa (non-violence), Satya (truthfulness), Asteya (non-stealing), Brahmacharya (celibacy/continence), and Aparigraha (non-possessiveness).
• Niyama (observances) include Shaucha (purity), Santosha (contentment), Tapas (austerity), Swadhyaya (self-study), and Ishvarapranidhana (devotion to the Supreme Soul).
• Asana is defined as maintaining a stable and comfortable posture and is divided into two categories:
  • For meditation (e.g., Padmasana, Siddhasana, Swastikasana).
  • For health and well-being (e.g., Shirshasana, Sarvangasana, Bhujangasana, Chakrasana, Vajrasana). These asanas enhance physical strength, youthfulness, internal organ function, and glandular activity.
• Pranayama is the control of the natural flow of life force (prana), i.e., regulating breath.
• Pratyahara is the withdrawal of the senses from external objects towards introspection.
• Dharana is fixing the mind on a particular external or subtle object.
• Dhyana is the continuous, unwavering flow of attention on the object of Dharana, excluding distracting thoughts.
• Samadhi is the complete concentration of the mind, free from distractions.

The book then highlights the unique advantages of yoga asanas over other forms of exercise:

1. Longevity and Detoxification: Unlike other exercises that primarily affect muscles and may not sustain health long-term, yoga asanas promote longevity, effortless well-being, and an exceptional ability to expel toxins, leading to more cell regeneration and less breakdown.
2. Accessibility: Yoga asanas require minimal space, equipment, or partners, and can be practiced alone on a mat or even a simple sheet in a confined space.
3. Mental and Sensory Benefits: While other exercises have less impact on the mind and senses, yoga asanas enhance mental strength and the ability to control the senses.
4. Dietary Needs: Other exercises necessitate a more nutritious and expensive diet, whereas yoga asanas are sufficient with a simple and moderate diet.
5. Immunity and Toxin Removal: Yoga asanas develop the body's disease-fighting power and facilitate the prompt removal of foreign substances.
6. Flexibility and Youthfulness: Yoga asanas create suppleness and improve blood circulation, maintaining a youthful appearance even in old age. Other exercises can lead to muscle stiffness and premature aging.
7. Blood Vessel and Cell Cleansing: Yoga asanas easily cleanse blood vessels and cells, a benefit not achieved by other exercises that can accelerate heart rate, potentially hindering complete blood purification.
8. Lung Capacity and Blood Purification: The lungs purify blood. Yoga and pranayama increase lung capacity, allowing for deeper inhalation of vital air and facilitating blood purification. Fast breathing in other exercises may prevent air from reaching the furthest parts of the lungs, leading to increased disorders and diseases.
9. Digestive System Function: Only yoga asanas can ensure the smooth functioning of digestive organs, whereas other exercises can disrupt digestion.
10. Spinal Health and Mental Balance: The spine is crucial for youthfulness, health, longevity, and mental balance. Yoga asanas are the key to maintaining spinal flexibility.
11. Energy Conservation: Other exercises lead to fatigue and increased energy expenditure, whereas yoga asanas conserve energy and are performed slowly and calmly, being non-violent and peaceful activities.
12. Holistic Development: Yoga asanas foster character development, mental and moral strength, mental stability, intellectual growth, and an increase in sattvic qualities (purity and goodness).

The text concludes by emphasizing that yoga asanas contribute to the development of thyroid and parathyroid glands, crucial for childhood development, preventing premature hair loss, maintaining cheerfulness, and keeping other glands active. It asserts that the yoga method is the most effective for physical, mental, intellectual, and spiritual development, considering other methods incomplete or flawed. In the current materialistic and polluted era, yoga asanas and pranayama are presented as the natural, simple, and accessible means to live healthily, happily, and with self-respect. The author states that good health is more valuable than a thousand treasures and is urgently needed by all of humanity. The ultimate goal is to be healthy, gain moral and spiritual strength, and naturally progress towards immortality, helping others do the same.