 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Yogic Morning Daily Cleansing Routine
to aid in purifying the body before beginning your daily
Sadhana - which is for purifying the mind and spirit.
As one approaches the divine, the body should be cleaned,
dressed in fresh clothes, and a sacred space provided for your
spiritual practice and meditation.
Purity of body helps to bring purity in thoughts, action,
and deeds...
Make all your actions of the day
in the service of the Lord!
| |
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
to stretch out the body giving time for all those tight muscles to awake along with your mind. Take a few
deep breaths also to help awaken the lungs and brings oxygen to the blood. Open your eyes slowly to
allow them to adjust to the light.
Now your ready to get out of bed, do this by rolling over on your side a slowly lifting yourself up with the
help of your arms and elbows. At any time during rising from a prone position, never allow your spine to
take all the weight of your body or strain.
This simple practice will help to keep your spine in better shape!
Next head to the bathroom to start your morning cleansing routine...
even if this is not your normal routine to go first thing in the morning, your habit will change as time goes by.
This aids in removing waste to allow kundalini energy to flow up the spine, from the first chakra, as you are in
meditation and asanas. If there is waste in your bowels, the energy will have a harder time moving upwards.
Also, check the condition of your stool and urine. Your stool should float, which means that your body has
completely processed the nutrients from the food that you ate the day before. If your stool sinks or stinks
excessively, then something is wrong, either with your diet (to much processed food or meat) or with your
digestive system. You can check on the health of your kidneys by the colour of your urine. It should be a
golden colour or lighter.
yoga recipe for oral hygiene: take two parts powered Potassium Alum mixed with one part salt and use like a
tooth powder to brush your teeth and more important your tongue! You can obtain potassium alum and salt
mixture from our store, click here. Why follow this practice?
During the night our mouths turn into an incubator for a host of different bacteria and germs. If you do not
cleanse the tongue and mouth first thing upon waking you will swallow many germs and bacteria when you take
your first drink of water. Which is like introducing poison into your body, so please help to keep yourself
disease free by following this simple solution. Make sure to reach all the way back and clean the tongue until
you gag and cough up the brown mucus that is hidden back there. These germs and bacteria not only form
on the tongue but on two little glands at the back of the throat that need to be cleaned of mucus, too. Making
yourself gaga has the added benefit of causing the eyes to water, which in turn, helps to flush and cleanse
them out. You may follow this brushing your teeth with your favorite toothpaste as the alum is a little bitter, but
very naturalizing.
To do this you will have to acquire a special ceramic pot, called a Neti pot. The neti pot is filled with lukewarm
water and about a teaspoon of organic sea salt is added and mixed thoroughly. The neti pot is brought up to
one nostril, closing it off, and the head is tilted to the side to allow the saltwater solution to pour from the
closed nostril through the opposite one. Air may also be drawn through the open nostril and expelled through
the mouth.
This aids in removing mucus and build up from the sinus and nostrils and helps to keep the nasal area clear
for doing pramayama and breath work and is an essential prerequisite for meditation, too. It is very beneficial
in helping to relive sinus infections and other conditions in the upper respiratory areas.
Nasal cleansing exerts a profound physiological effect on the body and mind. On the physical level, irrigation
of the nasal mucosa removes accumulated mucus from the nostrils, associated passages, and sinuses. This
allows air and breath to flow unobstructed through the subtle channels, the Ida and pingala. The regular
practice of neti maintains healthy secretory drainage mechanisms of the entire ear, nose, and throat areas.
The physical effects are the reduction of colds, hay fever, tonsillitis, and sinus infections. The subtle effects
are the increased ability to preform breathing exercises or pramayama and helping to maintain balance
between the right and left nostrils. Your breathing changes between the right and left nostrils ever two and a
half hours, so keeping the nasal passages clean and clear helps to maintain this balance and flow. Overall it
helps to induce a state of harmony and balance throughout the entire central nervous system, Ida and pingala
channels, and the systems governing respiratory, circulatory, digestive, and excretory functions.
Therefore, yogis begin their practice of yoga by doing Jala Neti, which ensures the desired condition for
regulating breath flow. Jala neti is also responsible for the stimulation of the pituitary gland in the brain, which
is of tremendous significance in yoga.
This stimulation awakens the energy center behind the forehead called the Ajna Chakra.
This energy center must be sufficiently stimulated for higher states of meditation.
new to a daily yoga practice find the most difficult -
the COLD SHOWER!
This is one step that is mind over ego for sure and one of the best
things that can be done for overall health. Before you step into the
shower, you'll first want to oil your body with a little almond oil. You
may also add essential oils of your choice to the almond oil to bring
about a desired effect. This is also the time to preform a daily
massage especially if your Dosha type recommends it.
If you have slow circulation, a self massage in the morning will aid in simulating the blood and muscles and
helps to move lymph through the body. The almond oil helps to nourish the body through the skin as almonds
contains many minerals which will be absorbed through the skin.
The oil also provides a layer of protection from the cold water, GO FOR IT!The effect and benefits of the cold
shower are many. First and foremost is the effects of hydrotherapy, which some people pay hundreds of
dollars for treatments, which you can do daily at home. As the cold water hits your skin the blood that has
been dormant all night now rushes to the surface to protect and warm the skin. This improves your circulation
on the spot and opens all the small capillaries that can become blocked by sluggish blood movement. The
cold yoga shower also strengthens your nervous system and stimulates the lymphatic system. Helping to
move the lymph out of the body.
Start by slowly moving into the water stream by starting with one arm then the other, then one leg and the
other. As the water hits your body rub yourself to stimulate the skin and nerves. Now bring the rest of the
body into the stream of cold water letting the water hit the chest and turn around finish off with the back. You'll
want to go in and out of the water 3 to 4 times, each time staying under the stream, until the water does not
feel cold any longer. Make sure to get under the arms, major nerve and lymphatic centers, and inner thighs,
and also the bottom of your feet. Women, make sure to massage your breast. It may seem strange but taking
a cold shower will warm your body up and make your skin glow! Taking a cold shower not only promotes good
circulation, healthy skin and internal organs it aids in building a strong,
protective electro-magnetic field.
You now have your first victory of the day!
Now dry yourself off by briskly rubbing your skin until it is red and glowing; put on loose clean exercise clothes,
and you are ready to do your morning Sadhana.
Notes on cold showers:
For women there are a few exceptions to the rules...
No cold showers during your monthly moon cycle and no cold showers after the 7th month of pregnancy.
For men, one should limit the amount of cold water to the sexual organs by either wearing cotton shorts, swim
trunks, or covering the area with a free hand.
Also, do not put the crown of the head under the cold water or expose the inner thighs to long direct spray.
If you like taking hot showers, that's fine, however do this at night so that the relaxing effects may be felt and
allow you to sleep more soundly. Most people wish it energize themselves in the morning to ready themselves
for the day, work, etc. Taking a hot shower in the morning will only relax you, make you tired, and wishing for
more coffee. Causing effects we wish to avoid.
cleansed, you are
awake and full of
energy it is time to sit
and start your
Sadhana! With
practice you will find
this routine very
helpful to the
enhancement of your
spiritual growth and
ability to meditate.
Always cleanse the
body first and then
the mind and last
the spirit.
Sat Nam!
To contact the webmaster please email - webmaster@anahatabalance.com
