PROPER RELAXATION

1 - PHYSICAL RELAXATION

We know that every action is the result of thought. Thoughts take form in action, the body reaching to the thought. Just as the mind may send a messeage to the muscels ordering them to contract, the mind may also send another message to bring the relaxation to the tired muscles.

Physical relaxation first begins with the toes and then moves upward. The autosuggestion pases through the muscles and reaches the eyes and ears at the top. Then, slowly, messages are sent to the kidneys, liver and the other internal organs. This relaxation position is known as Savasana, or the Corpse Pose. For further reading, please see chapter 6 of the Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnudevananda.

2 - MENTAL RELAXATION

When experiencing mental tension, it is advisable to breathe slowly and rhythmically for a few minutes. Soon the mind will become calm. You may experience a kind of floating sensation.

3 - SPIRITUAL RELAXATION

However one may try to relax the mind, all tensions and worries cannot be completely removed until one reaches spiritual relaxation.

As long as a person identifies with the body and the mind, there will be worries, sorrows, anxieties, fear and anger. These emotions, in turn bring tension. Yogis know that unless a person can withdraw from the body/mind idea and separate himself from the ego-consciousness, there is no way of obtaining complete relaxation.

The yogi identifies himself with the all pervading, all-powerful, all-peaceful and joyful self, or pure consciousness within. He knows that the source of all power, knowledge, peace and strength is in the self, not in the body. We tune to this by asserting the real nature, that is "I am that pure consciousness or self". This identification with the self completes the process of relaxation.