Welcome and thank you for being here.
While many of us think of yoga as a physical exercise that we do on a mat,
Yoga is also a way of living a way of training the mind to become mentally stronger and mentally freer so today I Will like to share six ancient yogic practices that can help you become mentally stronger and freer So let's begin with the first yogic practice,
Ahimsa.
It means non-violence.
And yoga asks us to begin with non-violence towards ourselves.
Now for a moment,
Imagine your child is standing at the door of your home.
He's about to leave for an important exam in school and he is nervous.
So would you tell him phrases like,
Oh,
You were just not prepared.
You didn't do enough.
You're definitely going to fail this exam.
I hope you don't say these things.
And I'm sure a lot of parents will encourage their child,
Remind the child that he is prepared well.
It will all go smoothly.
Now when it comes to you,
You the adult,
A lot of times,
You know,
When we're trying something new,
We're trying to overcome our self-doubts,
Insecurities,
Take calculated risks.
We speak to ourselves in a way that is very harsh,
Very violent.
So the practice of ahimsa is taking a step to speak to yourself in a much more gentle fashion.
Speak to yourself the way you would speak to someone you deeply care about.
And right now,
You can Make an attempt to change that dialogue in your head from harsh to kinda.
So the next time your inner critic is buzzing,
Remind yourself of Ahimsa.
The second yogic practice I want to share with you is called Pratyahara which means turning inwards.
From the time you wake up in the morning,
I know there are too many things pulling your attention.
Phone notifications.
Meetings,
Opinions of other people,
External noise.
Pratyahara is a practice where you can turn inward.
Be it for 30 seconds every morning.
Just close your eyes.
And notice your breath,
Notice your body,
And ask yourself,
How are you feeling?
That's it.
How are you feeling?
Check in with yourself for 30 seconds as you wake up.
So if you are feeling any kind of anxiety,
Overwhelm.
Stress,
Tiredness,
You will start recognizing it and only once you recognize it,
You can take action to overcome it,
Right?
The third yogic practice is Santosha,
Which means contentment.
A kind of learning to appreciate what's already there with you while you work on all your goals.
So probably it was the cup of coffee you enjoyed this morning.
You made your bed?
Someone smiled at you or maybe you smiled at someone these small things and your ability to notice them is Santoshra The moment you notice these,
You feel extremely fulfilled even while you are in the pursuit of your other goals.
So right now,
From the time you woke up today,
Are there any things that brought you fulfillment?
Try to notice them.
The next yogic practice is Sthira Sukham,
Which means strength and ease and the wisdom to know which one is needed.
So imagine you're learning the piano.
Sometimes you will need more strength in a sense of more practice,
More knowledge,
More technique.
And sometimes you need more ease.
For instance,
You don't have to press every key so hard.
And life works the same way.
Stay at work.
The company had to announce a budget cut and your project got cancelled even though you had put in a lot of effort on that project and you are beating yourself up.
But it's beyond your control.
So this is where ease helps.
You will have to learn to ease out.
And sometimes at work,
You will need to upskill your knowledge,
Your expertise in your field.
And this is where strength helps.
And you need to.
A combination of both in life.
Sthira Sukham.
The next practice is.
.
.
Drishti which is a focal point.
Whenever you do yogic breathing.
Exercises the physical ones often you choose a focal point right a place to rest your attention In life too,
You need to have drishti everyday.
That thing that deserves your full focus.
So if you have been procrastinating something that really needs to be done,
You have to give rise to your Drishti,
Your focus.
Because only then you can give attention to it and it can get done.
And the last yogic practice,
Which is so important and a quality we often leave behind as adults,
Which is playfulness.
A lot of the Indian scriptures are full of play,
Humor,
Teasing.
And yes,
Growth doesn't always have to feel so serious.
It's okay to smile.
Come on,
Smile right now.
It's okay to just dance and move.
Because then you start approaching your goals,
Your challenges,
With a little more curiosity.
With a little more experimentation and with a little more play.
And that's when solutions start coming up because you're curious.
Your mind starts feeling lighter.
Yes so let's take one nice breath in exhale and recap the six yogic practices for our mind.
That is kindness towards ourself,
Bringing in kindness in our inner dialogue,
Turning inward every morning,
Be it for 30 seconds,
Practicing contentment and appreciation with everything that is orderly with you.
Using strength and ease both in life's challenges.
Developing focus,
Drishti.
Playfulness.
These do not require a physical yoga mat but a kind of awareness practice so they become a part of your mindset.
So pick at least one practice that you feel you need the most in the phase of life you are in.
Try it every day and see what changes.
So loads of blessings,
Happy yoga day,
And I will meet you very soon.
