Yoga Health Secrets

Yoga for asthma, bronchitis, and hay fever

And now for something more difficult but equally beneficial. This is another asana with an animal name, called MATSY-ASANA or the FISH POSTURE. In this exercise the chest is allowed to expand fully during deep breathing, and it also removes stiffness of the neck and shoulders and so is a useful exercise with which to follow the Shoulderstand described in chapter four. It also strengthens the thyroid and parathyroid glands and tones up the circulation of the blood. If you suffer from excessive cold in the winter this is a good exercise to warm yourself. There are three variations of THE FISH POSTURE and I will start with the easiest for all beginners.

Variation 1. Lie flat on your back with your legs outstretched and feet together. With the help of your elbows raise your chest and bend your head as far back as you can until the crown is touching the floor. Try to hold this position for thirty seconds, and then very slowly lower your body to the floor. Relax for a few moments before proceeding to:

Variation 2. A little more difficult, this one. Sit down in the Lotus Pose, and with the help of your elbows bend your body backwards very slowly. Bend your head back as far as you possibly can until the crown is resting on the floor. Grasp your toes with your fingers and arch your spine as fully as you possibly can. Remain thus for up to thirty seconds and then relax. (See Fig. 32, page 95.)

Variation 3. Proceed as above but instead of grasping your toes with your fingers place your hands behind your head with your arms crossed or else with your fingers laced together and placed just behind your neck.

If you are still having difficulty with the Lotus Pose, and I know that many of you will take quite some time to master it as it is very difficult for the average Westerner, then perform the easiest of the variations of this posture until you can go a stage farther. In all three of the variations practise the Yoga Complete Breath and it is a good place here to remind you that this Complete Breath should be performed slowly and fully. There should be no rushing over it. It is far better to take two or three really deep breaths than half a dozen shallow ones. All you hurried business people take note! The Yoga Complete Breath while performed when the body is in the Fish Posture helps to remove the spasm from the bronchial tubes and also helps to relieve asthma.

As with many of the Yoga asanas, this posture has a variation for advanced students only. I include it here for the sake of interest and in case there may be some readers adventurous enough to attempt it.

Variation 4. Begin in the Lotus Pose once more but this time instead of levering yourself backwards on your elbows bend forward very slowly until your face is touching the floor. You will feel considerable pressure on your hip joints so please be careful not to strain yourself. Remain thus for a few seconds only and then straighten up immediately. When you can perform this variation with ease, and it can be done easily with patient practice, gradually extend the period when your face is touching the floor, and then try to practice the Yoga Complete Breath. After this variation lie fiat on your back and relax for a few minutes.

I will end this chapter with the joker of the pack so far as Yoga is concerned. Although a highly effective and useful exercise, it entails pulling a grotesque face, however, as Yoga is best done in solitude there should not be anyone around to take fright! Hatha Yoga being a complete science no part of the body has been overlooked, including the throat and tongue, and there is a unique exercise for this area known as SIMHASANA, the LION POSTURE.

Method. Kneel down on the floor, hands on your knees palms upwards, and then sit back on your heels. Very slowly inhale, and when you have completed your inhalation hold your breath for an instant and then exhale through the mouth with as much force as you can. At the end of your exhalation stick out your tongue as far as you possibly can to the point of gagging. At the same time tense every muscle in your body including your arms and fingers, pop your eyes and generally make yourself look like a gargoyle. The more gruesome the face the more benefit you will derive from this exercise. Retain this unaesthetic posture for as long as you comfortably can without inhaling and then relax and breathe naturally for a few seconds. Then repeat the LION POSTURE up to six times in every practice session and particularly if you suffer from any form of chronic condition of the throat or tongue. You will find that the practice of Simhasana will relieve a sore throat more quickly than the most powerful drugs or lozenges, as it supplies the throat and tongue with a richer supply of blood which is nature’s own cure. The LION POSTURE is beloved of singers and actors whose voices are part of their livelihood and I recommend it to anyone who has any public speaking to do.

Ideally all Yoga asanas should be performed in the open air in order to draw into the lungs the maximum amount of fresh air. However, not everyone is lucky enough to have a garden in which case you should always practise before an open window. In the case of exercises for asthma, bronchitis, and allied complaints mentioned in this chapter, this is a vital necessity.