Yogic ways for good eyesight

Yoga offers some yogic techniques which if practiced regularly can improve weak eyesight. If followed along with proper diet, results will be faster and better.

1. Netra Shakti Vikasak Kriyas

A. Blink the eyes quickly 10 times. Close and release. Do this at least 100 times in a day.

B. Sit in a comfortable position. Form your right hand into a fist with the thumb upright and in level with your eyes. Fix your gaze on the nail of the right thumb.
Slowly bring the hand towards your eyes then slowly move the hand away from you, maintaining the level and gaze as before. Repeat this three times.

C. Sit in a comfortable position. Light a candle at least 4 feet away from yourself and gaze at the candle. If your eyes water then close them and relax. After a few seconds begin gazing again. Do this at
least 3 times.

D. Rub the palms together till they become warm. Place the palms gently over your eyes, such that no light enters the eyes. Practice this for 1 to 3 minutes.

E. Take a wide mouthed bowl of clean, cold water. Tilt your head downward and put your open right eye in the water and rotate the eyeball. Repeat this with the left eye. Do this 5 times with each eye.

F. Without moving your head or the neck, move the eyeballs up and down. Repeat at least 50 times.

G. Keep your head and back straight. Rotate your eyeballs in a clockwise manner, 5 times; then similarly rotate them anti clock wise.

2. Asana:
Sarvangasana: Lie on your back and relax. Slowly raise legs, hips and trunk upwards in a continuous movement until vertical. Keep the knees straight. Keep the arms on the ground, bending the elbows, support the trunk with your hands. In this posture the chin is buried in the upper chest. Retain this position as long as comfortable. Then come down slowly. Relax. Do this only once.

Benefits: Blood supply increases to organs in the upper part of the body such as eyes, heart, face, thyroid, root of spinal nerves and brain.

Caution: Those suffering from high BP, heart ailments, cervical pain and slipped disc should refrain from doing this asana.

Logic of letting go

When we are children, and someone tells us to 'let go,' it is usually in reference to something material, and when we let go, we can either feel empty, as if we are being deprived of something, or we can feel full, knowing that we have allowed someone to have that something, and s/he must really need it.

As adults, letting go can still leave us feeling empty or full. Both feelings may occur simultaneously. Ultimately, letting go will allow us to feel free, unburdened, healed, happy, even joyous. I intend to address how we can reach these ultimate feelings. The concept of letting go is very complex. For the sake of this discussion, i will divide the various aspects of letting go into three categories: 1) physical, 2) psychological, and 3) spiritual.

When i discuss the physical realm, i am talking about anything tangible, whether it is our bodies or our environment. Our environment can often be cluttered, so purging of much of this stuff can be truly liberating. Our bodies may not please us, so we can choose to let go of extra weight. We can choose to let go of bad habits and addictions. We can choose to free ourselves of the indiscriminate materialism and consumerism that requires constantly acquiring more and more of anything.

Moving from the physical to the psychological, we move to the why of those items that we could let go of physically. For example, why do we have all of the stuff that needs to be purged? What has caused the rampant materialism that has allowed us to fill up our lives with objects and beings? I almost wrote 'inanimate,' but there are those who fill up their lives with pets and children and casual acquaintances rather than real relationships. All such acquisitional behaviour is symptomatic of a psychological need that longs to be filled, but which should be purged. The same is true of other unpleasant emotions, like anger, fear, jealousy/envy, even hate; when a psychological need exists, it causes these emotions to manifest in an attempt to satisfy that need. Guess what? The very same is true for any bad habits and addictions we want to let go of; while there may be a biochemical component to these, they also are indicative of some sort of need or self-perceived deficiency or pain that, in turn, is symptomatic of needing to spiritually let go.

Truthfully, one could argue that if one lets go and purges at the physical and psychological levels, spiritual level purges and progress will automatically follow. Instead of dealing with those two arguments, i am going to run to one common expression: Let Go; Let God. When we consider the spiritual level, by definition we are dealing with the Divine by whatever name we wish to call Him. Also, by definition, we are exiting the scientific arena that forms the foundation of most of my work, and moving into the realm of faith, which happens to form the foundation for the remainder of my work. Most spiritual advisors argue that happiness and joy are the natural state of our souls. Therefore, if these are not what we feel, what must be purged from the spiritual realm? Because every single major faith has reincarnation as one of its major tenets, and the purpose of reincarnation is for the spirit to achieve a higher state. Ridding ourselves of karma is the ultimate purge!

Now that we have seen the different levels of letting go and purging, how do we begin the process? Try beginning with just one small step in one aspect of your everyday life. Identify something that you don't need, and let go of it. Perhaps it will be your décor? Even though i embrace much of Mies van der Rohe's 'Less is More' philosophy, one does not have let go of an overall personal style that you might enjoy more in order to simplify and streamline your life. However, it may help to examine "Why" you have a particular décor, and whether it might merit letting go in order to have a more lifeenhancing physical environment. Mostly, this is about just getting rid of accumulated material items that aren't needed any more.

Think about the motivations you have for selecting a career, a hobby, a car, a house, even a spouse. Are those motivations from your own internal dreams and drive, or are there some external pressures? This is moving beyond the realm of everyday activity, and into the realm of special activity; these special events are most often psychological in nature.

Remember, though, that there are many ways to get an education, so temper all external pressures with your internal dream. Loosen the influence of external pressures, learn what your choices are, listen to your own internal dream, and then let go of what isn't part of that internal dream. Now that you have identified your internal dream, what is holding you back from achieving your greatness? Money? Fear? Inhibitions? Overwhelming anger? Frustration? Laziness? Whatever it is, you must start to let go of what is holding you back. For instance, i have a beautiful relative who is very intelligent and artistically talented; she once told me that her dream was to write children's books. When i asked her why she didn't 'just do it,' she said she was afraid of failing. I urged her to let go of her fear of failure, but that fear had its hooks in too deep.

Once you start letting go of what you don't need, and loving all, you will have fewer blocks in your spiritual Path! As you begin to 'Let go,' you automatically begin 'Letting In.' Both are processes, so please don't expect overnight success. Start small, and change will occur incrementally. Let go of the need for perfection and the physical, psychological and spiritual baggage that embodies. Let in the goal of self-improvement throughout your life. Let in Love. We are all works in progress. Make a pact with yourself to show just a little more love every day. Let in the Divine.
by Bret S Beall

Thank you for Not Smoking

A cigarette is many things to many people. For some, it's their cool quotient. For others, a relaxant. But for most, simply an addiction. What's constant is that smoking is injurious to health! On World No Tobacco Day (May 31), say sayonara to smoking ...

Journalist Shashank Mitra promises himself that come tomorrow, he'll quit smoking. But, as they say, tomorrow never comes. That wasn't the case with one-time chain-smoker Manish Bhatia. "I used to smoke at least 40 cigarettes a day. One day, my son came up to me and said I looked cool with a cigarette. That's all it took. I gave up," he says. It's been two years since, and Manish hasn't stolen any puffs. Smoking is an addiction—easy to get into, bloody tough to get out of. But help is at hand.

PATCH UP

A nicotine patch is the very first measure every quitter tries. It's like a small plaster strip that you paste on yourself. It releases nicotine into the body through the skin. Ananya Jha who took to the 'cancer stick' to fit in with her peer group tried one and it sure helped her patch up her habit. But experts say patches are of little help as they don't really cure the addiction or nicotine dependence.

MIND OVER MATTER

Most people will tell you to go cold turkey. Once you decide to quit, it's all about will power. But experts suggest that tapering off is better, as the chances of you reverting to it are then much lower You can opt for many behavioural therapies and medicines. While the former includes practises like not buying a full packet, not smoking a full cigarette and not giving in to peer pressure, the latter involves intake of medicines, which act on the neural pathway where the nicotine affects, thus curbing cravings. Happy quitting, and before we forget, thank you for not smoking!

WHY QUIT?

Because smoking is the maker of many maladies. Here's the list:
Lung cancer Damage to the mucous membrane, loss of taste, ulcers, poor oral hygiene and pyorrhea Coronary artery disease Atherosceloris (narrowing and thickening of the blood vessels) Buerger disease (a vascular condition where the arteries in your lower limbs get blocked, causing gangrene) Impotence (absence of blood supply to genital organs, rendering them dysfunctional!)

PUFF OR STUFF!

Myths and facts about smoking.. .

When you stop smoking, you tend to gain weight.

Fact: Absolutely! Because your craving for cigs increases and to curb it, you end up bingeing.

A morning smoke regulates your bowel movement.

Fact: True! Because the smoke that you inhale goes into your stomach and causes gastric colic reflux, which stimulates the colon. However, a healthier way is to take natural laxatives, drink lots of water and eat vegetables for roughage.

Smoking improves your mood.

Myth: Yup, it may give you a kick but it's quite short-lived and puts you at a higher risk of depression, hyperactivity as well as attention deficit disorder.

Smoking only a few cigarettes in a day is ok!

Myth: Every cigarette contains about 1 to 2 mg of nicotine, which reaches your brain within approx. 10 seconds of your inhaling. Immediately after that first puff, you get a rush of adrenaline that may increase your blood pressure, your heart rate and your breathing. So, even one ciggie is risky!

ABHIRUCHI CHAND