YOGA – BENEFITS OF A ONE ON ONE PERSONALIZED YOGA PRACTICE
By Samita Rathor
Yoga is best learnt under personal guidance.

The word Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root YUJ-Yujyate Anena- that literally means to unite-join in harmony.
“Yoga, really, is a practical science to help understand one’s true self. Today it is largely perceived as a mainstream therapy which is only a downstream effect of the main purpose of being a spiritual pursuit. One to one is the real approach to be adopted in teaching yoga or for that matter any subject of this nature. While it is difficult to pursue, it removes the risk attended with the group class, where there is every possibility for injury and negative results at both physical and mental level”, says S Sridharan, Managing Trustee of the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram, Chennai.

Yoga focuses on disciplines of the mind and the body, which helps the individual to nurture and cultivate a healthy and meaningful life style – an existence of rectitude and purpose, and keep him on the path of moral advancement.

What primarily enthralled me when I got initiated into a tailor made special Yogic practice was the ‘stillness of the mind’ I experienced. The whole idea that yoga is a personal and individualistic practice suited me to a T. I was never a believer of the ‘one size fit all’ syndrome’, until I experienced the benefits of it. Without debate and with a lot of emphasis one should know that Yoga is a one on one practice ‘if taken seriously and with commitment’. Our body, breath, mind, heart as well as our very own experience of the world provides the raw working material for our own practice and for each one of us these are different. It's that personal. No matter how deep our similarities, we are unique in every level of our being. Each Individual is only one of its kind and in a state of continuous change throughout life on earth. Thus Yoga practice must be adapted to the individual and not the individual to Yoga. Can two people have exactly the same body structure, same likes/dislikes, same eating habits and same ailments? Certainly not! Then how can we teach them the same course? The practice of Yoga to suit the needs of individuals is extremely important in this day and age. One should never push a student to do something he or she was unable to do.
A Yogic practice has to be personalized according to the person's needs. If it does not help the mind or is forced beyond an individual’s ability, it is not Yoga.

At the onset, we must be aware of what we this astonishing individual Yoga practice can achieve.
Yoga has asanas/postures that take action on the different joints of the body including those that are never really visible in the x-ray vision, let alone exercised. This in turn increases flexibility.
Yoga is perhaps the only form of activity which massages all the internal glands and organs of the body in a thorough manner, including those – such as the prostate - that hardly get externally stimulated during our entire lifetime. Yoga acts in a wholesome manner on the various body parts. This stimulation and massage of the organs in turn benefits us by keeping away disease and providing a forewarning at the first possible instance of a likely onset of disease or disorder.
Increasing lubrication of the joints, ligaments and tendons takes place– likewise, the well-researched yoga positions exercise the different tendons and ligaments of the body. Surprisingly it has been found that the body which may have been quite rigid starts experiencing a remarkable flexibility in even those parts which have not been consciously work upon. It is here that the remarkable research behind yoga positions proves its spirit. Seemingly unrelated “non strenuous” yoga positions act upon certain parts of the body in an interrelated manner. When done together, they work in harmony to create a situation where flexibility is attained relatively easily.
By gently stretching muscles and joints as well as massaging the various organs, yoga ensures the optimum blood supply to various parts of the body, detoxifying it. This helps in the flushing out of toxins from every nook and cranny as well as providing nourishment up to the last point. This leads to benefits such as delayed ageing, energy and a remarkable zest for life.
Muscles that have become flaccid, weak or sluggish are stirred frequently to shed excess flab and limpness.
But these enormous physical benefits are just a “spin-off” of this powerful individual practice. What yoga does is bring into line the mind with the body and these results in real levels of benefits. It is fairly obvious in today’s world that the determination of the mind has enabled a person to accomplish unexpected physical and mental feats, which proves ahead of doubt the mind and body connection.
I enjoyed the increased flexibility and freedom from my knee pain that I noticed soon after beginning my personalized and one on one practice, but most of all it was the sense of being able to manage my thoughts. The peace was like a magnet to commit to Yoga instantly. I was aware that asana practice was embedded in a larger philosophy but I chose not to learn about it until much later. I was told that one on one practice is the key word. The payback I felt then from my personalized regime of Yoga was enough. Even though I am a long way from attaining complete union with myself, I am glad I have made a beginning...you could do the same! Tiny drops of water make an ocean. Yoga is like an ocean and the few minutes spend everyday in practice are like drops of water, which come together forming a pool of peace. From a single drop to a pool of water, the drop grows larger and larger by daily perseverance and practice, into a big ocean of calm and still. But remember that every individual drop of water is different and so are we! That's what a one to one Yoga pathway means. Look for a teacher who challenges you but does not push, who offers modifications, and who works one-on-one with students.

Yoga is much larger, encompassing all areas of our lives. Asanas are synonymous to Yoga in our modern society but they only form a part of Yogic practice. A lot of people feel yoga is something magical, physical exercise, acrobatics, living in a cave, therapeutics and so on. It is a way of life and experientially different from person to person. Once a friend of mine who always slept 3 to 4 hours after midnight came and told me-"Oh I heard you are into Yoga! So am I! I go thrice a week and learn lot of asanas from this person who can bend in any direction". Yoga is not a fad. Even in the circus we see the rubber man attempting all kinds of amazing body gymnastic postures. That is not Yoga. "Yoga is the settling of the mind into calm." Calm resides in awareness. The practice of yoga in all its aspects allows us to reconnect with and exist in awareness, through svadhyaya or self-study.
An experiential and personalized Yogic practice can help you cultivate body, mind, and spiritual awareness.

"Yoga serves the individual, and does so through inviting transformation rather than by giving information." T.K.V. Desikachar

Email samitarathor@gmail.com