Yoga for Spiritual Wellness

In the west, yoga is primarily used to aid Physical Wellness. While yoga is great for conditioning the body through muscle strengthening and stretching poses, it can also help increase emotional health you as you travel your Spiritual Wellness. Did you know that there is more to Yoga tha Downward-dog? Yoga is actually an 8-part system, with the physical practice only being one part. The physical poses help you learn discipline as well as breath/body awareness. A comprehensive yoga practice also includes regular meditation and spiritual seeking. Taking yoga practice into your everyday life using the spiritual principles involved can help bring a sense of peace, calm and balance to a life that might otherwise be lacking. Spiritual Wellness is about internal awareness, and yoga is a highly effective way to foster the type of consciousness that can create that sense of awareness. Yoga is an integral part of the Hindu religious tradition, but it can be used to enhance any spiritual practice; its for everyone, from Buddhists to Christians. Almost all religious and spiritual philosophies prescribe meditation as a way to find contact and even union with the divine, whichever divine entity one chooses to recognize. If you’re a Christian, meditation is meant to bring you closer to God. If you’re Hindu, meditation can help bring you closer to a variety of gods and the divine spirit within you. If you’re Buddhist, meditation can bring your awareness back to the spiritual principles of the eightfold path. Even if you don’t subscribe to one specific religious or spiritual philosophy, meditation can bring you a greater sense of self-awareness and inner peace. Other benefits of yoga meditation include stress relief and relaxation. The practice of the actual yoga poses also fit into a Spiritual Wellness plan. When you are seeking Spiritual Wellness, taking care of your body is a sacred, devotional act. When you choose to view your body as your temple, the vessel that carries your spirit through life, you can have experiences through your body that also stretch and tone your soul. As such, taking care of your body is part of loving yourself, which is a spiritual principle. Poses also help to calm and soothe the body, preparing you for a meditation practice that will calm and soothe your mind. Discipline is necessary for walking a spiritual path, and the steady discipline required to practice the physical poses of yoga will naturally carry over into the rest of your day. Lastly, the yoga poses bring together breath and motion, connecting the body and mind to create “God-consciousness” or, if you prefer, the simple awareness of the universal flow of energy, however you conceptualize that spiritual energy. Yoga fits well into both a Physical Wellness and a Spiritual Wellness plan. The more conscious you become of both your body and your mind, plus the all-important connection between them, the better you’ll be able to explore how spiritual principles can enrich and stabilize your daily life. If you’re spiritually hungry, yoga poses and meditation can be an indispensable part of your path. Namaste!(Greeting or Salutation meaning the Divine light in me bows to the Divine light in you.