The document discusses yogic practices for maintaining health and hygiene. It notes that modern education does not sufficiently teach preventative health. It then outlines yogic practices for hygiene of various body systems including teeth, ears, respiratory, eyes, and digestive. For each system, it describes how Western practices may be lacking and alternatives such as using neem twigs for teeth cleaning, nasal cleansing techniques, and abdominal exercises and salt water flushing for the intestines. The document advocates yogic lifestyle as a way to increase vitality and avoid aging effects through regular detoxification and maintenance of the body.
2. “Since body is the means to
duty, wealth, pleasure and
salvation, it should always be
protected with all one’s heart
by the student of Yoga.”
-Yoga Chintamani, II, 97
3. Ideals of Health Hygiene
The common education system does not teach basic
human health and care to students, rather teaches
abstract information that cannot be used practically in
daily life
Preventative health is not stressed enough, while
symptomic treatment is the focus
Everyone should know the about the basic
physiological functioning of the human body
Everyone should know about what to do in order to be
healthy
4. “In consequence, the study of personal hygiene still
remains neglected for all practical purposes, and the best
art and science of health yet awaits full recognition and
strict application.”
5.
6. Main Causes of Ageing
Bones:
The mineral density of bones
changes over time
Minerals such as calcium and
lime salts begin to ossify,
causing weakness in bones
Circulatory System:
Mineral deposits cause
inelasticity and arteriosclerosis
Muscular System:
Loss of muscle elasticity and
flexibility leads to loss of normal
tone of muscle
Muscles cannot function
properly
7. Yoga Way to Rejuvenation
We are at the peak of our health when we are in our youth
Over time, the wear and tear of everyday life takes a toll on our
bodies- disease and disorders arise from this
If we practice yogic lifestyle, we can increase our vitality and youth
Yogins believe in control of organic organs within our body; this
represents a control on the autonomic nervous system
In 1926, Deshabandhu was able to control the beating of his heart
An orientalist in Berlin was buried alive under several feet of
ground for a period of 8 days, and survived
8. Mala-Shuddhi
Mala-Shuddhi (purification) means: “ensuring healthy
organism is further supplemented by such vital body-
building methods- as scientifically to encourage proper
elimination and nutrition besides coordinating functional
harmony within the body”
Yogins believe that it is possible to avoid old age and
retain use by continuously eliminating toxins from the
body
Toxins are eliminated and flushed out of the body via
several methods
9. Care of Teeth and Mouth
“The importance of teeth in digestion is not sufficiently recognized. Many
cases of chronic indigestion arise from imperfect mastification due to
faulty dentition(58, Yogendra).”
Most Dangerous Dental Problems:
1. Dental cavities/caries:
Chemical and bacterial process that causes decay in teeth and gums
1. Pyorrhea (Rigg’s disease):
An infection cause by puss and bacteria, in some cases animal parasites
These and most dental problems can be avoided with proper dental and
yogic hygiene methods
11. Tooth Brushing
Conventional Way
Conventional tooth brush tears
the gums and drives bacteria
into the gums and blood stream
After being used several times,
it becomes very infected with
bacteria
Infection will continue unless
properly disinfected after every
use
Yogic method
Fresh babul twigs
Delicate shoots of a Neem tree
These tree parts have strong
alkaline and astringent
properties according to Sushruta
New twig needs to be used
every time
12. Dentifrice/
Toothpaste
• Must have some emulsifying
properties to scrub away plaque
• Must have antimicrobial
properties
• Yogins prepare their own tooth
powder
• 10 % catechu, 80%
myrobalancs, and 10% turmeric
or alum
• This paste in addition to twig
brushing does a sufficient job in
cleaning impurities off of both
sides of teeth Using a conventional paste
with chemicals such as
fluoride defeats the purpose
of detoxification.
13. Basic Ear Care
Ears are important as they maintain our balance, our hearing, and
are a vital body part for healthy daily functioning
Vertigo, a disorder in which the patient feels dizziness and loss of
balance, can be caused pressure of wax inside the ear
14. KarnaRandhra Dhauti
Is a natural process used to cleanse the ears daily
Consists of purification of both of the ear canals
One needs to irrigate the ears at certain intervals once
a week
During the process, the index finger is slowly pushed in
and out, from side to side to ensure removal of ear
wax, dry skin cells, or dust
16. “The practice of nasal cleansing purifies the air sinuses,
invigorates the brain, tones up the optic nerves and thus
improves sight (Pg75, Yogendra) .”
17. Diseases that can be avoided by
regular nasal hygiene:
Tonsillitis
Mumps
Sinusitis
Infantile
paralysis
Measles
Scarlet Fever
Influenza
Tuberculosis
Rheumatism
18. Air Sinuses
The care of the air sinuses directly relates to the care of the
greater respiratory system
Infection of these passages can be avoided by using simple
disinfection methods
Kapalabhati :
Kapal- “skull” and “bhati”-illuminating
Vatakrama kapalabhati- Pranayaman breathing technique in
which exhalation is active and inhalation is inactive
Vyutkrama kapalabhati- Similar to Jalaneti, which involves taking
in water through nostrils and spitting it out
Sheetkrama kapalabhati-Water is taken through the mouth and
then pushed out through nose
19. Eye Care
• Yogins recognize the close
relationship between eye
care and the mind
• We observe most of our
environment through our
eyes- vision
• Health of eye depends on
perfect nutrition, elimination,
muscular tone and nerve
supply
20. Alleviating Eye Strain
“Eyestrain occurs when your eyes get tired from intense
use, such as driving a car for extended periods, reading
or working at a computer.” 1
Eyestrain is the most common misuse of eye
Yogins use relaxation techniques such as closing eyes for 5-10
minutes to give eyes a rest to alleviate this issue
Suggest gazing at moon, sun and stars to train eyes to focus on
long distances, reducing unecessary eye strain
1. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/eyestrain/basics/definition/con-20032649
22. 21 total digestive organs
Food that enters mouth must travel a total
distance of 10 yards through alimentary canal
Digestive organs that need daily attention are
stomach and the intestines
23. Care of Intestine
Every time food passes
through alimentary canal,
it leaves a fine coating of
waste matter
If not washed from interval
walls, it interferes with
normal secretion of
digestive juices
Most common
consequence of this is
constipation, indigestion,
and defective absorption
of minerals and vitamins
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/imagepages/19221.htm
24. Shanka Prankshalana- a method of flushing the entire
intestine out using warm salt water and asanas that
compress the abdomen
Vamandhouti (Autolavage)- a method in which one
drinks excess salt water at a time on an empty, then
stimulates gag reflex to induce vomiting
Vamandhouti clears excess acid out of stomach,
stimulating the production of new stomach acid
25. Conclusion
The human body is
complex and has the
capacity to heal itself if
properly maintained
We have to be our own
doctors
Only we can understand
our bodies and be intuitive
about what’s going on
Practicing yoga along with
yogic lifestyle and hygiene
can drastically increase
our quality of life and
vitality