Beat Corona blues at home: Train your mind with DIY Yogic Kriyas

By Atul Vyas

The writer is an internationally acclaimed yoga expert. He has been a guru to Hollywood celebrities and advisor to heads of state in India and the US

Life is difficult. Not only difficult, but also strenuous in these extraordinary times we are now calling the Corona Times. In yogic philosophy, of which I have been a lifelong practitioner and proponent, it is believed when we see something and accept it as a fact we are in a position to transcend the difficulty to a great extent.

When we put the scenario we are in, in the Yogic context, we have already seen what the Corona virus can do and is doing to humanity. We have to accept this pandemic has turned our normal lives into a punishing ordeal and understand that life, at the moment, is difficult. Now, we have to transcend it, try and move out of it, both physically and mentally. The virus no longer matters when we are not running away from it but are trying to pull ourselves out of its sickening grip.

To overcome the difficulties of life there is one wonderful tool: the Yogic Discipline. Life is a series of challenges, which we have to overcome. We have to remember that we grow mentally and spiritually because of the problems we face and our learning from them. Yogic discipline is a set of tools one finds handy to resolve life’s problems and keep moving, keep learning. Without discipline we come nowhere close to living our lives.

We do not breathe properly. Taking deep breaths energises your lungs and fills you with positivity. Ensure while breathing, your belly rhymes with the inhaling and exhaling of oxygen and not against it.

Shwasana Kriya

Yoga is an extraordinary art that challenges and encourages the human capacity to solve problems. It builds on your own strength and improves your chances at healthy and happy living. To help humanity tap into their resources and enable them to face life better, the yogic sages created a set of disciplinary tools. We must remember to take the Corona pandemic as another challenge, one that has exacted a terrible toll on humanity, but nevertheless a challenge, which needs to be overcome. I’m sharing these tools along with their kriyas, which can be employed and emulated within the confines of our homes where we are holed up trying to dodge the deadly virus. 

Sham

Sham means a state of balance. It refers to the development of inner silence, finding your calm within. There are many ways with which you can attain Sham in yoga but the most important are asanas and kriyas (tasks). Trataka Kriya and meditation are the most potent means of invoking equanimity in your thoughts, and consequently life.

One of the simplest tools which can help you in developing your Sham is regulating your breath. Taking deep breaths energises your lungs and fills you with positivity. Ensure while breathing, your belly rhymes with the inhaling and exhaling of oxygen and not against it.

You can also meditate to recalibrate your mind and preventing it from going astray. Sit comfortably keeping the spine erect. Close your eyes and observe your own thoughts without reacting mentally, emotionally or physically. Do it for 5 min and increase it to 10 as your progress. This simple task will help you be at calm with yourself.

Dama

Dama means self-control. In this kriya, one regains control of the senses, the mind, and the thoughts and emotions that reside in it with viveka (intellect). Self-control helps you separate right from the wrong and choose the path of the good.

The Trataka Kriya is a simple exercise that helps you regain your focus. Place a lighted diya (earthen lamp) or a candle 3 meters from you. Keep it at eye level and try to fix your gaze at it without blinking. If the lamp is distracting, you can replace it with a point on the wall. This simple kriya helps rein in your mind, prevents it from wandering and improves your focus. Do it 3 times for 5-10 seconds.

Doing so, helps you rediscover your inner calm, which is critical to your healthy being in the present crisis. Why is this so important? The human mind is constantly interacting with its environment. In times like these, when you feel distanced from others and are lonely, the dialogue resumes internally. The internal dialogue without a release can distort the mental peace and topple the balance and your connect with the universe.

Uparati

Uparati means raising one’s chetna or consciousness back to life. This is done by renouncing baser emotions such as greed, jealousy, passion, anger and hatred. The simplest way to be more conscious is by genuine forgiveness and in the sincere well-wishing of all. Once this is achieved even to a smaller degree, the forces that work against life lose to an awakened state of mind that resonates with the consciousness of the universe making you one with it.

If you’re achet (lack of consciousness), you’re a dead man walking anyway. Also, forgiveness and wishing well trigger positivity and are bearer of good thoughts. Therefore, these selfless acts have a direct bearing on your body’s immune system and help improve it. So, a simple act of wishing well with sincerity not only protects one from the ashuddh (evil) forces, but also heals the body.

Shraddha

Shraddha or faith refers to your belief in your own self and the supreme power that brought you to this world. Believe in yourself. Belief in your capabilities in spite of success is the key to taking the challenges head-on. An unwavering faith in yourself also ensures a positive outcome no matter how hard the problem you are facing is.

Along with these Yogic virtues I believe, positivity in thoughts and deeds can carry us a long way in tiding over crises like the one we are in right now. Purity, contentment and austerity are the keys to unlocking lifelong happiness and not just in difficult times.

Purity

Purity is of 3 kinds. The first is intellectual purity, which can be achieved by practicing passionate recital of Om. This invokes purity of thought than can help overcome fear and unhappiness. The second is purity of speech. There is nothing like heartfelt and affectionate speaking. You can be kind with words and heal people round you with the purity of your expression. This in itself creates harmony within your mind and with the universe around you. The third one is physical purity. Yogic kriyas such as agnisar and dhirgha shwasan (deep breathing) can help you attain physical purity.

Contentment

Contentment is the root of happiness. Greater the contentment, greater will be the spread of happiness. How do you feel content? Make life need-based rather than desire based. Desire, as we know, comes without limit. There is nothing that can feed your desire and still fulfill it. Need-based living is the simple living that we can live in any place and in any given time.

Austerity

To increase mind and body’s tolerance levels vis-a-vis physical and mental challenges practicing austerity is a given. Austerity is a study of self. During these times of self-quarantine one must observe oneself, one’s propensities, nature and needs closely. Observing ones thoughts and behaviour can be an engaging pastime and can help reflect and improvise on your attributes.

Meditation

Consider this as a conversation with God. Reciting mantras help in effortless engagement with God and can be rejuvenating and also much desired source of strength.

These yogic tools, if used with wisdom and discipline, can make life easy and happy. They can transform your life into one that has a greater meaning and purpose.

Om