Sunday, March 14, 2010

Gems from Geeta

Today I went back to Geeta Iyengar’s book, Yoga: A Gem For Women.

Geeta was a very sick child. After almost dying from a kidney infection, her father (BKS Iyengar) told her: “From tomorrow onwards no more medicines. Either you practice Yoga or get prepared to die.” So, she began practicing yoga.

Here are some gems from her book...

On woman today:
“She now has to do the double work of having to meet financial pressures and maintaining harmony in the family. It is necessary for her to keep perfect health and harmony to withstand the stresses and strains of life. Yoga is capable of giving this needed relief if she devotes a little of her time daily to its practice.”
On motherhood:
“Motherhood is woman’s ordained duty. This is not merely a physical state, but a divine state. In giving birth new responsibilities begin for her and she has to prove herself. Motherhood adorns her with the sacred qualities of love, sacrifice, faith, tolerance, goodwill, and hard work. This is her highest religion – her svadharma. These qualities are ingrained deep into her nature… For all this, woman has to pay a high price physically and psychologically in her role of mother, wife, sister, and friend. Stabilization of the physical and mental states is achieved by asanas and pranayama. Her salvation lies in practicing them.”
On health:
“Without health there is no strength. Strength is preserved only when health is maintained. Health of the body means both physical and mental well-being. It is a sign of a peaceful state of the body and the mind when one is able to follow ethical codes, maintain moral standards, and fulfill social obligations… as the Upanisad says: “The Self is not realized by a weakling.

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