Peace, be upon us

Peace, be upon us (Ek pravachan)!
Elders tell me that, if you breathe 12 times per minute, you can live till hundred years in relatively good health. Well , such knowledge was passed on from times immemorial, from generations to generations, through the great yoga teachers of India. All this fountain of knowledge, was due to the pioneering work of ancient India's rishis and the maharishis. Yoga was never only for fitness purpose but had a intrinsic connection with the higher meaning of life. It was, and, is a means to understand the human mind and how it connects with the body. Hence there is so much importance given to the breathing process and how proper breathing can elevate the mind to the higher level. And how, training the mind to let go the negative thoughts, can in turn, help in removing the toxins from the body. How do you train your body to slow down the breathing process? Whenever you get the time, like when you are sitting in front of the TV, or you plan the free time, do the breathing exercise - breathe in very slowly, hold the breathe for 2-3 seconds and then breathe out more slowly , then again hold for 2-3 seconds and repeat this cycle once again. The time taken for breathe out should be at least twice the time taken for breathe in. Repeat this for at least 10-15 minutes. You will feel the calmness enveloping you. But I am no yoga teacher. Hence you are requested to join some good yoga institutes since yoga is best learned from the masters.
Yoga is, but, one way of making changes to how you conduct your life.  For making a positive change, you have to change your Ahaar (what you eat), Vihaar(which places you frequent most), Achaar(how you conduct yourself) Vichaar(what or how you think). Out of this , Achaar and Vichar are the most difficult to change, since these two have become a very intrinsic part of our personality which has undergone a continuous mentoring and coaching over our entire lifetime, due to, where we stay, who we interact with, our immediate environment, etc. To change these will require a lot of mental discipline and will power. If you do yoga very religiously but at the same time, if your mind is filled with negative feelings like jealousy or envy or lust, you will never be benefited. Start thinking positive thoughts and show respect to all AND practice yoga, then you will reap the fullest benefits.
Yatin