Background: The ethical principles of yoga enunciated in yama and niyama are not well known and are not usually presented to students of yoga. Aim: The goal of this study was to evaluate the benefits of yama and niyama in psychospiritual well-being in young adults. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 participants were randomly assigned to the yama-niyama group and control group. Yama-niyama group underwent three months intervention and one-month follow-up assessment. Control group attended regular classes during intervention time. Participants completed baseline and post-intervention of Vedic Personality Inventory questionnaire and cakra alignment measures. Results: The outcome measures in the yama-niyama group showed a signifi'cant difference in sattva (P<0.001), rajas (P<0.001), tamas (P<0.001) and cakrās (P<0.001) after intervention compared to the control group. In the follow-up, sattva (P=0.018) and rajas (P=0.018) showed a significant difference compared to the control group. Further, in yama-niyama group showed a significant increase in sattva (P<0.001) and cakrās were significantly better aligned (P<0.001), whereas rajas (P<0.001) and tamas (P<0.001) showed a significant decrease after intervention. In the follow-up, sattva (P<0.001) showed a significant increase and cakrās were significantly better aligned (P<0.001), whereas rajas (P<0.001) and tamas (P<0.001) showed a significant decrease. Conclusion: The findings show that young adults may advance in psychospiritual growth with proper introduction to yama and niyama in their practices. The study also fills a gap in yoga research which often neglects this foundation of psychospiritual practices in yoga.

[ABSTRACT]  [FULL TEXT]  [PDF]  [Mobile Full text]  [EPub] [CITATIONS]

This paper discusses the two ways in which the concept of “self” has been discussed in the Indian tradition and its relationship to suffering and healing. There being outer and inner self, denoted as antaratman and ahamkara respectively, is a common theme across Indian darshana/philosophy, though the exact terms and few nuances differ among them. Ahamkara or the outer self seems to have overlap with concepts such as ego and self from the modern psychology. Kumar's model of Ahamkara (2005) has four main subcomponents: Vaishisthya/individuality, Dwaita bhav/separation, Abhimana/identification, and Kartatva/agency. The article describes the results from multiple studies to support such an Indian model of self, its expansion to include a component of “ripe-ego,” and ahamkara's association with well-being in modern world. It then goes on to discuss the implications of this Indian model of self in the psychotherapy practice along with giving a case example and future directions for further research.

[ABSTRACT]  [FULL TEXT]  [PDF]  [Mobile Full text]  [EPub]

[FULL TEXT]  [PDF]  [Mobile Full text]  [EPub] [CITATIONS]

A human being is like a miniature world. By tuning inward, one can unravel the nature of the universe. The goal of human existence has been to harness and train the citta (mind) from time immemorial. Tracing back, Indian scriptures have references that guide us toward creating a mindful awareness. It elucidates mindful awareness as a practicable mode of being. Practice of pratyāhāra, accentuates mastery over sensory perceptions and citta's reaction to them. This is precisely why pratyāhāra can be a potent tool in comprehending citta that is caught in a web of thoughts. Citta is constantly grappling the deeply ingrained fear of – defeat, doubt, and uncertainty. By incorporating the practice of pratyāhāra, one can put to rest the elements of disturbance, distraction, and distortion of the perception of reality. In contrary to the concept of mindfulness that is prevalent in the clinical interventions, this study expounds the concept of mindful awareness as a means to transcend citta embarking on the practice of pratyāhāra. Here, the concept of pratyāhāra is explored with excerpts from the Bhagavadgītā, Yogasūtra, and Yoga Vāsiṣṭha, that lucidly show that mindful awareness can be embedded into everyday living with the practice of: stabilizing the citta, samatvam (reaching a state of equanimity), ātmavicāra (self-inquiry), vairāgya (renouncing of mental impressions), karma yoga (renouncing the fruits of the one's own action), control of prāṇa (restraint of the life-force) all of which fundamentally lead to the most dynamic technique of pratyāhāra (tuning inward), thereby bringing about mindful awareness.

[ABSTRACT]  [FULL TEXT]  [PDF]

Holistic well-being is when the body and mind are in harmony and free of malaise. Western medical science constructs a model of health that is demonstrably incomplete. Moreover, achieving a state of such well-being is not even a stated goal. Western medicine is thus reactive, only attempting symptomatic relief. This article draws from ancient Indian models of good health, showing that these are complete and their systematic practice leads to holistic well-being as a natural consequence. Central to the Indian model is the concept of contemplation – used extensively in Yoga, Vedānta, Buddhist practices, and many such disciplines. In this article, we demonstrate the insufficiency of the western model, and gradually build up the ideas that form the core of the Indian model, leading to the final point–which is that the philosophy and practices of contemplation are the key to truly achieve good health, not just temporary suppression of symptoms.

[ABSTRACT]  [FULL TEXT]  [PDF] [CITATIONS]

Bhutavidya (Ayurvedic psychiatry) is one among the eight specialties of Ayurveda (an ancient Indian system of medicine). Bhutavidya deals with the diseases (psychiatric or neuropsychiatric) caused by “bhuta” or “graha” (idiopathic factors) and their management. Unmada (broad term which includes various psychiatric conditions) is a disease characterized by deranged mental functions. “Bhutonmada” (psychiatric conditions caused by idiopathic factors) is a type of unmada caused by affliction of “bhuta” or “graha.” Eighteen types of bhutonmada are explained in samhita's (ancient Ayurvedic texts). Previous works have explored these 18 grahonmadas and compared them with various psychiatric and neuropsychiatric conditions. Vishesha or Upa grahonmadas are the subtypes of these 18 grahonmadas, and their description is found only in “Ashtanga sangraha” (Ayurvedic textbook of medicine written by Vriddha Vagbhata). Description of 16 “Vishesha” or “Upa grahonmadas” is available in “Ashtanga sangraha.” Till date, no studies have been conducted on Vishesha grahonmadas, and the present study aims at exploring Vishesha grahonmadas with contemporary psychiatric conditions. Ayurvedic literature related to “Vishesha grahonmadas” has been collected from major classical Ayurvedic texts and from their commentaries. Electronic databases “Google” and “Google Scholar” have been searched to find out the relevant studies using appropriate keywords. Sixteen Vishesha grahonmadas explained in Ashtanga sangraha have shown resemblance with various psychiatric and neuropsychiatric conditions such as mood disorders, schizophrenia, frontotemporal dementia, Tourette's syndrome, extra pyramidal movement disorders, temporal lobe epilepsy, autism, personality disorders, Parkinson's disease, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The contemporary perspective of ancient psychiatric concepts as demonstrated in the present article provides new insights and paves way further studies.

[ABSTRACT]  [FULL TEXT]  [PDF] [CITATIONS]

[FULL TEXT]  [PDF]  [Mobile Full text]  [EPub]

[FULL TEXT]  [PDF]  [Mobile Full text]  [EPub] [CITATIONS]