It’s now 9 O’clock in the morning and already the sun is high in the tropical sky. Heavy bulbous clouds herald the possibility of a rain shower later in the day, but then it has not rained here for several days and the luxuriant tropical plants in the garden that nestles down to the sea are looking in need of water. I am standing beside a ‘sala’, which is Thailand is an open sided wooden building and this one is no more than ten metres from the sea. The warm Gulf of Thailand is lapping on the beach as I stand and watch a yoga class of half a dozen participants energetically practising the poses or ‘asanas’ that the teacher is urging them to try. It all looks very energising to me and they still have another hour of this practice which seems to create a serene inner strength.
Glowing slightly from the exertion, Janca from Breda in Holland tells me she has been coming to “The Health Oasis Resort’ in Koh Samui for the past two years. She comes to recharge her batteries and get fit and healthy for her career driven life back home. Every morning she joins several other guests in one and a half-hours of Hatha Yoga as part of her mental and spiritual de-tox programme. Before coming to Koh Samui she would never have dreamed of embracing this oriental exercise system. Now she participates in a class in her hometown and feels the regimen gets easier each time she returns to Thailand.
Yoga is a ‘Sanskrit’ word and it means ‘joining or uniting’. But joining or uniting with what? Gavin Flood defines the practice as “technologies or disciplines of asceticism and meditation which are thought to lead to spiritual experience…..”
However, outside of India Yoga has become associated as a form of stretching exercise and the philosophical aspect leading to spiritual enlightenment is oft times ignored. Certainly it is the exercise element of the philosophy that I have been witnessing in the wooden house beside the beach at Bang Po in Koh Samui. [http://www.healthoasisresort.org]
Patanjeali is credited with the 196 aphorisms compiled somewhere between 200 BC and 300AD that have gone to formulate the creed that has become. ‘Yoga’ and his vision known as Raja Yoga embraces eight life areas that provide a template for leading a good and virtuous earthly existence. These tenets are similar to the laws and observances of all great spiritual traditions. The devotee eschews lying, violence, theft, illicit sex and the need for possessions. Through the five observances he surrenders to God. The ‘asanas’ or postures were adopted as poses suitable for meditation that again like in many other traditions was a part of the discipline.
The mediation positions have evolved into the exercise postures that make up Hatha Yoga which came into being in fifteenth century India under the guidance of Yogi Swatmarama. The emphasis here dwells on enlightenment of the mind (ha) via purification on the physical plane through the medium of exercise, which leads to the increase of ‘prana’ or life force energy (tha).
“Prana’ is the key because as we increase the life force health and wellness and ultimately emotional well being come to the fore. People like Janca flock to ‘spa’ type location such as the Health Oasis Resort [http://www.healthoasisresort.org] in Thailand’s Koh Samui to achieve this increase in energy and well being, and yoga is one of the means of achieving that end.
Alister Bredee is a freelance author specializing in articles on health related topics. He is also a health care practitioner and trainer. He currently lives in Thailand and can be contacted via his website: http://www.healthambit.com He publishes a daily blog http://www.healthambit.blogspot.com
