हठयोग प्रदीपिका - Hatha Yoga Pradipika PDF

INTRODUCTION

There exists at present a good deal of misconception with regard to the practices of the Hatha Yoga.

People easily believe in the stories told by those who themselves heard them second hand, and no attempt is made to find out the truth by a direct reference to any good treatise. It is generally believed that the six practices, (Shatkarma) in Hatha Yoga are compulsory on the student and that besides being dirty, they are fraught with danger to the practiser. This is not true, for these practices are necessary only in the existence of impurities in the Nâdis, and not otherwise.

There is the same amount of misunderstanding with regard to the Prânâyâma. People put their faith implicitly in the stories told them about the dangers attending the practice, without ever taking the trouble of ascertaining the fact themselves. We have been inspiring and expiring air from our birth, and will continue to do so till death; and this is done without the help of any teacher.

Prânâyâma is nothing but a properly regulated form of the otherwise irregular and hurried flow of air, without using much force or undue restraint; and if this is accomplished by patiently keeping the flow slow and steady, there can be no danger. It is the impatience for the Siddhis which cause undue pressure on the organs and thereby causes pains in the ears, the eyes, the chest, etc. If the three bandhas (Bandha) be carefully performed while practising the Prânâyâma, there is no possibility of any danger.

There are two classes of students of Yoga:

(1) those who study it theoretically;

(2) those who combine the theory with practice. Yoga is of very little use, if studied theoretically.

It was never meant for such a study. In its practical form, however, the path of the student is beset with difficulties. The books on Yoga give instructions so far as it is possible to express the methods in words, but all persons, not being careful enough to follow these instructions to the very letter, fail in their object.

Such persons require a teacher versed in the practice of Yoga. It is easy to find a teacher who will explain the language of the books, but this is far from being satisfactory. For instance, a Pandit without any knowledge of the science of materia medica will explain ‘Kantakari’ as ‘Kantakasyaarih Kantakaari’ or an enemy of thorns, i.e., shoes, while it is in reality the name of a medicinal plant.