September 17, 2024
The yogi knows that muscles are the tools of nerve power (prana) and this power is the servant of the mind which is seated in the brain.
Prana is life, the power in life - breath, the life-giving nature of food. It functions in countless faculties of the body and mind. If prana functions properly one is full of life, one faces the challenges of life with hope, enthusiasm and faith. If the prana is at a low ebb one thinks about nothing but doctors, hospitals and operations. Prana and mind are closely linked. The health of the body depends largely on the health of the nerves in certain hormone-secreting glands.
Health cannot be easily defined; it is like happiness, one has to experience it oneself. The yogi's powers of resistance and endurance are far higher than others. He enjoys an inner sense of well-being. Even on his deathbed he looks forward, backward and inward with supreme sense of delight and well-being.
This yogic system prevents illness in youth and in old age enables one to ignore it. In the system of yogic physical culture we almost completely ignore the muscles, we concentrate on the glands and nerves. We strengthen the nerves by strengthening their source, the brain and the spinal column.