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"I must attain my goal of God-realization in this life itself." This decision, if it is firm, will greatly boost your sadhana, or devotion.
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We
hanker for positive situations. But real progress is learning to keep a
positive attitude even in the most negative circumstances.
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Make it your goal to purify the mind. You'll then find that adverse situations are not harmful. They provide best opportunities for progress.
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The Lord of unlimited universes is sitting in our hearts. He is waiting for us to love Him, so that He may shower His Grace upon us.
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Never have any ill feelings towards anyone, even towards the one who hates and criticizes you. Learn to become neutral.
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Decide firmly - God alone is mine. A many-branched intellect cannot make the strong resolve necessary for success in God-realization.
These
tweets were sent by Swamiji from his Twitter account, to remind us of
the eternal spiritual principles, as taught by Jagadguru Shree
Kripaluji Maharaj.
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Announcements
Swamiji's USA Tour 2011
Swami
Mukundananda's USA Tour 2011 planning has started. Along with
enlightening lectures, the program offers Yoga and Meditation sessions
to provide a holistic treat for body, mind, and soul.
Do
not miss an opportunity to attend Swamiji's programs and the retreats.
It is an experience of lifetime. Mark your calendar for
retreats with Swamiji.
View Tour Schedule
Program/Retreat Testimonials
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JKYog Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteering
in service of Lord is very rewarding experience. JKYog provides various
opportunities for support. We are confident that you will find
something appealing, based on your preference.
View Details
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Bal-Mukund Children's Weekly Classes
Bal-Mukund
program offers personality development classes for children ages 5 to
15. The program includes character building, festivals, saints,
keertan, yoga, meditation, games, and much more! Register for the class
in your area. Register Now!
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Featured Kirtan CD:
Mere Ghanshyam I 
Featured Video:
Karmyog for
Household Life
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Did You Know?
Receive Daily Inspirations You can receive inspiring messages from Swamiji himself by configuring your mobile on Twitter.
Steps to Configure Your Mobile
********** Become Swamiji's FriendStay connected, get the latest updates on Swamiji, JKYog events and much more on Facebook. Watch Swamiji's LecturesWatch Swamiji's Lectures, Yog & Meditation, and melodious Kirtans on our Youtube channel.
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Current News
Shree Maharajji was in Orissa from Jan 26th to Feb 5th.
Devotees from Cuttack and all centers of Orissa had a chance to have
darshan of Shree Maharajji at the Bhubaneshwar ashram. Hundreds
of devotees traveled from various parts of the state to take part in
the sadhana program organized at the ashram.
A Yoga Camp was also organised at the ashram under the Divine presence of Shree Maharajji.
 Swamiji
completed his third and fourth leg of satsang centers visit.
Swamiji visited Jajpur, Kendrapada, Rairangpur, Karanjia, Dhenkanal,
and Betnoti centers.
Bal-Mukund
programs, which included cultural programs and skits, were conducted in
these centers with enthusiastic children under the blessing of Swamiji.
View Photos
A grand celebration took place in Radha Govind Dham, Cuttack on Feb 8th
on the occasion of Basant Panchami under the presence of Swamiji.
This was the Vigraha Pran Pratishtha Diwas of the temple. There
was an 'abhishek' ceremony of Shree Radha Krishna, which was
done by Swamiji, followed by the devotees. Flowers were showered
by Swamiji on all the devotees to mark the starting of Phagun month.
View Photos
Swamiji also visited Berhampur ashram. He stayed there from Feb 9th to 13th.
A special satsang with Swamiji was held every morning and evening in
the ashram. Devotees participated in the satsang and chanted the
sweet keertans sung by Swamiji.
View Photos
A
seven-day long lecture series was successfully completed in Hinjlicut
town near Berhampur, in Orissa. Thousands of devotees gathered
for the lecture to listen to Swamiji's lecture.
View Photos
JKYog is pleased to announce the inauguration of a new weekly Bal-Mukund center for children in Cromwell, CT.
View Photos
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The Editor
Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog
XVII/3305, 1st Floor,
Ranjit Nagar,
Near PUSA,
New Delhi - 110008
India
7405 Stoney Point Dr Plano, TX 75025 USA
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Welcome to the
Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog
e-Magazine
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My Beloved is Shree Krishna of Vrindavan
by Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj 
Our Ishta dev (the chosen form of God we worship) is Shree Krishna, who performs sweet pastimes in the groves of Vrindavan. It is natural to be curious as to why one should accept Kunj Bihari Shree Krishna as one's Ishta dev?
Let us consider whom all we can be devoted to and make as our Ishta dev. It can be human beings, the celestial gods, demons or the Supreme Lord. Amongst them, it is better to worship humans than to worship demons, who are in the mode of ignorance. Better than just any human, is one's own mother, father, son, daughter, etc. Better than them are the celestial gods like Indra, Varun, Kuber etc. But, all these three kinds of personalities are under the influence of Maya. If we worship any of these as our Ishta dev, the result will be endless wandering in the cycle of 8.4 million species of life. We will neither get rid of sorrows and pain, nor attain eternal happiness. These divine goals will only be attained if we make some Divine personality as the object of our worship.
Now, in the spiritual realm, whom can we consider as our Ishta dev? First is the impersonal, formless aspect of God, which possesses no qualities. This impersonal aspect of God is chosen by the gyanis, who worship the attributeless Brahm. However, in Kaliyug very rarely does anyone possess the qualification for worshipping the formless Brahm. It requires hard spiritual practice and immense control over the mind. Arjun, who was a master archer and had rejected even Urvashi, the celestial beauty, admitted in the Bhagavad Geeta:
chaṁchalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛiṣhṇa pramāthi balavaddṛiṛham |
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyoriv suduṣhkaram ||
"O Shree Krishna! This mind is very unsteady and wavering. I have been defeated by its flickering nature. Its speed is faster than air." God replied, "Yes Arjun, You are right. However, with the selection of the correct path and surrender to the right form of God, we can attain our goal." Arjun replied, "There are two aspects of God - Impersonal or Formless and Personal. Whom should we make our Ishta dev, or chosen form of God for worship?" Shree Krishna answered, "Arjun! For humans to follow the path of gyan and meditate on the formless Brahm is impossible." Tulsidas ji clearly stated:
kahat kaṭhin samujhat kaṭhin sādhan kaṭhin vivek |
hoy ghuṇākṣhar nyāy jo puni prayooha anek ||
"The path of gyan is difficult both to explain and to understand. To practice it is even more difficult. It is next to impossible to attach the mind the formless God, Brahm as our ishta dev. And if by chance we make Brahm as our ishta dev, then the final result of this practice, Brahmanand (the Bliss of the formless Brahm) is inferior compared to the Bliss of the personal form of God.
The scriptures say that even if we add seventeen zeros next to one, and multiply that with Brahmanand, it will not be equal to a tiny fraction of Premanand (the Divine Love Bliss of the personal form of God). Such is the pleasure in the Divine Love Bliss of the personal form of God, Shree Krishna.
It
is extremely difficult to worship the formless Brahm, as firstly one
has to meet the strict criteria for entrance to the path of gyan. Secondly, the actual practice on the path is even more difficult. And if someone starts following this path, it will stop at atmagyan, or the knowledge of the self.
Hence, we do not have to consider Brahm as our chosen form of God for worship. Now let us go higher than this. Let us consider which Personal form of God we should choose as our Ishta Dev. We have Maha Vishnu, who has four arms, and is also a Form of God. He is known as the Lord of the Vaikunth abode. He sits in a very serious mood. The Mahapurushas, or Saints, of shant bhav worship Him. The demons killed by Shree Krishna go to this abode. Maha Vishnu neither performs any pastimes, nor has any associates. The devotees only have His Divine vision. They do not relish the Bliss of any leela. Maha Vishnu is a form of Shree Krishna, but the Bliss in that form is less. Sweeter than that is the Bliss of Shree Krishna in Dwarka. There, the almightiness and opulence of God is slightly hidden. But even there, the highest Bliss is not present.
In one pastime, Shree Krishna showed his Universal form to mother Yashoda. She thought, "He is God. I am committing a sin by considering Him to be my son. I scold Him, tie Him with a rope." God noted her feelings. God thought, "Now, mother really knows My identity. What will happen? She will start worshipping me like others. She will not consider my as her son."
vaiṣhṇavīṁ vyatanonmāyāṁ putrasnehamayiṁ vibhuḥ |
Shree Krishna called yogmaya, His personal power, and made mother Yashoda forget everything. She then said, "What was I thinking? I have become mad in my old age. My memory has become weak. He is my son, and nothing more than that." She forgot that Shree Krishna is God. Therefore, the Bliss of Vrindavan is the greatest of all.
In the abode of Braj, everybody including Shree Krishna's friends would forget that He is God. They would play with Him, fight with Him and tease Him. Everyday, the gopis abused Shree Krishna by calling Him a flirt and a loafer! This is how they used to address the Supreme Brahm! Shree Krishna would forget His Godliness and become their eternal servant.
In the material world, a woman always seeks a husband who will provide her the best comforts and keep her happy. She wants an IAS officer or a millionaire. If she doesn't find such a groom, that is a different issue. And
after getting married to that person, she gets sorrows and pain, that
is again a different thing, but every girl has this dream and thinks
that her husband should be the best and everybody should respect him.
Shree
Krishna has many forms, but the one who performs loving pastimes in the
groves of Vrindavan is the sweetest of all. Hence, Shree Krishna
from Vrindavan is the form of God we should worship. Our Ishta dev should be that form of God which gives the highest Bliss.
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Secrets of Spiritual Sadhana
by Swami Mukundananda
Continuing with the previous two lines of 'Sadhana Karu Pyare'....
jag meṁ katahuṁ rāg jani karu, dveṣh jani karu pyāre |
hari meṁ guru meṁ hī rahe nit, rakt tav man pyāre ||
While explaining the secrets of sadhana, or devotion, Shree Kripaluji Maharaj further enlightens us about Ananyata, or single minded devotion. We have to practice undivided devotion towards God. 'Ananya' means 'no other', or exclusive. If an individual's mind is attached to anyone or anything other than God, then he will not be called as an 'Ananya' follower. Loving God alone is what ananyata means. God repeatedly stated in the Geeta:
ananyāhśhchintayanto māṁ ye janāḥ paryupāsate
tameva śharaṇaṁ gachchha sarvabhāvena bhārata
sarvadharmān parityajya māmekaṁ śharaṇaṁ vraj
"Arjun, you must practice exclusive devotion."
ek bharoso ek bal ek ās viśhvās | ek rām ghanśhyām hit chātak tulasīdās ||
So, what is the meaning of Ananyata? 'Ananya Prem' means to love just God and Guru, nobody else. Here arises the main difficulty. We have been practicing devotion in our previous lives also. This is not the first life in which we have practiced bhakti. If you have taken birth in India, then it is because of your sanskars, or merits accumulated in the previous births. Moreover, if we are coming to the satsang, then that means we have an eagerness to meet God; we believe in God. This is a definite proof that we have done spiritual practice in our earlier life. But
the mistake that we did was that we never practiced single-minded
devotion, which means we did not love and attach our mind to God alone. Shree Krishna says in the Geeta:
māmeva ye prapadyante māyāmetām taranti te
"The one who comes under my shelter alone and surrenders completely to me, I will free him from the clutches of Maya. If you do not apply the word 'only', then I am not responsible for your attaining the Divine fruits of your sadhana." Ananya implies that the mind should be exclusively attached to the Divine realm of God and nowhere else. And what do we do? We are attached to our mother, father, son, daughter, television, etc. We keep telling God that He is also ours, whereas He expects exclusive devotion. We shed tears for God and Guru, but we also shed tears while bidding goodbye to the newly wed daughter at home. We shed tears when our children are sick. This proves that we are attached to people other than God. By this, our Ananyata, or exclusiveness towards God, gets destroyed.
God says, "Look, You keep only Me in your heart. If anybody else resides in your heart, then I will go out. Understand my condition by reading all the scriptures and implement it. In this world, from an ant to Lord Brahma, everybody is within the three modes of Maya. If you love them, then your heart will remain impure. If you love Me, then it will result in purification of your heart."
Let us consider an example. Our mind is like a dirty cloth that has accumulated dirt since innumerable lifetimes. Our
aim is to wash it and make it completely dirt free. If we wash it with
fresh, dirt-free water, it will become clean. But, if we wash it
with dirty water, the cloth will become dirtier. What do we mean by 'clean' or 'dirty' water? All mayic objects are considered dirty in terms of their effect on our heart. Only entities related to God are considered clean. The Names of God, Forms, Virtues, Pastimes, Abodes, and Saints are all pure. Hence, for purification of our hearts and mind, we have to carefully pay attention to the condition called Ananyata, or exclusive devotion.
We
attach our mind to material things and human beings. Not only
this, we attach our mind towards celestial gods and goddesses, who are
under Maya. By doing so our ananyata gets destroyed. If
we attach our mind to the celestial gods, we will not attain the
Supreme God. Yet, this is what we all do in today's world. Some
people worship God, but in addition, they also worship celestial gods
or worldly beings for material benefits, and therefore they do not
attain the Supreme God, Shree Krishna. We have only one mind and
that should be focused on Divine subject alone.
We collect deities of celestial gods and then make a mockery of their worship. We put all the deities in together in a vessel to bathe them. Then we put them in one big towel and dry them, while they collide against each other. Then we sprinkle chandan towards them. Is this the way to do worship? When we take bath ourselves, we apply soap very carefully so that it does not go in to our eyes. We make sure that water does not go in to our ears. But, we put the idols of all deities together in a bucket carelessly and wash them together! The reason that people give is: "Swamiji, We do not have the time to worship each god separately. I have to go the office, so I have to finish the pooja, or rituals, in ten minutes." Then why did you collect so many gods? Their answer is, "This is the tradition that has been continuing from my ancestors. My grandfather brought this deity from a holy place to worship. Then a saint came to my house and gave me one more deity, so I kept it." What is the reason behind all this?
yānī kānī cha mitrāṇi kartavyāni śhatāni cha
"Make many friends. You never know who may help you in bad times." We say, "O Shree Krishna, please listen to me", and He does not listen to us. We put Him away without care. We then say, "Hanuman ji, please listen to my prayers." Hanuman ji also did not listen. We go to Lord Shiva and say, "O Shankar ji, you listen to me." Shankar ji also did not listen. Now,
if Shankar ji also does not answer our prayers, we start worshipping
spirits or ghosts, and even visit the graves of Mullahs, thinking that
they could change our destiny. For this kind of devotion that we do, God says, "It will not work. You have to practice undivided devotion."
To be continued in the next edition....
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Question:
My question is about how to teach and train mind that there is no
happiness in the material world. My mind is revolting while
accepting that there is no happiness in material things. Is it ok if we
will go through these circumstances and get realization that there is
no happiness? For example, there is no happiness in consuming
alcohol. So, is it ok if we first test alcohol and then get to
realize that there is no happiness? Without going through something how we will know that there is no happiness in it?
Answer: There
are innumerable things in the world, and each thing has endless
varieties. If you go by the modus operandi of experiencing
everything first, your whole life will pass in the endeavor.
Besides, is there any formula regarding how long you will consume
alcohol before coming to the conclusion that there is no happiness in
it? There are people who run after money all their lives, and yet
do not decide that it does not have the happiness they are
seeking. Again, if you finally do come to the conclusion that the
world is not a place of happiness, but the mind doubts whether there is
happiness in God, then what will you do? You wouldn't be able to
demand to see and experience God before concluding that He is an ocean
of Divine Bliss.
As human beings, God has bestowed us with subtle intellects that can
make this decision even without experience. Broadly, the
intellect of living beings can be classified into four categories:
1. The
lowest is the intellect of an insect. It is attracted to the
fire. On coming near the flame, it gets burnt. But it does
not learn, and commits the same mistake again and again.
2. The
intellect of a cat is subtler. If it sits on a hot plate, it
learns from its experience. In future, it even refuses to sit on
a cold plate, in apprehension that it may get burnt.
3. The
intellect of sheep is even subtler. They have never been attacked
by a wolf. But the moment they see a wolf, they perceive
impending danger and run for their lives.
4. The
intellect of humans is even subtler. Merely by intellectual
discrimination, without seeing or experiencing, they are expected to
reach the conclusion that there is no happiness in the world.
Actually,
everyone has had experience of the world to a lesser or greater
extent. We made the desires of the senses and put in great effort
to satisfy them. What was the experience? For a moment the
desire was quenched, but then it arose again with redoubled
intensity. This is the nature of worldly desires, whether they
are the teeny-weeny cravings that you have made innumerable times in
your lives or the bigger desires that loom more largely in your
mind. The principle is exactly the same. So we should
utilize our experience to date, to reach a blanket conclusion about the
nature of all worldly desires. That is what God expects us to do,
and that is the instruction of the scriptures.
upāsate puruṣham ye hyākāmāste śhukrametadivartanti dhīrāḥ | (Mundakopanishad)
"One who engages in devotion to God, giving up worldly desires, crosses over the ocean of life and death."
Swamiji answers selected questions related to Yog, Spirituality and Philosophy every month on our e-Magazine.
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Bal-Mukund Showcase Bal-Mukund
welcomes all contributions of creative works from children in different
areas including poetry, moral stories, art work, etc.
Submission Guidelines
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Bal-Mukund's Parents Testimonial
"I
am seeing lot of changes in Sakshi and Rajat after they joined
Bal-Mukund Classes. They are now regularly taking some time to
pray to god. I see there enthusiasm in understanding the Indian
mythology and how it applies to our culture. The activities carried out
as part of Makar-Sankranthi made them understand how it is
celebrated. I always use to just tell them, it is festival of
Kite flying and eating Sweets.
Yesterday, Rajat was correcting my wife in reciting "tvameva mātā cha pitā tvameva", and later while speaking to his grandmother recited both "gurur brahmā gurur viṣhṇuḥ gurur devo maheśhvaraḥ" and "tvameva mātā cha pitā tvameva". We both felt delighted.
My "Sath Sath Pranam" to Swamiji who started this initiative and taking it across the globe."
- Kamal and Archana Baldawa, CT
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Bal-Mukund Contributions
 
Rangoli, CT
Message to God, Dallas
 
Valentine
Message
to
Love for God KRIPALU Values,
Shree Krishna, CT
Plano
View More Contributions
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The "KRIPALU" Values
Ancient Pearls of Wisdom for the Kripalu Values
K for Kindness
nārāyaṇ do bāt ko, dījai sadā bisār |
karī buraī aur ne, āp kiye upakār ||
The
devotee Saint Narayan says: Always forget two things. Firstly, the bad
others did to you; and secondly, the good you did to others.
R for Respect
paradoṣh dekhuṁ nahiṁ govind rādhe |
paranindā karuṁ nahiṁ aisā baā de ||
O Radhey Govind! Make me such that I never see faults in others. Make me such that I never criticize others.
I for Integrity
sant saṅg satsaṅg karu, nit sevahu din rāt |
śhraddhā, rati, aru bhakti sab, āpuhiṁ tehi mili jāt ||
Constant
association with Saints and service to them automatically leads to the
attainment of faith, love and devotion, in that order.
P for Perseverance
marg chalate jo gire, tāko nāhiṁ doṣh |
kahe kabīr baiṭhā rahe, to sir karoṛoṁ koṣh ||
The
one who falls down while attempting to achieve the goal has no
faults. That person is blameworthy, who remains sitting and does
not even attempt.
A for Accountability
karm me svatantra sab govind rādhe |
phal bhogane me paratantra batā de ||
All
are free in doing actions and deeds. But when it comes to bearing
the fruits of their deeds, all are subject to the laws of God.
L for Love for God
vah din kab āye govind rādhe |
jab kańṭh bhar āye nām le batā de ||
When will that day come when I shed tears for the call of your Divine name?
U for Unassuming
tṛiṇ te adhik namra govind rādhe |
taru te bhī adhik sahiṣhṇu banā de ||
O Govind Radhey! Make me more humble than a blade of grass and more tolerant than the tree.
These verses are selected from the book,
The Bal-Mukund Wisdom Book
Ancient Pearls of Wisdom for the Kripalu Values
A must have for all kids!Get your collection of Bal-Mukund books TODAY!
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Trivia Time
Celestial Gods and Goddesses
Goddess Parvati
Goddess
Parvati is the Divine consort of Lord Shiva. She is known by different
names like Lalita, Uma, Gauri, Kali, Durga, Haimavati etc. Two of
her fierce but very famous forms are Durga and Kali. As the
Mother of the Universe, Parvati is known as Amba and Ambika, which
means 'mother'. As Lalita, she represents the aspect of beauty.
Goddess Parvati has a charming personality. Married women worship Parvati for happy married life. Pictures of Lord Shiva, Parvati and their sons Ganesh and Kartikeya depict an ideal example of family unity and love.
Parvati - The story of Sati
According
to Puranas, in her first incarnation, Parvati Devi was Sati or
Dakshayani, the daughter of Daksa and was married to Lord Shiva. Once,
Daksha performed a great yagya (fire sacrifice) and insulted Lord Shiva
by not inviting him and Sati. Even then, Sati went to attend the yagya.
To her great disappointment, Daksha did not acknowledge her presence and did not offer prasad for Lord Shiva. Utterly depressed by the treatment done to her, Sati ended her life by igniting herself through the fire of the yagya.
After
the death of Sati, Lord Shiva became very sad and depressed. He
renounced the world and went into deep meditation in the snow-covered
peaks of the Himalayas. Meanwhile, the demons lead by Taraka,
rose from the nether world and drove the celestial gods out of the
heavens. The gods sought a warrior who would help them regain the celestial realm. Lord Brahma said, only Shiva can father such a warrior, but he is oblivious of the world.
At the persistence of the Gods, Sati agreed to take a rebirth as Parvati, the daughter of Himavan and Mena. It
was only after performing intense austerities that Goddess Parvathi
succeeded in pleasing Shiva and making him accept Her again as His
consort. After marriage, she gave birth to Karitkeya, who became the
Commander-in-chief of the devatas (celestial gods) and helped them defeat the daityas (demons).
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Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog
Ardha Matsyendra Asan
Method
Sit
in dandasan. Bend the right leg and place the foot outside of the left
knee. Bend the left leg and place the sole of the foot near the right
buttock (In Poorn Matysendra Asan the left foot will rest above the
right thigh). Left knee will be touching the
ground and right knee will be facing up. Try to touch the right foot,
by interlacing left hand with right knee. Bend the right elbow and
place it around the back. Turn from right side and look back. Repeat in
opposite direction.
Benefits
It
tones the spinal nerves and makes the back flexible. Relieves backache
and helps in preventing adjoining vertebrae to develop osteophytes. It
helps alleviate digestive ailments. It is beneficial for diabetics as
it helps regulate the secretion of adrenaline and bile. It is useful in
cervical spondylitis, colitis, menstrual disorders, bronchitis,
constipation and sinus until it done comfortably. It is useful in
curing Scitica, peptic ulcer, hernia, hyper thyroid and slipped disc,
if done carefully.
Contra-indications
Women who are in the 2nd and 3rd month of their pregnancy should not practice this asan.
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