Yoga, the most ancient science of India, is a conscious process of gaining mastery over the mind that helps us to manifest the innate potentialities lying dormant in all of us. Sage Patanjali says that yoga is the cessation of all thought waves of the chitta, which has four aspects ? ego, intellect, consciousness and unconscious. The unconscious mind is the root of all troubles, where all the filtered impressions of the senses are deposited. Yoga places its emphasis on this unconscious mind while stressing the need of educating and purifying it.
Realising this secret, people in Western countries are practicing yoga in one form or the other to get rid of stress, strain and lead a peaceful life. But in India, we are neglecting this great science, which is highly important in this mechanical, polluted and unhealthy competitive life. Yoga is specifically important for students who need to be helped to acquire proper concentration, good memory and ?a sound mind in a sound body?, says the author.
The book explains what yoga'saims are?cleanliness of the body, prana, mind and intellect; alignment of the means with the objective; recreation; be settled in oneself; be firm in the righteousness; and clear understanding of duty; practice and detachment; knowledge, light and bliss; reduction of ego and enlargement of the sphere of identification.
Dr Duggal explains the correlation between yoga and education and what annamaya is (it is a storehouse of urine and excreta or the abode of God) and the asanas and food to be adopted for its proper functioning. He talks about the pranamaya kosha which is bio-energy; the manomaya kosha which includes the mind, intellect, ego and chitta; vijaanamaya or the light of wisdom; yaja or knowledge and insight.
The book covers important aspects of yoga but the value of the book would have been adequately enhanced if Dr Duggal had given step-by-step instructions on performing the various asanas required for training in character-building, keeping good physical and mental health, developing good thinking capacity and concentration for attaining ananda (bliss) through samadhi. This would make the student worthy of competing in any type of challenge physically, mentally, intellectually to achieve the higher goals.
(Vidya Bharati Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Sansthan, G.L. Trihan Saraswati Bal Mandir, Nehru Nagar, M.G. Road, New Delhi-110 065.)
