Thursday, August 27, 2015
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Relevance of Practicing Karate and
Yoga for an Integral Growth
in Religious Life
When
I recollect on the learning of Karate, I would like to stress its significance
for the integral growth of any person. I believe that
there are numerous benefits for a woman who participates in karate, and it is
not just for men. I had thought that karate is either for attack or for self
defense, but my experience with karate taught me that it is not at all for
attack and is much more than self defense. It is true that women should know
how to defend themselves if the need arises. Women are viewed as the weaker
sex, and therefore are the target of crimes. Karate can replace timidity with
technique. Self control is a fundamental
principle taught in karate. Karate can teach women about themselves and how to
better control their emotions. In addition to that Karate builds self esteem by
enabling women to feel capable of defending themselves and by overcoming challenges.
Karate rewards participants with new belt colors. Advancing from one belt to
the next brings a feeling of accomplishment. In this busy world, the learning
of karate helps to relieve stress and anger. It allows anger and stress to be
displayed in an acceptable manner. The physical activity coupled with a feeling
of accomplishment makes karate a natural stress reliever. Indeed, Karate is
hard work, but it is hard work that pays off in many ways. Karate also provides
an excellent workout for the entire body. It increases muscle strength, balance
and flexibility for the body.
There
are various styles of Karate. I was
learning the Karate style ‘Wado-Ryu’
which means way to harmony. The benefits of ‘Wado-Ryu’
are many. Aside from the obvious physical aspects such as strength, fitness,
agility and balance, ‘Wado-Ryu’
emphasizes the development of respect, honor, discipline, and understanding in
a mental as well as a physical capacity.
From my own experience I can say that I became more confident, balanced
and disciplined in my personality. Karate provides countless advantages to
women as well as men. To get these benefits, we should have the readiness to
join a karate class and commit to the program. Surely it would help us to lead
a committed life too.
As
I think on the practice of Yoga, I believe that the heart of Yoga is
spirituality, which can be best defined as the process of self awareness, self
discovery and self realization. Self purification, self study and continues
contemplation on Isvara (The Almighty)
constitutes practical yoga, which is also the aim of Christian Spirituality.
Every Christian is called lead a spiritual life where Spirituality is a
personal inner journey. In fact, Yoga is a way to inner peace and harmony
during this personal inner journey. The word Yoga means ‘union’, the goal of it
is to unite one’s transitory (temporary) self, ‘Jiva’ with the infinite ‘Brahman’.
Swami Gitananda Giri Gurumaharaj says, “Yoga is four fold awareness; awareness
of body, awareness of emotions, awareness of mind and awareness of awareness.
One should start with the awareness of just how unaware one is!”. Hence, Yoga
plays a significant role for the integral growth of any person. The following
are the three ways, which any religious person or even a Christian can make
sense of Yoga in the daily life.
·
Yoga as a way to prepare for meditative
prayer: A few simple yoga exercises would help us become relaxed in body,
relieved of mental preoccupation and restful in spirit. It would lead us to
maintain the posture of our meditation too.
·
As a practice in cultivating spiritual
values: Patience, sensitivity, non-judgment and many similar spiritual values
can be cultivated on yoga mat. As we work with our abilities and limitations of
our bodies and our habitual ways of responding to challenges, we have the
opportunities to practice these virtues.
·
As a physical health practice: A good
yoga routine is one of the most comprehensive, holistic health practices
available. All of the dimensions of physical fitness are cultivated in an
integrated way. These include strength, flexibility, balance, coordination,
concentration and deep breathing.
In
my view, yoga enables me to have a positive valuing of the body, its ways of
knowing, creating an awareness of my interconnectedness with other bodies,
human and non human, increasing the capacity of concentration and meditation.
Above all, I realize that yoga practice leads me from ignorance to enlightenment,
to experience ‘Atman’ within ‘atman’- God within oneself.
“Blessed
are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Mt. 5:8). The vision of god is
the highest goal of all the religions in particular to Christian Spiritual
life. Systematic and regular practice of yoga as well as karate would make the
body, mind and spirit of a person pure. Ultimately it leads us to be in union
with the Almighty.
- Sr.
Bincy K. Mathew UMI
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