Part I integrated approach of yoga in Bhagavadgita, part II a study of the prevalence of diabetes in Valayanad village, Kozhikode, Kerala

Abstract

The word yoga has a wide variety of connotations ranging from absorption in the ultimate spirit to an Ayurvedic recipe. In common parlance, yoga means the yoga system of philosophy propounded by Patanjali which is one among the Shad-darsanas of ancient Indian philosophical systems. Of these yoga alone has the unique distinction of being accepted as a practical spiritual science while the others are mostly speculative in character. Yoga presents large number of yoga practices- Jnana, Karma, Raja, Bhakti, Laya, Hatha, kundalini, Swara, Nada, Dhyana and Japa are some of the numerous methods of yoga. Though there are different yoga practices, there is a unified goal in these diversified approaches- Moksha. The Bhagavadgita, the manifest quintessence of all the teachings of the vedic scripture’s integrates all the diversified streams of yoga into the ultimate supreme aim of bringing a person to the level of sattva. The common features of all the various streams of yoga are the one that brings unity among all these diversities which forms the foundation of Indian culture. It says that, there is consciousness at the base of everything and everything is nothing but the specific manifestation of the same consciousness. This idea helps to unite not only India but the whole universe. The Gita upholds and expatiates on the several paths leading to union with the divine. As such we find the ideas of all the principal yogas distributed all over the book, though there are specific chapters: bearing the name of Karma yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga etc.