Basant Pradhan - Yoga and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy: A Clinical Guide

As mentioned before, understanding the ancient Indian philosophies on Yoga and meditation has been an issue even for intellectual geniuses to the likes of Sigmund Freud. Some of the mysteries about Yoga in the Western world arise from the very basic issues of mindbody dichotomy, reductionism, and primacy given to the physical aspects of Yoga in the West as opposed to the holistic approach of the ancient Indian philosophies on Yoga and meditation. Experiential knowledge (as the one in Yoga) is essentially intuitive/non-conceptual, not the knowledge based on concrete sensorial experiences which are considered as mere intellectualizations rather than true experiences. One can see that these are really difficult concepts if one is not brought up in that culture and thus can be very often misinterpreted, based on nuances of languages and culture. In addition to the epistemological discrepancies between Eastern and Western thought, differences in culture and language are also responsible for the Wests misinterpretation of Yoga where it has been mistaken for physical exercise, relaxation techniques, or a form of religious practice. Sanskrit , the original language of Yogic scriptures, is a rich but difficult language that exhibits complex grammar. The meanings of many Sanskrit words are culturally bound, and of those used in the Yogic scriptures many have no equivalent word in other languages. Consequentially, many Yogic techniques popularized in the West bare no ties to the philosophies proposed in the Yogic scriptures of ancient India. Furthermore, the true masters of Yoga often live reclusively (this is the Yogic traditions of Aranyaka or the forest culture ), rarely leaving nature. Alternatively, many of the Yoga gurus (teachers) that do engage with mainstream society do not have the proper experiential knowledge of Yoga to instruct others. Unfamiliar with classical Yogic traditions, these gurus often use Yogic concepts too concretely and/or proselytize misinterpretations of Yoga. Needless to say, without real practice/direct experience, Yoga is just another slogan. One cannot discuss Yoga in its authentic and true sense without the mastery of at least some of the ancient Indian philosophies, as well as the experiential nature of its practice. As it is true for any experiential discipline and more so for Yoga and meditation, some forms of abstractness and intuitive capacity are essential for grasping the original concepts of Yoga. Thus, one can see clearly here that the Yogic experiences, although documented over many millennia, cannot be verified that well by traditional experimental techniques (which are suitable for demonstrating the concrete only). The misconceptions surrounding Yoga are similar to the popular five blind men and the elephant metaphor. In this when five blind men in a small town are describing an elephant, each of them is narrating only part of the truth (in this case describing various body parts of the elephant as the whole elephant) but nonetheless emphatically claiming his own version as the only truth. They are all correct from their own point of view, but only partially. Finally, the wise man they consulted says each one of them is correct and each is wrong too. He further advises them that if they put their partial views together, they will get a true sense of the elephant . In other words, the holistic (rather than reductionist) view is a prerequisite for appraisal of reality. These points apply to the difficulties in the design as well as interpretations of the Yoga and meditation research done in the West. Needless to say that in the best interest of mankind, to be able to use the ancient wisdom of Yoga in its true sense, a great degree of demystification as well as standardization involving more integrated insights of the East as well as the West are of necessity and are long overdue.