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The basics of the effects of yoga practices

A talk on the dangers of substance abuse and the healing power of specific yoga practices.

"Me, as a medical doctor, am of course against the drugs and against that cannabis or hashish should be legalized here in Europe."

"This positive energy we feel when we are in yoga nidrā, this scans our... Body, it starts with think about your right toe, left toe, heel, etc."

A medical doctor and yoga practitioner addresses a retreat, first warning against the legalization of drugs like cannabis and sharing experiences with addiction. He then presents prāṇāyāma and yoga nidrā as essential tools for cultivating attention, well-being, and a healthy prefrontal cortex, explaining the mind-body connection. The talk concludes with a request for blessings.

Filming location: Strilky, Czech Republic

Praṇām Swāmījī, Vivek Purī, sannyāsīs, dear yoga brothers and sisters. First, I would like to thank you, Swāmījī, for your eternal blessings, the energy you spread around you, and the energy you give to us here on this whole Earth and to the rest of the yogīs. Viveka Purī, thank you for your fantastic exercises. They are practically and very methodically showing how we should not do and how we should do correctly. Thank you to all the organizers who made this yoga retreat possible. I know that all of you know it, but I will emphasize it again, that such a luxury, you cannot find it everywhere. Thank you, organizers, all karma yogīs. I would like to share with you two topics. The first one is drugs. As most probably most of you know, unfortunately, cannabis is under discussion to be legalized here in Europe. It is already legalized in several states in the US. You know also what happened, that the Canadian government let heroin, amphetamine, morphine, cannabis, ecstasy to be... And you also know that the Canadian government is already allowing heroin, cannabis, amphetamine, and other drugs. In the state of British Columbia, these are legal to use for private use from the 31st of January 2023, and for three years further, until 2026. In British Columbia, they have already legislated that from January 2023, these drugs can be legally used for private purposes. And me, as a medical doctor, am of course against the drugs and against that cannabis or hashish should be legalized here in Europe. I have been working, unfortunately, with the kids who were addictive. And it's also written in the books that people with anxiety, loneliness, nervousness, depression, and many other psychological diseases are unfortunately using illegal drugs. And unfortunately, it is documented that people with depression, anxiety, fear, and other psychological disorders illegally use drugs. Not to forget alcohol, which is legal, besides all the drugs we doctors write out for painkillers, anxiety, antidepressants, and psychotic drugs. Aha, pak sou tady ještě ty tzv. legální drogy, jako alkohol, a připočte k tomu ještě všechny ty léčiva, které lékaři předepisují jako antidepresiva nebo antipsychotika. You most probably remember from several decades ago when Xanax or Xanor came out on the market, then doctors were really clapping their hands, "Now the magic drugs came which will make everybody happy." And you know that a few years ago, when Xanax was improved, or under different names, all doctors at that time thought and glanced at what a miraculous drug it is. And now to the main point. Please be careful. Brothers and sisters, what is most important in life? I want to be a good husband, a good friend, a good father, and a good human being with you and with those around me. I want to be a good father, a good man, a good friend. I want to be good to myself and to you and to everyone around me. And this is under the control of my attention as a single human. This can be achieved perfectly by two main things. And guess what? Do you have any ideas? Yoga in daily life is an optimal thing, but what in yoga daily life can we achieve? Better attention? Absolutely correct. Prāṇāyāma. And one more thing. Yoga nidrā. Yoga nidrā... Of course. Of course. Listen, this, the meditation is under control of breathing. And the fantastic thing is, whatever happens in the body is mirrored to the brain, and vice versa. So here, the special place, which is thick as an orange shell, the prefrontal cortex, starting from here until here. The prefrontal cortex, which starts here on the forehead, is behind the forehead. The prefrontal cortex takes care of many complexes occurring in the body and the brain. For example, cognition, body movement, the ability to make decisions, adapting and adjusting to situations, and social skills. Every movement we do, like this or... So these single movements, the effect of them is also in the brain, the prefrontal cortex. And when we sit like this and feel the stretch in our spinal column, our knees, and wherever it affects, because these thoughts affect the circulation, the lymphatic system, the same things appear in the body. Just to remind you, whoever has been here before and is going home, Imagine that energy we feel, that happiness we feel. I can tell for myself, leaving yoga camp, yoga retreat in Strilky, it's like to be, to go 10 cm above the earth, because of that happiness, that energy Swāmījī gives to us. Protože já za sebe můžu říct, já když odjíždím z takového programu, tak si připadám, jako bych se vznášel 10 cm nad zemí, díky té energii, kterou dostáváme od Swāmījīho. And I would like to emphasize here, what are Prāṇāyāma and Yoga Nidrā doing especially? Because this process is in single parts, every yoga movement we do prepares us for tomorrow. All of us have to make a decision tomorrow. I have to wake up and pack the car because we are going to leave the day after. And other complex decisions between humans, and sometimes very sad decisions. This is accumulated in the prefrontal cortex and other parts of the brain. And this is under the effect, because our body is a mirror of our brain and vice versa. Because we said that the whole body is reflected in the brain and reversed. For example, when you have a pain in your body, the medicine, knowledge is telling you to continue to make practices. Why? The medical view on it is: continue with the exercise, but why? Observe, it's not that pain should be killed by pain. Absolutely not. Make exercises even if you have a pain in the knee and somewhere. But please, until the pain starts, Stop when it's painful, because, as I said a few minutes ago, this pain process is also accumulated in the brain. Therefore, yoga brothers and sisters, be gentle to your body and to your brain. This positive energy we feel when we are in yoga nidrā, this scans our... Body, it starts with think about your right toe, left toe, heel, etc., and from top to up and from top to down to the feet. A víte, že začínáme od prstů na nohách a pokračujeme od prstů až k temení hlavy a od hlavy až k nohám. I have to sometimes, it's painful to lie down and make this scanning because it needs effort. A někdy je to náročné tohle si lehnout a takto vědomně si to tělo projít, protože to vyžaduje úsilí. Medicine for this is good exercises. So, dear yoga brothers and sisters, it has been a pleasure to be here in three weeks. If there are any questions I can answer, please, if not, I beg for your further blessing for us in this whole and for the rest of the earth. Thank you.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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