Have you ever counted how many thoughts cross your mind every minute? And on how many of them does your mind hook up giving a whole railway of thoughts and story lines?
Scientists say around 50 thoughts per minute, yogis say 50 thousands! Can we stop the mind from generating thoughts? No, that is what the mind does, it is its job. We cannot silence it completely, but we can keep it more quiet by controlling how we react to the occurring thoughts. That is yoga, that is the first most important aim of yoga practice. How to manage to control the mind. Although today the word yoga has been related to a flexible body and a beautiful down-facing dog, yoga is far beyond a series of postures that have been inserted in the yogic practice only in the modern era. The practice of yoga encompasses a variety of tools that can help a human control his thoughts and quiet his mind. From physical postures and breathing exercises to focused attention and mantra repetition, the thought-waves are canalized and the mind is being trained to detach from its intrusive thoughts, for it is too busy to pay attention to them. The mental techniques together with the physical practice bring a sense of calmness as both the central and the autonomous nervous systems are being worked-out in parallel. This will happen to everyone during a yoga session that consists of all those tools. However, to train the mind one needs to practice frequently and consistently, specifically if the rhythms of his daily life are very intense. With a long term practice, not only the mind remains controlled but also in moments of emergency or stress we react very differently, more adequately and more constructively.