Yoga therapy is gaining popularity in modern society, just because medical treatments are sometimes becoming helpless in certain diseases. Most of the people turn to Yoga only when they have some health problem for which, one reason or another, medical treatment could not give satisfactory results. This is valid for many of the chronic diseases, which often can be attenuated but not cured and also for the psychosomatic ones, where the psychic factor is especially evident and which are therefore difficult to treat with the common medical methods. What can Yoga therapy offer these patients?

The approach. Theoretical and practical, to disease, or better, to the person who is suffering from a disease, or better, to the person who is suffering from a disease, differs very much from the one of medical science. The latter tries to isolate the pathogenic factor - a microorganism, a toxic substance, a metabolic disorder - and eliminate it. Of course, this principle is valuable, but it fails if the etiology is unknown. In this case the therapy must be symptom-oriented and often proves unsatisfactory. Yoga on the other hand, even if it doesn’t refuse the scientific explanation of a disease, looks at it from another point of view: from the personality of the patient. If he is ill there must be a deeper reason behind it - a disease doesn’t arise by chance. There is an imbalance, a disturbance in whole body-mind-complex, which creates a disease condition. The symptoms, the pathogenic factors, the name of the disease are not the main issue - the root cause lies elsewhere.

Yoga holds that it depends on the individual himself if he is sick or healthy. The same instance, which causes the disease condition, can also cure it. What is called natural healing power is nothing other than that. It’s nothing mystical from outside, but an inner capacity. All that is required is not to interfere with it. Yoga Therapy tries to improve and re-establish the inner balance in many aspect, working from the gross to the subtle. On the physical, mental and spiritual level, it uses.

Asanas: They energize the human-organism, create awareness of the body and its function and stabilise the mind so they can assist each other.

Kriyas: These are simple and natural hygienic procedures, which support the body’s own cleansing and rejuvenating mechanisms and draw the attention of the mind towards the affected area to clear the existed problem.

Pranayamas: These are not mere breathing techniques but more then that, which have very subtle influences on the whole human organism.

Yogic-Diet: Many diseases are directly or indirectly linked with wrong food habits and the way we take them. A change in diet can stimulate and enhance the capabilities of the whole system.

Natural Techniques: The elements water, air, sun and simple procedures like massaging or steam inhalation are used as a support.

The second line of therapy is the work on the mental aspect of human being. Mental disturbances - anxieties, confusion, unsteadiness are the most important factors, which can cause a disease condition. Therefore, various yogic techniques have been developed to create positive mind states. Among others there are:

Relaxation: physical, mental and spiritual level.

Conditioning: while sitting in a meditative posture, one can tries to calm down and concentrate oneself towards the inner peace.

Sentiments: Contemplation in life on certain basic ideas can stimulate a change of attitude towards whole life and its ups and downs.

These are some of the technical means that may be used. The technical aspect is however of minor importance compared to the primary goal: to create a condition which can encourage the patient to give free way to his own inner forces. If he succeeds in doing so, the results can be surprising. If not, Yoga-Therapy is at its limits - it can work only together with nature, not against it.

Yoga has claimed way before that tension is disease and relaxation is health. To this end the whole eightfold path of Yoga is to purify the body, mind complex and their connection with divine.