BANGALORE: Shat kriyas, also known as Shatkarmas, are a very important part of Hatha Yoga. Nowadays, however, we see that people don’t give it much importance (especially in western countries).
Yogic exercises (asanas) became very popular all over the world. It happened because they look beautiful and impressive. Almost everyone can do it and it seems that it is enough to gain good health and keep the body young and strong. But this understanding is absolutely wrong. Real Yoga starts from inside, and Hatha Yoga is not an exception. If we will have a look at the original yogic texts, such as Hatha Yoga pradipika and Gheranda Samhita, we’ll see that Shatkarmas - the six techniques of internal purification of the body are the very beginning of the Hatha Yoga process. They are: dhauti, neti, nauli, trataka, kapalabhati, basti. Hatha Yoga is an ancient science about body and mind and their connection. The goal of it is the Divine Bliss or shining of the True Pure Consciousness, which is meant to be achieved through the body. So, body is an instrument of Hatha Yoga and sadhaka (the one who is performing sadhana, or spiritual practice) have to make it sharp and perfect. Shatkarmas are very helpful in this case. Obviously, the practise of Shat kriyas will help us to make the performance of asana and pranayama more effective and proper, and it means that higher steps of Yoga also will be reached.
At the same time yogic cleansing techniques can be used for healing diseases and can be performed by a person who is not following the path of Yoga. Efficiency of it in this case will not be reduced, and this is the phenomena of Hatha Yoga. Medical use of these techniques can bring big benefit to people who are suffering from incurable illnesses. Thus, there are two ways of using Shatkarmas, and both of them are equally good. The choice depends on the aim of practician.
“When fat or mucus is excessive, Shatkarma: the six cleansing techniques, should be practiced before (pranayama). Others, in whom the doshas, ie phlegm, wind and bile, are balanced should not do them.”
According to this shloka from “Hatha Yoga pradipika”, Shatkarmas should be performed when there is a imbalance in three elements, or tridosha in the body. Tridosha is the main concept of Ayurveda, and here we can clearly see the connection between Yoga and Ayurveda. Both systems are developed to keep body healthy with the using of natural ways, such as proper diet, herbs, physical exercises and Shatkarmas (Ayurvedic analog is Panchakarma).
A yogi should start his sadhana (spiritual practice) with the purification of all organs of the body, and only after this he should start the practice of asana and pranayama. Why is it so important? Asana and pranayama are activating prana (vital energy) in the body.
Prana flows through the special channels - nadis, and when they are clean it flows easily and progress in yoga becomes faster. Nadis being settled in a subtle body (sukshma sharir) are anyway connected with physical body (sthul sharir) and if they are purified, all the energy, which is increased by asana and pranayama will be wasted for purification and will be certainly lost.
Until body contains toxins and extra phlegm, bile and air inside it, purification of nadis is not possible. So, here we can see the importance of Shatkarmas in this process: it should remove all the obstacles on the way of prana and make practice of asana and pranayama more effective.
To be a yogi means to live in harmony with the universal process, and it is possible only when your inner self is in harmony with the outer world. “Mens sana in corpore sana” - said the Greek sage. It means that in healthy body the spirit is healthy. Path of Hatha Yoga is coming through the physical body, which is the part of nature, and has it’s weak points which are possible to get rid of with the practice of Shatkarmas. As great yogi Jesus Christ said: “This body is your temple”. So, keep it clean and you will have an opportunity to perceive the higher dimensions of everlasting consciousness.
There is no disease which cannot be cured through practicing it. For sure, one gram of practice in Hatha Yoga is more worthy then a ton of theory.