1 1416 95 IMPORTANCE OF MANAS TATTVA: A SEARCHLIGHT IN YOGA DARSHANA. SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL 'MANAS' HAS BEEN THE SUBJECT OF CURIOSITY FOR SCHOLARS, SCIENTISTS AND PHILOSOPHERS. THE REASON BEHIND THIS CURIOSITY IS ITS IMPORTANCE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF MANKIND. HUMAN BEING IS SUPERIOR TO OTHER CREATURES IN THE SERIES OF DEVELOPMENT. THIS SUPREMACY OF MAN REMAINS IN HIS QUALITY TO WORK AFTER THINKING, WHICH IS THE FUNCTION OF 'MANAS'. NO OTHER ANIMAL IS CAPABLE TO THINK LOGICALLY. THIS IS THE ONLY REASON WHICH LEADS THE MANKIND TO THE CREST OF DEVELOPMENT IN EVERY ASPECT. TO HIGHLIGHT THE CONCEPT OF MANAS IN YOGA DARSHANA, INFORMATION EXTRACTED FROM YOGA LITERATURES AND AYURVEDIC SAMHITAS. IN INDIAN CULTURE MIND HAS BEEN DESCRIBED FROM VARIOUS ANGLES. VEDIC, PHILOSOPHICAL AND AYURVEDIC LITERATURES HAVE A VAST AND EXCLUSIVE DESCRIPTION OF MANAS. PHILOSOPHERS EITHER ASTIKA OR NASTIKA HAVE DESCRIBED MANAS SIDDHANTA VIVIDLY. THOUGH MANY KINDS OF DIFFERENCE OF OPINIONS ARE THERE, YOGA DARSHANA ACCEPT THE IMPORTANCE OF MIND IN THE PROCESS OF PERCEPTION AND EVEN FOR THE BIRTH OF ANY INDIVIDUAL. 2014 2 1674 14 NURTURING THE FEMALE BODY: NOTIONS OF WELLBEING IN WOMB YOGA. ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES WHICH AIM TO ENHANCE WOMEN'S WELLBEING HAVE BEEN ACCUSED OF CONTRIBUTING TO HEALTHIST AND POSTFEMINIST AGENDAS WHICH REST UPON A NEOLIBERAL LOGIC. I CRITICALLY ENGAGE WITH THIS ISSUE HERE THROUGH AN ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY OF WOMB YOGA, A WOMEN'S ALTERNATIVE THERAPY DEVELOPED IN THE UK. I ARGUE THAT WHILE BEING COMMERCIAL AND EMPHASIZING PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY, WOMB YOGA LARGELY WORKS AGAINST THE CURRENT NEOLIBERAL OPTIMIZATION IDEAL. WOMB YOGA PRACTITIONERS DISMISS GOAL-ORIENTED SELF-MANAGEMENT AND DISCIPLINE, AND AVOID A SIMPLE REPRODUCTION OF GENDER STEREOTYPES BY DEFLECTING CARE AWAY FROM OTHER-DIRECTEDNESS AND OPENING THE INTERPRETATION OF FEMININITY TO THE IMAGINATIVE AND EXPERIENTIAL REALMS. 2021 3 2809 15 YOGA THERAPY: BUILDING A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT FOR SOMATIC AND PSYCHE CHANGE. DRAWING ON IDEAS FROM D.W. WINNICOTT AND THE WORK OF QUAKER THEOLOGIAN PARKER PALMER, THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES THE CONCEPT OF A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT, ITS REFINED UNDERSTANDING IN THE LITERATURE OVER THE YEARS, AND HOW IT CAN BE OPTIMALLY USED IN YOGA THERAPY. THE EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT EFFECTIVELY ESTABLISHING A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT CAN FACILITATE BOTH SOMATIC AND DEEP STRUCTURAL CHANGE IN A CLIENT, FACILITATING HEALING FROM PRIMAL WOUNDING AS WELL AS THE POTENTIAL RECONNECTION TO THE TRUE SELF. 2015 4 1265 16 FLEXIBILITY-NOT JUST FOR YOGA ANYMORE! OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, NUCLEOSIDES HAVE MAINTAINED A PROMINENT ROLE AS ONE OF THE CORNERSTONES OF ANTIVIRAL AND ANTICANCER THERAPEUTICS, AND MANY APPROACHES TO NUCLEOSIDE DRUG DESIGN HAVE BEEN PURSUED. ONE SUCH APPROACH INVOLVES FLEXIBILITY IN THE SUGAR MOIETY OF NUCLEOSIDES, FOR EXAMPLE, IN THE HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL ANTI-HIV AND HBV DRUG TENOFOVIR. IN CONTRAST, INTRODUCTION OF FLEXIBILITY TO THE NUCLEOBASE SCAFFOLD HAS ONLY MORE RECENTLY GAINED SIGNIFICANCE WITH THE INVENTION OF OUR FLEXIMERS. THE HISTORY, DEVELOPMENT, AND SOME BIOLOGICAL RELEVANCE FOR THIS INNOVATIVE CLASS OF NUCLEOSIDES ARE DETAILED HEREIN. 2018 5 1614 14 MIND AND CONSCIOUSNESS IN YOGA - VEDANTA: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS WITH WESTERN PSYCHOLOGICAL CONCEPTS. STUDY OF MIND AND CONSCIOUSNESS THROUGH ESTABLISHED SCIENTIFIC METHODS IS OFTEN DIFFICULT DUE TO THE OBSERVED-OBSERVER DICHOTOMY. CARTESIAN APPROACH OF DUALISM CONSIDERING THE MIND AND MATTER AS TWO DIVERSE AND UNCONNECTED ENTITIES HAS BEEN QUESTIONED BY ORIENTAL SCHOOLS OF YOGA AND VEDANTA AS WELL AS THE RECENT QUANTUM THEORIES OF MODERN PHYSICS. FREUDIAN AND NEO-FREUDIAN SCHOOLS BASED ON THE CARTESIAN MODEL HAVE BEEN CRITICIZED BY THE HUMANISTIC SCHOOLS WHICH COME MUCH CLOSER TO THE VEDANTIC APPROACH OF UNITARINESS. A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE TWO APPROACHES IS DISCUSSED. 2013 6 533 11 COMPARISON OF TWO TAGTEACH ERROR-CORRECTION PROCEDURES TO TEACH BEGINNER YOGA POSES TO ADULTS. TEACHING WITH ACOUSTICAL GUIDANCE INVOLVES AUDITORY FEEDBACK (E.G., A CLICK SOUND WHEN A DESIRED BEHAVIOR OCCURS) AS PART OF A MULTICOMPONENT INTERVENTION KNOWN AS TAGTEACH. TAGTEACH HAS BEEN FOUND TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE IN SPORT, DANCE, SURGICAL TECHNIQUE, AND WALKING. WE COMPARED THE EFFICACY AND EFFICIENCY OF THE STANDARD TAGTEACH ERROR-CORRECTION PROCEDURE AND A MODIFIED TAGTEACH ERROR-CORRECTION PROCEDURE TO TEACH 4 NOVICE ADULT YOGA PRACTITIONERS BEGINNER YOGA POSES. BOTH ERROR-CORRECTION PROCEDURES WERE EFFECTIVE FOR ALL PARTICIPANTS; HOWEVER, THE RELATIVE EFFICIENCY OF THESE ERROR-CORRECTION PROCEDURES WAS UNCLEAR. RESULTS ARE DISCUSSED IN TERMS OF LIMITATIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH. 2020 7 1993 16 STANDARDISATION OF KUTAJADI VISHESH YOGA. AMOEBIASIS IS A PROBLEM IN NORTHERN INDIA. IN AYURVEDA SEVERAL HERBAL DRUGS ARE MENTIONED, TO BE USED FOR CONTROLLING THE AMATISARA (AMOEBIASIS) BUT NONE OF THE DRUG ARE FOUND HAVING POTENT EFFECT TO IRADICATE THE DISEASE. IN ANCIENT LITERATURE KUTAJ (HOLARRHENA ANTIDYSENTRICA) IS MENTIONED IN COMMONEST WAS FOR CONTROLLING THE DISEASE THIS PLANT IS PREVALENTLY FOUND IN HIMALAYAN AND VINDHAYA AREA. IT IS VERY EFFECTIVE FOR RELIEVING AMOEBIASIS. BY SEEING ITS THEURAPTIC IMPORTANCE WE HAVE TRIED TO STANDARDIZE THE COMPOUND IN WHOLE WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO KUTAJ. THE DETAIL COMPOSITION AND METHOD OF PREPARATION OF DRUG WITH ITS THERAPEUTIC EFFECT WILL BE NARRATED DURING THE TIME OF WORKSHOP. 1998 8 409 17 BLENDING MARTIAL ARTS AND YOGA FOR HEALTH: FROM THE LAST SAMURAI TO THE FIRST ODAKA YOGA WARRIOR. THIS PAPER INTRODUCES THE CASE STUDY OF ODAKA YOGA, AN INNOVATIVE STYLE OF POSTURAL YOGA BLENDED WITH MARTIAL ARTS ELEMENTS WHICH EMPHASIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF PRACTITIONERS' HEALTH AND PROCESSES OF SELF-TRANSFORMATION AS PIVOTAL TO THE SCHOOL'S ETHOS. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THE PAPER EXPLORES HOW ODAKA YOGA'S PHILOSOPHICAL BACKDROPS AND PRACTICAL REPERTOIRE, COMPOSED BY A MIXTURE OF "EXOTIC" RESOURCES SUCH AS BUSHIDO, ZEN, YOGA, AND A CONSTANT REFERENCE TO THE OCEAN WAVES AND BIOMECHANICS, CONSTITUTE A VERY SPECIFIC VISION OF HEALTH AT THE INTERSECTION OF WESTERN SCIENCE AND ESOTERIC KNOWLEDGE. THEORETICALLY, THE PAPER BORROWS FROM JENNINGS' THEORY OF MARTIAL CREATION AND ENRICHES IT WITH SOME OF THE CENTRAL ANALYTICAL TOOLS PROPOSED BY THEORISTS SUCH AS BOURDIEU AND FOUCAULT. METHODOLOGICALLY, IT RELIES ON A MULTIMODAL APPROACH INCLUDING DISCURSIVE ANALYSIS OF THE SCHOOL'S PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS, INTERVIEWS WITH THE FOUNDERS AND OTHER KEY TEACHERS, AND OBSERVANT PARTICIPATION OF PRACTITIONERS' APPRENTICESHIP PROCESSES. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THIS PAPER DISCUSSES THE BIRTH OF ODAKA YOGA AS OCCURRING AT THE INTERSECTION OF ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS AND YOGA, AS WELL AS THE FOUNDERS' BIOGRAPHICAL TRAJECTORIES FROM THE WORLD OF COMPETITIVE MARTIAL ARTS AND FITNESS, TO YOGA; IT THEN TURNS TO AN EXAMINATION OF ODAKA YOGA'S CONCEPTION OF HEALTH AS A MIXTURE OF THE WESTERN BIOMEDICAL MODEL AND THE SUBTLE BODY MODEL OF ASIAN TRADITIONS SUCH AS YOGA AND MARTIAL ARTS. IT ARGUES THAT THE CONCEPTION OF HEALTH PROMOTED BY THIS SCHOOL GIVES RISE TO THE ODAKA YOGA WARRIOR, THE IDEAL-TYPICAL PRACTITIONER WHOSE BODY IS SIMULTANEOUSLY EXPOSED TO THE MEDICAL GAZE AND ITS IMPERATIVES OF CONTROL, KNOWLEDGE, AND MANIPULATION; WHILE IT ALSO DEIFIES IT, AS IT IS ANIMATED BY THE ELUSIVE FLOWS OF ENERGY (QI OR PRANA) THAT PROLONGED PRACTICE AIMS TO MASTER. THE PAPER CONCLUDES WITH A REFLECTION ON HYBRID CONCEPTIONS OF HEALTH AND THE UBIQUITOUS ROLE OF HEALTH DISCOURSES AND NARRATIVES ACROSS SOCIOCULTURAL DOMAINS. 2020 9 2498 13 YOGA AS SANCTUARY: A VALUABLE MIND-BODY INTERVENTION FOR THE LESBIAN COMMUNITY. POETIC AUTOETHNOGRAPHY PROVIDES A RESEARCH METHODOLOGY TO EXPLORE YOGA AS A MIND-BODY INTERVENTION THAT CREATES SANCTUARY. USING THIS QUALITATIVE METHOD AND RETRIEVING DATA FROM MY PERSONAL JOURNALS, DAILY WORKOUT JOURNALS, EXPERIENCES AS A LESBIAN-IDENTIFIED PARTICIPANT IN YOGA CLASSES, AND YOGA INSTRUCTOR, I TURN THE RESEARCH LENS ON MYSELF IN ORDER TO EXAMINE MY SOCIOLOGICAL LIFE STORY. AT A CRITICAL TIME IN MY LIFE WHEN I WAS STRUGGLING WITH THE FRAGMENTATION, ANXIETY, AND DESPAIR RESULTING FROM DEALING WITH HOMOPHOBIA IN A HETERONORMATIVE WORLD, YOGA PROVIDED SANCTUARY FOR ME. MY YOGA PRACTICE INCREASED MY SELF-EFFICACY, PROVIDING TRANSFERABLE TECHNIQUES FOR FINDING REFUGE WITHIN MYSELF, IRRESPECTIVE OF THE ADVERSITY I WAS FACING IN MY LIFE. PLACES OF SANCTUARY ARE CRITICAL FOR MEMBERS OF MINORITY GROUPS WHO OFTEN FACE MARGINALIZATION AND OPPRESSION, WHICH COMPROMISE THEIR WELL-BEING. 2017 10 1764 19 POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT AND REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF F1 PROGENY EXPOSED IN UTERO TO AN AYURVEDIC CONTRACEPTIVE: PIPPALIYADI YOGA. PIPPALIYADI YOGA OR PIPPALIYADI VATI IS AN AYURVEDIC CONTRACEPTIVE USED IN INDIA SINCE ANCIENT TIMES. IT IS A COMBINATION OF POWDERED FRUIT BERRIES OF EMBELIA RIBES BURM.F. (MYRSINACEAE), PIPER LONGUM L. (PIPERACEAE) AND BORAX IN EQUAL PROPORTION. THOUGH THE CONTRACEPTIVE POTENTIAL IS KNOWN SINCE ANCIENT TIMES, NO SYSTEMATIC DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY STUDIES HAVE BEEN CARRIED OUT. THE PRESENT STUDY WAS CARRIED OUT TO EVALUATE THE POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY AND THE REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGENY EXPOSED IN UTERO TO PIPPALIYADI. PIPPALIYADI YOGA WAS OBTAINED FROM NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR PHARMACEUTICAL EDUCATION AND RESEARCH (NIPER), INDIA AND THE DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY WAS STUDIED BY ADMINISTERING THREE DOSES, VIZ. 140, 300 AND 700 MG/(KG DAY) TO GRAVID FEMALES FROM DAY 6 TO DAY 16 OF GESTATION. PIPPALIYADI DID NOT HAVE ANY ADVERSE DEVELOPMENTAL EFFECTS WITH LOW DOSES, HOWEVER, WITH THE FIVE TIMES HIGHER DOSE, A DECREASE IN BODY WEIGHT OF THE PUPS WAS OBSERVED. THE REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGENY BORN TO MOTHERS TREATED WITH PIPPALIYADI WAS NOT SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTED. THE PRESENT STUDY SUGGESTS THAT IN UTERO EXPOSURE TO PIPPALIYADI DOES NOT HAVE ANY ADVERSE EFFECT ON THE POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT AND REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE F(1) PROGENY. 2007 11 2309 7 TRANSFORMING CARE WITH YOGA THERAPY. VERONICA RIERA-GILLEY PARTNERS WITH CERTIFIED YOGA THERAPIST ANGEL BROWNLEE TO DISCUSS THE ADAPTABILITY OF A YOGA PRACTICE TO AN OLDER PERSON'S UNIQUE MOVEMENT NEEDS AS THEY PROGRESS THROUGH LATE-LIFE TO END-OF-LIFE. THE AUTHORS DISCUSS THE BENEFITS OF AND PROVIDE RESOURCES FOR YOGA THERAPY. 2021 12 2839 17 YOGA, AHIMSA AND CONSUMING ANIMALS: UK YOGA TEACHERS' BELIEFS ABOUT FARMED ANIMALS AND ATTITUDES TO PLANT-BASED DIETS. YOGA IS A HOLISTIC DISCIPLINE ORIGINATING IN ANCIENT INDIA. YOGA HAS LINKS WITH HINDUISM, BUDDHISM AND JAINISM BASED ON A SHARED PHILOSOPHICAL FRAMEWORK OF UNITY WITH ALL BEINGS AND BELIEF IN AHIMSA, MEANING NON-HARMING. THERE IS DEBATE IN THE INTERNATIONAL YOGA COMMUNITY ABOUT THE SPIRITUAL, ETHICAL AND HEALTH-RELATED LINKS BETWEEN YOGA AND PLANT-BASED DIETS. THIS MIXED METHODOLOGY RESEARCH INVESTIGATES THE BELIEFS ABOUT THE MORAL STATUS OF FARMED ANIMALS AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS PLANT-BASED DIETS OF UK YOGA TEACHERS. A SEQUENTIAL MIXED-METHODS DESIGN EMPLOYING A QUESTIONNAIRE AND SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS IS USED. THIS PAPER FOCUSES ON THE QUESTIONNAIRE-BASED PHASE OF THE RESEARCH. KEY RESULTS ARE: (I) UK YOGA TEACHERS HAVE VERY PROGRESSIVE BELIEFS ABOUT THE MORAL STATUS OF FARMED ANIMALS; (II) 29.6% OF UK YOGA TEACHERS FOLLOW A PLANT-BASED DIET (N = 446), WHICH IS 25-FOLD THE PROPORTION IN THE WIDER UK POPULATION; (III) 73.9% DESIRE TO FOLLOW A PLANT-BASED DIET; (IV) 68.6% REGARD PLANT-BASED DIETS AS BEST ALIGNED TO THEIR YOGIC PRACTICE; AND (V) UK YOGA TEACHERS WITH MORE PROGRESSIVE BELIEFS ABOUT FARMED ANIMALS AND WITH MORE SELF-REPORTED KNOWLEDGE OF AGRICULTURE ABSTAIN FROM CONSUMING ANIMAL PRODUCTS TO A GREATER EXTENT. THE FAR HIGHER PROPORTIONS OF UK YOGA TEACHERS FOLLOWING VEGETARIAN AND PLANT-BASED DIETS, RELATIVE TO THE WIDER POPULATION, ARE LIKELY BASED ON APPLYING YOGIC TEACHINGS SUCH AS THE PRINCIPLE OF AHIMSA THROUGH ABSTAINING FROM THE CONSUMPTION OF ANIMAL PRODUCTS. 2020 13 1433 14 IMPROVING THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH POST-YOGA EXERCISE DURING PREGNANCY. YOGA EXERCISES UNDERTAKEN DURING THE MATERNITY PERIOD MAY REDUCE UNPLEASANT SYMPTOMS DURING PREGNANCY AND REDUCE DELIVERY PAIN. FLEXIBILITY OF THE HIP JOINT IMPROVES THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH CREATED IN AN OPEN-LEG POSTURE AND WIDENS THE PELVIC OUTLET REGION, SHORTENING THE TIME REQUIRED FOR DELIVERY AND FACILITATING EASY DELIVERY. THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH IS RELATED TO THE FLEXIBILITY OF THE HIP JOINT. ALTHOUGH MANY STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THE EFFECT OF YOGA EXERCISE DURING PREGNANCY, THE EFFECT ON THE DEGREE OF THE PUBIC ARCH HAS NOT BEEN ELUCIDATED. TO ELUCIDATE WHETHER THE DEGREE OF THE PUBIC ARCH IS IMPROVED BY YOGA EXERCISE DURING PREGNANCY, THIS STUDY ENROLLED 177 PREGNANT SUBJECTS. THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH PRE- AND POST-YOGA EXERCISE WAS MEASURED USING INSTRUMENTS IN AN OPEN-LEG POSTURE (SEATED WITH FEMURS ABDUCTED). THE MEAN PUBIC ARCH PRE- AND POST-YOGA WAS 122.61 AND 127.93 DEGREES, RESPECTIVELY. THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH POST-YOGA SESSIONS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED COMPARED WITH PRE-YOGA SESSIONS (P < 0.01). THIS STUDY SHOWED THAT YOGA EXERCISES DURING THE PREGNANCY PERIOD APPEAR TO IMPROVE THE DEGREE OF PUBIC ARCH. 2021 14 486 17 CLINICAL HYPNOSIS AND PATANJALI YOGA SUTRAS. THE TRANCE STATES IN YOGA AND HYPNOSIS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH SIMILAR PHENOMENA LIKE RELAXATION, DISINCLINATION TO TALK, UNREALITY, MISREPRESENTATION, ALTERATIONS IN PERCEPTION, INCREASED CONCENTRATION, SUSPENSION OF NORMAL REALITY TESTING, AND THE TEMPORARY NATURE OF THE PHENOMENA. WHILE SOME RESEARCHERS CONSIDER YOGA TO BE A FORM OF HYPNOSIS, OTHERS NOTE THAT THERE ARE MANY SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE IN YOGA AND THE HYPNOTIC TRANCE. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMED TO FIND SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE STATES OF HYPNOSIS AND PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS. THE TRANCE STATES WERE COMPARED WITH THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE PHENOMENA OF TRANCE, AND THE THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND BENEFITS OF BOTH. AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONCEPT OF TRANCE IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS WAS GAINED THROUGH A THEMATIC ANALYSIS OF THE BOOK FOUR CHAPTERS ON FREEDOM BY SWAMI SATYANANDA SARASWATI. THIS LED TO AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONCEPT OF TRANCE IN THE YOGA SUTRAS. THE OBTAINED CONCEPTS WERE COMPARED TO THE CONCEPTS OF TRANCE IN HYPNOSIS (OBTAINED THROUGH THE LITERATURE ON HYPNOSIS) TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER OR NOT THERE EXIST SIMILARITIES. THE FINDINGS OF THE STUDY SHOW THAT THERE ARE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE IN HYPNOSIS AND THE TRANCE IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS IN THE INDUCTION AND DEEPENING OF THE TRANCE STATES IN HYPNOSIS AND THAT OF SAMADHI, THE PHENOMENA PRESENT IN HYPNOSIS AND THE KINDS OF SIDDHIS THAT ARE OBTAINED THROUGH SAMADHI, AND THE THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND THE THERAPEUTIC PROCESS IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRA AND HYPNOSIS. 2013 15 2500 15 YOGA AS THE "NEXT WAVE" OF THERAPEUTIC MODALITIES FOR TREATMENT OF INSOMNIA. INSOMNIA RATES CONTINUE TO RISE, ESPECIALLY AMONG SPECIFIC POPULATIONS. CURRENT NONPHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENTS RELY PRIMARILY UPON COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY FOR INSOMNIA (CBT-I), WHICH WAS INTRODUCED IN THE 1970S. NEWER TREATMENTS HAVE INCORPORATED CBT "THIRD WAVE" TECHNIQUES, INCLUDING MINDFULNESS AND ACCEPTANCE TECHNIQUES. YOGA PRACTICE IS WELL SUITED TO COMPLEMENT EXISTING THERAPIES AND TO ADDRESS SLEEP PROBLEMS IN A MORE HOLISTIC WAY. CURRENT THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL APPROACHES TO TREATING INSOMNIA ARE DISCUSSED, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE ROLE OF YOGA IN ADDRESSING PRECIPITATING AND PERPETUATING FACTORS IN INSOMNIA THAT HAVE PREVIOUSLY BEEN LARGELY OVERLOOKED.AN ESTIMATED ONE-THIRD OF U.S. ADULTS SUFFER FROM INSOMNIA (CHEN, GELAYE, & WILLIAMS, 2013; MELLINGER, BALTER, & UHLENHUTH, 1985; OHAYON, 2002), AND THE PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE GROWING. WHILE TREATMENT FOR INSOMNIA HAS HELPED TO ALLEVIATE THE PROBLEM FOR SOME (IRWIN, COLE, & NICASSIO, 2006; MORIN ET AL., 2009), PREVALENCE OF INSOMNIA IS ON THE RISE, ESPECIALLY AMONG CERTAIN GROUPS, INCLUDING ELDERLY AND MILITARY POPULATIONS (MORIN, 2009; MYSLIWIEC ET AL., 2013). RISING RATES OF INSOMNIA HAVE BEEN ATTRIBUTED TO CHANGES IN LIFESTYLE AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS, INCLUDING INCREASED RELIANCE ON TECHNOLOGY AND DECREASED SYNCHRONY WITH NATURAL WAKE-SLEEP RHYTHMS (BRAHINSKY, 2013; WALLACE-GUY ET AL., 2002; YUN, BAZAR, GERBER, LEE, & DANIEL, 2005). 2014 16 2494 13 YOGA AS MEDICINE: UNDERSTANDING BHUTANESE REFUGEE PERSPECTIVES ON HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE. BHUTANESE REFUGEES IN THE U.S. OFTEN STRUGGLE TO ACCESS CULTURALLY COMPETENT HEALTH TREATMENT. ADDRESSING THIS PROBLEM REQUIRES UNDERSTANDING HOW REFUGEES PERCEIVE THEIR HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE NEEDS. SINCE 2015, A COMMUNITY AGENCY HAS IMPLEMENTED COMMUNITY-BASED, PEER-LED SUPPORT GROUPS FOR BHUTANESE REFUGEES, WITH 17 GROUPS IN 2018-2019. THIS STUDY DESCRIBES THE AGENCY'S QUALITY ASSURANCE EVALUATION THROUGH GROUP LEADER FEEDBACK, OBSERVATION REPORTS, AND FOCUS GROUPS. THE RESULTS OF 46 QUALITY ASSURANCE DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT THIS GROUP OF BHUTANESE REFUGEES PERCEIVE THEIR HEALTH THROUGH THE MIND-BODY CONNECTION, VIEWING PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH AS LINKED AND SUPPORTED BY YOGA, MINDFULNESS, EXERCISE, NUTRITION, AND CREATIVE EXPRESSION. 2021 17 84 15 A METAPHYSICS OF LIVING SYSTEMS: THE YOGA-VASISTHA VIEW. THE YOGA-VASISTHA IS A RICH AND COMPLEX PHILOSOPHICAL 'POEM' (KAVYA) OF EPIC LENGTH, WRITTEN IN CLASSICAL SANSKRIT BY AN UNKNOWN AUTHOR SOME TIME BETWEEN THE 6TH AND 13TH CENTURIES CE, PROBABLY AROUND THE 7TH CENTURY. IT IS NOTABLE FOR ITS ELOQUENT PRAISE OF SELF-EFFORT AND ENQUIRY OR ANALYSIS, AND FOR ITS SEVERE DISPARAGEMENT OF THE NOTION OF FATE. IT VIEWS CONSCIOUSNESS AS (A) CHARACTERIZING ALL LIVING FORMS (INCLUDING PLANT AND INSECT LIFE), (B) BEING ATOMIC, AND (C) ANALOGOUS TO THE EMERGENCE OF WAVES AND WHIRLPOOLS IN WATER; IT THEREFORE GRAPPLES WITH WHAT TODAY WOULD BE CALLED THE PROBLEMS OF REDUCTIONISM AND EMERGENTISM. NOTIONS OF THE SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST, AND OF A DYNAMIC PROCESS OF CREATION AND LOSS, ARE EXPRESSED WITH CHARACTERISTIC FORCE. THE PAPER PRESENTS A SELECTION OF VERSES (IN AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION) SETTING FORTH THESE VIEWS, AND A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THEIR IMPLICATIONS. 2002 18 2912 23 [RECENT MEDICAL RESEARCH ON YOGA AND STATES OF CONCENTRATION]. TRADITIONAL ORIENTAL THINKING ATTRACTS THE GROWING SCIENTIFIC INTEREST OF OCCIDENTAL PRACTITIONERS. DR. PIERRE ETEVENON, HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NEURO-PSYCHO-PHARMACOLOGY AT THE FRENCH INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH AND MEDICAL RESEARCH (INSERM), HELD SEVERAL CONVERSATIONS AND SCIENTIFIC EXCHANGES WITH THE AUTHOR, AND KINDLY PROVIDED COPIES OF SOME OF HIS WORKS. THEY ARE AT THE BASIS OF THE PRESENT PAPER. M. A. DESCAMPS (PARIS) FOUND THAT ASANAS--YOGA POSTURES-- ARE GENERATORS OF DYNAMIC ACTION WHEN THERE IS AN EXTENSION OF THE SPINAL COLUMN, WHILST THEY LEAD TO QUIET STATES WHEN THERE IS A FLEXION OF IT. CLAEYS AND GONES (BELGIUM) PROVED THAT OVERALL GLOBAL RELAXATION, AS WELL AS DIFFERENTIAL RELAXATION WERE FAR MORE EFFECTIVE AND DEEP WHEN OBTAINED BY YOGIS THAN THOSE ATTEMPTED BY UNIVERSITY STUDENTS MAJORING IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION. LONSDORFER AND NUSSBAUM (FRANCE) STUDIED SEVERAL PARAMETERS CONCERNING HATHA-YOGA AND CONCLUDED THAT IT PROVIDES A REGULAR FUNCTIONING OF THE MAIN BODILY FUNCTIONS FOSTERING THUS A PSYCHO-PHYSICAL BALANCE. WALLACE AND BENSON (U.S.A.) PROVED THAT TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION INCREASES AEROBIC METABOLISM, COUNTERACTING ANAEROBIC METABOLISM WHICH IS RELATED TO MENTAL DISTRESS. ETEVENON (PARIS) INVESTIGATED NEUROPHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA IN CONNECTION TO ANCIENT INDIAN CONCEPTS (UPANISHADS) ON SLEEPING, MEDITATION AND DEGREE OF CONSCIOUSNESS. DR. ETEVENON HAS STUDIED THE PHYLOGENETIC EVOLUTION OF WAKING-SLEEPING CYCLES, FOCUSING ON PHYLOGENETIC AND ONTONGENETIC APPEARANCES OF REM CYCLES (ACTIVATED SLEEP). A CORRELATION HAS BEEN MADE WITH EEG STUDIES DURING STATES OF CONCENTRATION (YOGA, TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION, ZEN). THESE STATES HAVE BEEN FOUND TO BE SPECIFIC BRAIN ACTIVITIES, AND DIFFERENT FROM DEEP SLEEP, IN SPITE OF CERTAIN SIMILARITIES IN THE EEG. SEVERAL HYPOTHESIS ARE SET FORTH TO EXPLAIN BRAIN ACTIVITIES UNDERLYING SITES OF CONCENTRATION. THE POSSIBILITIES OF DEVELOPING A CONSCIOUS MASTERING OF DREAMS ARE ALSO UNDER RESEARCH, AND SPECIAL ATTENTION IS PAID TO THE WORKS OF SAINT DENYS (1867), AND HINDU TRADITION. THIS PAPER DISCUSSES ALSO THE PSYCHOLOGICAL, THERAPEUTIC AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF RECENT DISCOVERIES IN THE FIELD. 1975 19 1536 14 KETAMINE, TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION, AND DEPRESSION SPECIFIC YOGA AND MINDFULNESS BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY IN MANAGEMENT OF TREATMENT RESISTANT DEPRESSION: REVIEW AND SOME DATA ON EFFICACY. DEPRESSION AFFECTS ABOUT 121 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE AND PREVALENCE OF MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER (MDD) IN US ADULTS IS 6.4%. TREATMENT RESISTANT DEPRESSION (TRD) ACCOUNTS FOR APPROXIMATELY 12-20% OF ALL DEPRESSION PATIENTS AND COSTS $29-$48 BILLION ANNUALLY. KETAMINE AND REPETITIVE TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION (RTMS) HAVE USEFUL ROLES IN TRD, BUT THEIR UTILITY IN LONG TERM IS UNKNOWN. AS PER THE LATEST LITERATURE, THE INTERVENTIONS USING YOGA AND MEDITATION INCLUDING THE MINDFULNESS BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY (MBCT) HAVE BEEN USEFUL IN TREATMENT OF DEPRESSION AND RELAPSE PREVENTION. WE PRESENT A REVIEW OF RTMS, KETAMINE, AND MBCT AND ALSO REPORT EFFICACY OF A DEPRESSION SPECIFIC, INNOVATIVE, AND TRANSLATIONAL MODEL OF YOGA AND MINDFULNESS BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY (DEPS Y-MBCT), DEVELOPED BY THE FIRST AUTHOR. DEPS Y-MBCT AS AN ADJUNCTIVE TREATMENT SUCCESSFULLY AMELIORATED TRD SYMPTOMS IN 27/32 PATIENTS IN AN OPEN LABEL PILOT TRIAL IN TRD PATIENTS. CONSIDERING THE LIMITATIONS OF EXISTING TREATMENT OPTIONS, INCLUDING THOSE OF KETAMINE AND RTMS WHEN USED AS THE SOLE MODALITY OF TREATMENT, WE SUGGEST A "TIERED APPROACH FOR TRD" BY COMBINING KETAMINE AND RTMS (ALONE OR ALONG WITH ANTIDEPRESSANTS) FOR RAPID REMISSION OF ACUTE DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS AND TO USE DEPS Y-MBCT FOR MAINTAINING REMISSION AND PREVENTING RELAPSE. 2015 20 481 15 CLINICAL EFFICACY OF APAMARGA KSHARA YOGA IN THE MANAGEMENT OF SHVITRA (VITILIGO). INTRODUCTION: VITILIGO IS A PROGRESSIVE, IDIOPATHIC, PIGMENTATION DISORDER OF THE SKIN, CHARACTERIZED BY HYPOPIGMENTED PATCHES. THIS CONDITION IS COMPARED WITH SHVITRA IN AYURVEDA. MANY AYURVEDIC DRUGS ARE BENEFICIAL IN SUCH CASES AND APAMARGA KSHARA YOGA IS ONE AMONG THEM. AIM: TO EVALUATE THE EFFICACY OF APAMARGA KSHARA YOGA IN LEPA AND OINTMENT FORMS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF SHVITRA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TOTAL 50 PATIENTS OF SHVITRA WERE RANDOMLY GROUPED INTO TWO. PATIENTS REGISTERED IN GROUP A (N = 25) WERE TREATED WITH APAMARGA KSHARA YOGA LEPA AND GROUP B (N = 25) WITH APAMARGA KSHARA YOGA OINTMENT FOR 2 MONTHS. RASAYANA CHURNA (3G) ALONG WITH HONEY AND GHEE WAS GIVEN TWICE DAILY INTERNALLY IN THE BOTH GROUPS. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT WAS FOUND IN THE SYMPTOMS OF SHVITRA WITH TREATMENT IN BOTH THE GROUPS. THE DIFFERENCE IN BETWEEN THE GROUPS WAS STATISTICALLY INSIGNIFICANT. CONCLUSION: BOTH FORMS OF APAMRAGA KSHARA YOGA ARE EFFECTIVE IN CASES OF SHVITRA AND CAN BE GOOD ALTERNATIVES FOR CONTEMPORARY MEDICINES. 2015