Part 11: Head
21 Yoga Practices For Body Flexibility
As our age goes up, we find wrinkles in our skin and black circles under our eyes. These signs of aging, though natural, give a dull look and impression. Going by the prominent proverb “face is the index of the mind”, aging may send out an unfavorable signal, highlighting internal stress to the outside world.
It is very easy to maintain a wrinkle free, fresh face by doing some yoga practices to tone the facial muscles. These practices prevent the skin from drooping. Facial exercises can also strengthen the muscles of the face and improve blood circulation. Any stress in the body or mind will also reflect in the face. Hence, it is necessary to keep the mind stress free.
Simhagarjasana is a very good yoga practice to tone the facial muscles. This asana is performed in a seated posture. As one exhales, it is done with a force from inside, by putting out the tongue and rolling out the eyeballs. The sound tones the voice, while the facial expression done by letting the tongue out helps in toning the cheek muscles. On doing this practice, the eyes feel fresh.
Watch the demonstration here.
Strong emotions like anger physically damage the tissues of the body. On the other hand, laughter boosts heart rate and the production of certain antibodies strengthen our immune system.
Face has the capacity to express our various emotions. In the South Indian classical dance form Bharatanatyam, 9 different emotions are expressed by the performers called navarasas. They are Shringara (love), Hasya (comic), Adbhuta (wonder), Veera (valor), Shanta (peace), Karuna (compassion), Roudra (anger), Bhayankara (fear), and Bhibhatsa (disgust).
Bhaavam or mood is important for a performer to express any emotion. Mood should come from within. The performer should become that bhaava to express that as emotion. Regular practice of yoga helps the performer to align themselves and identify themselves with the mood they are going to express in the form of emotion.
All these emotions are part of our life. One needs to vent out the emotion then and there, as built up emotion is the real cause for any stress.
This practice was developed in accordance with Yoga Therapy, a branch of yoga that requires the ailing person to perform a set of asanas to cure prevailing health issues. Read more about Yoga Therapy here.
Read the previous title in this article series. Part 10: Arms
Read the next title in this article series. Part 12: Upper back
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