Page:Hatha yoga - or the yogi philosophy of physical well-being, with numberous excercises.djvu/193

Rh to relieve the fatigue and nerve-exhaustion of the strenuous business life, which has taken the place of the old wandering life, with all its hardships.

"Stretching" is another method of resting employed by the Yogis. At first sight this will seem to be the reverse of relaxation, but it is really akin to it, inasmuch as it withdraws the tension from the muscles which have been habitually contracted, and sends the prana through them to all parts of the system, equalizing pranic conditions to the benefit of all the parts of the body. Nature impels us to yawn and stretch when we are fatigued. Let us take a lesson from her book. Let us learn to stretch at will as well as involuntarily. This is not so easy as you may imagine and you will have to practice somewhat before you get the full benefit from it.

Take up the Relaxation exercises in the order in which they are given in this chapter, but instead of relaxing each part in turn simply stretch them. Begin with the feet, and then work up to the legs, and then up to the arms and head. Stretch in all sorts of ways, twisting your legs, feet, arms, hands, head and body around in a way you feel like to get the full benefit of the stretch. Don't be afraid of yawning, either; that is simply one form of stretch. In stretching you will, of course, tense and contract muscles, but the rest and relief comes in the subsequent relaxation of them. Carry in your mind the "let-go" idea, rather than that of muscular exertion. We cannot attempt to give exercises in stretching,