So here we go with another year ahead of us. As we look back on the past year, let’s assess how we did. Did we achieve what we hoped? Did things go according to plan? Did your dreams come true? Did you have a great year with things happening as it should, plus some bonuses? I hope so.
Things certainly didn’t go to plan for me. I got some strange illness half way through the year and am still recovering from it. It never entered my mind this time last year as I looked into the year ahead that it would have such a drastic impact on me. No doubt many people have also experienced surprises, maybe their health, their families, or their work. It makes you wonder, what can this coming year bring?
One thing we can be certain of in the year ahead is the increasing prevalence of COVID-19 and the likelihood that we might catch it. Along with social distancing and wearing masks, we can take advantage of some of yoga’s strategies to improve our chances of staying well.
Being an airborne sickness the nostrils are usually the first points of contact with it. Therefore the advice from the yogic point of view is to:
- wash the nostrils (neti) after being out and about amongst other people.
- coat inside the nostrils with a substance that prevents the virus from infiltrating (nasya)
- increase the nitric oxide in the nostrils with Brahmari pranayama to help strengthen the immune system.
Additionally it is common sense to be as healthy as possible by:
- eating a healthy diet
- exercising
- and relaxing
These are well worth including into your plans for the year ahead!
By Vrndavan Dasi
Founder and Principal of Veda Yoga Teacher Training