Yoga for a healthy spine
A saying attributed to ancient yogis goes like this: “You are only as young and as healthy as your spine is strong, supple and flexible.”
Over 5000 years ago, yogis knew the vital role that your spine plays in your physical health, wellbeing and spiritual development.
Sadhguru, a renowned yogi mystic, spiritual master, author and a founder of Isha Foundation, teaches that the spine, called meru danda in Sanskrit, is the axis of the universe, and that “a human being can live just as a biological entity or transform themselves so they become the centre of the universe.”
But before the yogic view of the significance of the spine is explored in this article and yoga practice is introduced, let us investigate what the spine is and what its primary functions are in our bodies.
Overview of the spine
Your spine is the main support structure in your body, which distributes the weight between your upper and lower body and allows you to move with freedom (stand upright, twist and bend), along with connecting various parts of your skeletal body to each other.
The spinal column in most adults consists of
