days, a number of relatively young schools arose. These include, for example, the Tianzhong practice of Yin-qigong, developed about a millennium ago on the basis of hard Buddhist and soft Taoist techniques, the guardians of which are currently one hundred and sixteen-year-old Patriarch Lin Gu and his successor, thirty-year-old Senior Master Cheng Wang Peng.].
Given the current situation, in the process of translating Yoga Therapy, a number of necessary additions were made regarding those internal aspects of the practice, about which Sri Sivananda kept silent or limited himself to hints, and which can now be revealed, since not only representatives of other schools, but also students and followers of Sri Swami Sivananda himself speak and write openly about them today. [Cm. "Mula Bandha - the Key to Mastery" by Buddhananda, "Mudra and Pranayama" by Dhirendra Brahmachari, "The Art of Pranayama" by B. K. S. Iyengar, "Transforming Stress Energy into Life Force" by M. Chia and other books.] In this In the book, information about the internal aspects of the practice is not presented in full, but in that which is sufficient for practitioners of Yoga exercises for purely therapeutic purposes.
It must also be kept in mind that Sri Swami Sivananda's Yoga Therapy, like all his other works, is a practical book. As for the theoretical concepts outlined in it, especially that part of them that concerns scientific medicine, physiology and the physiological theory of the chakras, here a lot of inconsistencies are found. Of course, Sri Swami Sivananda is a great practitioner and an outstanding master in everything related to the thousand-year tradition of classical Yoga. His attempts to link the conceptual basis of the classical philosophical and psychoenergetic substantiation with modern physiological science, chemistry and physics sometimes produce, shall we say, a somewhat strange impression. In the process of editing the text of the book, attempts were made to somewhat smooth out the most obvious contradictions and partly clarify the tangled places by providing them with comments and notes, although, of course, this was simply impossible to do in full, and a number of rather controversial interpretations are still present in the book. In particular, the physiological theory of the chakras used by Sri Swami Sivananda contains very significant disagreements with that of the modern theories of the chakras, which experts consider to be the most correct. Some inconsistencies can also be found in other sections, for example, in that part of the chapter on diet, which is devoted to the chemical composition of food.
Quite correct, of course, are the practical sections devoted to exercises, so the methods offered by Sri Swami Sivananda in "Yoga Therapy" are undoubtedly effective. And it is in them that the main value of this book lies, since they have been repeatedly tested, proved their effectiveness and may well be adopted. These methods are based on a thorough knowledge of yogic practice, philosophy and psychoenergetic theory adopted in classical Yoga. The theoretical calculations and philosophical concepts from Yoga and Ayurveda expounded by Sri Swami Sivananda are also exceptionally interesting and can provide abundant food for a lively and inquisitive mind. A. S. Kyiv, 1994.

INTRODUCTION

It all started a very, very long time ago, in times immemorial and primitive. We know almost nothing about them, because the word "memorable" in itself indicates that they remained outside the memory of the current human civilization. Nothing, except, perhaps, one thing: in those distant times, it was also common for people to get sick, and this forced them to look for ways to get rid of problems associated with health disorders. Thousands of years of evolution of human society have not been wasted. Information about the nature of diseases and means of combating them, as well as the methods of the general development of a human being based on a purposeful expansion and deepening of awareness, which we inherited from the forgotten ancestors of modern humanity, sometimes amaze even the most developed imagination with their accuracy and perfection, completeness and radicalness.
The foreseeable segment of the earth's history is negligible in comparison with how much time has passed since man appeared on Earth. And, of course, from the very beginning of primitive times, man had to fight for survival - with nature, with enemies, with himself. And with diseases, which made him look for cures, turning to four main sources: the plant world, the animal world, the mineral world, and the disease toxins themselves.
However, the more complex and sophisticated drug formulas became, the more severe the side effects of their use were faced by doctors.
Hence the saying in the East:
"A novice must kill a hundred patients, prescribing medicines only in order not to be considered ignorant in medical science, before he begins to comprehend the essence of diseases and the secrets of treatment. The one who is called a true healer must kill a thousand in order to truly master the secrets of the power of drugs".
Nothing, in fact, has changed since those ancient times. Just as then, those who rely on doctors and are not able to take care of themselves run the risk of falling into the hands of a not very experienced specialist.
The terrible consequences of medical errors and the disregard for themselves by those who place all their hopes on someone else - a doctor, a medicine man, a healer - have always encouraged people to look for alternative methods. And they began by trying to borrow methods of self-healing from animals.
Take, for example, a domestic dog. When he gets sick, he stops eating and lies in the sun for hours. Even the most favorite food leaves him indifferent. A one-two-day fast and sunbathing have such a beneficial effect on the animal that very soon health and appetite return to it.
The domestic cat also has the secret of self-healing. When she gets sick, she does not touch food and chews some kind of grass, which makes her sick and vomits. A little time passes - and now our cute kitty is in perfect order again.
The sick cow stops grazing, finds a large puddle, lies next to it on the ground and drinks water from time to time. A day or two of abstaining from food and drinking plenty of water restores health to the cow.
The study of self-healing methods used by animals led to the creation of naturopathy - a natural therapy. As a result, already at the time of the "Vedas" and "Vedanta" [Veda (Skt.) - knowledge, sacred knowledge. "Vedas" - a collection of the most ancient sacred texts, not so long ago - more than two thousand years ago - divided by Vyasa into four parts - "Rigveda", "Yajurveda", "Samaveda" and "Atharvaveda". Vedanta (Skt.) - the completion of the Vedas. "Vedanta" is a collection of sacred texts adjacent to the "Vedas", which are their continuation and develop the ideas and philosophy of the "Vedas".] healers mastered sophisticated methods of hydrotherapy, sunbathing, cleansing procedures and other naturopathic practices.
The most perfect in all respects are the naturopathic techniques practiced in Yoga [Yoga (Skt.) - unity, awareness of unity. An ancient philosophical and practical system of purposeful improvement and expansion of human awareness up to the practical comprehension of the essence of the world, its structure and the absolute unity of world existence. According to yogic concepts, the improvement of the higher aspects of awareness must be based on the harmonious development of all the lower - "instrumental" - components of a human being - the "dense" (organic) and "subtle" (energy) bodies, the lower - logical - mind or intellect, the emotional sphere, intuitive mind, etc.], since they not only save a person from diseases and eliminate any possibility of relapse, but also open up truly unlimited prospects for development and self-improvement."
This book is dedicated to the healing practice of Yoga - Yoga Therapy. In the presentation of the philosophical foundations and the physiological background of therapeutic methods, traditional concepts adopted in Yoga are used. The only exceptions are those cases in which the need for references to modern Western medicine and naturopathy is dictated by the brevity or ambiguity of individual interpretations given by the Yoga Shastra [Yoga Shastra is a collection of classic treatises on the philosophy and practice of Yoga.] and Ayurveda ["Ayurveda is a collection of ancient medical treatises.]. Such gaps are mainly due to the fact that a number of texts were lost in antiquity and during medieval wars.
Chapter 1 Physiology and Pathology in Yoga Shastra and Ayurveda

Foundations of Philosophy and Physiological Concepts in Yoga

Elements of metaphysics
The teachings of Yoga are a true pearl in the ocean of Vedic knowledge. Traditionally, Yoga is practiced to achieve enlightenment and gain absolute knowledge, but the basis of the higher development of human consciousness, according to the teachings of Yoga, cannot but lie in the harmonious improvement of all the lower aspects of the human being and compensation for their age-related degradation, called "restoration".
It is impossible to build a correct system of treatment without having an accurate knowledge of the principles of the body structure. To comprehend the latter, knowledge of the structure of the world as a whole is required.
The cosmogonic concepts accepted in Yoga are set forth in the main yogic treatises, in particular, in Patanjali's Yoga Darshana, in the Gheranda Samhita and in the Shiva Samhita, as well as in the works of numerous commentators on these treatises.
The original pra-matter is called Prakriti - that from which the unmanifested One creates Being within itself. The original nature of the One, which is the absolute integral awareness, is the Void, in which there is not even space, for everything is mutually balanced, whole and