This Kundalini-inspired sequence
can help you release bad habits
and boost your willpower and
well-being as you prepare to usher
in amazing things in 2018.Story and Sequence by Tommy Rosen and Kia Miller // Photography by Joe HancockWHEN WAS THE LAST TIME you really thought about what you were doing when you reached for coffee in the morning, the candy jar at work,
or your phone to check your email or social media? Odds are it’s been awhile. We all run through thousands of habitual behaviors like these
every day. Although you may get a fleeting boost from that hit of caffeine or sugar, by watching the latest, funniest viral video, or by having
another drink, chances are you’re distracting yourself from stress and pain you don’t want to deal with. Removing yourself from the present
moment can jeopardize your long-term health and well-being in the process.
Facing your demons is essential for breaking bad habits, but many self-help methods and treatment systems focus on addressing
symptoms rather than helping you discover why you’re reaching for distractions. The key, instead, may be to reach inward, and that’s where
yoga and meditation can help. Practitioners know that mind-body practices like these can foster the self-awareness, self-control, and self-
realization necessary to go through a deeper detoxification—and research out of Duke Integrative Medicine helps to confirm it. One review on
the efficacy of mindfulness as a complementary therapy for addiction found that mindfulness-based interventions, including yoga, may
enhance addiction treatment, prevention, and recovery.
Even armed with all the benefits yoga and meditation provide, it can still feel like an uphill battle to kick a bad habit. That’s because
these behaviors get hardwired into our brains. Neuroscience researchers have determined that the more we do an activity that feels good—
even one with bad consequences, like abusing drugs or alcohol—the less neural activity we use when deciding to engage in that activity.
Instead, we act on autopilot, even if we are no longer getting that initial buzz. But that doesn’t mean we’re helpless. Recent findings out of
MIT suggest that our prefrontal cortex, the brain region responsible for integrating past experience with present action, seems to favor new
habits. The trick to making these habits stick is to rewire your neural circuitry by finding something that gives you a similar thrill, but on a
deeper, healthier, and more sustainable level. Breathwork, mindfulness training, and yoga deliver on all fronts.
Kundalini Yoga, specifically, is designed to strengthen intuition and willpower. Yogi Bhajan, who brought Kundalini from India to the
West, was interested in helping people break unwanted habits and addictions. He created a rehabilitation center in Tucson, Arizona, that was
part ashram, part primary-care facility for those in recovery. Through asana, pranayama, mudra, mantra, and deep relaxation, Kundalini asks
you to summon the physical and mental strength to mindfully maintain repetitive actions, such as using Breath of Fire while holding Half
Boat Pose, or Ardha Navasana, for up to three minutes.
By committing to each movement despite your mind’s desire to stop, you are training your nervous system to resist temptation (in this
case, the temptation to give up), just as you might train your muscles at the gym. And it comes with some incredible benefits. Your
endocrine system reacts by secreting chemicals that create feelings of balance and harmony, according to Yogi Bhajan and other Kundalini
teachers. And you gain the awareness and power you need to resist the temptation to fall back into those bad habits you’re resolving to
break for good next year. Start with the sequence on the following pages.
A MEDITATION TO RELEASE STRESS AND CLEAR PAST EMOTIONS
Come to a comfortable cross-legged sitting position. Place your fingertips together, forming a tepee with your hands, fingers pointing up
and thumbs pointing toward your heart center. Look at the tip of your nose and inhale for 5 seconds, hold the breath for 5 seconds, then
exhale for 5 seconds. Continue for 11 minutes, then relax. If your breath is unsteady and shallow, it sends a signal to your body that its
needs are not being met. This meditation creates a steady breath rhythm so that your body and mind can release stress and habitual ways
of being.
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february / march 2018yogajournal.com.sg