and action is deeply rooted in physicality, and Yoga makes use of this fact
by providing physical disciplines effective for gaining mastery and insight
with respect to one’s Self-nature.
Performance of asana ̄ also develops endurance and equilibrium. En-
durance is the power to act in a sustained way, being ‘fit’ or suited to
tasks requiring a continued application of effort and concentration. En-
durance refers to an individual’s sustained functioning without symp-
toms of debilitation. The term ‘endurance’ may suggest a person’s appli-
cation of sustained energy directed toward an aim, whether religious or,
for instance, athletic. Equilibrium is another significant determinant of
health, and this concept is applicable at a number of levels of functioning.
In Åyurvedic medicine, equilibrium signifies a health-supporting relation
among the doÓsas. In physiological terms, equilibrium pertains to condi-
tions such as coordinated nervous and muscular control for maintaining
the body’s posture, and commensurate intake and output of substances
by organs and systems. Psychological equilibrium concerns a person’s re-
silience in maintaining a stable affective state, and functioning effectively
when confronted with difficulties. Equilibrium is treated in the Yoga-
sutras ̄ in terms of ‘the pairs of opposites.’ The mastering of asana ̄ pro-
duces resistance to assault by the pairs of opposites, or dvandvas[YS
2.47–48]. The dvandvas, such as heat and cold, pleasure and pain, may
be experienced physically and/or mentally, and they disturb the mind’s
equilibrium. Reducing one’s distraction by the dvandvasis integral to
stilling the vÓrttisor activities of the mind.
Åsanais mastered by ‘relaxation of effort’ and ‘meditation on the
infinite’: ananta[YS 2.47]. Anantaliterally means without end (a, ‘not’;
anÓta, ‘end’) and can refer to Î ́svara. Relaxation of effort means ceasing to
give mental attention to maintenance of a posture, so that the body is un-
disturbed and the conscious mind is gradually freed from agitation by
physical sensation. Relaxation is a determinant of health, both intrinsi-
cally, as a state of relative freedom from unpleasant tension, and instru-
mentally, as a capacity of resilience that helps one tolerate and recover
from the strain of effort.
In ̄asanathe body must become able to maintain physical stability
and to counter deviation from its position during meditation. Iyengar dis-
cusses asana’s ̄ unifying functions as follows:
Though the practitioner is a subject and the asana ̄ the object, the ̄asana
should become the subject and the doer the object, so that sooner or
later the doer, the instrument (the body) and the asana ̄ become one....114 religious therapeutics