Yoga and Cigarettes

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#21

Yes i agree we should not compare with sugar as it is out of the subject, not even the analogy. Theory is theory and that theory does not hold. As in real life it is different which the smoker and long distance race shows. On paper he would not win, but he did. So theories are useless as they cant be generalized. This is why the saints say experience and not to go for theory.

Even a smoker could get buddha hood. The mind however will tell different.

And for the info im not a smoker and never was if that recently crossed your mind.

#22

Smoking is something I still haven’t managed to give up completely, but I have cut down a lot. Yes, I am a smoker.

It’s just something I did for many years and going ‘cold turkey’ would be too much of a shock for me.

Probably an excuse, but whatevers. lol

This has to be something that is going to have to stop by itself anyway and I have no doubt that it will.

#23

I understand the process of knowing to give up this habit. It took the birth of my first child to snap me out of it. Did not want that around her.
I feel that if it was just for myself that I would stop smoking I would still be smoking today.
But perhaps if you can see that it will be beneficial to others if you stop it would help.
Second hand smoke is a very bad thing for those around you. Family and friends could be healthier if you could stop this.
We are not alone in this world. All are connected. And so our actions affect not only ourselves, but those we interact with either on purpose or by chance.

#24

I have always felt the same compassion for smokers that I feel for cutters.

#25

[QUOTE=JSK;81332]I have always felt the same compassion for smokers that I feel for cutters.[/QUOTE]

Are you saying you feel compassion for their pride in quitting? I’m a quitter and boastful about it sometimes.:frowning: I’ll let this be one of those times:cool:
Finally quiting for good was without a single regret or unpleasant craving. I credit my practice with that success.

When I did quit it was with a very special insight that hasn’t been repeated in the eight years since it happened. Since then, I see many of my other addictions in a broader perspective and with a little more understanding of what it is that motivates the habit.

As BKS Iyengar says “1per cent inspiration, ninety nine per cent perspiration”.

Brooke

#26

Desikachar writes in his book “Health, Healing, and Beyond: Yoga and the Living Tradition of T. Krishnamacharya” about Sri Aurobindo who shocked his devotees by smoking cigarettes. One of them asked him “How can you, a yogi, smoke when it is expressly forbidden?” He responded “Yes, I attached to cigarettes, but you are attached to non-cigarettes!”

On a personal level I quite smoking several decades ago, so I do not care for it at all. Also, there is clear medical evidence as well as guidance from most spiritual traditions against smoking. However, those questions ultimately are a matter of individual choice and conscience. In the big picture, it probably is no worse than a lot of things we all do, though it is an easy target to criticize since it is so visible and has a bad smell.

#27

I never really get why quitting smoking always recives such adulation. i smoked for nearly 7 years & decided to quit one fine morning. I simply cleared the ashtray & cigarette packets from my bed room & took up cycling and badminton. Because i had heard that people get mood swings and withdrawal symptoms, i assumed the one’s i was feeling at time must be due to it. On reaching the 21 day mark, i knew i’d quit for good. Anyway, comimg back to the original poster, Yoga is system, where we make use of the body to seek the divine. It is the starting point for our quest for realization. Must we pollute this vehicle with toxic cigarettes?

#28

[QUOTE=Yogini Grace;81345]Are you saying you feel compassion for their pride in quitting?[/QUOTE]

A “cutter” is someone who purposely cuts themselves.

#29

It can also be a tool for cutting.

#30

[QUOTE=maximus76;81485]I never really get why quitting smoking always recives such adulation. i smoked for nearly 7 years & decided to quit one fine morning. Yoga is system, where we make use of the body to seek the divine. It is the starting point for our quest for realization. Must we pollute this vehicle with toxic cigarettes?[/QUOTE]

I think it receives adulation because it is so bleeding difficult for those in the physical/psychospiritual thrall of addiction. For me, it was recognizing my feelings around acceptance by my social circle, lack of awareness of how hurting my body decreased my self confidence . . . :eek:

We are a mind/body and the reasons and reactions are different for everyone.