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Yoga Dissertations by MSc Students

Part 1: Concept of Meditative Asanas according to Yoga Texts
Part 2: Effect of Yoga on Performance in a Planning Task with the Tower of London Test
By

Kadambini A

ABSTRACT

Part 1: Concept of Meditative Asanas according to Yoga Texts

The literature survey of meditative postures presented here includes the concepts of meditative postures from scriptures as Upaniñads, Bhagavadgétā, yoga sutras of Pätaïjali, Haöha Yoga Pradépikā., Çiva Saàhitä, Gheraëòa Saàhitä and Haöha Ratnävalé.
The aim of the study is to find out (i) the similarities and differences among the names and practice of the Äsanas.
It is found that there were similarities among the names of the  Äsanas in the ancient scriptures. Apart from the names the procedure of doing every Äsanas are almost same but there is avery little difference in the procedure in some of the texts. The differences are found in performing in Äsanas in very few texts but the variation is very negligible. The benefit and limitations of the meditative postures are mostly similar in different texts but mechanism is explained in different ways.

SUMMERY & CONCLUSION
Yogic tradition says extensively about Äsanas, nearly eighty-four lakhs of Äsanas. The category of meditative Äsanas is one of them. Meditative Äsanas are done to evolve the higher state of consciousness from the lowest to the highest state. Although these Äsanas look so simple and imitated from different living and non-living things, but they awaken our spiritual energy and dormant like Kuëòalini çhakti.
The different text like Haöha Yoga Pradépikä, Haöha Ratnävalé, and Gheraëòa Saàhitä believe in physical purification and stability. The Physical purification and stability brings the stability in mental level whereas the text like Çiva Saàhitä says about the Äsanas which are done in order to free from all the obstacles, not tainted by any virtue and vice and enjoying with the supreme reality.  Having the concept of “practice makes a man perfect” one most do the practice regularly and this became the key point for all ancient yogés to attain the higher state of consciousness.

Part 2: Effect of Yoga on Performance in a Planning Task with the Tower of London Test

Sixty children between 10 to 12 years of age, in a residential 10 days camp, were randomly assigned to two groups. One group practiced yoga for 10 hours per day, while the other group was given physical activities for the same time. Time for planning and execution and the number of moves required to complete the Tower of London Task was assessed for both groups at the beginning and at the day 9 of the camp. These three assessments were separately tested in increasingly complex task requiring 2 moves, 4 moves and 5 moves. Yoga group showed a significant improved in planning time for 2 moves (37.4%), for execution time (47.97%) and 4 moves tasks (34.74%) and also the number of Moves taken to complete the task improved significant in 2 moves (15.36%) whereas non-significant in 4 moves and 5 moves. In physical activity group, there was significant increase in planning time in 4 moves (14.98%) and 5 moves (6.86%); execution Time in 5 moves (8.91%) where as there was no significant change in 4 and 5 moves. For the Number of Moves taken to Complete the Tasks, there was a significant reduction in 2 moves (18.90%), 4 moves (7.19%) and in 5 moves (13.97%) in physical activity group. But there were insignificant difference between yoga and physical activity group. Hence, the present study shows that yoga training for 9 days can improve the ability to plan and execute, while the physical activity for the same period showed opposite effects. Yoga training (even though of a short duration) helps to improve significantly in planning, execution and facilitate improvement in the number of moves. There is significant change in pre-planning for 2 Moves (.023), 4 Moves (.002) and 5 Moves (.026). There is no change in execution and number of Moves to complete the task for 2 Moves, 4 Moves and 5 Moves.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The present study compared the effects of yoga and physical exercises in schoolchildren on the Tower of London Test, a test for planning, execution and motor response. 
Sixty subjects who were attending a personality development camp were randomly assigned into two groups, yoga group (age 11±0.67 years) and physical activity group (age 11.15±0.69 years). Fifty-eight subjects completed the trial.
There was a significant decrease in planning time for 2 moves (p<.01) & 5 Moves (p<.05), in execution time for 2 moves (p<.001) and for 4 moves (p<.05) and 5 moves (p <0.001) task in the yoga group. The significant reduction shows in execution (p<.05) and the number of moves for 2 moves (p<.05) to complete the tasks (p<.05) in the physical activity group.

The results suggest that the yoga group showed improvement in planning, execution and number of moves in 2 Moves which relates to simpler functions of brain and Execution in 4 Moves and planning and execution in 5 Moves which relates to higher functions of the brain. The physical activity group also showed improvement in Execution and number of moves in 2 Moves, which depicts a simple task, but showed no improvement in 4 and 5 Moves which means there is less or no influence on complex tasks.

Key words:  Tower of London test      Yoga     Physical activity        planning.