SCIENCE OF BREATH/PART 5
CHAPTER
V.
THE
NERVOUS SYSTEM.
It
will be noticed that the Western scientific theories regarding the breath
confine themselves to the effects of the absorption of oxygen, and its use
through the circulatory system, while the Yogi theory also takes into
consideration the absorption of Prana, and its manifestation through the
channels of the Nervous System. Before proceeding further, it may be as well to
take a hasty glance at the Nervous System.
The
Nervous System of man is divided into two great systems, viz., the
Cerebro-Spinal System and the Sympathetic System. The Cerebro-Spinal System
consists of all that part of the Nervous System contained within the cranial
cavity and the spinal canal, viz., the brain and the spinal cord, together with
the nerves which branch off from the same. This system presides over the
functions of animal life known as volition, sensation, etc. The Sympathetic
System includes all that part of the Nervous System located principally in the
thoracic, abdominal and pelvic cavities, and which is distributed to the internal
organs. It has control over the involuntary processes, such as growth,
nutrition, etc.
The
Cerebro-Spinal System attends to all the seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling,
feeling, etc. It sets things in motion; it is used by the Ego to think—to manifest
consciousness. It is the instrument with which the Ego communicates with the
outside world. This system may be likened to a telephone system, with the brain
as the central office, and the spinal column and nerves as cable and wires
respectively.
The
brain is a great mass of nerve tissue, and consists of three parts, viz., the
Cerebrum or brain proper, which occupies the upper, front, middle and back
portion of the skull; the Cerebellum, or "little brain," which fills
the lower and back portion of the skull; and the Medulla Oblongata, which Is
the broadened commencement of the spinal cord, lying before and in front of the
Cerebellum.
The
Cerebrum is the organ of that part of the mind which manifests itself in
intellectual action. The Cerebellum regulates the movements of the voluntary
muscles. The Medulla Oblongata is the upper enlarged end of the spinal cord,
and from it and the Cerebrum branch forth the Cranial Nerves which reach to
various parts of the head, to the organs of special sense, and to some of the
thoracic and abdominal organs, and to the organs of respiration.
The
Spinal Cord, or spinal marrow, fills the spinal canal in the vertebral column,
or "backbone." It is a long mass of nerve tissue, branching off at
the several vertebrae to nerves communicating with all parts of the body. The
Spinal Cord is like a large telephone cable, and the emerging nerves are like
the private wires connecting therewith.
The
Sympathetic Nervous System consists of a double chain of Ganglia on the side of
the Spinal column, and scattered ganglia in the head, neck, chest and abdomen.
(A ganglion is a mass of nervous matter including nerve cells.) These ganglia
are connected with each other by filaments, and are also connected with the
Cerebro-Spinal System by motor and sensory nerves. From these ganglia numerous
fibers branch out to the organs of the body, blood vessels, etc. At various
points, the nerves meet together and form what are known as plexuses. The
Sympathetic System practically controls the involuntary processes, such as
circulation, respiration and digestion.
The
power or force transmitted from the brain to all parts of the body by means of
the nerves, is known to Western science as "nerve force," although
the Yogi knows it to be a manifestation of Prana. In character and rapidity it
resembles the electric current. It will be seen that without this "nerve
force" the heart cannot beat; the blood cannot circulate; the lungs cannot
breathe; the various organs cannot function; in fact the machinery of the body
comes to a stop without it. Nay more, even the brain cannot think without Prana
be present. When these facts are considered, the importance of the absorption
of Prana must be evident to all, and the Science of Breath assumes an
importance even greater than that accorded it by Western science.
The
Yogi teachings go further than does Western science, in one important feature
of the Nervous System. We allude to what Western science terms the "Solar
Plexus," and which it considers as merely one of a series of certain
matted nets of sympathetic nerves with their ganglia found in various parts of
the body. Yogi science teaches that this Solar Plexus is really a most
important part of the Nervous System, and that it is a form of brain, playing
one of the principal parts in the human economy. Western science seems to be
moving gradually towards a recognition of this fact which has been known to the
Yogis of the East for centuries, and some recent Western writers have termed
the Solar Plexus the "Abdominal Brain." The Solar Plexus is situated
in the Epigastric region, just back of the "pit of the stomach" on
either side of the spinal column. It is composed of white and gray brain
matter, similar to that composing the other brains of man. It has control of
the main internal organs of man, and plays a much more important part than is
generally recognized. We will not go into the Yogi theory regarding the Solar
Plexus, further than to say that they know it as the great central store-house
of Prana. Men have been known to be instantly killed by a severe blow over the
Solar Plexus, and prize fighters recognize its vulnerability and frequently
temporarily paralyze their opponents by a blow over this region.
The
name "Solar" is well bestowed on this "brain," as it
radiates strength and energy to all parts of the body, even the upper brains
depending largely upon it as a storehouse of Prana. Sooner or later Western
science will fully recognize the real function of the Solar Plexus, and will
accord to it a far more important place then it now occupies in their
text-books and teachings.
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