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Ramakrishna
10 June 2010, 01:59 AM
Namaste,

Do any of you take cold showers as part of your sadhana or yoga practices? I used to take all hot showers, but I began ending my showers with cold water after reading this www.tinyurl.com/jamesbondshower (http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/www.tinyurl.com/jamesbondshower) and also reading about the many benefits of taking cold showers. Today I was looking up information about sadhana, and I saw that some people take entirely cold showers in the morning as part of their sadhana. It can also be a yogic practice.

Here are some of the websites about taking cold showers as a spiritual practice:

http://www.sikhdharma.org/content/how-take-cold-shower-%28and-why%29

http://www.sikhdharma.org/content/ishnaan%3A-science-hydrotherapy

http://www.spiritvoyage.com/blog/index.php/yogic-lifestyle-the-amazing-cold-shower/

http://www.3ho.org/kundalini-yoga/kundalini-yoga-lifestyle/hydrotherapy/

http://fateh.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/Prosperity_Paths.nsf/TOC/c2b226bd9ea505b1872568f40082f049!Open (http://fateh.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/Prosperity_Paths.nsf/TOC/c2b226bd9ea505b1872568f40082f049%21Open)

A couple of the websites are Sikh websites. Apparently there is also an entire science about using cold water for hydrotherapy called ishnaan (see the second link). I have been ending my showers cold for the past several months, but now I'm thinking about taking them entirely cold. Do any of you take cold showers as a spiritual practice? Have you ever heard of this as being part of a sadhana or yoga practice, or is this purely a Sikh thing?

Jai Sri Krishna

Odion
10 June 2010, 03:02 PM
Namaste!

I don't have a shower at my house, but when I go to my mother's house I have a cold shower. I really enjoy it.

As far as I'm aware, it's usually done by Sikhs, though I could be wrong. It is definitely worth trying though, I really enjoy it, personally. I feel so much more refreshed after a cold shower than a hot shower. :D

TatTvamAsi
11 June 2010, 01:59 AM
Namaste,

I find this "cold shower' business quirky.

I was always brought up with the notion that ice-cold or anything too cold is a real jolt on the nervous system and thus bad for the body as well as the mind (doh!).

Precisely why Hindus drink HOT water with garam-masala-laden food in 120F degree weather! lolol...

ScottMalaysia
11 June 2010, 04:17 AM
ISKCON devotees living in temples are required to take cold showers. The reason given in the Bhakta Handbook is so that hot water is not wasted. I don't personally see it as part of yoga or sadhana.

Eastern Mind
11 June 2010, 06:51 AM
Vannakkam: Native American spirituality, at least with some groups, used alternating cold/hot as cleansing. They'd sit is a sweat lodge (tent + steam + rocks) like a sauna and then roll in the snow. Others nearby hot springs in northern latitudes would use a nearby glacial stream for alternating dipping. For some reason the number three was involved as in do it three times.

I think it would be a good personal sadhana to remind oneself of the overwhelming comforts we have today.

Aum Namasivaya

Ramakrishna
12 June 2010, 09:24 PM
I think it would be a good personal sadhana to remind oneself of the overwhelming comforts we have today.

Aum Namasivaya

Yes, hot water really is a luxury. Where I live, in America, it is one of the biggest comforts that people take for granted. I think taking cold showers is an excellent way of reminding ourselves of the luxuries that we have, that so many other people don't.

Jai Sri Krishna

Ramakrishna
12 June 2010, 09:39 PM
Namaste,

I find this "cold shower' business quirky.

I was always brought up with the notion that ice-cold or anything too cold is a real jolt on the nervous system and thus bad for the body as well as the mind (doh!).

Precisely why Hindus drink HOT water with garam-masala-laden food in 120F degree weather! lolol...

Namaste TatTvamAsi,

The idea is not to torture yourself. If you suddenly jump into an ice cold pond or something then you can get hypothermia or pass out. But if you gradually and knowingly take a cold shower, then there are actually plenty of health benefits. Keep in mind that you don't have to take the entire shower cold from start to finish. You can start off hot and finish cold, of course making the transition gradually until your body gets used to it.

Some of the medical benefits of cold showers are:
Increased blood circulation
Strengthened immune system
Cleans the circulatory system
Contracts the muscles to eliminate toxins and poisonous wastes

Jai Sri Krishna

atanu
12 June 2010, 09:58 PM
I had read long back that Chairman Mao of China practiced a kind of alternate hot-cold bath therapy. I feel (and it is personal opinion) that too much acrobatics with body is counterproductive for spiritual advancement.

Sahasranama
13 June 2010, 05:39 AM
If used at the right moment in moderation, it can be good for health. But if overused, it could make you sick and weaker.

kiya kabooter
21 August 2010, 06:01 PM
I usually end my showers with cold water because I have always heard that it is good for your skin and for your hair. I don't think I could take cold showers from beginning to end every time, because I am cold all the time, even in the middle of summer! But to end my showers with cold water, even if just for a minute or so always seems to feel nice.

I'll definitely check out those links.

rkpande
22 August 2010, 07:38 AM
Dear all,
I am quoting from valid yoga scriptures, you may infer and relate- relevant to your individual practices and values:-
1 Hatha yoga pradipika: sutra 63:- (Translation- Pancham Sinh)
‘As said by, Goraksa, one should keep aloof from the society of evil minded, fire, woman, travelling, early morning bath, fasting, and all kind of bodily exertion.’
2. The Gheranda Samhita: sutra 31:- (translation- Rai Bahadur Sirsa Chandra Basu)
‘He should avoid early morning baths, fasting, &c, or anything giving pain to the body ; so also is prohibited to him eating only once a day, or not eating at all. But he may remain without food for three hours.’
3. Shiva Samhita; Sutra 33:- (Translation- Rai Bahadur Sirsa Chandra Basu)
‘The yogi should avoid the following- 1. Acidic, 2 Astringents.....4. salt.......
7 much walking 8. Early morning bathing.....16 fasting ...23 much eating.’
They recommend avoidance of any activity that wastes or imbalances prana .
You may form your own opinion. But early morning bath= colder bath’
Good luck.
rk