This is a new series to my blog where I will some brief explanations on various yoga topics. These can be very helpful if you are new to the practice.
Yoga Definition
There is really no one definition of yoga. The word itself from Sanskrit is from the root word yug which can be translated to mean “union”, “to yoke”, “to bring together”, “to harness”.
Yoga can be defined to mean a multitude of things depending on what you need from the practice. It can be a physical practice to relieve stress and tension in the body. Or it can be a mental/emotional/spiritual practice with studying the Sutras and Yoga Philosophy.
In my definition it means to be fully present while you are doing a task so that the mind can rest.
Yoga History
- 4000-2000 BCE = Discovered in the 1920’s were stone engravings in the Indus Valley which looked like figures in the lotus posture which are dated to be from around 3000 BCE. They are linked to the Indus-Sarasvati civilization. This civilization is important since it composed the Vedas (India’s most revered scriptures) and the culture is believed to be the source of Sanskrit writing.
- 2000-200 BCE = Vedic period focused on chanting and hymns (no breath control or physical poses). The Vedas scriptures were the beginning of Indian philosophy as we know it today. (Note Veda comes from Sanskrit root word vid meaning knowledge) First as an oral tradition and then they were written around 1500 – 1200 BCE by the priests or Brahmins.
- The Upanishads were commentaries on the Vedas around 600-300 BCE. The term means “sitting down near” or to be seated at the foot of a guru or spiritual teacher.
- The Bhagavad Gita story of the battlefield conversation between Krishna and Arjuna was written around 300 BCE.
- Yoga Sutras by the sage Patanjali were written around 200 BCE. This was a compilation of the information written in the Vedas, Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita. There are 194 sutras (means “strings”). Only mention of a physical practice is a seated position for meditation. Yoga Sutra 1.2 is the most famous, yoga is stilling the fluctuations of the mind.
- 1350-1400 CE = Hatha yoga begins,15 postures described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. Most are versions of seated poses, some postures we no longer practice today. Compiled by Swami Swatamarama.
- Current Day = Many of the asanas (physical postures) were developed in the early 1900’s. Began in India and influenced by gymnastics and body builders. Those who practiced were young men
- Physical yoga classes held for young boys, mainly in royal family, at the Jaganmohan Palace in India for physical fitness purposes around the 1930’s. Teacher was Krishnamacharya. During this time sun salutations were added.
- 1930s = Yoga to the West. Students of Krishnamacharya (often referred to as the Father of Yoga Physical Practice) toured around the world to show movements like headstands, shoulderstands. This is how it was introduced to the West, they did demos/shows for audiences.
- B.K.S. Iyengar is a teacher who wrote Light on Yoga published in 1966. This was the first detailed document of poses with alignment information.
- Modern day yoga is every changing, new poses come out all of the time. Especially as we learn more about anatomy. What has never changed in thousands of years is that yoga is still a state of mind more than a physical shape.
Recommended Reading…”Yoga Body The Origins of Modern Posture Practice” by Mark Singleton