YOGA INTRODUCTION & HISTORY Archives

The Importance Of Yama In Yoga Today

August 18, 2022September 4, 2021

Yoga is a lifestyle, which can enrich a practitioner’s life far beyond the physical practice time spent in classes. Yoga promotes a peaceful co-existence with everything. This Yogic mindset creates a setting of living in harmony, in order to get better along with one’s self, as well as with others. Within the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, yama is a vital part of a complete life. The yamas teach us principles and values, which lay the foundations of social behavior. These guidelines of social behavior are the first limb of Patanjali’s Raja Yoga. The yamas are a reference for living a lifestyle that is in complete harmony with the world around us.

The Eight Limbs of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra

August 19, 2022May 29, 2021

The ideal Yoga practice is a delicate balance between science and art, creating a union between mind, body, and spirit. The practitioner uses the body and breath to nurture an awareness of individual and unified focus. The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali describes the foundations and framework of Yoga philosophy from before 200 A.D. The sacred text offers a description of the innermost workings of the mind and provides an eight-part practice for controlling mental restlessness and cultivating unshakeable peace.

Benefits of Yoga Teacher Continuing Education

August 19, 2022March 7, 2021

Have you been familiar with yoga? Well I have heard from a lot of people that yoga has its own way of making the body function at its optimum state. The health and fitness benefits of yoga have long been reported by experts and via scientific research. But first I’d prefer to give you short details pertaining to yoga. Yoga comes from a Sanskrit word which means “union” taking place between the mind, body and spirit. It originated in India where there is a physical and mental discipline together with meditative practices of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Give yoga a try and learn what it can do for your body, your mind, and your soul.

Hypnotherapy & Yoga: Healing the Five Layers of Human Existence

August 19, 2022May 22, 2013

Unwanted thoughts, behaviors, habits, feelings, phobias and situational reactions are programmed deep within the Manomaya Kosa (mental layer). This deep seeded programming creates inner conflicts and mental agitation that is harmful to overall health.

Using Viveka to Work with the Shreyas and Preyas

August 19, 2022April 8, 2012

A keenly developed sense of viveka allows a Yoga practitioner to discern between the preyas and shreyas. In Yogic philosophy, the preyas refer to actions and thoughts that are enticing and pleasurable in the short term, but are harmful in the long run. Shreyas, on the other hand, are actions and thoughts that are filled with nobility and divinity. Some of the virtues of the shreyas are compassion, love, sacrifice, and dharmic livelihood. Shreyas enhance spiritual growth.

Yoga and Health

November 17, 2022March 15, 2012

Yogic meditation also reduces the level of stress in the body, thus increasing the overall functioning of the human organism, and reducing the risk of stress-related illnesses such as heart disease. Stress is often a result of an over-committed, busy schedule. Both practicing hatha yoga and meditating slow us down and encourage us to ground in the present moment, relax, and enjoy life. Through regular practice of asanas, pranayama, and meditation, yoga can help regulate the thoughts that pass through the mind, improving the health of the mind and of the inner being.

Patanjali and the Concept of Niyama in Yogic Philosophy

August 19, 2022July 2, 2011

Contemporary Yogic philosophy is the more subtle and deeper contemplation of the integration of Yoga’s wisdom and practices into daily…

What is Prana?

August 19, 2022June 20, 2011

Prana can be defined as the life-infusing substratum of all reality. Prana is also the energy we feel within and around us. There is a…

Yoga in the Former Soviet Union

August 19, 2022June 5, 2011

In pre-Communist Russia, some credit a painter and aristocrat, named Nicolas Roerich, and his wife, with traveling to India to study Agni or Fire Yoga and bringing back the teachings around 1894. The man was nearly single-handedly responsible for Yoga in the Soviet Bloc; Vasily Brodov, was an intriguing figure. A Moscow native, born in 1912, he was a natural dissident who spent time in the gulags, and on the front lines, in World War II.

Introduction to the Bhagavad Gita

August 19, 2022April 16, 2011

Some traditional Yoga teacher training courses have the Bhagavad Gita (Song of The Blessed Lord) as part of the program. This seems practical within Raja, Jnana, Bhakti, and Karma Yoga. However, the deeper aspects of this scripture may be lost on instructor candidates who pursue Yogic knowledge only for physical mastery. Therefore, today’s interns learning how to become a Hatha Yoga instructor may not be reading ancient texts to expand their knowledge.