An ancient practice which unifies mind, body and spirit.

The word yoga literally means ‘yoke’ or ‘join’

One of the joys of yoga is that everyone can start it, no matter what their age or their state of health or state of mind. 

Long time yoga teacher and author, Shakta Kaur Khalsa, says “Yoga promises – and delivers – relaxation in place of stress, insight in place of negativity, and courage in the face of conflict.”

Certain forms of yoga developed separately in certain ancient cultures.  

Archaeologists discovered evidence of yoga in the ancient Chinese, Mayan, Tibet and IndianCultures. There are references to yoga in the Rig-Veda

A form of yoga may date back over 40,000 years

The ancient Indus-Saraswati civilisation is the highly advanced civilisation which is responsible for developing the science of yoga.

 the yoga we practise today is a culmination of all those experiences

the oldest form of known yoga is the Vedic yoga. 

Brahmans, together with Rishis (mystic priests) developed the science of yoga over the centuries.

The most important writing on yoga in this period is the Bhagavad-Gitâ

Patanjali is considered to be the father of yoga and his writings influence all forms of yoga today.

It was him who wrote the first definitive guide to yoga during the second century AD – Yoga Sûtras

The premise behind this form of yoga is that if all the paths are followed, an individual will achieve inner harmony and peace and be able to connect with a higher being.

The  eight limbs or basic beliefs can be divided into two sections, the first being related to the way we live our lives: Yama – refers to honesty, integrity and truth. Nijama - self discipline  Asana - keeping our bodies healthy and our

minds calm. Pranayama - linking mind, body and soul

through mindful breathing.

Pratayahara - control our thought patterns

Dharana - concentrating and removing all thoughts Dhyana - to focus or concentrate without any thoughts in our head and achieve a state of complete stillness. Samadhi - state of ecstasy

The melding of the spiritual and physical connection was the beginning of the form of yoga which is mainly practicedin the West – Hatha Yoga.

In 1893 Swami Vivekananda travelled to the USA to speak on Hinduism but surprisingly sparked an interest in eastern philosophy and yoga among the intellectuals in the States.

the Theosophical Society was particularly powerful in spreading the word.

Psychologist Carl Jung praised benefits of yoga on mental health in 1935 saying “yoga was one of the greatest things the human mind has ever created.”

it wasn’t until the 1960s that yoga started to become popular in the western world. 

During the 1970s and 1980s yoga gained more followers but it wasn’t until the 1990s, when gym junkies decided there must be more to life than the old adage ‘no pain, no gain’,  that yoga really took off in the western world.

Hatha Yoga the most popular form of yoga in

Western world. from two Sanskrit words, ‘Ha’ meaning

‘sun’ and ‘tha’ meaning ‘moon’. Hatha uses postures (called asanas) and

conscious breathing (Pranayama) 

Raja Yoga Classic yoga from the Sanskrit word for

“royal”.   The ethos behind is our mind creates our

reality. Always begins with a session of Hatha yoga

Karma Yoga Karma means ‘right’ action. Mother Theresa was most certainly a Karma

yogina who called her work “love in action”.

Bhakti Yoga from Sanskrit word ‘bjah’ meaning to ‘adore

and worship God’.  easiest forms of yoga to master

Jnana Yoga The writings of the great sage Jiddu

Krishnamurti are a good example of Jnana yoga.

Tantra Yoga ‘where opposites meet and become one’.  

Mantra YogaMantra means ‘mind projection’ and refers to sound.  It is used through chanting or reciting as a means to quiet the mind and block out all thoughts.

If starting healthy, practicing yoga can make you more flexible, relaxed and centered

Creates toned and flexible bodies less prone to sports injuries 

Stabilize metabolism Improved spine flexibility Greater environment awareness Art of proper breathing Achieve the state of ecstacy – Samadhi!

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