by hilary johnson
One leg is wrapped around the other and your arms are twisted in front of your face. Your balance is maintained by the intense, meditative focus of the mind. Your body is stretching into Garudasana, or the Eagle Pose. You are not only gaining strength and lengthening your muscles, but you are honoring your mind, body, and spirit.
Yoga, which in its simplest form means “to yoke” or “to unite,” is much more than the fitness phenomenon made famous by celebrities like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna. It is a school of Hindu philosophy advocating and prescribing a course of physical and mental disciplines for attaining liberation from the material world. It creates a union of the self with the Supreme Being or ultimate principle.
Sound confusing? Well, it can be. Yoga is part of the religious practices of Hinduism. It has been used as a means to center and focus the mind in order to attain a higher awareness of existence for centuries. It is a way to prepare the body for prayer and meditation.
It just also happens to get the body in great shape, too.
Through a series of disciplined postures and breathing exercises, the yogi can achieve control of the mind and the body. This control leads to the ultimate tranquility. And that is where the fad became a really fabulous form of contemporary exercise.
While you sit there on the yoga mat with your legs crossed, your eyes closed, and your breath moving slowly in and out of your lungs, exercise becomes holistic. And even more, it becomes relaxing. Who could imagine that exercise could be relaxing? Perhaps Shiva, one of the six supreme deities of Hinduism. Or maybe it was the Auspicious One, who is one of the first known figures to represent the practice.
Yoga is not simply a set of downward dogs and contortions. It is a complex set of movements and focusing of the mind.
There are many different kinds of yoga. Hatha yoga is a broad classification of the practice of yoga. It includes most yoga practiced in the United States and consists of asanas (postures) and pranyama (breath) and some meditation. Iyengar, bikram, vinyasa, flow, anusara, and power yoga are included under this classification.
A Hatha yoga class will typically be gentle and relaxing, a great place for beginner yogis. But it doesn’t have to be easy.
“I can teach a Hatha class and make it very challenging,” said Bonnie Davis, a certified Hatha yoga instructor who gives weekly yoga courses at the Riverside YMCA. Her classes range from gentle to advanced.
Vinyasa yoga is centered more heavily on the focus of the breath. It also incorporates Sun Salutations, which are a sequence of postures that allow the body to warm up, while also centering the body on the breath.
Breath is one of the most important features of yoga. The focus on breath is significantly less in eastern cultures, while western cultures have been aware for centuries of its power and importance. By focusing the mind, the breath allows the body to endure some of the more intense yoga postures, but it also allows blood to flow more freely through the body, giving the body strength.
Yoga not only unites the mind and the body, but it unites the breath and movement. Without that combination, you could not achieve the postures. This is where the centering of the mind and the body become a spiritual conquest beyond physical strength and shape.
Raja yoga, or Royal yoga, focuses on training the mind and may incorporate aspects of Hatha yoga. Karma yoga and Bhakti yoga also concentrate on the mental aspect of yoga.
“Karma means right action, serving others, and Bhakti means devotion, selfless love,” says Davis. “Mother Theresa is always used as the example.” The two forms are sometimes considered the same, while at times seen as two different practices.
Jnana yoga practices the wisdom path to enlightenment, where one seeks to discriminate between real and unreal. Tantra/Kundalini yoga focuses the senses and Chakras and Mantra yoga uses sound to focus the mind.
Ashtanga yoga, or power yoga, uses a series of postures that are intended to flow seamlessly together. Ashtanga yoga is physically demanding due to the constant movement from one pose to the next.
Iyengar yoga, on the other hand, focuses on the positioning of the body and the holding of postures in correct alignment. Instead of moving from one pose to the next in sequence, one pose is held for a long period of time. Props are also used in Iyengar yoga, such as yoga blankets, belts and cushions that help the body to maintain the correct alignment.
Kundalini yoga focuses on the breath, similar to Vinyasa, but pairs that focus with rapid repetition of various postures. Chanting is often times part of Kundalini yoga and the yogi is intended to explore the effects of the breath on the body.
Bikram yoga, also known as hot yoga, is a series of 26 postures that are done in a room of 95 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat is thought to cleanse the mind and body through the loosening of the muscles and profuse sweating.
Some more contemporary forms of yoga have sprung up in the recent increase of interest in this historical tradition. Anusara yoga was founded in 1997 by John Friend. It combines physical movement with the positive teachings of the Tantra – the history, practice, and identification with Deities of the Hindu tradition. Postures are taught in a way that is meant to open the heart, both physically and mentally.
Jivamukti yoga emerged from New York City. Its founders, David Life and Sharon Gannon, emphasize chanting, meditation and the spiritual teachings found in the Ashtanga practices.
Then there is Sivananda yoga, founded in 1957 by Swami Vishnu-devananda, who created the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center. There are now close to 80 such centers worldwide. Sivananda yoga is based on five principles: proper exercise (Asana, focusing on 12 poses in particular), proper breathing (Pranayama), proper relaxation (Savasana), proper diet (Vegetarian), and positive thinking and meditation (Dhyana).
As a form of exercise, yoga is known to elongate the muscles, creating a leaner, more slender form. Rumor has it that this outcome began the fascination with the practice in Hollywood. But yoga provides much more than just a trim figure.
Its spiritual and emotional benefits are astounding, allowing the mind to fill with peace and tranquility; a stark contrast to our fast-paced American culture. In the age of technology, with gyms filled with ellipticals and weight machines, yoga uses the body to strengthen itself. It defies the need for distraction to get through a workout. Leave your televisions and iPods behind. Yoga embraces the mind, centers its ability to focus, and uses it to create a stronger self, inside and out. Namaste.
Article Published in the April 2008 Issue of EU Jacksonville
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