You might be confused when you decide to join a yoga class or want to learn yoga from a teacher as to what to choose, as there are so many different kinds of names attached to yoga. Let’s find out what they mean
In yoga sutra or the ancient text of yoga, humans are classified into four groups.
1) Intellectual - this kind of person practices gyaan or knowledge yoga.
2) Active - they practice karma yoga, which is service to humanity without any selfish motive.
3) Emotional - they practice Bhakti yoga.
4) Contemplative - they practice Raja yoga. This includes the control of mind through concentration.
To concentrate, one needs to sit in one posture for a long period of time. And that requires good bodily health. The yogic postures or asanas helps you to achieve good physical health. Yoga, which deals with this is called Hatha yoga. So Raja yoga and Hatha yoga complement each other.
Hatha yoga really just means the physical practice of yoga (asanas as opposed to, say, chanting). Hatha yoga now commonly refers to the practise that is not so flowing and bypasses the various traditions of yoga to focus on the asanas that are common to all. It is often a gentle yoga class.
There are other forms of yoga:
Kundalini yoga – The union with the power of the Kundalini, this is yoga that was designed to awaken energy in the spine. Kundalini yoga includes meditation, breathing techniques such as alternate nostril exhalation and exhalation, and chanting, as well as yoga postures.
Dhyaan yoga - Mastery on your thoughts through meditation.
Mantra yoga - Repetition of a sacred mantra.
You must have also heard the term ‘vinyasa’. It literally means breath synchronized movement. Breath is at the heart of this discipline, and links one asana to another in a precise order. By synchronizing movement with breathing, teachers lead classes that flow from one pose to the next without stopping.
If you’re new to yoga, it is a good idea to take a few classes in a slower style of yoga first to get a feel for the poses. Some people call it flow yoga, flow-style yoga, dynamic yoga or vinyasa flow. It is influenced by ashtanga yoga.
Iyengar yoga
Iyengar and ashtanga yoga come from the same lineage – the teacher who developed these styles is BKS Iyengar. This yoga is great for learning the subtleties of correct alignment. Props – belts, blocks and pillow-like bolsters – help beginners get into poses with correct alignment, even when they’re new to them, injured or simply stiff.
So, each individual needs to find yoga that suits his or her personality. In short, yoga is not just one more form of exercise. Yoga is the science of right living. Yoga is a way of life. As yoga works on all aspects: physical, mental, emotional, psychic, and most importantly spiritual.
Yoga is a journey of being still and silent.
Yoga is a means of balancing and harmonising the body, mind and emotions.
Yoga is one of the most ancient forms of practice for good health and well-being.
The tradition of yoga is very old and has been around for several thousands of years. It’s one of the most ancient form of exercise. In the archaeological excavation made in Indus Valley at Harappa and Mohenjodaro, many statues have been found in various postures of yoga.
What makes yoga maintain its appeal across the ages?
Apart from innumerable reasons, if I have to answer this with just one reason then I think it’s because yoga creates a balance in the endocrine and nervous system. These two systems are responsible for smooth functioning of the body. These two systems also directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body. This is the only form of exercise that works on these two systems.
Physical and mental cleansing, and strengthening is one of yoga’s most important achievements. What makes it so powerful and effective is the fact that it works on holistic principles of harmony and unification.
Yoga moves swiftly from the physical level to the mental and emotional levels. Many people suffer from phobias and neuroses. Yoga might not provide a cure to this but it definitely helps in coping with it.
Yoga is an integration between the head, heart and hand. Through the practice of yoga, awareness develops of the interrelation between emotional, mental and physical levels and how disturbance in any one of these affect the others.
Yoga is a philosophy of life, which also has the potential to create a vibrantly healthy body and mind. In the 21st century, beyond the needs of individuals, the underlying principles of yoga provide a real tool to combat social malaise.
At the time when the world seems to be at a loss, rejecting the past values without being able to establish new ones, yoga provides a means for people to find their own way of connecting with their own selves. In this respect yoga is far from mere physical exercise. It is an aid to establish a new perception of what is real, and what is necessary in life. It creates awareness about one self, and about the surrounding. This is an experience, which cannot be understood intellectually. One needs to experience it through regular practice.
So, yoga doesn’t belong to any sect or community or religion. The young the aged, men or women, fat or thin, everyone can practice yoga. Even sick people (under the guidance of a teacher) will be benefitted by it.
In short, if we wish to possess perfect health, be immune to illness, prolong old age, live a healthy happy life we should follow yoga, for it is a complete, rational way of living.
It’s the most valuable inheritance of the present. It is an essential need of today.
We will talk about Ashtanga yoga in my next blog post.
Editor’s Note: The blogger is a homeopath, lifelong vegetarian and high level yoga practitioner. If you have any questions for her, please email them to readers@gulfnews.com or post on the Gulf News Facebook page.
Hanuman Asana or Monkey Pose (as seen in image)
How to do it:
Kneel on the floor. Place your right foot forward about a foot in front of your left knee, and rotate your right thigh outwards. Do this by lifting the inner sole away from the floor and resting the foot on the outer heel.
Exhale and lean your body forward, pressing your fingertips to the floor. Slowly slide your left knee back, straightening the knee and at the same time pushing the right thigh toward the floor. Stop straightening the back knee just before you reach the limit of your stretch.
Now begin to push the right heel away from your torso. Because we started with a strong external rotation of the front leg, gradually turn the leg inward as it straightens to bring the kneecap toward the ceiling. As the front leg straightens, resume pressing the left knee back, and carefully descend the front of the left thigh and the back of the right leg (and the base of the pelvis) to the floor. Make sure the center of the right knee points directly up toward the ceiling.
Also check to see that the back leg extends straight out of the hip (and isn’t angled out to the side), and that the center of the back kneecap is pressing directly on the floor. Keep the front leg active by extending through the heel and lifting the ball of the foot toward the ceiling. Stretch the arms straight up toward the ceiling.
Stay in this pose for 30 seconds to a minute. To come out, press your hands to the floor, turn the front leg out slightly, and slowly return the front heel and the back knee to their starting positions. Then reverse the legs and repeat for the same length of time.
For new students:
Students just beginning to learn this pose are often unable to get the legs and pelvis down on the floor, which is usually due to of tightness in the backs of the legs or front groins. While in the starting leg position then (as described above), place a thick bolster below the pelvis (with its long axis parallel to your inner legs). As you straighten the legs, slowly release your pelvis down onto the bolster. If the bolster isn’t thick enough to comfortably support your pelvis, add a thickly folded blanket.
Please do this pose under supervision of a qualified yoga instructor.
Contraindications:
Groin or hamstring injuries
Benefits:
Those suffering from sciatica
Instructions courtesy: www.yogajournal.com
