Yoga

Yoga

Yoga is a term that has two meanings.  It is both (1) a school of thought in the Hindu religion and (2) a system of mental and physical exercise developed by that school.  Followers of the yoga school, who are called yogis or yogins, use yoga exercise to achieve their goal of isolation of the soul from the body and mind.  Many non-Hindus in Western countries practice some form of yoga exercise in hope of improving their health and achieving peace of mind.  The word yoga means discipline in Sanskirt, the classical language of India.

According to the yoga school, every human being consists of prakrti and purusha.  Prakriti includes a person’s body mind, and ego (conscious self).  Purusha is pure, empty consciousness - the soul.  The yoga school teaches that the soul is completely separate from the rest of a person, but the person does not realize it.  Human beings suffer because they wrongly believe that their soul is bound to their body and mind.  The yoga school, through yoga exercise, aims to give people prajna (understanding) of the meaning of their soul.  After a person has obtained this understanding, his or her soul will gain moksha (release) from the samsara (cycle of rebirth) in which Hindus believe. 

A yogi, under the guidance of a guru (teacher), goes through eight stages of training on the way to moksha.  The yogi learns:  (1) disciplined behaviour, call yama; (2) self-purification (niyama); (3) bodily postures, such as the lotus position (asanal); (4) control of breathing (pranaya); (5) control of the senses (pratyahara); (6) fixing of the mind on a chosen object (dharana); and (7) meditation (dhyana).  The eighth stage, called samadhi, is a state of concentration in which yogis realize that their soul is pure and free, and empty of all content.  A yogi who has completed these eight stages has reached kaivalya.  Kaivalya is total isolation of the soul from the body, from all other souls, and from all of nature. 

In addition to the practices of the yoga school, other popular forms of yoga exist in the religious traditions of India.  One form, called bhakti-yoga, involves the dedication of all actions and thoughts to a chosen god.  Another form, karma-yoga, involves doing one’s duty without caring about reward.  A third form, hatha-yoga, stresses difficult bodily postures and breathing techniques, with better health as the main goal.

Various forms of yoga have become popular in Western countries.  One form, Transcendental Meditation, requires less mental concentration than does the yoga of Hinduism.  Members of the Hare Krishna movement practice bhakti-yoga by devoting themselves to the supreme god Krishna.  Hatha-yoga has been called a method of gaining perfect health.  It strengthens the body and has also been studied for the unusual control some yogis develop over such functions as metabolism and blood flow.

Yoga includes exercises and postures that its followers believe help isolate the soul from the body and mind.  The yogi shown above is meditating while sitting in the lotus
position.
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