Yoga
Yoga1 is translated from the Sanskrit as "yoke". The yoke to which the word refers is the connection between the Atman, the conscious or personal experience of the divine nature, and Brahman, the superconscious or transpersonal experience of divinity, or the Godhead. [1]
There are innumerable "yogas" found and practiced within the various spiritual traditions of the world, both East and West. "Yoga" has come to be typically and specifically discussed in reference to the spiritual traditions and practices associated with India, namely Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Vedanta. [2]
A soapstone seal soapstone seal from the Indus Valley archeological site of Mohenjo-Daro depicting a horned figure (or, a figure wearing a headdress) surrounded by four animals, and seated on a throne in what may be interpreted as a yogic or meditative posture. (The soles of his feet are pressed together.) The figure is often identified with Shiva, perhaps in his role as Pashupati ("Lord of Animals"), and this interpretation suggests that Yoga, aswas known in the Indian subcontinent from 2600 to 1900 B.C.
Yoga in Hinduism
Vedas
The word "yoga" is found in the Rg Veda [t.k.], mentions "yoga" as a kind of discipline.
The fifteenth book of theAtharva Veda, the Vratya Kanda, connects it with pranayama (breath control), for the purpose of improving the musical quality of hymns sung to Rudra.
Upanisads
The Maitrayaniya Upanisad (2nd or 3rd century BC) defines yoga as "The oneness of the breath and mind, and likewise of the senses, and the relinquishment of all conditions of existence" for the purpose of uniting Brahman with Atman. It presents a sixfold path including
- (1) pranayama ("breath control")
- (2) pratyahara ("withdrawal of the senses from objects")
- (3) dhyana ("meditation")
- (4) dharama ("concentration")
- (5) tarka ("contemplation")
- (6) samadhi ("absorption")
Note the similarity to Patanjali's Yogasutras.
Yoga in Buddhism
Yoga in Jainism
Yoga as exercise
In 1893, Swami Vivekananda spoke before the World Parliament of Religions, mentioning the need for a Raja Yoga (i.e. a more spiritual or universalistic) approach to religion. While Vivekananda's allegiance lay with Vedanta, Western interest in yoga soon grew.
By the twentieth century, a new (and arguably nationalistic) emphasis on sport and "fitness" led to hatha yoga being understood in these terms, both in India and in Western countries. Yogis were made objects of scientific research which showed them to be able to, inter alia, regulate supposedly involuntary activities such as heart-rate, blood pressure, or body temperature.
B.K.S. Iyengar
Sri Yogendra
Swami Kuvalayananda
See also
References
Notes
Alter, Joseph S. Yoga in Modern India: The Body Between Science and Philosophy. Princeton UP, 2004.
Love, Robert. "Fear of Yoga." Originally published in Columbia Journalism Review (Issue 6, Nov/Dec 2006).
Footnotes
1 Yoga (योग), derived from the Sanskrit yugam, a cognate of the modern English "yoke" (iugum, Latin). Its Proto-Indo-European forebearer is speculated to be *yugom, from the root *yeug- (yuj-, Sanskrit) meaning "to join" or "unite".