Yoga (Sanskrit, Pāli: yóga) is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul. The word is associated with meditative practices in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.
Within Hindu philosophy, the word yoga is used to refer to one of the six orthodox (āstika) schools of Hindu philosophy. Yoga in this sense is based on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and is also known as Rāja Yoga to distinguish it from later schools.[9] Patanjali’s system is discussed and elaborated upon in many classical Hindu texts, and has also been influential in Buddhism and Jainism. The Bhagavad Gita introduces distinctions such as Jnana Yoga (“yoga based on knowledge”) vs. Karma Yoga (“yoga based on action”).
Other systems of philosophy introduced in Hinduism during the medieval period are bhakti yoga, and hatha yoga.
The Sanskrit word yoga has the literal meaning of “yoke”, from a root yuj meaning to join, to unite, or to attach. As a term for a system of abstract meditation or mental abstraction it was introduced by Patañjali in the 2nd century BC. Someone who practices yoga or follows the yoga philosophy with a high level of commitment is called a yogi or yogini.
The goals of yoga are varied and range from improving health to achieving moksha. Within the Hindu monist schools of Advaita Vedanta, Shaivism and Jainism, the goal of yoga takes the form of moksha, which is liberation from all worldly suffering and the cycle of birth and death (samsara), at which point there is a realization of identity with the Supreme Brahman. In the Mahabharata, the goal of yoga is variously described as entering the world of Brahma, as Brahman, or as perceiving the Brahman or Ātman that pervades all things.For the bhakti schools of Vaishnavism, bhakti or service to Svayam Bhagavan itself may be the ultimate goal of the yoga process, where the goal is to enjoy an eternal relationship with Vishnu.
Patanjali is widely regarded as the compiler of the formal Yoga philosophy. Patanjali’s yoga is known as Raja yoga, which is a system for control of the mind. Patanjali defines the word “yoga” in his second sutra, which is the definitional sutra for his entire work:
Patanjali’s writing also became the basis for a system referred to as “Ashtanga Yoga” (“Eight-Limbed Yoga”). This eight-limbed concept derived from the 29th Sutra of the 2nd book, and is a core characteristic of practically every Raja yoga variation taught today. The Eight Limbs are:
1.Yama (The five “abstentions”): non-violence, non-lying, non-covetousness, non-sensuality, and non-possessiveness.
2.Niyama (The five “observances”): purity, contentment, austerity, study, and surrender to god.
3.Asana: Literally means “seat”, and in Patanjali’s Sutras refers to the seated position used for meditation.
4.Pranayama (“Suspending Breath”): Prāna, breath, “āyāma”, to restrain or stop. Also interpreted as control of the life force.
5.Pratyahara (“Abstraction”): Withdrawal of the sense organs from external objects.
6.Dharana (“Concentration”): Fixing the attention on a single object.
7.Dhyana (“Meditation”): Intense contemplation of the nature of the object of meditation.
8.Samādhi (“Liberation”): merging consciousness with the object of meditation.
Bhagavad GitaMain article: Bhagavad Gita
The Bhagavad Gita (‘Song of the Lord’), uses the term “yoga” extensively in a variety of ways. In addition to an entire chapter (ch. 6) dedicated to traditional yoga practice, including meditation,[14] it introduces three prominent types of yoga:[49]
Karma yoga: The yoga of action.
Bhakti yoga: The yoga of devotion, note Krishna had also specified devotion itself was action similar to above.
Jnana yoga: The yoga of knowledge.
In Chapter 2 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna explains to Arjuna about the essence of Yoga as practiced in daily lives:
Yoga and Jainism
According to “Tattvarthasutra,” 2nd century CE Jain text, “Yoga,” is the sum total of all the activities of mind, speech and body. Umasvati calls yoga the cause of “asrava” or karmic influx as well as one of the essentials—samyak caritra—in the path to liberation. In his “Niyamasara,” Acarya Kundakunda, describes yoga bhakti—devotion to the path to liberation—as the highest form of devotion.Acarya Haribhadra and Acarya Hemacandra mention the five major vows of ascetics and 12 minor vows of laity under yoga. This has led certain Indologists like Prof. Robert J. Zydenbos to call Jainism, essentially, a system of yogic thinking that grew into a full-fledged religion.
The five yamas or the constraints of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali bear a resemblance to the five major vows of Jainism, indicating a history of strong cross-fertilization between these traditions
The Bhagavata Purana is a commentary and elaboration on the Bhagavadgita, an older text of the Mahabharata epic which rose to great importance in Vaishnavism during the Bhakti movement. In the Bhagavadgita (3.3), jñānayoga is the acquisition of true knowledge, as opposed to karmayoga, the performance of the proper religious rites.
This terminology involving various yogas has given rise to the concept of the Four Yogas in modern Hinduism from the 1890s. These are
1.Karma Yoga
2.Bhakti Yoga
3.Raja Yoga
4.Jnana Yoga
In this usage, the term “Yoga” ceases to translate to “a system of meditation” and takes on the much more general sense of “religious path”. Thus, Karma Yoga is “the Path of Action”, Bhakti Yoga “the Path of Devotion” and Jnana Yoga “the Path of Knowledge”, all standing alongside Raja Yoga, “the Path of Meditation” as alternative possibilities towards religious fulfillment.
Hatha Yoga
Main articles: Hatha yoga and Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Hatha Yoga, sometimes referred to as the “psychophysical yoga”, is a particular system of Yoga described by Yogi Swatmarama, compiler of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika in 15th century India. Hatha Yoga differs substantially from the Raja Yoga of Patanjali in that it focuses on “shatkarma,” the purification of the physical body as leading to the purification of the mind (“ha”), and “prana,” or vital energy (tha).Compared to the seated asana, or sitting meditation posture, of Patanjali’s Raja yoga,it marks the development of asanas (plural) into the full body ‘postures’ now in popular usage and, along with its many modern variations, is the style that many people associate with the word “Yoga” today.
Reception in the West
Main article: Yoga as exercise or alternative medicine
A western style Hatha Yoga class.Yoga came to the attention of an educated western public in the mid 19th century along with other topics of Hindu philosophy. The first Hindu teacher to actively advocate and disseminate aspects of Yoga to a western audience was Swami Vivekananda, who toured Europe and the United States in the 1890s.
In the West, the term “yoga” is today typically associated with Hatha Yoga and its asanas (postures) or as a form of exercise. In the 1960s, western interest in Hindu spirituality reached its peak, giving rise to a great number of Neo-Hindu schools specifically advocated to a western public. Among the teachers of Hatha yoga who were active in the west in this period were B.K.S. Iyengar, K. Pattabhi Jois, and Swami Vishnu-devananda, and Swami Satchidananda. A second “yoga boom” followed in the 1980s, as Dean Ornish, a follower of Swami Satchidananda, connected yoga to heart health, legitimizing yoga as a purely physical system of health exercises outside of counter culture or esotericism circles, and unconnected to a religious denomination.
Kundalini Yoga, considered an advanced form of yoga and meditation, was on the whole a secretive and misunderstood technology – it was not widely taught by any master teachers outside of India until Yogi Bhajan(Siri Singh Sahib) brought his understanding of the teachings to the United States in 1969.
There has been an emergence of studies investigating yoga as a complementary intervention for cancer patients. Yoga is used for treatment of cancer patients to decrease depression, insomnia, pain, and fatigue and increase anxiety control. Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programs include yoga as a mind-body technique to reduce stress. A study found that after seven weeks the group treated with yoga reported significantly less mood disturbance and reduced stress compared to the control group. Another study found that MBSR had showed positive effects on sleep anxiety, quality of life, and spiritual growth.
Yoga has also been studied as a treatment for schizophrenia. Yoga is found to improve cognitive functions and reduce stress in schizophrenia, a condition associated with cognitive deficits and stress-related relapse. In one study, at the end of four months those patients treated with yoga were better in their social and occupational functions and quality of life.
The three main focuses of Hatha yoga (exercise, breathing, and meditation) make it beneficial to those suffering from heart disease. Overall, studies of the effects of yoga on heart disease suggest that yoga may reduce high blood pressure, improve symptoms of heart failure, enhance cardiac rehabilitation, and lower cardiovascular risk factors.
Long-term yoga practitioners in the United States have reported musculoskeletal and mental health improvements, as well reduced symptoms of asthma in asthmatics. Regular yoga practice increases brain GABA levels and is shown to improve mood and anxiety more than other metabolically matched exercises, such as jogging or walking. Implementation of the Kundalini Yoga Lifestyle has shown to help substance abuse addicts increase their quality of life according to psychological questionnaires like the Behavior and Symptom Identification Scale and the Quality of Recovery Index.
Ref: Wikipedia.org
