Today, “yoga” often means a class of stretches and breathing. But yoga has a long and rich history in India as a spiritual discipline, aimed at stilling the mind and realising one’s true nature. Knowing a little of this history can deepen any practice.
What “yoga” means
The Sanskrit word yoga comes from a root meaning “to yoke” or “to join”. It is used for disciplined practices that unite body, breath and mind, and in many traditions for the union of the individual self with the divine.
Early roots
Ideas connected with yoga appear in the Vedas and especially in the Upanishads. The Katha Upanishad describes yoga as the steady control of the senses, and compares the body to a chariot, with the mind as the reins and the self as the passenger. The Bhagavad Gita later describes several yogas: of action, knowledge, meditation and devotion.
Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras
The classic text of yoga philosophy is the Yoga Sutras attributed to Patanjali. Its dating is uncertain; scholars place it somewhere in the first centuries BCE or CE. In short, dense statements (sutras), it defines yoga as the stilling of the movements of the mind, and sets out an eight-limbed path (ashtanga):
- Yama: ethical restraints, such as non-violence and truthfulness.
- Niyama: personal observances, such as cleanliness, contentment and study.
- Asana: a steady, comfortable seated posture.
- Pranayama: regulation of the breath.
- Pratyahara: withdrawing the senses from outer objects.
- Dharana: concentration.
- Dhyana: meditation.
- Samadhi: complete absorption.
Notice that only one limb concerns posture, and in the Sutras it mainly means a seat for meditation.
Hatha yoga
Later, medieval traditions of hatha yoga developed many more postures, breathing techniques and cleansing practices to prepare the body for meditation. The Hatha Yoga Pradipika, usually dated to around the fifteenth century, is one of the best-known texts.
Modern yoga
In the twentieth century, teachers in India, notably T. Krishnamacharya and his students, developed the posture-based styles that spread around the world. Today yoga is practised by millions of people of every background, often mainly for health and wellbeing.
Bringing the roots into practice
- Begin or end your practice with a few minutes of stillness.
- Notice how kindness and honesty (the yamas) can shape how you treat your body.
- Let the breath lead your movements.
- Try alternate-nostril breathing or the meditation timer.
Key points
- Yoga began as a spiritual discipline for stilling the mind.
- Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras describe an eight-limbed path.
- Modern posture-based yoga developed mainly in the twentieth century.
