We hear very often that someone is going to a Yoga class weekly, or they practice Yoga at home or we come across someone who call themselves a Yogi. The word Yoga is used as often these days as the word Spirituality. So, what does it mean when someone says they are doing Yoga? Are they doing Yoga or Yoga Asanas? What is the difference between them? And who is considered a Yogi, anyone who goes to a Yoga class regularly or it means something else? I came across these questions often and thought it would be useful to share my thoughts about these topics.
Before we try to understand what someone is referring to when they talk about Yoga, let's try and get a bit more understanding about what Yoga is, what Yoga Asanas are, and who a Yogi is according to ancient yogic scriptures. Is it really important to know the difference? Not really. As long as what you are practicing and what you are calling yourself brings you joy and enriches your life, it doesn't really matter what you call your practice or what you call yourself.
If we have to explain these three topics in a short statement - Yoga is a science which offers a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines for our inner wellbeing by bringing harmony among mind, body, and spirit. A classical Yoga system has eight limbs. Yoga Asanas are the physical practices offered by Yoga (third limb of classical Yoga system). Yogi is a person who incorporates all eight limbs of Yoga into their daily routine.
Classical Yoga system and the eight limbs of Yoga emerged from the ancient yogic scripture - Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. These are a collection of 196 aphorisms on the theory and practice of yoga. The Yoga Sutras were compiled prior to 400 CE by Sage Patanjali who synthesised and organised knowledge about yoga from older traditions.
These are the eight limbs of a classical yoga system - Yamas, Niyamas, Asanas, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi
1. Yamas - These are codes for social conduct of a yoga practitioner
- Ahiṃsā (अहिंसा): Nonviolence, non-harming others as well as oneself. Nonviolence in speech, action, and thoughts.
- Satya (सत्य): Truthfulness in speech, action, and thoughts and to be always on the path of truth.
- Asteya (अस्तेय): Honesty, and non-stealing of things and ideas that does not belong to you.
- Brahmacharya (ब्रह्मचर्य): Practice marital fidelity or sexual restraint.
- Aparigraha (अपरिग्रहः): Not to possess beyond what is needed for survival. Not to hoard things, emotions, or feelings.
- Śauca (शौच): Cleanliness of mind, speech, and body
- Santoṣa (सन्तोष): Contentment, acceptance of others and of one's circumstances as they are, optimism for self
- Tapas (तपस्): Austerity, self-discipline, perseverance towards all activities in a day
- Svādhyāya (स्वाध्याय): Study of self, self-reflection, introspection of self's thoughts, speeches and actions.
- Īśvarapraṇidhāna (ईश्वरप्रणिधान): Contemplation of the life that is beyond physical (It could be anything one could relate with like God, Supreme Being, Brahman, True Self, Unchanging Reality or anything else one believes in).
Below is the pictorial representation of Yamas and Niyamas.
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| Image Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/44121271331765294/ |
3. Āsana: Asana is a posture that one can hold for a period of time, staying relaxed, steady, comfortable and motionless. Asana is a physical posture intended to provide flexibility, strength, and balance to one's physical body. These are postures including ones that are reclining, standing, inverted, twisting, balancing, as well as seated. The posture that causes pain or restlessness is not a yogic posture. There was no guidance in the ancient yogic texts on how a yoga asana should be practiced, but the only guidance was that a asana should be firm but relaxed. Over the centuries, yoga teachers, schools, and organisations introduced and taught many yoga postures and their numbers continue to grow even to this day.
Below are the 12 original asanas from the Sivananda School of Yoga.
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| Image Source: http://www.yogatreat.net/yoga-classes/12-basic-asanas/ |
4. Prānāyāma: Prāṇāyāma is made out of two Sanskrit words prāṇa (प्राण, breath) and āyāma (आयाम, restraining, extending, stretching). Prāṇāyāma, is the practice of consciously regulating breath (inhalation and exhalation). This is done in several ways, inhaling and then suspending exhalation for a period, exhaling and then suspending inhalation for a period, slowing the inhalation and exhalation, consciously changing the time/length of breath (deep, short breathing).
There are many practices for Pranayama, below are a [Source: https://www.yogapoint.com/pranayama/types-of-pranayama.htm#fast-breathing]
- Natural Breathing
- Basic Abdominal breathing
- Thoracic breathing
- Clavicular breathing
- Yogic breathing
- Deep breathing with ratios
- Fast breathing
- Viloma – Interrupted Breathing
- AnulomVilom – Alternate Nostril Breathing
- Cooling Breath - Sheetali, Sitkari, Kaki mudra
- Ujjayi – Victorious Breath
- Bhramari – Humming Bee Breath
- Bhastrika – Bellow’s Breath
- Surya Bhedan – Right Nostril Breathing
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| Image Source: https://www.sarvyoga.com/anulom-vilom-pranayama-steps-and-benefits/ |
Below is an image of a person practicing Sat Mukhi Mudra - Pratyahara.
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| Image Source: https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/info/blog-the-banyan-insight/details/eliminating-distractions-with-pratyahara |
Dharana (Sanskrit: धारणा) means concentration, introspective focus and one-pointedness of mind. The root of word is dhṛ (धृ), which has a meaning of "to hold, maintain, keep".
Dharana as the sixth limb of yoga, is holding one's mind onto a particular inner state, subject or topic of one's mind. The mind is fixed on a mantra, or one's breath/navel/tip of tongue/any place, or an object one wants to observe, or a concept/idea in one's mind. Fixing the mind means one-pointed focus, without drifting of mind, and without jumping from one topic to another.
7. Dhyāna
Dhyana (Sanskrit: ध्यान) literally means "contemplation, reflection" and "profound, abstract meditation".
Dhyana is contemplating, reflecting on whatever Dharana has focused on. If in the sixth limb of yoga one focused on a personal deity, Dhyana is its contemplation. If the concentration was on one object, Dhyana is non-judgmental, non-presumptuous observation of that object. If the focus was on a concept/idea, Dhyana is contemplating that concept/idea in all its aspects, forms and consequences. Dhyana is uninterrupted train of thought, current of cognition, flow of awareness.
8. Samādhi
Samadhi (Sanskrit: समाधि) literally means "putting together, joining, combining with, union, harmonious whole, trance".
Samadhi is oneness with the subject of meditation. There is no distinction, during the eighth limb of yoga, between the actor of meditation, the act of meditation and the subject of meditation. Samadhi is that spiritual state when one's mind is so absorbed in whatever it is contemplating on, that the mind loses the sense of its own identity. The thinker, the thought process and the thought fuse with the subject of thought. There is only oneness, Samadhi.
Below is an image representing the progression of mind from dharana, to dhyana, to samadhi.
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| Image Source: http://www.indwellyoga.com/resources/ |
If you have any questions about this topic or any other questions about Yoga, feel free to contact me at atmenyoga@gmail.com.
[References]
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/hyp/hyp04.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga_Sutras_of_Patanjali
https://isha.sadhguru.org/yoga/yoga_articles_yoga/yoga-being-a-part-of-everything/
http://www.indwellyoga.com/resources/
http://www.gurumaa.com/videos/yama-the-code-of-conduct
http://www.gurumaa.com/videos/niyama-self-discipline
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