yoga, a spiritual way of life

YOGA works on all aspects of the person: the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.

The word yoga means unity or oneness and is derived from the Sanskrit word yuj which means to join.

This unity is described in spiritual terms as the union of the individual consciousness with the universal consciousness.

Yoga arose at the beginning of human civilization, when man first realized his spiritual potential and began to evolve techniques to develop it.

Yoga is on a practical level, a means of balancing and harmonizing the body, mind and emotions.

The practice of Yoga develops an awareness between the interrelation of the emotional, mental and physical levels, and how a disturbance in any of these affects the others. Gradually this awareness, leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of existence.

There are many branches of Yoga: raja, hatha, jnana, karma, bhakti, mantra, kundalini, to name a few. Each individual needs to find those yogas most suited to his/her particular personality and needs to unfold its own spiritual path.

Some traditions believe, Yoga is a divine gift revealed to the ancient sages, so that mankind could have the opportunity to realize its divine nature.

Sage Pantanjali treatise, the Yoga Sutras, codified the first unified and comprehensive system of Yoga.

The science of Patanjali Yoga marks an eight fold path to be followed in order to purify the body and make the mind focus on one point, with the only purpose of discovering the spirit within and merge into superconsciousness.  

Follow the 8 recommendations:

• yama (self restraints): ahimsa (non violence), satya (truthfulness), astray (non-stealing), brahmacharya (continence) and aparigraha (non possessiveness)
• niyama (self-observance ): saucha (purification ), santosh (contentment), tapas (discipline, austerity), svadhyaya (self-study), ishvarapranidhana (surrender to the divine)
• asana (physical postures)
• pranayama (breathing exercises to increase and direct the flow of prana)
• pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses from its objects)
• dharana (concentration)
• dhyana (meditation)
• samadhi (superconsciousness)