Integrating Yoga’s Style
Thousands of years ago Yoga was a secret tradition who’s disciplined students often developed supernormal abilities after practicing deep meditation in the quest for enlightenment. Along the way they also learned how to cleanse and strengthen the body and how to stay healthy, centered and grounded in every aspect of life. Yogic disciplines led to experiential knowledge of life’s most profound secrets.
Along with all the popularity that Yoga has today, there still seems also to be some confusion about its scope and true purpose. Today’s business aspect of Yoga requires that most studios or teachers offer their own name brand. It is easy to confuse these brand names with different types of or approaches to Yoga, with most only being variations on ways to practice Asana, the mostly physical Yoga practice. Asana is most often how people first discover Yoga and can be done either in a more vigorous mat exercise format, as with most power or hot Yoga styles, or in a more serene, flowing, introspective or meditative style. But Asana is only the tip of the Yogic iceberg. In our contemporary haste to market or rework this venerable tradition we must be careful not lo loose out on Yoga’s most powerful benefits.
To approach Yoga in its full scope, it is best to have an overview of its many time honored branches. It is important for a beginning student to look for a strong connection to the tradition behind the brand name. Yoga is an experiential science rather than a belief system. This is the reason that it has survived the centuries and is as valid today as when discovered by the ancient seers. The validly of any particular Yoga path has always been its continuity over time, the authority of a long, continuous line of sages who practiced it and left their teachings to follow and adapt to one’s individual requirements.
Although it mostly gets presented, today, as a form of exercise, unlike other “fitness” pursuits Yoga is not goal driven. There’s nothing to win, and it is not about outperforming others. Yoga is a practice without a purpose, the idea is to open yourself to the experience not to worry about its outcome. Even so, if you practice regularly you’ll likely increase your flexibility and strength, tone your muscles, deepen your breathing and relax and recharge your nervous system.
I believe that this basic divergence from the competitive norm may in itself be why Yoga has emerged so strongly as a regular activity for so many of us. From the very start, it offers us a refuge from our stressful competition driven life. Yoga is about the practice not the performance. Fitness mostly focuses on the body and getting it into shape, but Yoga also focuses on the breath and the mind and getting them into shape.
Yoga can be defined both as a set of ancient disciplines and practices or as the state of being one develops by practicing them. Generally the term is used to mean a variety of practices, consisting of the application of Asana (posture), Pranayama (energy expansion), ritual, mantra, meditation and other related methods of spiritual development. While it is often linked with spiritual and religious practices, Yoga is actually a form of discipline not of religion. There is no pressure for someone to follow one system or another and even within a particular system there is freedom to modify the approach according to one’s own needs and level of progress. The goal is mental peace and emotional happiness; cultivating peace of mind, simplicity and a life in harmony with nature. To purify the mind, which is the main practice of Yoga, requires purification of the body with which the mind is connected.
Yoga practice, over a period of time, purifies the physical and subtle bodies and nervous system and clears the mind. It provides us with methods to regulate inner processes, restrain compulsive urges, focus our attention and awaken awareness of our true inner nature. This is accomplished through conscious attention to the basic areas of everyday such life as exercise, breathing, relaxation, diet and inner psychology. Our physical body is purified by our working in harmony with nature, through body cleansing, good hygiene, proper diet, fresh air, sunshine and exercise. Our mind can be purified through self-study, surrender, and the practice of Mantra; the intentional use of sound and prayer formulas.
Classical Yoga has several divisions that help us better understand what Yoga is and how to use it on different levels. There is no true en masse instruction in Yoga or the practice of it, except on a preliminary level. The Yoga tradition is rich and diverse with a number of points of view and we cannot understand it in isolation from this greater connection.
Because all people don’t have the same temperament or approach to life, traditional Yoga is divided into four main forms: Raja Yoga - the science of mental control and meditation. Bhakti Yoga - the path of Love; recognizing the Divinity in all form. Karma Yoga - the path of Action with no desire for reward. Jnana Yoga - the path of wisdom, discernment and Knowledge.
The aim of each is the same even though they employ somewhat different means. They are not separate yogas, they are only different avenues of approach which accommodate the varying ways people view life and the process of growth. What is taught and recommended to the student, for study and practice, is a matter of emphasis depending on the student and teacher. Ultimately a synthesis of all approaches should be integrated, experiencing the wisdom of each and emphasizing and adapting what is most suitable to one’s own progress.
These approaches might be summarized by the following quote by contemporary master teacher Yogi Raj Swami Shyam; “Yoga has three doorways – Physical – Mental – Spiritual” We could enter any of these classic paths of Yoga through either of these “doorways” and that would change how we practice them
Physical Yoga - Exercise and Relaxation - Asana
The system of Stretching and Postures for exercise and relaxation sometimes called “Doing Yoga” is the physical culture part of Yoga called Hatha Yoga . Hatha Yoga is often how one is introduced to Yoga practice and philosophy. It is a preparatory branch of the Raja Yoga system that has, more recently, developed as a distinct system. Hatha Yoga exercises called Asanas, or poses, are a series of stretches, breathing and relaxation exercises that are conducive to physical health, increased awareness and improved function on all levels. Most of the contemporary Yoga styles are Hatha Yoga variations. Mental Yoga - Meditation - Pranayama – Yoga Psychology
Raja Yoga
Is sometimes called the science of mental control, or the path of meditation. All Yoga practices aim at turning the mind within, even the asanas of Hatha Yoga. Asana leads us to meditation. The mind is the link between the body and consciousness. In meditation we learn to observe the mental process. This is the first experience that awareness is separate from the mind.
Raja Yoga is also sometimes called Ashtanga Yoga or ‘Eight Limbed’ Yoga due to The eight steps or stages of successful practice listed in The Yoga Sutras.
Yama and Niyama
The first two of the eight limbs, are the prerequisites or preliminaries, but often get skipped over by the mainly physical Yoga styles. They represent Yoga’s moral and ethical foundation, values, attitudes and lifestyle.
Yama includes Non-violence, Truthfulnes, Non-stealing, Non-attachment, and Control of sexual energy.
Niyama includes Self-control, Self-study, Purity, Contentment, and Surrender to God.
The next steps, Asana, Pranayama and Pratyahara are means to regulate and control our outer nature.
The last three, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi go together as attention, meditation and spiritual union.
Raja Yoga is primarily a path of synthesis. It contains elements of technique, Knowledge and devotion.
Spiritual Yoga
Self-realization – Brahmavidya, The True Yoga – Hard Yoga
Bhakti Yoga - The path of Love and Devotion Love has a higher and lower form. The lower is emotion, passion, sexual attraction, and the need to be loved. The higher form is devotion, love of life, love of truth, love of God. In the lower form we seek to be loved from the outside, from someone else. In the higher form we go inside ourselves to the source of love and become willing to be a source of that love for others. Devotion or Divine Love is another major path of Yoga. “Bhakti Yoga is the science of higher love”.
Devotional
Devotional practices consist of prayer, worship and ritual (puja), such as offerings of flowers and lights and keeping pictures and images. Also singing the praises of God (Kirtan), chanting the names of the Lord (japa), mediation on a form of the Divine (upasana) and keeping holy company (satang) form a part of Bhakti Yoga.
Jnana Yoga
The path of wisdom, discernment and realization of higher knowledge is called Jnana Yoga, the Yoga of Knowledge. TheYoga of Knowledge is usually considered highest and most difficult of the Yogic paths. It is for the “special few who are prepared for the examination and clear perception of the nature of consciousness, God and the world process”. Through the philosophy of Vedanta and the process of Self-inquiry the Jnana Yogi uses the mind to inquire into its own nature.
A fundamental Jnana Yoga practice is Self-enquiry, answering the question “who am I”. When we resolve the basic question of identity the mystery of God and the universe will also be resolved. To remove ignorance and develop higher knowledge two main qualities are needed. These are discrimination (Viveka) and detachment (Vairagya). Discrimination is the ability to differentiate between truth and falsehood, between reality and illusion. Detachment means breaking the link by which we identify ourselves with our desires. Detachment leads to renunciation. True renunciation is not just the giving up of the things of the world but no longer needing external things for support.
It is said that Jnana and Bhakti are complimentary, like theory and practice, that Knowledge with out Devotion is dry and Devotion without Knowledge is hollow. Bhakti and Jnana are the wings of the bird of the soul, both are needed in order to soar. Though there are a variety of Yoga systems, all of them provide the methodology to help us expand our individual awareness to Divine awareness. The work of Yoga involves the yielding of our outer, or lesser, being to make a way for the inner, greater being to manifest. This requires regular study and practice, perseverance and patience, periods of solitude and deep meditation which results in inner awareness, physical and mental balance, and profound peace.
has been teaching Yoga Teachers for over a decade. He has been practicing and teaching Yoga and Vedic Studies for more than 35 years and has had an Ayurveda practice since 1995. He is ordained to teach in the Kriya Yoga tradition and authorized to teach Raja Yoga and Ayurveda by The American Institute of Vedic Studies. Ed lives near Sumneytown, PA where he has a full time Ayurveda practice. He is a primary teacher at Yoga on Main in Manayunk, PA where he teaches Vedic Studies, Meditation and Ayurveda for their Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher Training Program and offers his 100 hour Ayurveda study program.
