Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 96.26.134.117 (talk) at 22:31, 15 April 2009 (→Yoga practices in other traditions). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Part of a series on
Hindu philosophy
Orthodox
Samkhya Yoga Nyaya Vaisheshika Mīmāṃsā Vedanta
Heterodox
Charvaka Ājīvika Buddhism Jainism Ajñana
Sub-schools Smartist Advaita Vaishnavite Bhedabheda Vishishtadvaita Dvaita Shuddhadvaita Achintya Bheda Abheda Svabhavika Bhedabheda Mahanubhava Ekasarana Dharma Akshar Purushottam Darshan Shaivite Shaiva Siddhanta Pratyabhijna Panchartika Pramanavada Shakti Vishishtadvaita Shiva Bhedabeda Shiva Advaita Neo-Vedanta Integral yoga
Teachers (Acharyas) Nyaya Akṣapāda Gotama Jayanta Bhatta Raghunatha Siromani Mīmāṃsā Jaimini Kumārila Bhaṭṭa Prabhākara Advaita (Mayavada) Gaudapada Vāchaspati Misra Adi Shankara Vishishtadvaita Ramanuja Vedanta Desika Dvaita (Tattvavada) Madhvacharya Jayatirtha Vyasatirtha Shuddhadvaita Vallabha Achintya Bheda Abheda Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Svabhavika Bhedabheda Nimbarka Srinivasacharya Keshav Kashmiri Harivyas devacharya Mahanubhava Chakradhara Ekasarana Dharma Sankardev Akshar Purushottam Darshan Swaminarayan Tantra Shakta Abhinavagupta Nigamananda Paramahansa Ramprasad Sen Bamakhepa Kamalakanta Bhattacharya Anandamayi Ma Neo-Vedanta Vivekananda Aurobindo Radhakrishnan Others Samkhya Kapila Yoga Patanjali Vaisheshika Kaṇāda, Prashastapada Secular Valluvar
Major texts Śruti Smṛti Vedas Rigveda Yajurveda Samaveda Atharvaveda Upanishads Principal Upanishads Minor Upanishads Other scriptures Bhagavad Gita Agama (Hinduism) Vachanamrut Shastras and Sutras Brahma Sutras Samkhya Sutras Mimamsa Sutras Nyāya Sūtras Vaiśeṣika Sūtra Yoga Sutras Pramana Sutras Puranas Dharmaśāstra Arthashastra Kama Sutra Naalayira Divya Prabandham Tirumurai Shiva Samhita Secular ethics Kural
Hinduism Other Indian philosophies
v t e

Yoga (Sanskrit, Pāli: योग yóga) refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines originating in India. The word is associated with meditative practices in both Buddhism and Hinduism. In Hinduism, it also refers to one of the six orthodox (āstika) schools of Hindu philosophy, and to the goal toward which that school directs its practices.

Major branches of yoga include Raja Yoga, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Hatha Yoga. Raja Yoga, compiled in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and known simply as yoga in the context of Hindu philosophy, is part of the Samkhya tradition. Many other Hindu texts discuss aspects of yoga, including Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Shiva Samhita and various Tantras.

The Sanskrit word yoga has many meanings, and is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj, meaning "to control", "to yoke" or "to unite". Translations include "joining", "uniting", "union", "conjunction", and "means". Outside India, the term yoga is typically associated with Hatha Yoga and its asanas (postures) or as a form of exercise. An accomplished practitioner of Yoga is called a Yogi (gender neutral) or Yogini (feminine form).

History of yoga

The Vedic Samhitas contain references to ascetics, while ascetic practices (tapas) are referenced in the Brāhmaṇas (900 to 500 BCE), early commentaries on the Vedas. Several seals discovered at Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3300–1700 B.C.E.) sites depict figures in positions resembling a common yoga or meditation pose, showing "a form of ritual discipline, suggesting a precursor of yoga", according to archaeologist Gregory Possehl. Some type of connection between the Indus Valley seals and later yoga and meditation practices is supported by many scholars.

Techniques for experiencing higher states of consciousness in meditation initially had only a slight philosophical underpinning, and were unconnected with Samkhya doctrines. These techniques were developed by the shramanic traditions and in the Upanshadic tradition. An early textual reference to meditation is made in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the earliest Upanishads (approx. 900 BCE). The Buddhist texts are probably the earliest texts describing meditation techniques. In Hindu literature, the term "yoga" first occurs in the Katha Upanishad, where it refers to control of the senses and the cessation of mental activity leading to a supreme state. Important textual sources for the evolving concept of Yoga are the middle Upanishads, (ca. 400 BCE), the Mahabharata including the Bhagavad Gita (ca. 200 BCE), and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (150 BCE).

Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

In Indian philosophy, Yoga is the name of one of the six orthodox philosophical schools. The Yoga philosophical system is closely allied with the Samkhya school. The Yoga school as expounded by the sage Patanjali accepts the Samkhya psychology and metaphysics, but is more theistic than the Samkhya, as evidenced by the addition of a divine entity to the Samkhya's twenty-five elements of reality. The parallels between Yoga and Samkhya were so close that Max Müller says that "the two philosophies were in popular parlance distinguished from each other as Samkhya with and Samkhya without a Lord...." The intimate relationship between Samkhya and Yoga is explained by Heinrich Zimmer:

These two are regarded in India as twins, the two aspects of a single discipline. Sāṅkhya provides a basic theoretical exposition of human nature, enumerating and defining its elements, analyzing their manner of co-operation in a state of bondage (bandha), and describing their state of disentanglement or separation in release (mokṣa), while Yoga treats specifically of the dynamics of the process for the disentanglement, and outlines practical techniques for the gaining of release, or 'isolation-integration' (kaivalya).

Patanjali is widely regarded as the founder 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:

Error: {{Transliteration}}: transliteration text not Latin script (pos 4) (help)
- Yoga Sutras 1.2

This terse definition hinges on the meaning of three Sanskrit terms. I. K. Taimni translates it as "Yoga is the inhibition (nirodhaḥ) of the modifications (vṛtti) of the mind (citta)". The use of the word nirodhaḥ in the opening definition of yoga is an example of the important role that Buddhist technical terminology and concepts play in the Yoga Sutra; this role suggests that Patanjali was aware of Buddhist ideas and wove them into his system. Swami Vivekananda translates the sutra as "Yoga is restraining the mind-stuff (Citta) from taking various forms (Vrittis)."

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 29 Sutra of the 2 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 ("Lengthening Prāna"): Prāna, life force, or vital energy, particularly, the breath, "āyāma", to lengthen or extend. 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.

In the view of this school, the highest attainment does not reveal the experienced diversity of the world to be illusion. The everyday world is real. Furthermore, the highest attainment is the event of one of many individual selves discovering itself; there is no single universal self shared by all persons.

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, it introduces three prominent types of yoga:

• Karma yoga: The yoga of action,
• Bhakti yoga: The yoga of devotion,
• Jnana yoga: The yoga of knowledge,
• Raja yoga: The yoga of wisdom.

Madhusudana Sarasvati (b. circa 1490) divided the Gita into three sections, with the first six chapters dealing with Karma yoga, the middle six with Bhakti yoga, and the last six with Jnana (knowledge). Other commentators ascribe a different 'yoga' to each chapter, delineating eighteen different yogas.

Hatha Yoga

Hatha 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. Hatha Yoga in its many modern variations is the style that many people associate with the word "Yoga" today.

        P.S.

          Who

Goal of yoga

The goal of yoga may range from improving health to achieving Moksha. Within the monist schools of Advaita Vedanta and Shaivism 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 realisation 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 Atman 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.

References

1. For the uses of the word in Pāli literature, see Thomas William Rhys Davids, William Stede, Pali-English dictionary. Reprint by Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1993, page 558:
2. Denise Lardner Carmody, John Carmody, Serene Compassion. Oxford University Press US, 1996, page 68.
3. Stuart Ray Sarbacker, Samadhi: The Numinous and Cessative in Indo-Tibetan Yoga. SUNY Press, 2005, pages 1-2.
4. "Yoga has five principal meanings: 1) yoga as a disciplined method for attaining a goal; 2) yoga as techniques of controlling the body and the mind; 3) yoga as a name of one of the schools or systems of philosophy (darśana); 4) yoga in connection with other words, such as hatha-, mantra-, and laya-, referring to traditions specialising in particular techniques of yoga; 5) yoga as the goal of yoga practice." Jacobsen, p. 4.
5. Monier-Williams includes "it is the second of the two Sāṃkhya systems," and "mental abstraction practised as a system (as taught by Patañjali and called the Yoga philosophy)" in his definitions of "yoga".
6. Pandit Usharbudh Arya (1985). The philosophy of hatha yoga. Himalayan Institute Press; 2nd ed.
7. Sri Swami Rama (2008) The royal path: Practical lessons on yoga. Himalayan Institute Press; New Ed edition.
8. Swami Prabhavananda (Translator), Christopher Isherwood (Translator), Patanjali (Author). (1996). Vedanta Press; How to know god: The yoga aphorisms of Patanjali. New Ed edition.
9. Jacobsen, p. 4.
10. For a list of 38 meanings of the word "yoga" see: Apte, p. 788.
11. For "yoga" as derived from the Sanskrit root "yuj" with meanings of "to control", "to yoke, or "to unite" see: Flood (1996), p. 94.
12. For meaning 1. joining, uniting, and 2., union, junction, combination see: Apte, p. 788.
13. For "mode, manner, means", see: Apte, p. 788, definition 5.
14. For "expedient, means in general", see: Apte, p. 788, definition 13.
15. Flood, p. 94.
16. Possehl (2003), pp. 144-145
17. See:
    • Jonathan Mark Kenoyer describes one figure as "seated in yogic position". Around the Indus in 90 Slides by Jonathan Mark Kenoyer
    • Karel Werner writes that "Archeological discoveries allow us therefore to speculate with some justification that a wide range of Yoga activities was already known to the people of pre-Aryan India." Werner, Karel (1998). Yoga and Indian Philosophy. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 103. ISBN 9788120816091..
    • Heinrich Zimmer describes one seal as "seated like a yogi". Zimmer, Heinrich (1972). Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization. Princeton University Press, New Ed edition. p. 168. ISBN 978-0691017785.
    • Thomas McEvilley writes that "The six mysterious Indus Valley seal images...all without exception show figures in a position known in hatha yoga as mulabhandasana or possibly the closely related utkatasana or baddha konasana...." McEvilley, Thomas (2002). The shape of ancient thought. Allworth Communications. pp. 219–220. ISBN 9781581152036.
    • Dr. Farzand Masih, Punjab University Archaeology Department Chairman, describes a recently disovered seal as depicting a "yogi". Rare objects discovery points to ruins treasure
    • Gavin Flood disputes the idea regarding one of the seals, the so-called "Pashupati seal", writing that it isn't clear the figure is seated in a yoga posture, or that the shape is intended to represent a human figure. Flood, pp. 28-29.
18. Charles Eliot, Hinduism and Buddhism: An Historical Sketch. Routledge, 1998, page 303.
19. Flood, pp. 94–95.
20. "...which states that, having become calm and concentrated, one perceives the self (atman), within oneself." Flood, pp. 94–95.
21. Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988, page 44. Gombrich notes that the early Upanishads do mention meditation, but it is possible that all that is meant by the use of the word is meditation as in meditating upon a topic, i.e. pondering it. For more on the lack of emphasis on meditation in Upanishadic literature prior to Buddhism see Randall Collins, The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change. Harvard University Press, 2000, pages 199, 205.
22. Flood, p. 95. Scholars do not list the Katha Upanishad among those that can be safely described as pre-Buddhist, see for example Helmuth von Glasenapp, from the 1950 Proceedings of the "Akademie der Wissenschaften und Literatur," . Some have argued that it is post-Buddhist, see for example Arvind Sharma's review of Hajime Nakamura's A History of Early Vedanta Philosophy, Philosophy East and West, Vol. 37, No. 3 (Jul., 1987), pp. 325-331. For a comprehensive examination of the uses of the Pali word "yoga" in early Buddhist texts, see Thomas William Rhys Davids, William Stede, Pali-English dictionary. Reprint by Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1993, page 558: . For the use of the word in the sense of "spiritual practice" in the Dhammapada, see Gil Fronsdal, The Dhammapada, Shambhala, 2005, pages 56, 130.
23. For an overview of the six orthodox schools, with detail on the grouping of schools, see: Radhakrishnan and Moore, "Contents", and pp. 453–487.
24. For a brief overview of the Yoga school of philosophy see: Chatterjee and Datta, p. 43.
25. For close connection between Yoga philosophy and Samkhya, see: Chatterjee and Datta, p. 43.
26. For Yoga acceptance of Samkhya concepts, but with addition of a category for God, see: Radhakrishnan and Moore, p. 453.
27. For Yoga as accepting the 25 principles of Samkhya with the addition of God, see: Chatterjee and Datta, p. 43.
28. Müller (1899), Chapter 7, "Yoga Philosophy", p. 104.
29. Zimmer (1951), p. 280.
30. For Patanjali as the founder of the philosophical system called Yoga see: Chatterjee and Datta, p. 42.
31. For "raja yoga" as a system for control of the mind and connection to Patanjali's Yoga Sutras as a key work, see: Flood (1996), pp. 96–98.
32. Patañjali (2001-02-01). "Yoga Sutras of Patañjali" (etext). Studio 34 Yoga Healing Arts. Retrieved 2008-11-24. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
33. For text and word-by-word translation as "Yoga is the inhibition of the modifications of the mind" see: Taimni, p. 6.
34. Barbara Stoler Miller, Yoga: Discipline of Freedom: the Yoga Sutra Attributed to Patanjali; a Translation of the Text, with Commentary, Introduction, and Glossary of Keywords. University of California Press, 1996, page 9.
35. Vivekanada, p. 115.
36. Stephen H. Phillips, Classical Indian Metaphysics: Refutations of Realism and the Emergence of "new Logic". Open Court Publishing, 1995, pages 12–13.
37. Jacobsen, p. 10.
38. "...Bhagavad Gita, including a complete chapter (ch. 6) devoted to traditional yoga practice. The Gita also introduces the famous three kinds of yoga, 'knowledge' (jnana), 'action' (karma), and 'love' (bhakti)." Flood, p. 96.
39. Gambhirananda, p. 16.
40. Jacobsen, p. 46.
41. Living Yoga: Creating a Life Practice - Page 42 by Christy Turlington (page 42)
42. Guiding Yoga's Light: Yoga Lessons for Yoga Teachers - Page 10 by Nancy Gerstein
43. Mindfulness Yoga: The Awakened Union of Breath Body & Mind - Page 6 by Frank Jude Boccio
44. Hatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel Burley (page 16)
45. Feuerstein, Georg. (1996). The Shambhala Guide to Yoga. Boston & London: Shambhala Publications, Inc.
46. Jacobsen, p. 10.
47. Jacobsen, p. 9.
48. Brittanica Concise "Characterized by an emphasis on bhakti, its goal is to escape from the cycle of birth and death in order to enjoy the presence of Vishnu."

Further reading

• Apte, Vaman Shivram (1965). The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. ISBN 81-208-0567-4. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) (fourth revised & enlarged edition).
• Patañjali (2001). Yoga Sutras of Patañjali. Studio 34 Yoga Healing Arts. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Chang, G.C.C. (1993). Tibetan Yoga. New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8065-1453-1
• Chatterjee, Satischandra (1984). An Introduction to Indian Philosophy (Eighth Reprint Edition ed.). Calcutta: University of Calcutta. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Donatelle, Rebecca J. Health: The Basics. 6th ed. San Francisco: Pearson Education, Inc. 2005.
• Feuerstein, Georg. The Shambhala Guide to Yoga. 1st ed. Boston & London: Shambhala Publications 1996.
• Flood, Gavin (1996). An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-43878-0.
• Gambhirananda, Swami (1998). Madhusudana Sarasvati Bhagavad_Gita: With the annotation Gūḍhārtha Dīpikā. Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama Publication Department. ISBN 81-7505-194-9.
• Harinanda, Swami. Yoga and The Portal. Jai Dee Marketing. ISBN 0978142950. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Jacobsen, Knut A. (Editor) (2005). Theory And Practice of Yoga: Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 9004147578. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) (Studies in the History of Religions, 110)
• Keay, John (2000). India: A History. New York: Grove Press. ISBN 0-8021-3797-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Marshall, John (1931). Mohenjodaro and the Indus Civilization: Being an Official Account of Archaeological Excavations at Mohenjodaro Carried Out by the Government of India Between the Years 1922-27. Delhi: Indological Book House.
• Michaels, Axel (2004). Hinduism: Past and Present. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-08953-1. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Mittra, Dharma Sri. Asanas: 608 Yoga Poses. 1st ed. California: New World Library 2003.
• Müller, Max (1899). Six Systems of Indian Philosophy; Samkhya and Yoga, Naya and Vaiseshika. Calcutta: Susil Gupta (India) Ltd. ISBN 0-7661-4296-5. Reprint edition; Originally published under the title of The Six Systems of Indian Philosophy.
• Possehl, Gregory (2003). The Indus Civilization: A Contemporary Perspective. AltaMira Press. ISBN 978-0759101722. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Radhakrishnan, S. (1967). A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. Princeton. ISBN 0-691-01958-4. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Saraswati, swami satyananda. November 2002 (12th edition). "Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha" ISBN 81-86336-14-1
• Taimni, I. K. (1961). The Science of Yoga. Adyar, India: The Theosophical Publishing House. ISBN 81-7059-212-7. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Usharabudh, Arya Pandit. Philosophy of Hatha Yoga. 2nd ed. Pennsylvania: Himalayan Institute Press 1977, 1985.
• Vivekananda, Swami (1994). Raja Yoga. Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama Publication Department. ISBN 81-85301-16-6. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) 21st reprint edition.
• Zimmer, Heinrich (1951). Philosophies of India. New York, New York: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01758-1. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) Bollingen Series XXVI; Edited by Joseph Cambell.

External links

• Template:Dmoz

• Hindu philosophical concepts
• Yoga styles
• Yoga
• Indian philosophy
• Sanskrit words and phrases
• Meditation
• Mind-body interventions
• Exercise