The word Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj meaning to bind, join, attach and yoke.
The union or yoking of the body, mind, soul and spirit.
“When all the senses are stilled, when the mind is at rest, when the intellect wavers not–then, say the wise, is reached the highest state. This steady control of the senses and the mind has been defined as yoga. He who attains it is free from delusion.”
– Katha Upanishad 2.6.10-11
The Yoga Sutras by Patanjali are a guide to help you on your spiritual journey.
There are 196 Sutras in four chapters.
The Yoga Sutras contain a set of observances and practices.
8 Limbs of Yoga
- Yama: Correct behavior or universal commandments
- Niyama: The principles by which you live your own life as in self purification by discipline
- Asana: The postures that prepare the body
- Pranayama: Rhythmic control of the breath
- Pratyahara: Tuning inward rather than focusing senses on outward on exterior objects
- Dharana: Concentration
- Dhyana: Meditation
- Samadhi: State of super-consciousness brought on by profound meditation. Unity or oneness with the object of his meditation
Our Western Culture has come to equate Yoga as a gymnastic exercises that focus on strengthening the muscles and gaining control over their physical body, somehow leave out the controlling of their mind, intellect and the Self. This focus on Asana, or pose or posture, and putting the body above all else leads to imbalance.
