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So do you need to know all about Yoga History or will a broad brush approach do?

It's interesting how different people see yoga in different ways. Some say you don't need to understand the history fully or even at all to be able to have a fulfilling yoga practice ... Others, however claim that without understanding the background of yoga, you are unable to get the full benefit ... emotionally and spiritually from your yoga practice. They all agree however, that you will get a physical benefit no matter what position you take.

So it is really up to you ... Are you a person who needs to know and understand the reasonings behind yoga as a practice or can you accept it in a simplistic form, namely that it composes a practice of poses, breath and meditation.

For a simplistic broad brush approach to yoga history, have a read of Stephen's article ...

Yoga History 101

Contributed by: Stephen Kreutzer

When you practice yoga, it is, of course, not necessary to have a full understanding of yoga history in order to fully benefit from your practice. A brief understanding of the history behind yoga, however, may increase your spiritual practice and inspire you to find out more about the tradition behind the discipline.

(This is where people a differing opinions. Should you need a slightly more detailed approach, have a look at The History of Yoga ... author's insert)

The first writings about yoga were written in Sanskrit in early religious manuscripts in India called the Vedas.

Yoga takes many forms - whether you need a meditative style or an active style of Yoga - the choice is yours

The word ‘yoga’ has many meanings. The root of the word is ‘yug’ which means ‘to hitch up’, referring to fastening horse bridles to a carriage. But yoga also means ‘to actively put to use’ or ‘yoke’ or ‘join’. Today, it is agreed upon that yoga is a method of joining or a discipline. Men who practice yoga are called yogi or yogin and women who practice yoga are called yogini.

Yoga was first passed from generation to generation by word of mouth. It wasn’t until about 2000 years ago when an Indian named Patanjali wrote ‘The Yoga Sutra’ that the philosophy of yoga was committed to paper. Yoga is not just about stretching and breathing and holding poses. Yoga is a philosophy on how to live life and deal with the challenges that human beings face daily. The Yoga Sutra defined this philosophy in 195 statements.

Sutra can be defined as ‘thread’ or ‘aphorism’, which means ‘a short declaration of truth’. It also means ‘the concentration of a large quantity of information into a simple definition’. It is a way of looking at truths that apply to everyone despite culture in the clearest way possible.

Hatha yoga, or the yoga that you do when you take a yoga class or perform yogic poses, was begun as a physical form of meditation. The physical act of yoga calms your body and allows your mind to become calm. It also gives you the physical strength to sustain long periods of meditation.

When you perform the physical practice of yoga, you are only engaging in half of the discipline as it has been practiced for thousands of years. Yoga is an incredible form of exercise and calming for the body, but it can also be used as a spiritual practice and a way to calm the mind and will as well.

About the Author

Stephen Kreutzer is a freelance publisher based in Cupertino, California. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines

and provides yoga tips on http://www.more-about-yoga.com.

So that is a brief insight into yoga history. By the way "hatha" is not a particular practice style of yoga? It is just a generic term that encompasses all styles of physical yoga practice. Some styles are new (Iyengar, Anusara, Bikram, Ashtanga), some are older. Most styles of hatha yoga practice include
breathwork (pranayama) and meditation techniques in addition to the poses (asana).

Just thought I'd mention that as many people speak of hatha as if it was a form of yoga rather than a descriptive and generic term.

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