What is
yoga?
Yoga is
the ability to restrain the modifications of the mind-stuff.
Yoga
Sutra 1.2
So, yoga
is a state in which we are highly aware of our personal affairs and those of
the world without being disturbed.
Yoga is a philosophy,
a science and an art, which unites the body, mind, and spirit for health and
harmony in everyday life. It does not belong to any religion, but it
exemplifies some ideas which are common to all religions. While yoga sprang from the soil of India, it is meant as a universal path, a way open to all regardless of their birth and background. Yoga works an 8-limbed path that brings its practitioners to state of Samadhi, or bliss. This state is one filled with joy, peace, concentration and contentment in all circumstances. Yoga's sole's purpose is to quiet the mind and body so that one can meditate with God. Yoga does not say who 'god' is, but merely recognizes that all things were created by one divine entity. In order to achieve Samadhi, one must have a direct relationship with this Divine.
As you continue to practice yoga, you will only deepen your understanding of what you truly
believe. The only requirements are to act and be attentive to your actions. You
will find that yoga not only provides physical benefits, but it can calm your
mind, increase your concentration, and give you the ability to cope with
stress. It promotes physical and spiritual well-being through a system of
personal introspection, excavation, and development.
Yoga does not look on greed, violence, sloth, excess, pride, lust, and fear as ineradicable forms of original sin that exist to wreck our happiness--or indeed on which to found our happiness. They are seen as natural, if unwelcome, manifestations of the human disposition and predicament that are to be solved, not suppressed or denied. Our flawed mechanisms of perception and thought are not cause for grief, but an opportunity to evolve.
Yoga is a rule book for playing the game of Life and nothing of the yogic philosophy goes against any organized religion. Yoga is tough and it requires a willingness to think for yourself, to observe and correct, and to surmount occasional setbacks. It demands honesty, sustained application, and above all the love in your heart. If you are interested to understand what it means to be a human being, placed between earth and sky, if you want happiness and long for freedom, then you have already begun to take the first steps toward the journey inward.
B.K.S Iyengar says of yoga, "By accepting nature's challenge and joining the game, we find ourselves on a windswept and exciting journey that will pay benefits commensurate to the time and effort we put in--the lowest being able to tie our own shoelaces when we are eighty and the highest being the opportunity to taste the essence of life itself."
What most people want is the same. Most simply want physical and mental health, understanding and wisdom, and peace and freedom. Yoga is designed to satisfy all these human needs in a comprehensive, seamless whole. Its goal is nothing less than to attain the integrity of oneness--oneness with ourselves and oneness with God. Yoga allows you to rediscover a sense of wholeness in your life, where you do not feel like you are constantly trying to fit the broken pieces together. Yoga allows you to find inner peace that is not ruffled and riled by the endless stresses and struggles of life.
Yoga can just be a physical form for you, but it just might surprise you to how much more it can offer.
Welcome to the journey and we look forward to seeing you on your mat!
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