Tight tights, bendy bodies, Buddha icons, chants, incense, oils, mats, bottles, towels…namaste. There is so much more to yoga than the subculture that surrounds it.
In the broadest sense, yoga (योग) means alignment. This alignment can be internal, between mind-breath-and-body, or external, between our bodies and the forces that surround us. It could also be between two celestial entities aligning in the sky to sustain life on earth, as studied in Jyotish-shastra.
Basically, yoga is a loaded concept, actualised in many ways. And I don’t mean Vinyasa, Yin, or Bikram. Those are just different routines exploring ‘asana’, which is one of the eight elements constituting yoga. I am referring to the more elemental purpose of yoga, which is about transcending our limits through alignment with all that we believe to be limiting us.
To illustrate, karma-yoga is designed to align individual actions with a broader social goal. Bhakti-yoga is about aligning with a mentor or an ideology. Gyan-yoga is about finding alignment within contradictions. While, tantra-yoga is about aligning energies through symbols and rituals. These are just but a few examples of yoga from Yoga-sutra.
Yoga-sutra is the most comprehensive body of work on the topic. Authored by Patanjali about ~4000 years ago, it describes human body as three concentric containers. The social container (karana sharira) that surrounds the physical container (sthula sharira), which houses the mental container (sukshma sharira) where consciousness (atma) presides. All three containers are considered to have an intelligence and consciousness of their own.
Ashta (eight) anga (parts)
The eight (ashta*) parts (ang*) in yoga-sutra are, therefore, designed to systematically bring us from our outer-most realities to our inner-most truth. These eight parts are – Yama (restraint), Niyama (discipline), Asana (postures), Pranayama (breathing), Pratyahara (withdrawal), Dharana (awareness), Dhyan (concentration), and Samadhi (immersion).
[*not to be confused with Mysore’s Ashtanga yoga routine. It might be inspired by the eight-part concept in yoga-sutra but is not what is being referenced here.]
Yama (pronounced as Yum) deals with the social aspects of our life, our relationship with others. Niyama (pronounced as Nee-yum) is more individualistic, our relationship with ourselves. Asana (pronounced as Aa-sun) are postures that help us challenge our internalised limits. Pranayam (pronounced as Praa-naa-yum) deals with breath. Pratyahara is about withdrawing from our sense organs. This constitutes an important juncture in the journey from outer to inner layers.
Dharana (pronounced as Dhhaa-ruh-naa) emphasises awareness and perspective, teaching us to observe our thoughts without control or judgement. Dhyana (pronounced as Dhhyaa-nn) is about focus, getting our minds to actively concentrate on an object or idea. From Dhyana comes the concept of Zen. Finally, Samadhi, the process of connecting with the ultimate source of energy, the mainframe of our existence.
Asana (pronounced as aa-sun)
Out of the eight -anga, we have mainly adopted one, and haven’t quite got that right either. Remember the famous scene in Star Wars, where Luke Skywalker failing to lift the ship, says, “I don’t believe it”, and Yoda says, “that is why you fail”; our problem with yoga asana is not very different. We keep forcing ourselves into postures, when all we need to do is ease ourselves into them by believing that we can.
What does it mean?
Most of us think of our bodies as we do of society, entities lacking in intelligence, hence in need of top-down authority. Yoga, on the other hand, begins by acknowledging human body as an intelligent entity with a consciousness of its own.
Hence, the first step in yoga is to accept our reality as it is, however limited or chaotic it may seem in that moment. This acceptance creates a fertile ground for alignment. By putting our bodies and minds at ease, we loosen up both to work with one another through the medium of breath. This helps us transcend our assumed limits, ultimately turning us into yogis.
Yogi
Please know, a yogi is not simply a noun or pronoun for the doer of yoga asana. A yogi is someone who has mastered the art of harmonising misaligned forces in the smallest and broadest of senses. Therefore, becoming yogya/ योग्य, a.k.a worthy, of being called a yogi.
Namaste.