Introduction
Yoga means union - uniting mind, body and spirit so that you are whole. Yoga creates strength, flexibility and stamina. It also works on the body's vital energy and creativity. Many people seek out yoga as a way to keep fit, but it also keeps the mind fit and creates a deeper understanding of yourself. A class will generally include warm-ups, asanas, relaxation and possibly meditation and chanting.
A is for Asana
Asanas are the building blocks of yoga - the physical postures. Asanas are designed to create joint flexibility, muscle strength and stimulate the glands and organs. Asana releases tension from the body and opens up the energy lines of the body - the meridians or nadis. When you hold asana, you create body awareness. Depending on the style of yoga, you might do a sequence of complimentary yoga asanas to give a full mind-body workout.
B is for Bikram
Bikram is a brand of yoga devised by Bikram Choudhury - it is also known as Hot Yoga and some studios teach it as Yoga Sweat. There is a series of 26 asanas (postures) and 2 breathing exercises done in a room heated to 105'F (40.5'C) with a humidity of 40 percent. Bikram is very popular and many students claim as well as building good physical health and stamina, it is great for losing weight.
C is for Chakras
Chakras mean wheels of light and they are perceived as energy vortexes within the body. There are seven main chakras running from the base of the spine to the crown of the head - they correspond to physical parts of the body, emotions and spiritual development. In yoga, we are creating awareness of the subtle body, how energy flows through us and chakras are a useful map for understanding subtle energy, where we might have blocks for example.
"I was in yoga the other day. I was in full lotus position. My chakras were all aligned. My mind is cleared of all clutter and I'm looking out of my third eye and everything that I'm supposed to be doing. It's amazing what comes up, when you sit in that silence." Ellen DeGeneres, actress
D is for DVDs
The ideal way to study yoga is with a teacher who can give you individual attention and guidance, but if you would prefer to do it at home or are on the road then there are DVDs available in every style of yoga. You could check out Yoga Shakti with Shiva Rea a dynamic and challenging workout, or Kundalini Yoga with Gurmukh. DVDs give you a chance to do a yoga session with some of the biggest yoga teachers from around the world. There are also many Yoga for Beginners DVDs.
E is for Energy
Prana is the Hindi word for Energy - it is the revitalizing energy from the universe that we draw on during yoga. Prana runs through everything. Every living thing vibrates with energy. There are 72,000 energy lines or nadis (similar to meridians in Chinese Medicine) running through the body - they make up the subtle body. The main nadi is the ‘Sushumna' which runs from the top of the head to the base of the spine through the chakras.
F is for Fitness
Getting fit is a common goal for people seeking out yoga. Yoga works on flexibility, strength and stamina and can balance the nervous system. Regularly practicing yoga will enhance your immune system through work on the glandular system. Yoga classes like Ashtanga, Bikram and Kundalini often make you sweat, clearing out toxins from the body and the organs. In some yogas, you can work directly on the organs like the liver or kidneys for detoxification.
"Live in peace, not in pieces! Keep the continuing conversation of why you're doing this yoga. Not just for yourself, but you're adding, energetically, peace to this world. So you start in small groups. Then we have conferences all around the world. So we keep using that word, peace. Pretty soon it enters a person's psyche - peace inside, peace outside." Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa
G is for Guru
Gu-ru literally means from darkness to light. So we seek out a teacher or a master to help us transform, follow a path from darkness to awareness. There are yoga and meditation gurus the world over. Often people travel to India in order to stay at an ashram of a master or an enlightened being. Finding a guru like finding a teacher can be a hit and miss, but usually you will find a guru only when the time is right for you to make that jump, that change in your life. A guru will facilitate the transformation. Some gurus teach lessons, some meditation, some through example and sometimes you just look into the eyes of a guru (darshan) and receive a transmission of energy or healing.
H is for Hatha
Hatha is classical yoga and is what most people in the West associate with the term ‘yoga'. It is the most commonly practiced yoga in the West. Ha and Tha means sun and moon, and so refers to creating the balance between yin and yang, masculine and feminine, positive and negative, prana and apana. It is a strong practice done for purification. A Hatha class will primarily work with postures to strengthen and open the body and mind with a good amount of calming and relaxation at the end.
I is for Iyengar
Iyengar Yoga is named after its creator B.K.S. Iyengar. It is based on the yoga sutras of Patanjali, the spiritual text of yoga and uses props, like belts and blocks to assist the student in getting into the postures perfectly. It focuses on structural alignment through asana and the development of strength, stamina, balance, dharana (concentration) and dhyana (meditation). In this yoga, you really learn how your hip bone connects to your thigh bone. Standing postures are emphasized as they build strong legs and improve circulation and coordination. It is also a good form of physiotherapy.
"Yoga is a friend to those who embrace it sincerely and totally. It lifts its practitioners from the clutches of pain and sorrow and enables them to live fully, taking a delight in life. The practice of yoga helps the lazy body to become active and vibrant. It transforms the mind making it harmonious. Yoga helps to keep one's body and mind in tune with the essence, the soul, so that all three are blended into one." B.K.S. Iyengar
J is for Jois
Sri K. Pattabhi Jois is the main adept of Ashtanga yoga at this time. Ashtanga yoga focuses primarily on dynamic asanas and pranayama. The purpose of the yoga is to create heat in the body to clear out and purify. You follow a specific series of yoga postures under the guidance of your teacher. You can also find Mysore style classes (Pattabhi Jois is based in Mysore in the southern Indian state of Karnataka) where you practice solo, moving through the practice at your own pace.
K is for Kundalini
Kundalini Yoga is the yoga of awareness. It focuses on opening up the body so that energy can flow freely, releasing tension or energetic blocks, and waking us up to our potential. Kundalini Energy is our life force which is often shown as a coiled serpent sleeping at the base of the spine and represents our potential. By bringing awareness to movement, breath, mantra and sound, we can bring awareness to how energy flows within us. Kundalini Yoga is a dynamic form of yoga which opens up the body so that you can sit in meditation and create a space for inner transformation. Kundalini Yoga was brought to the West by Yogi Bhajan.
L is for Lotus
Lotus is one of the most easily recognized yoga postures. Lotus or padmasana involves sitting with each foot on the opposite thigh, soles turned upwards, spine straight with hands in the lap. It is the best posture for pranayama and enhances deep meditation. It opens up the hips and allows prana to move into the sushumna which is the central energetic pathway of the body (the main nadi - see Energy).
M is for Mantra
Mantra is chanting and is a practice of deep meditation and celebration. Mantra means to vibrate the mind, so it shuts up the thinking mind a bit and lets you drop into a deeper space of understanding. When you chant you hit 84 reflexology points in the mouth and create space for meditation and transformation in the mind and soul. These energy points are neurotransmitters which alter the brain's chemistry. Chanting is a beautiful way to celebrate body-mind-spirit and be in devotion. Nada yoga is the practice of chanting.