The History Of Dynamic Yoga

THE HISTORY OF YOGAuniverse.
Most of the Hatha yoga forms taught todayThe first limb of yoga is called Yama. Its purpose is to
throughout the Western world is influenced by thepromote moral and ethical principles within the individual.
great yogi Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, who was bornYama has five principles or social disciplines: ahimsa
in 1888. He is considered the father of modern yoga(nonviolence), satya (truth), asteya (non-stealing),
and is responsible for pioneering the refinement ofbrahmacharya (purity), and aparigraha
postures, specifically sequencing them and giving(non-attachment).
therapeutic value to each one. He is also responsibleThe second limb is called Niyama. Its purpose is to
for combining the postures with breath control tocreate an inner integrity and it also has five principles:
create a form of moving meditation. Sri K. Pattabhisaucha (cleanliness, purity), santosha (contentment),
Jois, who developed the Ashtanga Vinyasa method oftapas (austerity), svadhaya (self-study), and
Hatha yoga, studied with Krishnamacharya from theisvarapranidhana (surrender to God).
age of 12 and continues to teach yoga, inspiredThe third limb is called Asana. These are the yoga
By his great teacher, in Mysore, India. B.K.S. Iyengarpostures, which are practiced to calm the mind,
also studied with Krishnamacharya, albeit for a briefenabling a deep state of meditation to occur. This is
time.based on the principle that if the body is restless, the
Lord of learning and remover of obstacles, the Hindumind will also become restless, inhibiting the true
god Ganesh provides inspiration to yoga students, whorealization of the self.
should cultivate the attitude that obstacle, are there toThe fourth limb is Pranayama, or extension of the
be overcome.breath. Prana is the life-force energy, and ayama is the
He has spent his life perfecting the asanas that his firstvoluntary effort to control and direct this energy.
guru taught him and is the founder of the Iyengar stylePranayama helps contemplation and eliminates
of yoga. He has a yoga center in Pune, India.T.distractions of the mind, so it becomes easier to
Desikachar, the son of Krishnamacharya, developedconcentrate and meditate.
the Viniyoga approach to Hatha yoga and currentlyThe fifth limb is Pratyahara, which means mastery of
has a yoga center in Chennai, India. He also teachesthe senses. Through the practice of asana and
throughout the world.pranayama your mind's attention is turned within;
THE EIGHT LIMBSthrough pratyahara this internal focus is maintained.
One of the founding principles of Hatha yoga to whichThe sixth limb is Dharana, or concentration. It is the
dynamic yoga adheres is that of the eight limbs, whichability to focus your full attention on one point to the
the literal translation of the Sanskrit word ashtanga is.exclusion of everything else. It is essential to realizing
Devised by the famous sage Patanjali in about 200B.C,the true self.
the eight limbs are described by him in the historicalThe seventh limb is Dhyana, or meditation, which is the
yoga text, the Yoga Sutras. The eight limbs can beeffortless flow of awareness toward the object of
likened to the form and nature of a tree. For, as a treeconcentration. The difference between concentration
stands strong against every adversity and continuesand meditation is that in concentration there is a
to grow, producing fruits from its labor, so do yogaperipheral distraction or awareness of your immediate
students, through consistent practice and dedication,surroundings, whereas in meditation the attention is not
begin to reap the benefits of their labor and nourish thedisturbed at all; you are completely absorbed.
fruits of their love. The first five limbs are concernedThe eighth limb is Samadhi, which means the
with the body and the brain. They constitute the outerabsorption of object with the mind. In this enlightened
phase of yoga. The final three limbs are concernedstate there is no duality of consciousness. It is one step
with the reconditioning of the mind and constitute thebeyond being completely absorbed in the meditative
inner phase of yoga.state. When you have achieved Samadhi, the "I"
The Hindu deity, Shiva, represents supremebecomes nonexistent. You become one with God or
consciousness. He is also known as the Lord of theone with all. This is the fruit of the tree or the fruits of
Dance, symbolizing the Eternal movement of theyour labor.