2 A JOURNEY INTO YIN YOGA
Often in the Western world when you mention the word yoga, what pops
into mind is an image of a person doing a yoga posture. You might picture
somebody doing a down dog or handstand or some fancy posture where he
or she is tied up in a knot, looking like a pretzel. The truth of the matter is
that yoga is so much more than just poses.
Yoga comes from the Sanskrit root word, yuj, which means to yoke or to
unite. So, what exactly is uniting? Well, it can be many things. A farmer 100
years ago might have united a plow with an ox to help plow the field. When
two people get married, you could say that’s yoga. Vinyasa yoga students
might unite their breath with movement to induce a flow. People who medi-
tate might unite their focus with a mantra or an affirmation. Spiritual people
might dedicate their entire lives to uniting themselves with a higher power
through every thought, word, or action. In fact, this latter example is where
yoga all began.EIGHT LIMBS OF YOGA
The original forms of yoga date back many thousands of years. The earliest
known writings of yoga can be found in ancient spiritual texts called the Vedas
that date back from 1700 BCE to 1100 BCE. The Vedas are sacred scriptures
from India. Veda comes from the root vid, to know. The Vedas are revealed
knowledge given to humanity at the dawn of time. They exist in four collec-
tions: Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva. The Rig Veda is the oldest. Born of the
Vedas are the Upanishads. Although parts of the Vedas define the religion of a
certain culture, the Upanishads are considered to be universal. It is commonly
believed that the Upanishads are as relevant to the world today as they were
to India 5,000 years ago.
The traditional style of yoga was called raja yoga. Raja yoga is known as
royal yoga or classical yoga and focuses on meditation and contemplation. It
is known as the royal yoga because the royal families of India invited sages,
or spiritual masters, to teach the royal family about yoga. In the beginning,
yoga had nothing to do with the physical and everything to do with the sci-
ence of the mind.
Centuries later, around 200 to 400 CE, a person named Patanjali systemized
this classical form of raja yoga into the eight limbs of yoga. The eight limbs of
yoga consist of a series of sutras that pack a powerful punch of information
that is short and to the point. Each sutra is inclusive of all people regardless
of age, gender, ethnicity, or religious belief. The eight limbs of yoga provide
a road map for reaching the peak human experience in which a person is
liberated, enlightened, and awakened!“The second you stepped into this world of exis-
tence a ladder was placed before you to help you
escape it.” —Rumi