Yoga

Yoga is fascinating. In the west, the people that are aware of yoga - not yogurt- are aware of it primarily in the form of Hatha yoga. The Wikipedia begins its description of it as Hatha Yoga (Sanskrit हठयोग haṭhayoga, IPA: [ɦəʈʰəˈjoːɡə]), also called Hatha Vidya (हठविद्या), is a system of Yoga introduced by Yogi Swatmarama, a sage of 15th century India, and compiler of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. In this treatise Swatmarama introduces Hatha Yoga as preparatory stage of physical purification that the body practices for higher meditation. The Asanas and Pranayama in Raja Yoga were what the Hindu Yogis used to physically train their body for long periods of meditation. This practice is called shatkarma.

Since yoga and its many branches are fascinating and to the average person is unknown, I will begin a review of The Hatha Yoga Pradipika in the next post.  Stay tuned.
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