Yoga Defined, With Crystal Clarity
Yoga is a Sanskrit term meaning to bind together; to hold; to unify one’s awareness with one’s true identity—the Unifying field of Pure Consciousness.
How one experiences God—the disciplines and practices involved in Yogic processes—depends on personality temperament. Several thousand years ago, lineage holders in India shaped the teachings of Yoga to support different temperaments in the quest for spiritual awakening. When studying Yoga in the Bhagavad-Gita, it becomes clear that these teachings were tailored to speak to distinct personality types.
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Are you an active, energetic type? Explore the Yoga of Technique—Hatha Yoga.
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Are you an intellectual type? Explore the Yoga of Insight—Jnana Yoga.
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Are you an intuitive type? Explore the Yoga of Meditation—Dhyana Yoga.
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Are you service-oriented? Explore the Yoga of Selfless Work—Karma Yoga.
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Are you a feeling type? Explore the Yoga of Dedication—Bhakti Yoga.
A person may express more than one temperament. Whichever approach resonates with you is worth noting. Once you recognize where you are naturally drawn, the path before you becomes clear. That is where your Yoga pilgrimage begins.
Dispelling Three Essential Misconceptions About Yoga
There are three common misconceptions about Yoga that deserve clarification.
1. Yoga is incompatible with religion.
Yoga’s teachings are adaptable and welcome anyone willing to learn. If they were incompatible with religion, Yoga masters would not have devoted their lives to sharing them.
The purpose of Yoga is to provide philosophical insight and practical discipline leading to God-contact—to communion with the One Presence, the Most High. If God is whole and complete, then all beings share the same Source. The world’s religions acknowledge this unified Spirit in countless ways, calling God by many names.
Yoga traditions teach that God expresses as a harmonizing vibration—a call drawing all souls home.
Yoga is communing with One God, our God.
The only true conflict lies in resistance within the collective mind, not in the teachings themselves. Living in alignment with eternal truth and cosmic harmony is a daily choice.
Harmlessness is the ethical foundation shared by all religions. Yoga reshapes one’s life so that thoughts, words, actions, and work in the world express non-harm as fully as possible.
Yoga contributes to peaceful coexistence without competition or hostility.
2. Yoga is only stretching and breathing.
Stretching postures and breath-control techniques tone the body, enliven the nervous system, massage the internal organs, strengthen the bones, and cleanse the lungs.
Ayurveda—the science of health and longevity—explains how physical postures and breath practices work together to support physical and mental health. When the body is strong, limber, and breathing freely, the concentration required to study and apply Yoga’s psychological teachings is more easily cultivated.
Yoga is holistic. Every dimension of the human being is considered in order to support balanced health.
3. Yoga is static—everything about it is already known.
The Yoga tradition has evolved over time, forming many approaches. Yet its essence is not bound by scripture, caste, opinion, or geography. If Yoga is an expression of God’s boundless wisdom, how could it be limited?
It would be a mistake to assume that Yoga, as currently understood, is complete. The adept yogi remains ever-learning and ever-humble.
The essence of Yoga is alive—continually presenting teachings in forms a culture can understand and apply.
Yoga and humanity evolve together, while the essence of Yoga remains constant and ever-available.
Dedication to the Highest Excellence as Yoga Education
How do I begin?
Begin by becoming a learner. Yoga education is continuous. To become a learner is to develop the skill of applying an ever-evolving stream of divine wisdom. Yoga education begins with the study of Vedic and Yogic scriptures under the guidance of an experienced teacher, and with a willingness to eliminate the causes of personal affliction and dissatisfaction.
How will Yoga help me change? What am I willing to change?
There are many approaches to applying the teachings of Yoga.
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If you are an active, energetic type, study the Yoga of Technique described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and Gheranda Samhita.
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If inclined toward intellectual inquiry, study the Yoga of Insight as presented in the Upaniṣads and the teachings of Adi Shankaracharya within Advaita Vedanta. Also, engage in daily study of the Avadhūta Gītā and the Aṣṭāvakra Gītā.
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If intuitive, study the Yoga of Meditation described in the Svetasavatara Upaniṣad, Bhagavad-Gita, Shandilya’s Yoga Sutras, and Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras.
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If service-oriented, study the Yoga of Selfless Work in the Bhagavad-Gita.
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If feeling-oriented, study the Yoga of Dedication described in the Bhagavad-Gita (Chapters 7-12), Shandilya’s Bhakti Sutras, Narada’s Bhakti Sutras, and The Nectar of Instruction.
Identifying where you resonate clarifies where to begin.
I invite you to explore these traditions with me. Our world needs adept Yoga teachers capable of carrying the teachings forward. Start from where you are. Continue learning how to live consciously. Study the scriptures—the ancient records of human experience. There is always more to discover. Your direct experiences are as valid as those of the ancient seers. Follow in their footsteps until the day you no longer walk behind them.
One lesson I have learned is that when direct contact is made with what I call the Eternal Flame of Yoga—the hub of Yoga wisdom—God Identification is the result.