Yoga has eight limbs.
This page is about Asana Yoga.
These poses are what make up most yoga exercise classes. I have included a description of yoga with it's eight limbs in the hope you may want to research them further and include them in your daily routine.
I grew up on a boat in The U. S. Virgin Islands and literally could swim before I could walk. I later became immersed in ballet and attended The Academy of Ballet and Theater Arts in New York City. So I have stretched my muscles and exercised my whole life.
I suffered from allergy induced asthma and bronchitis. In those days (early 60's) my doctors told me to just sit. No one ever taught me how to "breathe" to expand my lungs, until YOGA.
Once I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease five years ago, I needed a way to keep my muscles as supple as possible. (PD causes your muscles to tighten and cramp causing great pain). I discovered yoga at the Chopra Center. It was unlike any yoga class I had ever experienced.
Clair Diab, our teacher, taught us three important lessons:
I do Sun Salutations in the morning for 10 min. If you do them right, you can work every part of your body. Try Yoga and I hope you enjoy it.
Toni F. Lyerly
Classical yoga connects back to Raja yoga and Patanjali, the teacher of the eightfold path. The foundations of yoga’s philosophy were written down in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras in approximately 200 AD. This ancient text describes the inner workings of the mind.
When you practice all eight limbs of the path it becomes evident that no one element is elevated over another. Because we are all uniquely individual, a person can emphasize one branch and then move on to another as they round out their understanding. In brief, the eight limbs of yoga are as follows:
Yama: Universal morality (societal codes of conduct)
Niyama: Personal observances (personal codes of conduct)
Asana: Body postures (yoga poses)
Pranayama: Breathing exercises and control of Prana (breath)
Pratyahara: Control of the senses (Savasana)
Dharana: Concentration and cultivating inner perceptual awareness (present-moment awareness
Dhyana: Devotion and meditation on the Divine
Samadhi: Union with the Divine
This page is about Asana Yoga.
These poses are what make up most yoga exercise classes. I have included a description of yoga with it's eight limbs in the hope you may want to research them further and include them in your daily routine.
I grew up on a boat in The U. S. Virgin Islands and literally could swim before I could walk. I later became immersed in ballet and attended The Academy of Ballet and Theater Arts in New York City. So I have stretched my muscles and exercised my whole life.
I suffered from allergy induced asthma and bronchitis. In those days (early 60's) my doctors told me to just sit. No one ever taught me how to "breathe" to expand my lungs, until YOGA.
Once I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease five years ago, I needed a way to keep my muscles as supple as possible. (PD causes your muscles to tighten and cramp causing great pain). I discovered yoga at the Chopra Center. It was unlike any yoga class I had ever experienced.
Clair Diab, our teacher, taught us three important lessons:
- Breathe continually into your poses. Do not hold your breath but relax.
- Smile. If the exercise you do is painful then stop.
- The most important pose you will ever do is Shavasana. In this pose, you lie down flat on your back with your eyes closed. Doing this pose means you are listening to your body and not trying to keep up with everyone else in the room.
I do Sun Salutations in the morning for 10 min. If you do them right, you can work every part of your body. Try Yoga and I hope you enjoy it.
Toni F. Lyerly
Classical yoga connects back to Raja yoga and Patanjali, the teacher of the eightfold path. The foundations of yoga’s philosophy were written down in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras in approximately 200 AD. This ancient text describes the inner workings of the mind.
When you practice all eight limbs of the path it becomes evident that no one element is elevated over another. Because we are all uniquely individual, a person can emphasize one branch and then move on to another as they round out their understanding. In brief, the eight limbs of yoga are as follows:
Yama: Universal morality (societal codes of conduct)
Niyama: Personal observances (personal codes of conduct)
Asana: Body postures (yoga poses)
Pranayama: Breathing exercises and control of Prana (breath)
Pratyahara: Control of the senses (Savasana)
Dharana: Concentration and cultivating inner perceptual awareness (present-moment awareness
Dhyana: Devotion and meditation on the Divine
Samadhi: Union with the Divine
