Yoga, is not only a physical but a spiritual journey...

The intent of Yoga Practice for many is to reap from it’s physical benefits, but as people further their practice they often find awareness within, and therefore could benefit from the more spiritual sides of Yoga, such as meditation, pranayama (breathing) and even bettering themselves in hope to live more harmoniously with themselves and with others.

The following 8 Limbs of Yoga (Yoga Sutras) are considered to be the most organized and complete definition of the discipline, allowing the Yoga Practice to extend beyond the mat and to be carried into daily living.

 8 Limbs of Yoga:

 Asana: Postures. Practicing the Asanas harmonize the flow of energy in the organism, thereby lifting the spirits of the individuals practicing

Dharana: Unbending concentration of mind (focus)

Dhyana: Worship, profound and abstract religious meditation

Yama: Five behaviour patterns or relationships between the individual and the outside world.                       

1) Ahimsa: Harmlessness. The word ahimsa literally means not to injure or show cruelty to any creature or any person in any way whatsoever. Ahimsa is, however, more than just lack of violence as adapted in yoga. It means kindness, friendliness, and thoughtful consideration of other people and things. It also has to do with our duties and responsibilities too. It could even mean that we must fight if our life is in danger. Ahimsa implies that in every situation we should adopt a considered attitude.

2) Satya: Truthfulness. Satya means, "to speak the truth," yet it is not always desirable to speak the truth on all occasions, for it could harm someone unnecessarily. We have to consider what we say, how we say it, and in what way it could affect others. If speaking the truth has negative consequences for another, then it is better to say nothing. Satya should never come into conflict with our efforts to behave with ahimsa. The Mahabharata, the great Indian epic, says: "Speak the truth which is pleasant. Do not speak unpleasant truths. Do not lie, even if the lies are pleasing to the ear. That is the eternal law, the dharma." Please note that this does not mean speak lie. Keeping quiet and saying lies are two different things.

3) Asteya: Non-stealing. Asteya is the third Yama. Asteya means "to steal"; Asteya is the opposite-to take nothing that does not belong to us. This also means that if we are in a situation where someone entrusts something to us or confides in us, we do not take advantage of him or her. We are to refrain from taking that which is not ours by right of consciousness and karma.

4)Brahmacharya:Sense-control
Brahmacharya is a movement toward the essential truth. It is used mostly in the sense of abstinence, particularly in relationship to sexual activity. Brahmacharya suggests that we should form relationships that foster our understanding of the highest truths. If sensual pleasures are part of those relationships, we must take care that we keep our direction and do not get lost. Avoid relationships that make us deviate from finding the eternal truth. On the path of serious, constant searching for truth, there are certain ways of controlling the perceptual senses and sexual desires. Brahmacharya does not necessarily imply celibacy. Rather, it means responsible behavior with respect to our goal of moving toward the truth.

5) Aparigraha: Neutralizing the desire to acquire and hoard wealth
The last Yama is Aparigraha, a word that means something like "hands off" or "not seizing opportunity." Aparigraha means to take only what is necessary, and not to take advantage of a situation or act greedy. We should only take what we have earned; if we take more, we are exploiting someone else. In addition, unearned rewards can bring with them obligations that might later cause problems.

 

Niyama: Five rules for personal observation – attitude we adopt towards ourselves

                        1) Sauca: Cleanliness – Externally and internally (clarity of mind)

                        2) Samtosa: Modesty and being content with what we have.

Be happy with what we have rather than being unhappy about what we don't have.  Accept what happens. Instead of complaining about things that go wrong, we can accept what has happened and learn from it.

3) Tapas: Keeping the body fit and healthy. Paying attention to eating habits, good posture, breathing patterns. Not eating unless we feel hungry.

4) Svadhyaya: Get close to ourselves, study ourselves to make ourselves better. Centering ourselves through meditation.

5) Isvarapranidhana: "To lay all your actions at the feet of God." We should accept the fact that we will not always get everything we want. Sometimes we get disappointed. Things do go wrong.  We have done our share. We have done the best we could under the circumstances. We can leave the rest to a higher power.

Pranayama:  Measure and control of breath to relax and balance the body.

Pratyahara:   Withdrawal of the senses from attachment to external objects. It means our senses stop living off the things that stimulate; the senses no longer depend on these stimulants and are not fed by them any more. In effect the brain will disregard all that is received by the various sensory organs and will only accept and process the signals sent by sensory organs at the command of the brain. Now we have control over our senses rather than being controlled by them.

Samadhi:       Unconscious state of bliss. When we succeed in becoming so absorbed in something that our mind becomes completely one with it, we are in a state of Samadhi. Samadhi means "to bring together, to merge."

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