Types of Yoga Asana
Sanskrit Name English Translation
Adho Mukha Shvana Asana Downward Dog Pose
Ardha-Bhujanga Asana Half-Cobra Pose
Ardha Matsyendrasana Twist Pose
Ardhachandra- Asana Half-moon Pose
Baddha-kona Aasana Restrained Angle Pose
Bala Aasana Child Pose
Bhadra Asana Gentle Pose
Bhujanga Asana Cobra Pose
Chakra Asana Wheel Pose
Dhanura Asana Bow Pose
Eka Pada Rajakapota Asana One-Legged King Pigeon
Ekpada Uttan Asana One-Legged Raised Pose
Garuda Asana Eagle Pose
Gomukha Asana Cow-face Pose
Hala Asana Plough Posture
Janu Sirsa Asana Head-to-Knee Forward Bend
Kapota Asana I & II Pigeon1 & 2 Pose
Kona Asana Angle Pose
Manduka Asana Frog Pose
Matsya Asana Fish Pose
Makara Asana Crocodile Pose 1
Makara Asana Crocodile Pose 2
Nouka Asana Boat Pose
(supine position)
(prone position)
Natraja Asana King of the Dance Pose
Padma Asana Lotus Pose
Padahasta Asana Forward Bend Pose, Hands-and-Feet Pose
Parvata Asana Hill Pose
Pavanamukta Asana Wind Releasing Pose
Paschimothan Asana Forward Bend Pose
Purvottana Asana Inclined Plan Pose
Sarvanga Asana Shoulder Stand Pose
Salabha Asana Locust Pose
Full Salabha Asana Full Locust Pose
Half - Salabha Asana Half Locust Pose
Santulan Asana Balance Pose
Setubandha Asana Bridge Pose
Sukha Asana Easy Pose
Siddha Asana Accomplished or Adept
Shava Asana Corpse Pose
Shashanka Asana Moon Pose
Simha Asana Lion Pose
Shirsha Asana Headstand Pose
Surya Namaskara (Short) Sun Salutation
Surya Namaskara (long) Sun Salutation
Supta-Vajra Asana Reclining Thunderbolt or Diamond Pose
Supta Padangustha Asana Reclining Big Toe Pose
Svastika Asana Auspicious Pose
Tada Asana Mountain Pose
Trikona Asana Triangle Pose
Urdhva Mukha Svana Asana Upward-Facing Dog Pose
Ushtra Asana Camel Pose
Utkata Asana Chair Pose
Utthan Pada Asana Raised-feet Posture
Vajra Asana Thunderbolt or Diamond
Virabhadra Asana I Warrior I Pose
Virabhadra Asana II Warrior II Pose
Virabhadra Asana III Warrior III Pose
Vira Asana Hero Pose
Vriksha Asana Tree Pose
Yoga Mudra Scaling Pose
Standing Yoga Mudra Standing Scaling Pose
Bandhas
Mulabandha Root Lock
Uddiyana Bandha Upward Abdominal Lock
Jallundhar Bandha Chin Lock
Mudra
Aswini Mudra The Gesture of The Horse
Aswini Mudra (version 1) Aswini Mudra (version 2) Rapid contraction
Vajroli Mudra
Kunjal Kriya
Benefits of Yoga
At physical level
· Improves muscle tone, flexibility, strength and stamina.
· Lowers fat, Improves circulation, Stimulates the immune system
· Meditation keeps one young. Younger biological age i.e. one is younger than one’s chronological age.
· Deep rest-as measured by decreased metabolic rate, lower heart rate, and reduced work load of the heart.
· Lowers levels of chemicals associated with stress eg. cortisol and lactate.
· It reduces the chances of tissue damage though, the free radicals are controlled.
· Decreased high blood pressure.
· Drop in cholesterol levels.
· Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing. This has been very helpful to asthma patients.
And that's just the surface stuff. In fact, most of the benefits mentioned above are secondary to yoga's original purpose.
At mental level
· Helps you relax and handle stressful situations more easily.
· Encourages positive thoughts and self-acceptance.
· Reduces stress and tension, anxiety, depression, irritability and moodiness.
· Boosts self esteem,
· Improves concentration and creativity
· Heals old traumas
· Increases brain wave coherence. Harmony of brain wave activity in different parts of the brain is associated with greater creativity, improved moral reasoning, and higher IQ. Improves comprehensive ability and memory.
· Enhances emotional stability.
· Brings happiness and leads to vitality and rejuvenation.
At spiritual level
· Builds comprehensive awareness.
· Promotes an interdependence between mind, body, and spirit.
· Helps you live the concept of “oneness.”
· Creates sense of well being and calm.
· Makes one to discover one’s true nature i.e. realizing one's self, in finding what one seeks - consciously or unconsciously.
· Controls the mind.
· Sets one free from one’s illusions and preconceptions that prevents from fulfilling oneself.
· Attains the union between a person's own consciousness and the cosmic consciousness.
The Ancient Yoga seers perceived the physical body as a vehicle, with the mind as driver, the soul as one’s trueself, with action, emotion and intelligence as the three forces which pull the body-vehicle. The ancient yoga seers assemble an exclusive technique to bring the body, mind and soul together into one harmonious experience by balancing action, emotion and intelligence.
Yoga Exercise Ball- When Exercise balls are used in yoga it is called as yoga ball exercise.
At physical level
· Improves muscle tone, flexibility, strength and stamina.
· Lowers fat, Improves circulation, Stimulates the immune system
· Meditation keeps one young. Younger biological age i.e. one is younger than one’s chronological age.
· Deep rest-as measured by decreased metabolic rate, lower heart rate, and reduced work load of the heart.
· Lowers levels of chemicals associated with stress eg. cortisol and lactate.
· It reduces the chances of tissue damage though, the free radicals are controlled.
· Decreased high blood pressure.
· Drop in cholesterol levels.
· Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing. This has been very helpful to asthma patients.
And that's just the surface stuff. In fact, most of the benefits mentioned above are secondary to yoga's original purpose.
At mental level
· Helps you relax and handle stressful situations more easily.
· Encourages positive thoughts and self-acceptance.
· Reduces stress and tension, anxiety, depression, irritability and moodiness.
· Boosts self esteem,
· Improves concentration and creativity
· Heals old traumas
· Increases brain wave coherence. Harmony of brain wave activity in different parts of the brain is associated with greater creativity, improved moral reasoning, and higher IQ. Improves comprehensive ability and memory.
· Enhances emotional stability.
· Brings happiness and leads to vitality and rejuvenation.
At spiritual level
· Builds comprehensive awareness.
· Promotes an interdependence between mind, body, and spirit.
· Helps you live the concept of “oneness.”
· Creates sense of well being and calm.
· Makes one to discover one’s true nature i.e. realizing one's self, in finding what one seeks - consciously or unconsciously.
· Controls the mind.
· Sets one free from one’s illusions and preconceptions that prevents from fulfilling oneself.
· Attains the union between a person's own consciousness and the cosmic consciousness.
The Ancient Yoga seers perceived the physical body as a vehicle, with the mind as driver, the soul as one’s trueself, with action, emotion and intelligence as the three forces which pull the body-vehicle. The ancient yoga seers assemble an exclusive technique to bring the body, mind and soul together into one harmonious experience by balancing action, emotion and intelligence.
Yoga Exercise Ball- When Exercise balls are used in yoga it is called as yoga ball exercise.
Yoga Benefits
The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy. The aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down by practicing yoga. By keeping the body clean, flexible and well lubricated, we can significantly reduce the catabolic process of cell deterioration. To get the maximum benefits of yoga one has to combine the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation.
Regular practice of asanas, pranayama and meditation can help such diverse ailments such as diabetes, blood pressure, digestive disorders, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, asthma, varicose veins and heart conditions. Laboratory tests have proved the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heartbeat and blood pressure. Research into the effects of yogic practices on HIV is currently underway with promising results.
According to medical scientists, yoga therapy is successful because of the balance created in the nervous and endocrine systems which directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body. Yoga acts both as a curative and preventive therapy. The very essence of yoga lies in attaining mental peace, improved concentration powers, a relaxed state of living and harmony in relationships.
Through the practice of yoga, we become aware of the interconnectedness between our emotional, mental and physical levels. Gradually this awareness leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of existence. The ultimate goal of yoga is to make it possible for you to be able to fuse together the gross material (annamaya), physical (pranamaya), mental (manomaya), intellectual (vijnanamaya) and spiritual (anandamaya) levels within your being.
The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy. The aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down by practicing yoga. By keeping the body clean, flexible and well lubricated, we can significantly reduce the catabolic process of cell deterioration. To get the maximum benefits of yoga one has to combine the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation.
Regular practice of asanas, pranayama and meditation can help such diverse ailments such as diabetes, blood pressure, digestive disorders, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, asthma, varicose veins and heart conditions. Laboratory tests have proved the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heartbeat and blood pressure. Research into the effects of yogic practices on HIV is currently underway with promising results.
According to medical scientists, yoga therapy is successful because of the balance created in the nervous and endocrine systems which directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body. Yoga acts both as a curative and preventive therapy. The very essence of yoga lies in attaining mental peace, improved concentration powers, a relaxed state of living and harmony in relationships.
Through the practice of yoga, we become aware of the interconnectedness between our emotional, mental and physical levels. Gradually this awareness leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of existence. The ultimate goal of yoga is to make it possible for you to be able to fuse together the gross material (annamaya), physical (pranamaya), mental (manomaya), intellectual (vijnanamaya) and spiritual (anandamaya) levels within your being.
Physicians and scientists are discovering brand new health benefits of yoga everyday. Studies show it can relieve the symptoms of several common and potentially life-threatening illnesses such as arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, diabetes, AIDS, asthma and obesity.Asthma
Studies conducted at yoga institutions in India have reported impressive success in improving asthma. It has also been proved that asthma attacks can usually be prevented by yoga methods without resorting to drugs.
Physicians have found that the addition of improved concentration abilities and yogic meditation together with the practice of simple postures and pranayama makes treatment more effective. Yoga practice also results in greater reduction in anxiety scores than drug therapy. Doctors believe that yoga practice helps patients by enabling them to gain access to their own internal experience and increased self-awareness.
Respiration Problems
Patients who practice yoga have a better chance of gaining the ability to control their breathing problems. With the help of yogic breathing exercises, it is possible to control an attack of severe shortness of breath without having to seek medical help. Various studies have confirmed the beneficial effects of yoga for patients with respiratory problems.
High Blood Pressure
The relaxation and exercise components of yoga have a major role to play in the treatment and prevention of high blood pressure (hypertension). A combination of biofeedback and yogic breathing and relaxation techniques has been found to lower blood pressure and reduce the need for high blood pressure medication in people suffering from it.
Pain Management
Yoga is believed to reduce pain by helping the brain's pain center regulate the gate-controlling mechanism located in the spinal cord and the secretion of natural painkillers in the body. Breathing exercises used in yoga can also reduce pain. Because muscles tend to relax when you exhale, lengthening the time of exhalation can help produce relaxation and reduce tension. Awareness of breathing helps to achieve calmer, slower respiration and aid in relaxation and pain management.
Yoga's inclusion of relaxation techniques and meditation can also help reduce pain. Part of the effectiveness of yoga in reducing pain is due to its focus on self-awareness. This self-awareness can have a protective effect and allow for early preventive action.
Back Pain
Back pain is the most common reason to seek medical attention. Yoga has consistently been used to cure and prevent back pain by enhancing strength and flexibility. Both acute and long-term stress can lead to muscle tension and exacerbate back problems.
Arthritis
Yoga's gentle exercises designed to provide relief to needed joints had been Yoga's slow-motion movements and gentle pressures reach deep into troubled joints. In addition, the easy stretches in conjunction with deep breathing exercises relieve the tension that binds up the muscles and further tightens the joints. Yoga is exercise and relaxation rolled into one - the perfect anti-arthritis formula.
Weight Reduction
Regular yoga practice can help in weight management. Firstly, some of the asanas stimulate sluggish glands to increase their hormonal secretions. The thyroid gland, especially, has a big effect on our weight because it affects body metabolism. There are several asanas, such as the shoulder stand and the fish posture, which are specific for the thyroid gland. Fat metabolism is also increased, so fat is converted to muscle and energy. This means that, as well as losing fat, you will have better muscle tone and a higher vitality level.
Yogic practices that reduce anxiety tend to reduce anxious eating. In addition, yoga deep breathing increases the oxygen intake to the body cells, including the fat cells. This causes increased oxidation or burning up of fat cells. Yogic exercises induce more continuous and deeper breathing which gradually burns, sometimes forcefully, many of the calories already ingested.
Regular yoga practice creates mental clarity and calmness, increases body awareness, relieves chronic stress patterns, relaxes the mind, centers attention and sharpens concentration.Self-Awareness
Yoga strives to increase self-awareness on both a physical and psychological level. Patients who study yoga learn to induce relaxation and then to use the technique whenever pain appears. Practicing yoga can provide chronic pain sufferers with useful tools to actively cope with their pain and help counter feelings of helplessness and depression.
Mental Performance
A common technique used in yoga is breathing through one nostril at a time. Electroencephalogram (EEG) studies of the electrical impulses of the brain have shown that breathing through one nostril results in increased activity on the opposite side of the brain. Some experts suggest that the regular practice of breathing through one nostril may help improve communication between the right and left side of the brain. Studies have also shown that this increased brain activity is associated with better performance and doctors even suggest that yoga can enhance cognitive performance.
Mood Change And Vitality
Mental health and physical energy are difficult to quantify, but virtually everyone who participates in yoga over a period of time reports a positive effect on outlook and energy level. Yogic stretching and breathing exercises have been seen to result in an invigorating effect on both mental and physical energy and improved mood.
When you achieve the yogic spirit, you can begin knowing yourself at peace. The value of discovering one's self and of enjoying one's self as is, begins a journey into being rather than doing. Life can then be lived practicing "yoga off the mat".Pride
Pride, and especially anxiety about pride, is something which Hatha Yoga seeks to diminish or eliminate. To one who has been dejected because he cannot do his work properly when he becomes tired, irritable, or haggard, any degree of refreshment may be accompanied by additional degrees of self-respect. Furthermore, one who has benefited from yoga may be moved to help his friends who are obviously in need, he may instruct others and be rewarded with appreciation due a to teacher.
But if one succeeds in achieving skill which provides health and self-confidence, one may justly raise his self-esteem simply by observing himself living the improved results as an achieved fact.
Knowledge
Yogic theory and practice lead to increased self-knowledge. This knowledge is not merely that of the practical kind relating to techniques, but especially of a spiritual sort pertaining to grasping something about the nature of the self at rest.
Knowing the self at rest, at peace, as a being rather than merely as an agent or doer, is a genuine kind of knowledge which usually gets lost in the rush of activities and push of desires. The value of discovering one's self and of enjoying one's self as it is, rather than as it is going to be, is indeed a value as well as a kind of knowledge.
Yoga Schools
The different yoga schools simply adhere to different applications of inner discipline, all of which ultimately lead to the liberation of the soul and to a unique understanding of the Divine Unity.
The schools are merely named according to the yogi's objective of self-transformation and the instrument chosen for such anticipated change.
The yoga schools are:
The different yoga schools simply adhere to different applications of inner discipline, all of which ultimately lead to the liberation of the soul and to a unique understanding of the Divine Unity.
The schools are merely named according to the yogi's objective of self-transformation and the instrument chosen for such anticipated change.
The yoga schools are:
Ashtanga Yoga and it's different variations, for the most part, aim at the fullest development of any one human faculty—the mind, emotions, life-force or the physical body. Such partial perfection is then allowed to spill over to one's entire being.But Sri Aurobindo's Purna Yoga or Integral Yoga focuses on the whole being in order to bring about total transformation. The approach, objective and means of Purna Yoga are all integral in essence.
The main stages of Purna Yoga are:
• Aspiration for the Divine.
• Surrender of the individual soul to the Universal Soul.
• Rejection of all obstructions to the path of total transformation.
Realizing the Divine within oneself is the first step of Integral Yoga. The means of achieving this state of Divine awareness is through a regular practice of either concentration, meditation or prayer.
The next step involves the realization of the Divine in entities beyond the subjective self. A realization of all constituent consciousnesses of the universe—an acceptance of a common origin of all beings.
The third stage consists of a true identification with the "Transcendental Divine", which is neither limited within the being of a single individual nor within any other constituents of existence. According to Sri Aurobindo, unless this crucial Truth is realized, it is impossible for the sadhak or seeker to attain liberation.
In his philosophy, Rishi Aurobindo termed this rarefied region of higher consciousness as the "Supramental Consciousness", the attainment of which is necessary for the liberation of the soul. The Master believed this stage of spiritual awareness to be potentially the ultimate rung on the human evolutionary ladder.
And the realization of this "Supramental Consciousness" is the principal aspiration of Sri Aurobindo's Purna Yoga or Integral Yoga.
Jnana refers to knowledge but the emphasis is not on acquiring information but on developing the analytical powers of the mind. The manner in which the power of analysis is applied depends on the metaphysical system within which it is practiced. In the Samkhya system of Indian philosophy, the focus is on understanding one's own inner self. In Advaita Vedanta (non-dualist Vedanta philosophy), the idea is to understand the difference between reality and illusion.
Bhakti Yoga is all about getting in touch with the Divine Being by following the outpourings of one's heart. The term 'bhakti' can be roughly translated to mean 'devotion', and this emotion coupled with the Christian concept of faith leads to a state of mind which can be described as being immersed in bhakti. This strand of yoga principally advocates love and devotion as the path to moksha or liberation.
Originally, it was believed that the practice of Karma Yoga, accompanied by the observance of certain rituals, would lead to liberation from the cycle of birth and death. In the Bhagavad Gita, lord Krishna further extended the semantics of the term karma to mean detached action, that is, subjugation of the individual will to Divine purpose.According to the Bhagavad Gita, these three different paths of yoga (jnana, bhakti and karma) help to define three different categories of men—reflective, emotional and active, respectively—distinguished on account of the distribution of emphasis on the theoretical, emotional and practical aspects of human personalities.
Raja Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga, which was formulated by Patanjali into a definite system from classical yoga, forms one of the Shad-Darshanas or classical systems of Indian philosophy. The school of Raja Yoga prescribes to a particular meditative system, which focuses on the analysis and control of the field of human consciousness. Often known as the 'royal road' or the 'royal path' ('raja' in Sanskrit denotes 'king' or 'royal'), it offers a comprehensive method for controlling waves of thought by channeling mental and physical energies into spiritual energy.
The school of Hatha Yoga attaches a lot of importance to the perfect physical form, believing it to be a way of attaining spiritual perfection. And to this end it takes the help of pranayama (breath-control exercises) and mudras (hand gestures) to attain self-realization.Often seen as part of Raja Yoga, the origins of Hatha Yoga can be traced to Gorakhnath, the 12th-century founder of the Kanphata Yogis. The word 'hatha' is derived from the two root terms, 'ha' meaning 'the sun' and 'tha' meaning 'the moon'. Taken together, the term stands for 'union of force'. Hence, central to Hatha Yoga disciplines is the harmonizing of its positive (sun) and negative (moon) currents.
Kundalini is the potential form of prana or life force, lying dormant in our bodies. It is conceptualized as a coiled up serpent (literally, 'kundalini' in Sanskrit is 'coiled up') lying at the base of our spine, which can spring awake when activated by spiritual disciplines. The practitioners of Kundalini Yoga concentrate on psychic centers or chakras in the body in order to generate a spiritual power, which is known as kundalini energy.The practice comprises of awakening and then forcing this energy, flowing through nadis or channels, up the psychic channel of the sushumna, which runs from the base of the spine to the brain. The three main channels running alongside the spinal cord are ida, pingala and the sushumna. When this kundalini energy, pictured as the serpent residing in the first chakra at the root of the spine (muladhar chakra), is raised up through the rest of the chakras until it reaches the seventh and the highest chakra (sahasrara) located at the crown of the head—self-realization occurs. This induces the blissful state of samadhi. The school of Sahaja Yoga is very similar to the Kundalini school.
Mantra Yoga refers to the repetition of mantras (words or sounds) during various yoga meditation techniques. This ritualistic chanting helps bind the mind to a single thought until it attains the state of samadhi.
The roots of Tantra Yoga go back to ancient fertility cults of India. The history of this strain of yoga, like the Kundalini school, is linked with the worship of Shakti, the primordial female energy. The objective of Tantra Yoga is to merge with the Ultimate by the arousal and channeling of sexual energy.The Tantra school equates spiritual awakening with the awakening and rising of the kundalini power. According to Tantra, the kundalini is present in everything, even in the smallest of particles, in the form of cosmic energy. Only a fraction of it is operative, while an unmeasured residuum is left 'coiled up' and untapped at the 'base root'.
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