Yoga
The word "yoga" means union, or reunion with the ultimate sacred energy
source. It's a way of reconnecting the material with the spiritual, the
seen with the unseen. Therefore, yoga is really any training that helps us
transcend ego attachment and connect to our innate pure spiritual energy.
Yoga, as both concept and training, is thousands of years old. During his
lifetime, the Buddha was considered a yogi, as were the fellow seekers
and ascetics he first met when he started on the spiritual path. In
fact, in the larger sense, anyone who is trying to connect with the
divine can legitimately be called a yogi. Yogi means spiritual
practitioner; the emphasis is on practice, not theory or belief.
The classic ancient treatise on yoga, known as the Yoga Sutra, is
attributed to a sage named Patanjali who lived in Northern India more
than 2000 years ago. Patanjali outlines eight specific principles, each
of which is a yogic practice, intended to help the seeker reunite with
the divine. They are: (1) ethical behavior; (2) discipline; (3) bodily
postures; (4) breath control; (5) withdrawal of the senses; (6)
concentration; (7) meditation; (8) ecstatic absorption.
Here in the West, the word "yoga" seems to have become synonymous
with "hatha yoga," a physical training design to cleanse, purify and
stabilize the body. But yoga, properly defined, encompasses many
different paths and styles of practice all directed towards (re)union
with the divine...
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