About Yoga
The word Yoga is derived from Sanskrit, the most ancient language of India. It has two meanings in Sanskrit. The first comes from the root yujir means union, the second is derived from a different root yuja which means Samadhi – the highest state of mind, the absolute knowledge and the final realization. In other philosophical terms, the union of the individual self, Jivatma with the universal self Paramatma is Yoga. It is an ancient art based on an extremely subtle science, that of the body, mind and soul.
The yoga sutras which consists of 196 aphorisms was co-ordinated and systemtized by Patanjali.
The human being is swayed by emotions. The mind and in turn, the body are afflicted by sorrow and happiness, shame and glory, defeat and success. A Sadhaka is unaffected by these dualities. Yoga is a philosophy that requires one to attain poise and to face all the vicissitudes of life as well as its joys with equanimity. It is a philosophy which turns one away from the material world in search of truth to investigate the nature of Being. Yoga is a healing system of theory and practice and it is a combination of breathing exercises, physical postures and meditation, practiced for over 5,000 years.