What is yoga?

Early connotations of the word “yoga” bring to mind rail-thin women with tightly bound pony-tails contorting their ballerina-trained body into perfectly pretzel-shaped posture. Why? I assumed a mixture of “because-they-could” and this was their kind of “exercise.” And for a long time -- including until just recently -- my second connotation would be just that: physical exercise.

Cloaked in Sanskrit mystery, the word “yoga” literally means to “unite” the body to the mind, the mind to the spirit, and ultimately the self to the Self.

Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual practice that aims to awaken the self to it’s true Self-- which essentially means to help the practitioner experience the interconnectivity of all things.

Let’s try that again. Scientifically speaking: all physical entities are all composed of the same source materials. However, our perception of this existence is limited to our physical bodies-- and thus we feel “separate.” The overarching aim of yoga is to dissolve the abstract notion of our personal self or individual identity-- the “separateness” -- and awaken to the realization that we are part of a larger whole. The way to achieve this “enlightened” state, is through -- not (merely) the eightfold path-- but the eight systems of yoga.

According to B.K.S. Iyengar, there are eight aspects of yoga: yamas, niyamas, āsanas, prānāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāranā, dhyāna, and samādhi.

Figuratively, the eight systems of yoga compare to a tree. Starting with the roots, the yamas represent “morals” or a code of ethics associated with yoga. The five yamas include: non-violence, truthfulness, not stealing/ avoid jealousy, self-restraint, and minimalism.

Next, the niyamas represent the trunk of the tree. The principals of the niyamas include: purity, contentment, ardour, self-study, self-surrender. According to B.K.S. Iyengar, the yamas are a universal ethical code, whereas the niyamas are “rules of conduct that apply to individual discipline (Inyengar 36).

Continuing up the tree, the āsanas (or postures) represent the branches and the prānāyāma (or breath) represent the leaves. Prior to this course, these were the only two aspects of yoga I was familiar with -- and even then, did not 100% understand their connection to each other. Now my understanding is that the both the postures and the breathwork connect the yogi’s mental and physical self by focusing attention/ awareness on otherwise automated tasks like moving and breathing. If an individual can focus on their breath, thoughts, words, and actions-- then his or her existence will be more mindful and thus more skillful -- and more in tune with the “universe” or “God.”

Pratyāhāra, represent the bark, shielding the tree’s core. Literally, pratyāhāra refers to the senses being under control or a release from physical desires. “[The mind] brings bondage if it is bound to the objects of desire and liberation when it is free from objects,” Iyengar states. “There is bondage when the mind craves, grieves or is unhappy over something” (46). Essentially, pratyāhāra, appears to be a combination of the Buddhist idea of “wanting” and “attachment” -- both forms of suffering. “The mind is pure when all; desires and fears are annihilated” (46). In truth, the concept of pratyāhāra stills feels abstract to me -- and maybe it is just that: an abstraction. An ability to not be controlled by your own whims and impulses… an ability to “let go” and be content. I’m really resonating with the phrase: “The yogi prefers the good to the pleasant.” Good, open to interpretation, here meaning: for the benefit and betterment of all beings. Can we move our desires and impulses away from the physical sensations and to the higher moral and ethical ground?

Dhāranā, is the sap of the trees, or “the juice which carries the energy in this inward journey, concentration, focusing the attention on the core of one’s being” (Tree of Yoga 8). In sum, this is a state of transcendence to the infinite and interconnected universe. On the one hand, there seems to be a concrete explanation of a focus so pure that the attention/ consciousness is fully absorbed or wrapped in an action that “flows” with the universe. Iyengar explain in Light on Yoga, “There he is concentrated wholly on a single point or task in which he is completely engrossed. The mind has to be stilled in order to achieve a state of complete absorption” (48). Yet there is also this transcendence quality wherein the yogi’s ego dissolves: “He will not known happiness until the sense of “I” and” mine” disappears” (49). And without the ego, the yogi is able to connect with the Divine (or the source, light, love, God, etc.) “Without concentration on Divinity, which shapes and controls the universe, one cannot unlock the divinity within oneself or become a universal man”(49). The “AUM” symbols represents this sixth system of yoga.

The final two part of the yoga tree represent the flowers and fruit of the yoga tree: dhyāna (meditation) and samādhi (bliss). “As water takes the shape of its contained, the mind when it contemplates an object is transformed into the shape of that object” (51). In these seventh and eighth stages of yoga, the “subject of the mind” is the Universal Spirit. After settling and clearing the body and mind through the previous seven steps, the yogi is a reflection of the Divine: “He becomes a light unto himself and others” (51). The barrier between the self and Self are dissolved and the yogi is a reflection of the diving “Universe” or “God.”

Personally knowing these eight aspects of yoga and embodying these eight aspect of yoga are two entirely different things. I’ve been on my yogi path for close to twenty years. And I’m still struggling with the second yama: truthfulness. So I have a long journey in front of me. I believe yoga can have benefits on every level. The yamas and the niyamas, elevate the yogi’s moral and ethical code-- which benefit both the yogi and all he/she encounter. I believe the āsanas and prānāyāma have positive benefits on the physical systems -- which in turn impact the mental and emotional states of the practitioner. And ultimately the upper four systems of yoga can have a profound spiritual affect. Personally, I struggle to keep my emotions balanced. I think I have a harder time or maybe a greater need to practice “mindful” and “skillful” behaviors. Ultimately, I hope to gain a greater sense of balance and ease in my life. If I reach samadhi and get super powers, cool. I’m open to it! But really I just come to the mat to help me cope with life’s stressors and I use yoga as a tool to be a better person. Ultimately, tree or no tree, I think all beings want to be the best versions of themselves. And today, May 17th, 2019, on my 37th birthday that best version includes starting my path towards becoming a yogi.

Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Yoga. New York: Schocken Books, 1996

Iyengar, B.K.S. The Tree of Yoga. Boulder: Shambhala Publications Inc., 1988