So the Asanas - The 3rd Limb

The Asanas are the physical yoga poses practiced to prepare ourselves to sit in meditation. Asana being a Sanskrit word for Seat.

Yoga in its completeness is a way of life that allows total transformation.

The Physical Postures (Asanas) can serve as an introduction to this, initially reintroducing us to our bodies.

What is being taught under the name of Yoga and what is taught at Outdoor Yoga is a minute part of a much much wider tradition. From a fitness and physical health perspective the benefits are endless (quite a few are listed in one of the first blogs) and if that is where it starts and ends for you I am very glad that it has helped you in some way.

So I'm using this blog to fill in some of the blanks that are left from an hour per week in a Yoga class which is mostly if not wholely Asana based. So if that is your experience of Yoga you are familiar enough with the physical and seeing as I'm trying to make this as 'bitesize' as possible we will leave the Asanas there for now.

In Yoga we say Mental Tension (anxiety, depression) manifests as Stiffness in our Physical body. The Asanas are practiced to settle the Body so that we can sit in comfort and stillness.

'Within is the wellspring of Good; and it is always ready to bubble up, if you just dig.' Marcus Aurelius

Hatha Yoga

The complete system of Hatha Yoga increases vital energy by aligning our physical and subtle bodies, through

Asana Physical Poses 3rd Limb
Pranayama Guiding and enhancing the life force through breathing practices 4th Limb
Pratyahara Encouraging the senses inward through deep relaxation. 5th Limb


All 3 are supposed to be practiced together. Each one being as important as the next. This being one of two points worth making before we move on.

Second point being Hatha Yoga does not just mean a series of physical poses (Asanas) but also practicing the breathing techniques (Pranayama) and encouraging the senses inward (pratyahara) in unison.

Ha-tha

Ha

represents:

the sun
heating
qualities of reason
intellectual thinking
masculine

Tha

represents:

the moon
cooling
emotion
intuitive feeling
feminine

Ha-tha is the integrative energy of the two within every one of us

light and dark
sun and moon
masculine and feminine

And the more balanced these are, the more at harmony one feels.

Next time we will start with the first mentioned of the 3 elements of Ha-tha Yoga.

Asana

Have a fantastic day:)

Om

Yamas and Niyamas - The 1st and 2nd Limbs

So the first Limb of the 8 faceted Path (Ashtanga Yoga) is the Yamas. This is most commonly translated as 'restraints' with its literal translation being 'Death'.

We can say the Yamas are a Code of Conduct for living which will help bring a compassionate death to the ego or the 'lower self'.

The nicest translation of the Yamas I have come across is reflecting our true nature as 'restraints' conjures up negative responses.

There are 5 guiding Yamas being:

Ahimsa: Non-harming to others and ourselves
Satya: Being truthful to others but also within ourselves and having integrity
Astheya: Non-stealing - Generosity and Honesty
Brahmacharya: Balance and Moderation of the vital life force
Aparigraha: Letting go of desires/Fulfillment

Niyamas are the self-observances which can be described as evolution towards harmony which also has 5 parts

Saucha: Simplicity, Purity, Cleanliness
Santosha: Contentment, being at peace with oneself and others, accepting what life brings you.
Tapas: Disciplined Practice
Swadhaya: Self-study, the study of spiritual texts to help understanding
Ishwara Pranidhana: Surrender to a higher being.

The Yamas and Niyamas are the first two limbs of Ashtanga Yoga and most commonly translated as the restraints and self-observances, five facets in each and have been described as the 10 Commandments of Yoga and also the Dos (Niyamas) and Don'ts (Yamas).

The exact meanings can be lost or often misinterpreted at least when translated from Sanskrit as Yoga really is much more gentle than that as I translate it anyway.

If the Yamas are described as reflecting our true nature then all that is good is our true nature and by trying to adhere to/follow the five facets we are simply returning to who we really are.

So these are the first 2 Limbs of Ashtanga Yoga prescribed by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras (we'll get into that later). So not a mention of the Asanas (Postures) or Pranayama (Breathing techniques) just yet as would be guessed by most when asked what is the first two limbs of Ashtanga yoga.

I'll leave it there hoping what is written is clear, concise and bitesize enough for a quick read while taking a break at work or wherever this finds you.