Yoga

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In Sanskrit, meaning of the word yoga is “to add”, “to join”, “to unite”, or “to attach”. Yoga means “union” or “integration” and also “discipline,” so the system of Yoga is called a uniting or integrating discipline. Yoga seeks to unite body, mind, and spirit. Yoga includes postural exercises that help in staying fit and trim, control weight, and reduce stress level.

A person who practices the discipline of balancing mind and body through Yoga is traditionally called a yogi (if male) or a yogini (if female).

Here are the seven principal branches of Yoga, arranged alphabetically

• Bhakti Yoga: The Yoga of devotion
• Hatha Yoga: The Yoga of physical discipline
• Jnana Yoga: The Yoga of wisdom
• Karma Yoga: The Yoga of self-transcending action
• Mantra Yoga: The Yoga of potent sound
• Raja Yoga: The Royal Yoga. It is an eightfold path laid down in the Yoga-Sutra of Patanjali and also called Ashtanga Yoga.
• Tantra Yoga (including Laya Yoga and Kundalini Yoga): The Yoga of continuity

 

 

 

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