Yoga

 Yoga is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient india

The beginnings of Yoga were developed by the Indus-Sarasvati civilization in Northern India over 5,000 years ago. The word yoga was first mentioned in the oldest sacred texts, the Rig Veda. The Vedas were a collection . Yoga was slowly refined and developed by the Brahmans and Rishis (mystic seers) who documented their practices and beliefs in the Upanishads, a huge work containing over 200 scriptures.

Modern Period
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, yoga masters began to

travel to the West, attracting attention and followers. . In the 1920s and 30s, Hatha Yoga was strongly promoted in India with the work of T. Krishnamacharya, Swami Sivananda and other yogis practicing Hatha Yoga. Krishnamacharya opened the first Hatha Yoga school in Mysore in 1924 and in 1936 Sivananda founded the Divine Life Society on the banks of the holy Ganges River. Krishnamacharya produced three students that would continue his legacy and increase the popularity of Hatha Yoga: B.K.S. Iyengar, T.K.V. Desikachar and Pattabhi Jois. Sivananda was a prolific author, writing over 200 books on yoga, and established nine ashrams and numerous yoga centers located around the world.

 Yoga categories 

These categories are like static snapshots of something that is in actuality in continuous motion—the “march of history.”

Vedic Yoga

The yogic teachings found in the above-mentioned Rig-Veda and the other three ancient hymnodies are known as Vedic Yoga. The Sanskrit word veda means “knowledge,” while the Sanskrit term rig (from ric) means “praise.” Thus the sacred Rig-Veda is the collection of hymns that are in praise of a higher power.

Preclassical Yoga

This category covers an extensive period of approximately 2,000 years until the second century A.D. Yoga came into its own with the Upanishads, which are gnostic texts expounding the hidden teaching about the ultimate unity of all things. There are over 200 of these scriptures, though only a handful of them were composed in the period prior to Gautama the Buddha (fifth century B.C.).

One of the most remarkable Yoga scriptures is the Bhagavad-Gītā (“Lord’s Song”), of which the great social reformer Mahatma Gandhi spoke as follows:

Preclassical Yoga also comprises the many schools whose teachings can be found in India’s two great national epics, the Râmâyana and the Mahābhārata (in which the Bhagavad-Gītā is embedded and which is seven times the size of the Iliad and Odyssey combined). These various preclassical schools developed all kinds of techniques for achieving deep meditation.

through which yogis and yoginis can transcend the body and mind and discover their true nature

In the 1950s, one of the most prominent Yoga teacher was Selvarajan Yesudian whose book Sport and Yoga has been translated into fourteen or so languages, with more than 500,000 copies sold

In 1961, Richard Hittleman brought Hatha-Yoga to American television, and his book The Twenty-Eight-Day Yoga Plan sold millions of copies

What Are The Health Benefits?

Yoga comes with a host of physical and mental benefits. The postures, known as asanas, stretch and flex various muscle groups. Here are a few reasons why you should take up yoga:

builds Muscle Strength: 

When your muscles are stronger, they protect you from arthritis and back pain, among others. Yoga helps build muscle strength.

improves Posture: 

Improper posture can lead to back, neck and other muscle and joint problems.. 

Prevents Cartilage And Joint Breakdown: 

When you do yoga, the joints go through their full range of motion. This helps prevent degenerative arthritis and mitigate disability by utilising parts of the cartilage that are normally not used. Joint cartilage receives fresh nutrients only when its fluid is squeezed out and a new supply can be soaked up. Without proper sustenance, neglected areas of the cartilage can eventually wear out, exposing the underlying bone.          https://bit.ly/347TUWj 

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Improves Bone Health: 

A lot of postures in yoga require you to use your body weight. They help strengthen the bones, especially the bones in your arms which are vulnerable to osteoporotic fractures

Increases Blood Flow: 

The exercises in yoga help you relax and gradually increase blood circulation, especially in your hands and feet. Yoga also pumps more oxygen to your cells, which function better consequently.

Boosts Immunity: 

Yoga asanas contract and stretch your muscles and move organs around, thereby increasing the drainage of the lymph. This, in turn, helps the lymphatic system fight infection, destroy cancerous cells, and dispose of the toxic waste products of cellular functioning.

Increases Heart Rate: 

According to studies, yoga lowers the resting heart rate, increases endurance and improves your maximum intake of oxygen during exercise.

Helps You Relax: 

Yoga makes you breathe slowly, and focus on the present. It shifts the balance from the sympathetic nervous system to the parasympathetic nervous system which is calming and restorative. It lowers breathing and heart rates, reduces blood pressure and increases blood flow to the intestines and reproductive organs.

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