Astanga

Hi Drey!

Don't get me started.....I'm serious!

Well, Astanga Yoga or Raja Yoga in India means 8 Limbs or the Royal Path which include: asana (or posture), pranayama (control of prana through breathing exercises), yamas (restraints), niyamas (observances), pratyahara (withdrawal of senses), dharana (concentration), dhyana (meditation), and finally samadhi (superconscious state, experience of one-ness). It's a whole package! Here in the west Astanga is taken to mean a vigorous practice of asanas (postures). There's a lot of sweating and leaping around. Astanga has been popularized by a lot of celebrities here and can be pretty-much traced to one dude in Mysore (India) named Jois.

I like a classical Hatha yoga better. I would suggest finding a teacher that you like and feel comfortable with. Also try to find someone who will teach pranayama. It's SOOOOOOOOO important, and I find few yoga teachers emphasize this practice.

Here's a website that is quite informative if you would like to read some more:

www.sivananda.org

See what I mean, don't get me started!

Have a great day!
janaki Tweet