Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual practice or discipline which originated in India. There is a broad variety of schools, practices and goals in Hinduism, Buddhism.
The origins of Yoga have been speculated to date back to pre-Vedic Indian traditions, but most likely developed around the sixth and fifth centuries BCE, in ancient India’s ascetic circles, which are also credited with the early sramana movements.
The chronology of earliest texts describing yoga-practices is unclear, varyingly credited to Hindu Upanishads and Buddhist Pāli Canon, probably of third century BCE or later. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali date from the first half of the 1st millennium CE, but only gained prominence in the 20th century.
Hatha yoga texts emerged around 11th century CE, and in its origins was related to Tantrism.
Many studies have tried to determine the effectiveness of yoga as a complementary intervention for cancer, schizophrenia, asthma, and heart disease. The results of these studies have been mixed and inconclusive, with cancer studies suggesting none to unclear effectiveness, and others suggesting yoga may reduce risk factors and aid in a patient’s psychological healing process.
Yoga came to the attention of an educated western public in the mid-19th century along with other topics of Indian philosophy. In the context of this budding interest, N. C. Paul published his Treatise on Yoga Philosophy in 1851. According to Jacobsen, „Yoga has five principal meanings:
Yoga is really trying to liberate us from ... shame about our bodies. To love…
When the breath wanders the mind also is unsteady. But when the breath is calmed…
You can enter yoga, or the path of yoga, only when you are totally frustrated…
Despite the finger-wagging modern etiquette pieces, the obligation to provide your full attention to any one person or thing for a sustained period of time is becoming more difficult to meet.
Despite the finger-wagging modern etiquette pieces, the obligation to provide your full attention to any one person or thing for a sustained period of time is becoming more difficult to meet. The phone, and the constellation of diversions that live inside it — emails, texts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, Timehop, Google Hangouts, all of which can sprout badges of fire-red notifications demanding to be addressed are just too compelling.
The phone, and the constellation of diversions that live inside it — emails, texts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, Timehop, Google Hangouts, all of which can sprout badges of fire-red notifications demanding to be addressed are just too compelling.