What is Yoga
The last post talked about the promise of Yoga. In this post I focus on the word Yoga and the different meanings and usages of this word. The more we understand the different ways this word is used, the more we build an expansive idea about this word and can see the possibilities of what yoga can mean to us, and offer us beyond a limited notion we may have.
Yoga: a specific action
The most common usage of the word is when we hear people say - I do yoga, I want to start yoga, etc. This word yoga here refers to an action usually done with the body (asana), breath (pranayama) or the mind (meditation).
Yoga: a journey or Process:
A not so common usage of the word yoga is to indicate a certain process that takes us towards a goal. Many such descriptions are given in the Yoga Sutra and Bhagavad Gita. Shri Desikachar mentions several process-based usage of the word yoga in his book, "The Heart of Yoga" - such as - the process of preparation, the process of creating a new habit (e.g. taking care of myself, my fitness on a regular basis), the process of building a relationship, the process of disconnecting from suffering, the process of uniting/yoking. I have heard many more from my teachers who studied with him. There are also many such process-based definitions in the Bhagavad Gita.
Yoga: a state of mind
In our busy everyday lives, our mind flits from one state to another - dullness, restlessness, wavering between dullness and restlessness, and sometimes one-pointed. In the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, the word yoga is used to indicate a state of mind that is tranquil, like the surface of a lake that is clear and still. It is a state of mind that is not dull, restless or wavering between the two , especially when in pain. There is a certain stillness/ calm that is present even as there is suffering and pain.
Yoga Sutra 1.2: yogaH citta vRtti nirodhaH
योगश्चित्तवृत्तिनिरोधः ॥ 1.2 ॥
Yoga is a state of the mind wherein the fluctuations are held or bound.
The tranquility referred to in the sutra above is quite different from the most common states that we experience in daily life.
Yoga: A coherent union of action-process-State
If we combine these three usages of the word yoga together, we have yet another possible usage of the word yoga - as the set of actions on the journey that is in the direction of a particular state of mind. Seen this way yoga is a union of action-process-state , i.e. a set of personalized actions that each of us can do in order to experience a tranquil mind. This coherence, union, coming together, integration is yoga too.
Yoga: Clear Perception
The most common usage of the word yoga however continues to refer to an action - most often asana - because that is what we can visibly see in the moment. However, as we have seen, the word yoga can mean many different things. So the next time you are using the word yoga or hearing someone use it, do pause and become aware of how you are using the word and what it is that you want to communicate or is being communicated by the usage of this word. Doing this is yoga too - to bring great attentiveness, to perceive more deeply than what we did earlier, in this moment. Pausing and paying attention, perceiving more fully, in this moment is also yoga.
Yoga means unitive perception, to see the whole of life as one. The seeing of it as a whole is to act as a whole. To see the whole of life as one unitary movement is yoga. - J.Krishnamurti
Yoga: a knowledge system
It is not a coincidence that the branch of knowledge/subject that is Yoga is one of the six darshana-s in Indian philosophy. Darshana means that which helps us see. Yoga Darshana is that branch of knowledge which helps us see our suffering clearly and break free of false perceptions and perceive wholly (the nature of mind and suffering). The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali are one of the most important texts of this branch of knowledge.
At Vishoka, we make an effort to simultaneously hold these different usages and meanings of the word yoga alive in our teaching-learning processes, 1-1 sessions or any engagement with a client. When someone starts their journey with us, they are focused on a certain action and or goal. They may have a specific pain or suffering that they want relief from or have some other specific goal. In addition to holding the focus on action and goals, as teachers and facilitators, we hold the intention of moving in the direction of a tranquil mind and clear perception, and identify actions and processes towards that, from one moment to another, from one session to the next, grounded in the wisdom of the Indian knowledge system of Yoga.
- Written by Anita Balasubramanian
