Asanas

Yoga Lotus Meditation

Meditative Postures

Meditative Postures Meditative postures or meditation seats are the body positions or asanas, usually sitting but also sometimes standing or reclining, used to facilitate meditation. Best known in the Buddhist and Hindu traditions are the lotus and kneeling positions; other options include sitting on a chair, with the spine upright. Meditation is sometimes practiced while...

Yoga

4 Ways to Take Your Yoga Routine to the Next Level

4 Ways to Take Your Yoga Routine to the Next Level There is nothing quite like the study and practice of yoga to help you get fit, stay centered, and grow as a human being. Yoga has long been one of the top forms of exercise all around the world,...

Women in an outdoor yoga community class, Texas, 2010

Yoga As Exercise

Yoga As Exercise Yoga as exercise is a physical activity consisting mainly of postures (asanas), often connected by flowing sequences called vinyasas, sometimes accompanied by rhythmic breathing (pranayama), and often ending with relaxation (lying down in savasana) or meditation. Yoga in this form has become familiar across the world, especially in America and Europe. Like other...

A "hatha yoga" class practising Vrikshasana, tree pose, in Vancouver, Canada

Modern Yoga

What Is Modern Yoga? Modern yoga consists of a range of techniques including asanas (postures) and meditation derived from some of the philosophies, teachings and practices of Hinduism, and organised into a wide variety of schools and denominations. It has been described by Elizabeth de Michelis as having four types,...

Sidhasana

Asana

What Is Asana? An asanais a body posture, originally a sitting pose for meditation, and later in hatha yoga and modern yoga, adding reclining, standing, inverted, twisting, and balancing poses to the meditation seats. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali define “asana” as “[a position that] is steady and comfortable”. Patanjali mentions the ability to sit...