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Joga Pradīpikā
The ''Joga Pradīpikā'' (जोगप्रदीपिका, "A Small Light on Yoga") is a hatha yoga text by Ramanandi Jayatarama written in 1737 in a mixture of Hindi, Braj Bhasa, Khari Boli and forms close to Sanskrit. It presents 6 cleansing methods, 84 asanas, 24 mudras and 8 kumbhakas. The text is illustrated in an 1830 manuscript with 84 paintings of asanas, prepared about a hundred years after the text. Topics The ''Joga Pradīpikā'' covers a broad range of topics on yoga, including the nature of the yogic subtle body, preliminary purifications, yogic seals (mudrās), asanas, prānāyāma (breath-control), mantras, meditation, liberation (moksha), and samādhi. One of the purifications in the text is the ''mulashishnasodhana'', "the cleansing of the anus and the penis", which calls for water to be drawn into the anus and squirted out through the penis, which James Mallinson and Mark Singleton gloss as "a feat which is, of course, anatomically impossible." ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hatha Yoga
Haṭha yoga is a branch of yoga which uses physical techniques to try to preserve and channel the vital force or energy. The Sanskrit word हठ ''haṭha'' literally means "force", alluding to a system of physical techniques. Some haṭha yoga style techniques can be traced back at least to the 1st-century CE, in texts such as the Hindu Sanskrit epics and Buddhism's Pali canon. The oldest dated text so far found to describe haṭha yoga, the 11th-century ''Amṛtasiddhi'', comes from a tantric Buddhist milieu. The oldest texts to use the terminology of ''hatha'' are also Vajrayana Buddhist. Hindu hatha yoga texts appear from the 11th century onwards. Some of the early haṭha yoga texts (11th-13th c.) describe methods to raise and conserve bindu (vital force, that is, semen, and in women ''rajas –'' menstrual fluid). This was seen as the physical essence of life that was constantly dripping down from the head and being lost. Two early Haṭha yoga techniques sought to e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark Singleton (yoga Scholar)
Mark Singleton is a scholar practitioner, scholar and practitioner of yoga. He studied yoga intensively in India, and became a qualified Yoga teacher training, yoga teacher, until returning to England to study Divinity (academic discipline), divinity and research the origins of modern postural yoga. His Thesis, doctoral dissertation, which argued that posture-based forms of yoga represent a radical break from Hatha yoga, haṭha yoga tradition, with different goals, and an unprecedented emphasis on Asana, āsanas, was later published in book form as the widely-read ''Yoga Body.'' Singleton was a senior research fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, working on the European Research Council-funded Hatha Yoga Project. As an editor of scholarly texts and essays on yoga, his works have been widely praised and well received by scholars. ''Gurus of Modern Yoga and Roots of Yoga'' are both considered important contributions to the field of yoga ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siddhasana
Siddhasana ( sa, सिद्धासन; ) or Accomplished Pose, is an ancient seated asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise suitable for meditation. The names Muktasana (Sanskrit: मुक्तासन, Liberated Pose) and Burmese position are sometimes given to the same pose, sometimes to an easier variant, Ardha Siddhasana. Svastikasana has each foot tucked as snugly as possible into the fold of the opposite knee. Siddhasana is one of the oldest asanas. It is described as a meditation seat in the early Hatha Yoga text, the 10th century '' Goraksha Sataka''. This states that Siddhasana ranks alongside Padmasana (lotus position) as the most important of the asanas, opening the way to liberation. The 15th-century ''Hatha Yoga Pradipika'' similarly suggests that all other asanas are unnecessary once Siddhasana has been mastered. Etymology The name comes from the Sanskrit words ''siddha'' (सिद्ध) meaning both "perfect" and "adept", and ''asana'' (आस ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lotus Position
Lotus position or Padmasana ( sa, पद्मासन, translit=padmāsana) is a cross-legged sitting meditation pose from ancient India, in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh. It is an ancient asana in yoga, predating hatha yoga, and is widely used for meditation in Hindu, Tantra, Jain, and Buddhist traditions. Variations include easy pose (Sukhasana), half lotus, bound lotus, and psychic union pose. Advanced variations of several other asanas including yoga headstand have the legs in lotus or half lotus. The pose can be uncomfortable for people not used to sitting on the floor, and attempts to force the legs into position can injure the knees. Shiva, the meditating ascetic God of Hinduism, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, and the Tirthankaras in Jainism have been depicted in the lotus position, especially in statues. The pose is emblematic both of Buddhist meditation and of yoga, and as such has found a place in Western culture as a symbol of health ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meditation Seat
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 Buddhism, Buddhist and Hinduism, Hindu traditions are the Lotus position, lotus and kneeling positions; other options include sitting on a chair, with the spine upright. Meditation is sometimes practiced while walking, such as kinhin, doing simple repetitive tasks, as in Zen Samu (Zen), samu, or work which encourages mindfulness. Postures in the ''Yoga Sutras'' The ''Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'' describe Ashtanga (eight limbs of yoga), yoga as having eight limbs, one being asana, the meditation seat. The sutras do not name any asanas, merely specifying the characteristics of a good asana, stating: The ''Sutras'' are embedded in the ''Bhasya'' commentary, which scholars including Philipp Maas now believe are by the same author; it names 12 seated meditation asanas, possibly all cross-legged, includin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hatha Ratnavali
Haṭha yoga is a branch of yoga which uses physical techniques to try to preserve and channel the vital force or energy. The Sanskrit word हठ ''haṭha'' literally means "force", alluding to a system of physical techniques. Some haṭha yoga style techniques can be traced back at least to the 1st-century CE, in texts such as the Hindu Itihasa, Sanskrit epics and Buddhism's Pali canon. The oldest dated text so far found to describe haṭha yoga, the 11th-century ''Amritasiddhi, Amṛtasiddhi'', comes from a Tantra, tantric Buddhist milieu. The oldest texts to use the terminology of ''hatha'' are also Vajrayana Buddhist. Hindu hatha yoga texts appear from the 11th century onwards. Some of the early haṭha yoga texts (11th-13th c.) describe methods to raise and conserve bindu (vital force, that is, semen, and in women ''rajas –'' menstrual fluid). This was seen as the physical essence of life that was constantly dripping down from the head and being lost. Two early Haṭ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoga As Exercise
Yoga as exercise is a physical activity consisting mainly of postures, often connected by flowing sequences, sometimes accompanied by breathing exercises, and frequently ending with relaxation lying down or meditation. Yoga in this form has become familiar across the world, especially in America and Europe. It is derived from medieval Haṭha yoga, which made use of similar postures, but it is generally simply called "yoga". Academics have given yoga as exercise a variety of names, including modern postural yoga and transnational anglophone yoga. Posture is described in the ''Yoga Sutras'' II.29 as the third of the eight limbs, the ashtanga, of yoga. Sutra II.46 defines it as that which is ''steady and comfortable'', but no further elaboration or list of postures is given. Postures were not central in any of the older traditions of yoga; posture practice was revived in the 1920s by yoga gurus including Yogendra and Kuvalayananda, who emphasised its health benefits. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Drishti (yoga)
Drishti ( sa, दृष्टि, translit=dṛṣṭi; ), or focused gaze, is a means for developing concentrated intention. It relates to the fifth limb of yoga, pratyahara, concerning sense withdrawal, as well as the sixth limb, dharana, relating to concentration. In Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, each asana is associated with one of the 8 focused gazes, namely Angusthamadhye (thumb), Bhrumadhye (eyebrow), Nasagre (tip of nose), Hastagrahe (tips of hands), Parshva (side), Urdhva (up), Nabhicakre (navel), and Padayoragre (tips of feet) Drishtis. In some other styles such as Sivananda Yoga, less use is made of the gaze, and fewer types are employed. History The ''Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'' define eight limbs of yoga but do not mention the gaze. The sixth limb, dharana (concentration), however requires holding one's mind onto an inner state, subject or topic. The mind can for example be fixed on a mantra, one's breath, or a part of the body such as the navel or the tip of the ton ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoga As Therapy
Yoga as therapy is the use of yoga as exercise, consisting mainly of postures called asanas, as a gentle form of exercise and relaxation applied specifically with the intention of improving health. This form of yoga is widely practised in classes, and may involve meditation, imagery, breath work (pranayama) and calming music as well as postural yoga. At least three types of health claim have been made for yoga: magical claims for medieval haṭha yoga, including the power of healing; unsupported claims of benefits to organ systems from the practice of asanas; and more or less well supported claims of specific medical and psychological benefits from studies of differing sizes using a wide variety of methodologies. Systematic reviews have found beneficial effects of yoga on low back pain and depression, but despite much investigation little or no evidence for benefit for specific medical conditions. Study of trauma-sensitive yoga has been hampered by weak methodology. Context ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sahasrara
Sahasrara ( sa, सहस्रार, IAST: , en, "thousand-petalled", with many alternative names and spellings) or the crown chakra is considered the seventh primary chakra in some yoga traditions. Hatha yoga The Sahasrara is described in a few medieval hatha yoga texts including the '' Śivasaṃhitā'' and the ''Tirumantiram'', but not within the Paścimāmnāya and Nath traditions; the '' Kubjikamatatantra'' describes only the six lower chakras. The scriptures vary in the position of the Sahasrara; the ''Siva Samhita'' states that it is beyond the body, whereas others place it at the fontanelle or brahmarandhra on the top of the head where the soul leaves the body at death. Description The Sahasrara is described as a lotus flower with 1,000 petals of different colors. These are arranged in 20 layers, each with approximately 50 petals. The pericarp is golden and within it a circular moon region is inscribed with a luminous triangle, which can be either upward- or do ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rāma
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular ''avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Being. Rama is said to have been born to Kaushalya and Dasharatha in Ayodhya, the ruler of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Though born in a royal family, their life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, ethical questions and moral dilemmas. Of all their travails, the most notable is the kidnapping of Sita by demon-king Ravana, followed by the determined and epic efforts of Rama and Lakshmana to gain her freedom and destroy the evil Ravana against great odds. The entire life story of Rama, Sita and their companions allegorically discusses duties, rights and social responsibilities of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sītā
Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She is also the chief goddess of Rama-centric Hindu traditions. Sita is known for her dedication, self-sacrifice, courage, and purity. She is one of the seventeen national heroes (r''astriya bibhuti'') of Nepal. Described as the daughter of Bhūmi (the earth), Sita is brought up as the adopted daughter of King Janaka of Videha. Sita, in her youth, chooses Rama, the prince of Ayodhya as her husband in a swayamvara. After the swayamvara, she accompanies her husband to his kingdom, but later chooses to accompany her husband, along with her brother-in-law Lakshmana, in his exile. While in exile, the trio settles in the Dandaka forest from where she is abducted by Ravana, the Rakshasa king of Lanka. She is imprisoned in the garden of Ashoka Vatika ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
