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ARTICLES RELATED TO Hatha yoga - Yama

Hatha yoga - Yama: Encyclopedia II - Hatha yoga - Yama

Yama is a "restraint" or rule for living virtuously. Ten yamas are codified in numerous scriptures, including the Hatha Yoga Pradipika by Gorakshanatha while Patanjali lists five yamas in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The ten traditional yamas are: Ahimsa: Abstinence from injury, or harm to any living creature in thought, word, or deed. This is the "main" Yama. The other nine are there in support of its accomplishment. Satya: Truthfulness in word and thought (in conformity with the facts). Asteya: No ste ...

Including:

Hatha yoga - Origins

Hatha yoga - Concept

Hatha yoga - Yama

Hatha yoga - Asanas Postures

Hatha yoga - Pranayama - The science of breathing

Hatha yoga - General Directions for Yogasana

Hatha yoga - Health Benefits ascribed to Yogasana practice

Hatha yoga - Etymology

Hatha yoga - In the West

Hatha yoga - Yama: Encyclopedia - Yamas

Ten Traditional Yamas or Codes of Conduct The Yamas are codified as "the restraints" in numerous scriptures including the Shandilya and Varuha Upanishads, Hatha Yoga Pradipika by Gorakshanatha, the Tirumantiram of Tirumular and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. All the above texts list ten yamas, with the exception of Patanjali's work, which lists only five. They comprise the "shall-nots" in our dealings with the external world. The ten traditional yamas are: Ahimsa: abstinence fr ...

Read more here: » Yamas: Encyclopedia - Yamas

Hatha yoga - Yama: Encyclopedia II - Yama - Yamas as codes of conduct

In a related usage, a yama is a "restraint" or rule for living virtuously. Ten yamas are codified in numerous scriptures, including the Shandilya and Varaha Upanishads, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika by Gorakshanatha, and the Tirumantiram of Tirumular. Patanjali lists five yamas in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The ten traditional yamas are: Ahimsa: abstinence from injury, harmlessness, the not causing of pain to any living creature in thought, word, or deed at any time. This is the "main" Yama. The other n ...

The first two of the eight limbs of raja yoga, constituting Hinduism's fundamental ethical codes, the yamas and niyamas are the essential foundation for all spiritual progress. They are codified in numerous scriptures including the Shandilya and Varuha Upanishads, Hatha Yoga Pradipika by Gorakshanatha, the Tirumantiram of Tirumular and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. All the above texts list ten yamas and ten niyamas, with the exception of Patanjali's classic work, which lists only five of each.

The yamas are the ethical restraints; the niyamas are the religious practices. Because it is brief, the entire code can be easily memorized and reviewed daily by the spiritual aspirant. Here are the ten traditional yamas and ten niyamas.

yamas:

1) ahimsa: "Noninjury." Not harming others by thought, word, or deed.

2) satya: "Truthfulness." Refraining from lying and betraying promises.

3) asteya: "Nonstealing." Neither stealing, nor coveting nor entering into debt.

4) brahmacharya: (Sanskrit) "Divine conduct." Controlling lust by remaining celibate when single, leading to faithfulness in marriage.

5) kshama: (Sanskrit) "Patience." Restraining intolerance with people and impatience with circumstances.

6) dhriti: "Steadfastness." Overcoming nonperseverance, fear, indecision and changeableness.

7) daya: "Compassion." Conquering callous, cruel and insensitive feelings toward all beings.

8) arjava: "Honesty, straightforwardness." Renouncing deception and wrongdoing.

9) mitahara: "Moderate appetite." Neither eating too much nor consuming meat, fish, fowl or eggs.

10) shaucha: "Purity." Avoiding impurity in body, mind and speech. -

niyamas:

1) hri: "Remorse." Being modest and showing shame for misdeeds.

2) santosha: "Contentment." Seeking joy and serenity in life.

3) dana: "Giving." Tithing and giving generously without thought of reward.

4) astikya: (Sanskrit) "Faith." Believing firmly in God, Gods, guru and the path to enlightenment.

5) Ishvarapujana: "Worship of the Lord." The cultivation of devotion through daily worship and meditation.

6) siddhanta shravana: "Scriptural listening." Studying the teachings and listening to the wise of one's lineage.

7) mati: "Cognition." Developing a spiritual will and intellect with the guru's guidance.

8) vrata: "Sacred vows." Fulfilling religious vows, rules and observances faithfully.

9) japa: "Recitation." Chanting mantras daily.

10) tapas: (Sanskrit) "Austerity." Performing sadhana, penance, tapas and sacrifice.

Patanjali lists the yamas as: ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha (noncovetousness); and the niyamas as: shaucha, santosha, tapas, svadhyaya (self-reflection, scriptural study) and Ishvarapranidhana (worship).

See: raja yoga.

(See also: Yama-niyama, Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Hatha yoga - Yama: Hindu - Hinduism Dictionary on Raja Yoga

raja yoga: (Sanskrit) "King of yogas."

Also known as ashtanga yoga, "eight-limbed yoga." The classical yoga system of eight progressive stages to Illumination as described in various yoga Upanishads, the Tirumantiram and, most notably, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

The eight limbs are as follows.

1) yama: "Restraint." Virtuous and moral living, which brings purity of mind, freedom from anger, jealousy and subconscious confusion which would inhibit the process of meditation.

2) niyama: (Sanskrit) "Observance." Religious practices which cultivate the qualities of the higher nature, such as devotion, cognition, humility and contentment- giving the refinement of nature and control of mind needed to concentrate and ultimately plunge into samadhi.

3) asana: "Seat or posture." A sound body is needed for success in meditation. This is attained through hatha yoga, the postures of which balance the energies of mind and body, promoting health and serenity, e.g., padmasana, the "lotus pose," for meditation. The Yoga Sutras indicate that asanas make the yogi impervious to the impact of the pairs of opposites (dvandva), heat-cold, etc.

4) pranayama: "Mastering life force." Breath control, which quiets the chitta and balances ida and pingala. Science of controlling prana through breathing techniques in which lengths of inhalation, retention and exhalation are modulated. Pranayama prepares the mind for deep meditation.

5) pratyahara: "Withdrawal." The practice of withdrawing consciousness from the physical senses first, such as not hearing noise while meditating, then progressively receding from emotions, intellect and eventually from individual consciousness itself in order to merge into the Universal.

6) dharana: "Concentration." Focusing the mind on a single object or line of thought, not allowing it to wander. The guiding of the flow of consciousness. When concentration is sustained long and deeply enough, meditation naturally follows.

7) dhyana: "Meditation." A quiet, alert, powerfully concentrated state wherein new knowledge and insight pour into the field of consciousness. This state is possible once the subconscious mind has been cleared or quieted.

8) samadhi: "Enstasy," which means "standing within one's self." "Sameness, contemplation." The state of true yoga, in which the meditator and the object of meditation are one.

See: yoga, asana, samadhi, raja yoga.

(See also: Raja Yoga, Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Hatha yoga - Yama: Spiritual - Theosophy Dictionary on Yoga

Yoga (Sanskrit) Union; one of the six Darsanas or schools of philosophy of India, founded by Patanjali, but said to have existed as a distinct teaching and system of life before that sage. Yajnavalkya, a famous and very ancient sage of pre-Mahabharatan times, to whom the White Yajur-Veda, the Satapatha-Brahmana, and the Brihadaranyaka are attributed, is credited with inculcating the positive duty of religious meditation and retirement into the forests, and therefore is believed to have originated the yoga doctrine. Patanjali's yoga, however, is more definite and precise as a philosophy, and imbodies more of the occult sciences than any of the extant works attributed to Yajnavalkya.

The objective of the Yoga school is attaining union or at-one-ness with the divine-spiritual essence within which is virtually identical with the spiritual essence or Logos of the universe. True yoga is genuine psychology based on a complete philosophical understanding of the entire inner human constitution.

There are several states leading to spiritual powers and perception. The eight stages of yoga usually enumerated are:

1) yama (restraint, forbearance);

2) niyama, religious observances such as fastings, prayer, penances;

3) asana, postures of various kinds;

4) pranayama, methods of regulating the breath;

5) pratyahara (withdrawal), withdrawal of the consciousness from external objects;

6) dharana (firmness, steadiness, resolution) mental concentration, holding the mind on an object of thought;

7) dhyana, abstract contemplation or meditation freed from exterior distractions; and

8) samadhi, complete collection of the consciousness and its faculties into union with the monadic essence.

There are several types of yoga such as karma yoga, hatha yoga, bhakti yoga, raja yoga, and jnana yoga. "Similar religious aspirations or practices likewise exist in Occidental countries, as, for instance, what is called 'Salvation by Works,' somewhat equivalent to the Hindu Karma-Yoga, or, again, 'Salvation by Faith -- or Love,' somewhat similar to the Hindu Bhakti-Yoga; while both Orient and Occident have, each one, its various forms of ascetic practices which may be grouped under the term Hatha-Yoga.

"No system of Yoga should ever be practiced unless under the direct teaching of one who knows the dangers of meddling with the psycho-mental apparatus of the human constitution, for dangers lurk at every step, and the meddler in these things is likely to bring disaster upon himself, both in matters of health and as regards sane mental equilibrium. The higher branches of Yoga, however, such as the Raja-Yoga and Jnana-Yoga, implying strict spiritual and intellectual discipline combined with a fervid love for all beings, are perfectly safe. It is, however, the ascetic practices, etc., and the teachings that go with them, wherein lies the danger to the unwary, and they should be carefully avoided" (OG 183).

The various forms of yoga from the standpoint of theosophy when properly understood are not distinct, separable means of attaining union with the god within; and it is a divergence of the attention into one or several of these forms to the exclusion of others that has brought about so much mental confusion and lack of success even in those who are more or less skilled. Every one of these forms of yoga, with the probable exception of the lower forms of hatha yoga, should be practiced concurrently by the one who has set his heart and mind upon spiritual success.

Thus one should carefully watch and control his acts, acting and working unselfishly; he should live so that his daily customs distract attention as little as possible away from the spiritual purpose; his heart coincidentally should be filled with devotion and love for all things; and he should cultivate, all at the same time, his will, his capacity for self-sacrifice and self-devotion to a noble cause, and his ability to stand firm and undaunted in the face of difficulties whatever they may be; and, finally, in addition and perhaps most importantly, he should do everything in his power to cultivate his intuition and intellectual faculties, exercising not merely his ratiocinative mind, but the higher intuitive and nobly intellectual parts.

Combining all these he is following the chela path and is using all the forms of yoga in the proper way. Yet the chela will never obtain his objective if his practice of yoga is followed for his own individual advancement. He will never reach higher than the superior planes of the astral world even in consciousness; but when his whole being follows this yoga as thus outlined with a desire to lay his life and all he is on the altar of service to the world, he is then indeed on the path.

Hatha yoga - Yama: Encyclopedia II - Hatha yoga - Origins

The most fundamental and oldest surviving text of Hatha Yoga is the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, a Sanskrit classic written by Swami Swatamarama, a disciple of Swami Goraknath, in 15th century C.E. The work is derived from older Sanskrit texts and Swami Swatamarama's own yogic experiences. It includes information about asanas, pranayama, chakras, kundalini, bandhas, kriyas, shakti, nadis and mudras among other topics. Many modern schools of Hatha Yoga derive from the school of Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, who taught from 1924 until his dea ...