Yoga is one of the oldest teachings and methodologies that deal with the integrity of a person - body, mind, and soul. Yoga is an art, it is a science and it is a philosophy. The root of the Sanskrit word "juir" means to unite, to join, to connect. In the classical sense of the word, this means the union of the universal spirit with the individual. The body is lazy by nature, the mind is alive and elusive, and the spirit is dazzlingly calm. By using yogic techniques, the body becomes alive and flexible, and the mind can approach the light of the spirit. Only a calm mind can see the smoothness of the soul.
History of yoga
We do not know the exact origin of yoga. Yoga was first mentioned in a vast collection of writings called the Vedas, 2500 BC. The Vedas are a collection of texts containing songs, mantras, and rituals used by the Brahmans, the Vedic priests. Yoga was slowly perfected and developed by Brahmins and Rishis (mystical seers), who described their practices and beliefs in the Upanishads - an extensive body of scriptures. The most famous yogic scripture, the Bhagavad Gita, was written around 500 BC. AD Yogic practice is based on at least 3500 years of knowledge about the structure of the body and the way the mind works.
Patanjali is considered the author of the first systematic work on yoga. He lived in 200 BC. His treatises on yoga are called the Yogic Sutras or the Yogic Aphorism. Patanjali is the creator or father of yoga, namely Raja yoga or Astanga yoga. He systematically covered yoga in 196 sutras.
The science of yoga is said to have originated long before that. Every student on the path of yoga should try to act from the direction of spiritual development. Astanga yoga shows the student the ways and gives the tools to achieve the ultimate goal of yoga - samadhi. Patanjali made Astanga Yoga practical and everything is connected to experience - to practice, to sadhana.
origin of yoga