Yoga Enjoy – Page 5 – All About Yoga: Poses, Types, Benefits, and More

What Is Jnana Yoga? Meaning, Benefits & How to Practice the Yoga of Knowledge

August 16, 2022

Yoga is a path to many things, whether you’re striving for peace, the perfect posture, or a more balanced life. But, one of the most important (and challenging) paths found in yoga is Jnana Yoga. Known as the Path of Knowledge or Gyana Yoga, this powerful practice is about courageously examining our inner world—flaws, worries, emotional triggers and all—so we can live with eyes wide open. Unlike passing highs from scrolling on Instagram or shopping at the mall, Jnana Yoga offers us the kind of radical self-awareness and peace we are all seeking deep down.

While practicing and even pronouncing Jnana Yoga can be challenging, you don’t have to be a revered guru or experienced yoga instructor to understand it. In this comprehensive guide, I’ll explain the meaning of Jnana, its benefits, how to pronounce it correctly, as well as simple ways you can walk the Path of Knowledge in your daily life.

What Is Jnana Yoga?

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Unlike Vinyasa or Hatha Yoga, Jnana Yoga isn’t a physical asana practice. It’s one of the Four Paths of Yoga which were designed to lead spiritual seekers to enlightenment or true self-awareness.

The four paths presented in yoga philosophy are:

Karma Yoga (the Path of Duty)

Bhakti Yoga (the Path of Devotion to Purity)

Raja Yoga (the Path of Self-control)

Jnana Yoga (the Path of Knowledge of Self)

Also known as Gyana Yoga, Jnana Yoga is defined as the practice of shedding the ego and gaining knowledge of the true Self through self study and analysis. With this deep aware[……]

Jivamukti Yoga

10 of my favorite Jivamukti Yoga photographs

July 3, 2022

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I recently finished creating this image of Sharon Gannon, founder of Jivamukti Yoga. It is one of my favorite portraits of her, combining elements of the past and present.

I took the photograph of her in February of 2013, when I had been working as the Jivamukti Yoga Web Editor for less than a year. Sharon told me she was planning to cut her hair, and wanted to create an image of her flowing locks. She laid on a white backdrop and spread out her hair while I climbed a ladder to photograph her from above. The results were fun, but got set aside as other work came in.

A couple months ago I was going through my archives and found them again. I immediately thought it would be fun to add an interesting background. At the time Sharon was getting ready for the June 23rd release of her book The Magic Ten and Beyond.

An out-of-body experience.

She had previously traveled to Egypt with her partner, Jivamukti co-founder David Life. During the trip she laid in a sarcophagus in the Kings Chamber of the Great Pyramid and had an out-of-body experience. Later in the trip a museum Egyptologist showed David and her a photograph of a cartouche with ten Egyptian hieroglyphs, which he thought would be of interest to them as spiritual seekers. The mystical symbols on the cartouche, along with Sharon’s experience in the pyramid, inspired the sequencing of 10 spiritual practices that became her daily ritual, and the basis for the book.

Blending Egyptian hieroglyphs to the background of the image of[……]

Iyengar Yoga

5 Reasons Why You Should Try an Iyengar Yoga Class

June 14, 2022

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Many times at the end of my Iyengar yoga class I thank my yoga teacher for saving my life. Most of them, including my most cherished, long time Iyengar Teacher, Scott Hobbs, simply smile and acknowledge. As someone with a high stress job that involves lots of heavy lifting, my Iyengar practice has many a time healed my back and saved my sanity. I’ve asked Scott to weigh-in on some key benefits about Why You Too Should Try an Iyengar Class.

About. Grounded in a deeply mind-body-soul spiritual belief system, Iyengar Yoga was created by yoga master B.K.S. Iyengar who began teaching in Pune, India in 1936 at the age of 18 until his death at age 95. Today, his daughter, Geeta, and his son, Prashant—both accomplished teachers themselves—continue his teachings at the Iyengar Institute in India. Therefore, according to Scott, unlike many other yoga practices, Iyengar is a living, constantly evolving, progressive yoga method.The Iyengar family’s teachings are deeply grounded in the yoga sutras of Patanjali, an ancient summation of the path and philosophy of yoga considered to be at least 2,500 years old. B.K.S. Iyengar’s intense practice and over seventy years of teaching have produced significant innovations in the teaching of the art and science of yoga.

The Iyengar method develops self-awareness, intelligent evaluation, and profound inward reflection. The attention to detail and cultivation of awareness is meant to maintain physical safety in the practice, AND also to develop the[……]

Acro Yoga

5 Unexpected Benefits of Hot Yoga: Science-Backed Mental Health Facts

May 21, 2022

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At first, hot yoga sounds like a bad joke. Rooms that are up to 105 degrees Fahrenheit with yoga instructors sending you into 143 chaturanga before “resting” in down dog. What benefits could possibly come from this torture?

Is the physical exertion and will-power worth the mental health benefits? We will find out.

Many of my coworkers and friends have detested ever stepping foot in a hot yoga class. High humidity, high heat, and high intensity.

The immediate description of a hot yoga session is anything but appealing.

On the other side of the coin, hot yoga has raving fans religiously attending classes multiple times a week. The sweaty flows serving as workout therapy wrapped in community and good intentions.

Regardless of opinion, hot yoga is undoubtedly an experience to remember.

Although you must make your own decision, this article outlines both the mental health benefits of hot yoga and the basics of hot yoga.

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What Science Says about Mental Health Benefits of Hot Yoga

One collective review of studies states, “It has been hypothesized that hatha yoga practice may attenuate HPA axis and sympathetic hyperactivity and the associated physiological, inflammatory response, which could lead to a reduction in stress- and inflammation-related illness .”

Reducing HPA axis and sympathetic hyperactivity may have positive implications for mental health and wellbeing. One hot yoga benefit.

The HPA axis is the body’s central stress response system that is involved in mood and function[……]

Hatha Yoga

What is Hatha Yoga?

April 3, 2022

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Hatha yoga, what exactly is this? Is this a specific yoga style? What is the difference between Hatha yoga and other forms of yoga? What should you keep in mind of with this form of yoga? All questions that arise for many yogis when we talk about Hatha yoga. Because between all new (and old) yoga styles, Hatha yoga keeps popping up. We take away all the riddles around this form of yoga, so that you know exactly what to expect with Hatha yoga.

The origin of Hatha yoga

To properly understand Hatha yoga, we must first dive into the history of yoga. Hatha yoga is the most ancient yoga style and many yoga styles are derived from this yoga style. The special thing about this style is that it is an open stream without a founder or guru. This hardly ever happens anymore these days.

Hatha yoga used to be practiced by monks who needed mild physical exercise in addition to many meditations (and in preparation for meditation). You hold the yoga postures of Hatha yoga longer, without it becoming uncomfortable. Tensions disappear from the body, so you can sit longer and more comfortably during meditation. With this yoga style you are therefore preparing yourself for your meditation.

Hatha yoga is more than just moving

But Hatha yoga is more than just moving and performing the yoga postures well. Because it is the connection between body and mind that is very important within this style. Ha-Tha means sun and moon, which are seen as contradictions within yoga. The sun stands for action, fie[……]

Bikram Yoga

Is Bikram Yoga for You? 3 Pros and Cons for Beginners

March 6, 2022

Bikram yoga may not be as safe as yogis believe, a new study suggests.

Yoga can be wonderful for your flexibility, balance and overall health. And recently, pro athletes such as Kobe Bryant, Andy Murray and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles have begun doing Bikram Yoga, an intense form of the practice in which the moves are performed in a hot, humid room.

“One of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” is how Foles described Bikram Yoga in an ESPN interview. But he also credited the practice with helping him recover more quickly from the hits he takes during the NFL season.

Named after its founder, Bikram Choudhury, and drawing from traditional yoga techniques, Bikram employs a series of 26 postures (see diagram below). The poses are always the same and always done in the same order in a room heated to approximately 105 degrees with 40 percent humidity. The classes last about 90 minutes. The general idea is that the heat increases blood flow and circulation to the muscles.

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Photo: Bikram Yoga NYC

“By the end of a Bikram yoga class, you will have worked every muscle, tendon, joint, ligament, internal organ and gland while systematically moving fresh, oxygenated blood to 100 percent of the body,” says Bikram instructor Tori Hicks. “Bikram yoga builds strength, balance and flexibility by gently stretching and massaging the spine, muscles, tendons, joints and all internal organs of the body. Lung capacity is expanded, leading to greater vitality.”

In my first Bikram class, I[……]

Bhakti Yoga

The Ultimate Expression of Bhakti Yoga

February 1, 2022

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Bhakti Yoga is a devotional path of oneness or union with the Divine. According to Kashmir Shaivite scholars, the ultimate expression of Bhakti Yoga is service to God, Guru and other individuals, both inside and outside of the community of seekers. Some of the more well-known practices of Bhakti Yoga include spending time close to an enlightened being, chanting the divine names or mantras and ritual acts of worship, such as singing an evening arati or prayer while waving lit candles in honor of a divine being. It may appear at first that the ultimate expression of Bhakti Yoga is to chant beautifully or meditate for hours on the form of one’s Guru. However, scholars of spiritual texts and spiritual teachers repeatedly tell us that the ultimate expression of Bhakti Yoga is service to God and Guru, with the highest expression of Bhakti Yoga being service to other individuals.

When a yogi or yogini begins to walk the path of Bhakti Yoga, he or she may have a deep longing for knowledge and oneness with the Divine. A seeker who is of a devotional temperament may begin his or her sadhana by meditating, reading the scriptures and spending time in prayer and contemplation. These practices may be performed while living at home, in a Buddhist monastery, an ashram or even in a Christian monastic setting.

Initially, the Bhakta may feel inspired to serve God by serving the ritual needs of the institution. Some of these ways of serving may be to place flowers on the altar, paint beautiful[……]