"Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self." -- The Bhagavad Gita
"Letting go is the hardest asana."
history
Yoga’s history has many places of obscurity and uncertainty due to its oral transmission of sacred texts and the secretive nature of its teachings. The early writings on yoga were transcribed on fragile palm leaves that were easily damaged, destroyed or lost. The development of yoga can be traced back to over 5,000 years ago, but some researchers think that yoga may be up to 10,000 years old old. Yoga’s long rich history can be divided into four main periods of innovation, practice and development.
vision
The term "yoga" literally means "union." It is so named because its practice leads to the integration of the physical, mental, and spiritual energies that, together, enhance health and well-being. Yoga teaches the basic principle of mind/body unity. If the mind is chronically restless and agitated, the health of the body will be compromised, and if the body is in poor health, mental clarity and strength will be adversely affected. The practice of yoga can counter these ill effects, restoring mental and physical health.
goals
Yoga as a Healing Art. Healing is a core element of both yoga philosophy and yoga practice. In fact, healing is something we all aspire to, even if we do not always realize it—we all want to be healthy physically, mentally, and emotionally, and many of us also aspire to what we might call healing on the spiritual level as well. As we begin our quest for health and healing, I’d like to invite you to ask yourself the following question: “What is it that brought me to yoga and keeps me here—keeps me involved, seeking, studying, and doing my practice?” Most people come to yoga because of some kind of discomfort, ailment, or pain.
