The Yoga Element
About Ashtanga Yoga

The style of yoga I practice is called Ashtanga, and I use this system to inform how I teach. I may have a few years of experience under my belt, but there are others out there who have been practicing this type of yoga for longer than I’ve been alive! So I thought it best to leave it to the experts when it comes to explaining what Ashtanga is all about…

What then is yoga? The word has many meanings: relation; means; union; knowledge; matter; logic; and so on. For now, let us say that the meaning of yoga is upaya, which means path, or way which we follow or by means of which we can attain something.
- Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, Yoga Mala

Ashtanga yoga is a science and a practice that has evolved over a period of thousands of years to deal with moral, physical, mental/emotional, and spiritual development. The term ashtanga, which means “eight limbs”, was devised in about 200 BC by the great Indian sage Patanjali. read more...»

A central component of (yoga) is asana, or the practice of yoga postures, in which we work the body: we turn it, twist it, stretch it, and explore its subtleties. Another component is pranayama, in which we stretch, unfold, refine and closely observe the breathing. Within these physical practices of [yoga] we work the body like we knead dough when making bread, so that it becomes transformed from an amorphous lump of unconscious flesh and bones into something that is vital and full of life.
- Richard Freeman, The Mirror of Yoga: Awakening the Intelligence of Body and Mind

Each practice session is a journey. Endeavor to move with awareness and enjoy the experience. Allow it to unfold as a flower opens. There is no benefit in hurrying. Yoga grows with time. read more...»

He was the first yogi to systematize an approach to yoga, and his eight-limb system provided then, as it still does today, a set order of steps through which practitioners can progress in order to reach a state of yoga. In this context, “yoga” means the yoking, or union, of mind, body and soul leading toward self-realization. In order to achieve this union, it is first necessary to take control of the mind and to remove the unnecessary stimuli and clutter than gets in the way of clarity. Within the eight-limbed system of Ashtanga, the third limb is Asana. This is the practice of classical yoga postures, and it is the device the ties the mind to the body through the “thread of the breath”. In this system, the breath becomes the key to the focusing of the mind.
- John Scott, Ashtanga Yoga: The Definitive Step-by-Step Guide to Dynamic YogaPowered by Hackadelic Sliding Notes 1.6.5
Some days are easy and the mind is calm and the physical body is light and responsive. Other days you may find that the mind is running wild and the body feels like wet cement. We must breath deeply and remain detached. Asanas are not the goal. They are a vehicle to access a deeper internal awareness. Create a practice that best suits your personal needs so that it is something that you look forward to. Yoga is a place of refuge and a soothing balm for the stresses of modern life.
- David Swenson, Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice Manual, An Illustrated Guide to Personal PracticePowered by Hackadelic Sliding Notes 1.6.5