Yoga

For many people today, yoga is an Indian-derived form of physical exercise--based on the familiar postures--which may or may not include a spiritual component. In this form yoga has spread all over the world, in ever-increasing variety.

More fundamentally, "yoga" refers to a family of voluntary spiritual practices, together with their attendant texts and teacher-student lineages, aimed at release from the cycle of reincarnation (samsara). This liberation is given various Sanskrit names:

• moksha ("liberation")
• mukti ("release," i.e. from bondage)
• kaivalya (
• nirvana ("extinction" or "snuffing out," as with a candle)

It is typically thought to be achieved through concentration (samadhi), meditation (dhyana), and discipline ( d )

nirvana (the "snuffing out" of egoism and delusion). Its underlying assumption is that by stilling or concentrating the mind, the yoga practitioner can

"Yoga" in this sense is practiced within the religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism; and encompasses theistic as well as nontheistic forms.

In Indian philosophy, "Yoga" is the name of one of the six "orthodox" (i.e., Veda-affirming) schools, while "Yogacara" ("Yoga Practitioners") is an important school of thought within Mahayana Buddhism.

The name

(Sanskrit योग)

Origins

A soapstone seal from the Indus Valley archeological site of Mohenjo-Daro depicts a horned figure (or, a figure wearing a headdress) surrounded by four animals, and seated on a throne in what may be interpreted as a yogic or meditative position. (The soles of his feet are pressed together.) The figure is often identified with Shiva, perhaps in his role as Pashupati ("Lord of Animals").

Several Vedic references