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Introducing Hatha Yoga
If we were to mention the word yoga, all sorts of imagery might come to our mind. Some of that may include sitting cross legged on the floor, thumbs to the forefingers on each hand, and meditating. Although, parts of this are true, yoga is much more than these associated images. To better engage in the yoga discipline it is import to understand what is yoga, specifically the purpose of Hatha Yoga and a clarification of Hatha Yoga poses.
What Is Hatha Yoga?
The practice and beginnings of yoga can be traced back thousands of years to the India. The word literally means union and the concept of this discipline is the blending of all aspects of the human person with the universe. Yoga is not a religion. Specifically, Hatha Yoga is the most simplistic form of yoga that can be performed. In other words, Hatha Yoga is a preparatory form of yoga that is practiced prior to entering into more advanced yoga techniques. Hatha Yoga can be likened to the performing of warm-up exercises before entering into your regular exercise routine.
Purpose of Yoga
The ultimate purpose of yoga is the attaining of perfect spiritualism. This discipline addresses every aspect of the human being and emphasizes a balanced approach in maximizing the development of the entire person. The philosophy behind the practice of yoga is the utilization of all resources available to the individual. Again, the full employment of all resources available to the individual is for the sole purpose of contributing to spiritual growth.
The practice of Hatha Yoga is the basic form of yoga that sets the stage or prepares the mind and body. In essence Hatha Yoga is the process of removing clutter in order to receive what the universe will bring.
Hatha Yoga Poses
When preparing to perform yoga, the individual will be amazed at the extent of the distractions that they will experience. Initially, there will be the difficulty of overcoming a wandering mind. Symptoms of this wandering mind include the inability to focus and the experiencing of a multitude of thoughts. Also, the mind will be bombarded with a cadre of emotions.
In response to the rebellion of the mind, it was discovered that certain yoga positions are conducive to the pursuit of the spiritual path. Hatha Yoga is the preliminary stage of yoga that concentrates on the practice of these powerful yoga positions. These non-exercise yoga positions are designed to cleanse and empower the various systems of the body. Some of these systems include the cardiovascular, nervous and the endocrine system. Five basic Hatha Yoga positions are the snake pose, half tortoise pose, yoga pose, corpse pose and self massage.
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