Yoga Benefits

The word “yoga” itself means “union” and implies uniting all aspects of the individual – body to mind, mind to spirit – so that one might enjoy a balanced, happy, useful life. Spiritually, it implies uniting the individual with the universal. Through personal practice, one can achieve physical fitness, move beyond perceived physical and emotional limitations, find peace within, improve memory and concentration, and live more fully.

Some people practice yoga in order to improve their flexibility or strength, and that’s great. However, yoga is so much more than a physical practice. In fact, there are Eight Limbs of Yoga, or elements of the practice.

• Yama – Universal ethics: Non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, wise use of sexual energy and non-acquisitiveness.
• Niyama – Principles of self conduct: purity, contentment, intense dedication or austerity, study of self and scriptures and self-surrender.
• Asana – practice of the postures.
• Pranayama – Breath control.
• Pratyahara – withdrawal and control of the senses.
• Dharana – concentration.
• Dhyana – meditation.
• Samadhi – a state of higher consciousness where the sense of self (ego) dissolves in the object of meditation and the individual self exists in its own pure nature.

Yoga teaches us to let go of those things that no longer serve us like judgment, tension, and story-telling about our position in life. Instead, we cultivate acceptance, patience, compassion, ease, flexibility of body and mind, and present-moment awareness. When we let go of attachment, we create space in our lives to be present with what is, rather than being caught up in what we have or do not have, and what we want or do not want. By nurturing our relationship to self, we may enjoy an inner sense of calm that transcends circumstance. That sounds like a much better way to live, doesn’t it?

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