Origin and Background of Yoga

Yoga originated in India about 4000 years ago, within the Hindu cultural tradition. There are several ancient texts that provide insight into the practices of yoga. We will dip into some of these texts, including the Upanishads and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika.

There are also many concepts that provide background information for yoga as it is practised today, for example, continuous life cycles, ayurveda, chakras, and mantras.

Our theme this term will be the origin and background of yoga. Each class will take an aspect and say something about how it has influenced the development of yoga. The aspects we will consider are:

1. Hatha Yoga – the concept of opposites
   
2. Continuous Life cycles – birth, death and reincarnation
   
3. The Upanishads – various ancient texts
   
4. Hatha Yoga Pradipika – the classic yoga text
   
5. Ayurveda – body type, temperament and diet
   
6. Chakras – nerve centres
   
7. Meditation
   
8. Mantras - chanting