Hello Hive Community,
A few days ago, @yangyanje sent me this post (https://peakd.com/hive-141827/@mikezillo/yoga-as-a-natural-path) from @mikezillo about yoga, and I felt like I wanted to contribute my perspective on yoga to the Natural Medicine Community (@naturalmedicine).

Soooo.. let's shine a light on yoga. :)

But first of all, let's thank @mikezillo for his insightful introduction to yoga and the body-mind-spirit connection, with a great focus on some practical examples and the chakra work. I really enjoyed reading about your journey, and the pictures of you and your wife doing asanas (yoga poses) are precious! His post is definitely worth reading.

What I want you to know before I start with the actual post:
After I started feeling the positive effects of my asana practice on my body and mind, I got into the philosophy of yoga and started reading some books about it.
In 2021, after I had already established an almost daily yoga practice and given some yoga sessions to some friends, I met this blissful soul, Akash.
A Yogi from India, living in my hometown of Hannover, Germany.

Source: Moksh Yoga Festival
Akash and me at the closing ceremony of his first yoga festival. It was his biggest dream to do a yoga festival in Germany and after 10 years in Germany he finally did it!

With his teaching approach, he really inspired me, and I wanted to visit the place where he studied yoga. So I ended up doing a 500-hour yoga teacher training course in Rishikesh, the capital of yoga.

I really enjoy spreading this wisdom and started giving asana classes here in Germany. My next step is to go back to the Himalayas and deepen my practice in Nepal.

Introduction

What is yoga? Yoga is a profound and powerful way of life that has the potential to fundamentally change our lives. Since I have been practicing yoga regularly, I am more balanced and can deal with the small and big challenges of everyday life much better.

Yoga does not belong to any religion, it's not a religious practice, but rather something that is made up of many different teachings. These methods offer us systems and ways that can support us in experiencing the depth of our own being.
We learn to enter with our consciousness into the complexity of both matter and energy and to perceive it proactively.

The purpose of yoga ( and a definition )

The different methods of yoga are united by their common purpose and similar effects. The purpose of yoga is to free the individual from unnecessary confusion and redundant pain.
The effects are a calmer and more mindful spirit that accompanies a healthy body through a peaceful, joyful and grateful life.

Nevertheless, yoga is also a science, a science of life. It is important to note that yoga is not a hypothetical science. Every philosophical concept derives from direct yogic experience. Yoga has been practiced for over 5,000 years, and it has recently found a place in out fast-pasted, digitalized Western society.

Yoga is easy, right?

Every city has several yoga studios, and almost every fitness studio seems to have a yoga class. Be present, take deep breaths, observe your body, and simply be. Yes beginning with yoga is simple; all you need is some time and space. A yoga or fitness mat is beneficial, but you can begin at any moment.
I don't want to convince you to try yoga because you are undoubtedly already a little yogi by the time you start reflecting on yourself. In this post, I'd like to explore a little deeper in to the yoga philosophy.

Yoga is much more to me than a physical exercise. Yoga is like a warm hug for your soul, it's about connecting with yourself, finding inner peace, and cultivating mindfulness and awareness that you can take with you off the mat into your everyday life. It's all about broadening your horizons, pushing your limits, and discovering a sense of balance and harmony within yourself and the world around you.

It's difficult to put into words, but when i think of yoga, words like wholeness, gratitude, compassion and most importantly, self-discovery come to my mind.

What to expect..

I'd like to utilize this chance to provide you with some additional information on the subject. This will be a brief introduction, followed by posts that will expose you to the most important fundamentals of the yoga philosophy and practical tips to get you started with you own practice.

Everyone of us can experience the positive effects of yoga in mind and body, if you keep this in mind.

• Without prejudice, the willingness is there to have new experiences that may even dissolve old beliefs.

• Self-discipline is required, especially in the beginning, because, like everywhere else, you first must invest in yourself and put in effort.

Everyone who has experienced the full potential of yoga understands that the journey is worth while. At the same time, our view on life (our path) shifts as we realize we don't have to achieve any goals if we pay more loving attention to the present moment.

We are trapped if all we have in our mind is the desire to achieve a state that is not yet attainable in the present. This allows me to inquire about my area of influence. What can I change in the current moment?
I try not to be affected by things outside of my realm of influence. I prefer to concentrate on the opportunities available to me right now.

Yoga is a journey

If we consider our lives to be a journey in which we learn about our mind and body, whether in daily life our through the practice of asanas, it is essential that we practice mindful, kindhearted and loving self-observation of our thoughts, feelings and our body.

Anyone who begins yoga and practices consistently will soon notice the benefits. To name a few of the many beneficial effects on the mind and body, there is flexibility, strength, energy, improved posture, better respiration, and clarity of perception and expression.

I would like to end this blog post with a quote from the book "Yoga" by Godfrey Devereux, one of my first books on yoga, which inspired me a lot. The author has a deep understanding of yoga and its impact on our lives.

Quote:
"Yoga awakens the desire and gives the means to live life fully and engage directly with the good as well as the bad. Everyone has a different learning curve in yoga, some develop faster physically and others mentally.

Yoga is more about the mind, experience and self-knowledge than just a few breathing and stretching exercises.
If yoga makes you happy about yourself, then it works, and it doesn't matter how much or how little you develop in flexibility, strength and stamina.

Yoga is a vehicle to release ans develop the latent potentialities of the human body and mind. When the body and mind are stabilized and harmonized, they enable us to live a deeper, richer, more creative and satisfying life."
Godfrey Devereux, Yoga

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.
I hope I was able to provide you with some useful information to implement into your life.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about specific yoga subjects.
In the future, I intend to go into greater depth and share my understanding of this ancient philosophy. At the same time, I'd like to offer some helpful hints and instructions for establishing a regular practice.