The Bhagavad Gita Introduction

From the archives: Branches or Paths of Yoga Become familiar with the major branches of yoga and their origins. Read the full study guide →

From the archives: Sanskrit: Introduction Gain an understanding of the origins of Sanskrit, its distinctive qualities, and the significance of it being the language of the original yoga texts. Read the full study guide →

From the archives: Dharana Philosophy – The sixth limb is dharana, defined as “keeping the attention on a single place.” (Nicolai Bachman) Dharana is often defined as concentration. – Dharana may be considered the beginning of meditation or as a practice that leads to the state of meditation. – (See also: Meditation & Mindfulness Introduction.) This process can be described as letting go of everything that is not the object of meditation. Read the full study guide →

From the archives: Yoga’s Foundational Philosophies: Samkhya, Advaita Vedanta, Tantra Gain an understanding of key assumptions built into the foundational philosophies upon which various branches of yoga are based: Samkhya, Advaita Vedanta and Tantra. Read the full study guide →

From the archives: Practicing Dharana – The Object of Contemplation In dharana, we choose an object of contemplation and then let go of everything that is not the object of meditation. – The object of concentration can be virtually anything: an external physical object, an idea, or an internal aspect of self. – Examples include the breath, a mantra, a quality one would like to develop (e.g. Read the full study guide →

From the archives: Dhyana Philosophy & Theory – Dharana, dhyana and samadhi together are called samyama. – They may be seen as a progression of knowing the object of concentration. – Dhyana is often translated as meditation. Read the full study guide →