Hatha Yoga Perspectives for 21st Century

N K Srinivasan
Hatha yoga, the physical branch of yoga, is practised by millions of people in almost all countries. It has been branded, commercialised and toned down that one can get a set of lessons for a few dollars. There is no doubt that many seek yoga practice for physic al wellness and healing, especially for back pain, asthma , muscular pains ,stiffness and insomnia. Every one knows that Yoga originated in India, as part of the spiritual discipline to seek "union with the Divine or the Universal soul" ..Yoga means that--'union' like the word "yoke". Yoga also means the path towards the goal. Thus the word "yoga" means both the path and the goal. The Yogi saints developed yoga to improve body to make it a fit instrument for long spiritual practices. One should cleanse the mind first for which they developed chanting [Japa} and meditation.{Dhyana].They also did not neglect the devotional path or bhakti to a chosen ideal or God. {Worshiping a personal God is part of Hindu form of devotions, including symbolic idol worship, though Hindus believe in a formless 'Brahman ' ..] Control of "prana" or life force through breath and

nervous currents became a standard technique for tuning the body and attain mental calmness. This led to 'pranayama'.[literally 'Control of Prana'.] Thus you can understand how a Hindu yoga system developed into different branches of Yoga.

The main branches for the purpose of teaching are four: Jnana yoga [the path of inquiry,knowledge] Bhakti yoga [the path of devotion] Karma yoga [the path of selfless action or service]and Raja yoga [the path of meditation and concentration, the mystic path ] [Swami Vivekananda wrote on these four branches with remarkable clarity ,mainly for western readers--his books are transcripts of his lectures in the West.] It should be noted that the four paths are not water tight compartments and a yogi invariably mixes different yoga methods in practice. This mixing occurs in India due to

the religious traditions of the particular master or guru who teaches you. This can be confusing to a western students, for based on logic alone, they tend to separate the paths into distinct schools. This does not happen in practice.

Hatha Yoga Hatha yoga or the physical aspects of yoga is essentially a part of Raja Yoga. It was introduced to make the body a fit instrument for long meditative practices. In later periods, this became a discipline on its own , mainly as a physical training method. But it should be noted that hatha yoga is the necessary preparation for any raja yogi, while other yogis may neglect or even avoid hatha yoga. I know many jnanis frowning upon hatha yoga as an inferior method and a distraction focusing on body . Hatha yoga means 'bodily yoga' and the word 'ha' means sun and 'tha' means moon and this is about the bringing together of two paths in our body--for instance ida and pingala nerves which surya -sun nadi and chandra -moon nadi . Since hatha yoga is part of Raja Yoga, the basic text of Raja Yoga , Patanjali's Yoga sutras ,became the standard and holy text for hatha yoga as well.

Patanjali's Yoga Sutras Patanjali was a sage of first or second century CE, though some would place him much earlier. Very little is known about this sage. He spoke these cryptic verses or aphorisms ,called 'sutras'.

Why cryptic verses or sutras? You must remember that in those days, there were no written manuscripts. Students learned by listening and memorising these verses and so to help the students to recall easily, the verses were kept in cryptic, short verses. The verses, in Sanskrit language, was made rhythmic and sonorous to memorise easily. [Even today brahmin [priestly caste] students memorise these verses by chanting them daily.] Patanjali's sutras elaborate on the Ashtanga Yoga which we will discuss now. Ashtanga Yoga --or eight limbed or eight part yoga is the standard discipline for all Raja Yogis. Patanjali listed the eight graded steps for spiritual enlightenment which are as follows: * Yama * Niyama * Asana [poses] * Pranayama [control of prana or life force] * Pratyahara * Dharana * Dhyana * Samadhi The first two steps are moral, ethical practices--yama

control or donts and niyama ,postive steps or dos ---for moral fibre of the individual. I shall not elaborate on these ;you can read about them in any book on yoga. It is important that you practise these first before starting asana or pranayama. But remember, observing yama and niyama is not easy. Many yogis , famous and not so famous, have fallen from these ethical principles,failing to observe them and suffered greatly. Personal ethics is important for a yogi in India or in western countries whatever may the rules of the state and the cultural permissions. No progress in yoga is possible without observing 'yama' and 'niyama'. Modern yogis , in commercialising the yoga methods and in pandering to the vanity of western students , have often transgressed these principles ,ruining themselves and their students. I have seen many ashrams and communes getting destroyed in no time because they did not observe these ethical principles. Litigations are common in ashrams/communes of yoga as much as they are in commercial world. since the yogis and their ashrams are closely watched in are less and these fake

India, such moral transgressions

yogis/gurus are easily exposed. In western

nations,however, the fake ones carry on for several decades before they are brought into litigations.

While several excellent english translations are available for Patanjali's yoga sutras, I would recommend this book : The Way to God by Swami Prabhavananda [RK mission, California] . There are several recent translations which may not be rigorous or precise. Since the sutras ae cryptic, there is a need for commentaries and these commentaries may vary considerably

due to subtle interpretations. This is one of the difficulties in learning these texts and therefore one is

guided by the teacher or guru and his lineage/tradition in India. There is no point is splitting hairs over the arguments regarding the interpretations , as many

juvenile students/yogis do, because much depends on the intuitive understanding of the master or guru or his master "paramguru", going back to several generations or even centuries. Much confusion on siddhi [supernatural] powers and in kundalini shakti or power has arisen because of mistaken or wrong interpretations.

Hatha yoga and Ashtanga Yoga

Hatha Yoga as such refers to the first four steps: Yama, Niyama, asana [poses] and pranayama. Yoga teachers may teach other four steps or parts of it , for a full complement of Raja Yoga.

Please note that yama and niyama are the bedrock of yoga practice. Some yoga practitioners focus only on asanas and pranayama for physical benefits in modern times.

Hatha yoga teachers do include all the four methods: asanas, pranayama, bandhas[locks] and mudras[gestures].

Specific texts of hatha yoga Hatha yoga has several later day texts such as Hatha yoga pradhipika, Gheranda samhita, Siva samhita, and several Tamil texts such as Thirumoolar's thirumandiram and others.These texts belong to 5th to 15 th centuries.

Hatha Yoga pradhipika , written by Swami Svatmarama, belongs to 15th century, while Gheranda Samhita and Siva samhita could belong to 17th century.[It is possible that older texts existed as original works before these,but not known to us now.} Many modern yogis base their teachings on these texts as well and may not strictly follow the Patanjali's sutras. These texts give elaborate methods which have become part

of the practical Hindu religion. Several translations of these texts exist and can be consulted. Invariably these texts mix up the traditional medical practices like Ayurveda and Siddha system of the Tamils.

All the hatha yoga texts discuss the dietary restrictions which only a few yogis follow in modern times. Except a few traditional yogis in India, others have almost ignored these dietary injunctions. Many teach yoga [that is, asanas and pranayam] without even mentioning about the dietary factors since modern men and women hardly control their diets. One of the important restrictions is to totally avoid meat and fish. Intoxicating and fermented liquids are also forbidden. What is more, even yogurt or curd is prohibited...only milk,butter and clarified butter [ghee] are allowed. [The present author must admit that he takes yogurt as a source of easy-to-digest protein and has not dropped it. He is ,however, a strict vegetarian and would strongly advise all yoga students and practitioners to be vegetarians or to become vegetarians along the way.]

Yoga Acharyas {Yoga Preceptors]

The first and foremost yoga acharya is Lord Krishna. His utterances, compiled as the Bhagavad Gita [Celestial Song] contains all the essential yoga principles and methods. It is a yoga shastra or scripture with 700 verses, divided into 18 chapters;each chapter is called a particular yoga. It is also called a Yoga-Upanishad. It contains Karma Yoga [3rd chapter], Jnana Yoga [ 4th and 5th yoga}, Bhakti yoga {12th chapter] and Raja Yoga {2 and 4th chapter and and these are chapters. The Gita explains even minute details such as the seat spread over all the other

for meditation, how to keep head,neck and spine erect,how to harmonize the inhaling and exhaling breaths and so on. Above all, it is a scripture that emphasizes ethical life. The Lord says in 16th chapter, "lust,anger and greed" are the gateways to hell!. For a brief introduction to the Gita, the present author's book " The Essence of Bhagavad Gita" can be read.[See Amazon listing.] The Gita has a balanced view of different yogas, to suit the mental development of any person. Many later works, including Patanjali's Yoga sutras ,are derived in some respects from the Gita.

The next grand master of Yoga is Sage Patanjali. I have already written some material about Patanjali's work.His work, originating in 1st or 2nd century, is one of the oldest texts on yoga. We know very little about the author and the circumstances in which he wrote the sutras. It is possible that this work was influenced by Buddhist and Jain religions in India at that time.Note that the yoga sutras mention worship of god in general terms "Ishwara Pranidhana" and surrender to God. Thus Patanjali's yoga sutras emphasize one's own practice and does not proselytize for any particular religion. Thus the message of Patanjali is universal and not confined to Hindu religion. It applies to all of humanity.

Hatha yoga was mixed up with other yoga practices and also with tantra methods for many centuries.We again pick up the thread in the 14th or 15th century.In the intervening time, Buddhism and its methods of meditation and importance of renunciant life as a monk or nun [sannyas] was widely emphasized in India.

Hatha yoga pradipika is dated as 15th century text.It is indeed a major work and forms the basis for modern practice. This work states clearly that a yogi should be

a householder, still following the yoga discipline. Note

that meanwhile, the Vedantins, following Adi Shankara [788 - 812 CE], promoted a life of sanyasins or renunciates and established monasteries and seminaries to train young monks. It is a moot point how much they were influenced by the Buddhist sangha with monks and nuns. The author Swami Svatmarama of " Hatha yoga pradipika" is the main yoga acharya in the latter period. The authors of Gheranda Samhita and Siva Samhita are the acharyas after this period. The ancient texts of yoga were buried in some schools or monasteries , mostly in the north and in north-east parts of India. Some texts belonging to Siddha traditions were produced in Tamil Nadu...Thirumoolar and others emphasized the yoga of the body with focus on the breath [sometimes called 'vasi yogam' -yoga of breath], as against Vedantic concepts and negating the body.

Modern Yogacharyas
I shall briefly write about the modern yogacharyas who have been responsible for the resurgence of yoga practice both in India and in the West in the 20th century. The phenomenal progress in terms of yoga institutes, yoga clinics/ therapy and clubs and individual teachers with their small studios and millions of young persons learning

yoga is mostly due to these dedicated acharyas.

[I first list them. If you do not find your favorite Hatha Yoga teacher, please do contact me!]

Thirumalai Krishnamacharya
Swami Sivananda [Rishikesh] and his students: Swami Vishnudevananda Swami Satyananda [Bihar school of yoga] Swami Satchidananda {yogaville} Swamini Sivananda Radha]; Yogendra [Yoga Institute, Santa Cruz, Mumbai] Swami Kuvalayananda. Lonvla , Mumbai Swami Gitananda [Puduchery] Selvaraj Yesudian { Switzerland} Elizabeth Haitch Indra Devi [Los Angeles and Buernes Aires] Richard Hittleman [the first TV instructor] Students of T Krishnamacharya: B K S Iyengar Pattabhi Jois Indra Devi (already listed) T K V Desikachar (his son) A G Mohan; Yogi Ramacharaka

Hansraj Yadav H V Nagendra [ Bengaluru] Erich Schiffman Rodney Yee Dona Holleman Gerard Blitz Frank White. It should be added that starting from T Krishnamacharya and Yesudian, we have third generation teachers. It is almost impossible to list all the present teachers.

Thirumalai Krishnamacharya is hailed as the 'Father of Modern Yoga". He traveled to the north of India and learned yoga from many places: Kashmir, Varanasi [Benaras or Kasi], Bihar , Bengal and Assam and he even went to Tibet with his teacher. After staying with his teacher for nearly 7 years, he returned to Mysore in the South. Under the patronage of the then Maharaja of Mysore, Krishna Raja Wadeyar, Krishnamacharya started the first 'yoga shala' or school in Jagan Mohana Palace in Mysore. Here he trained all the early masters, including B K S Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois and Indra Devi. He taught here from 1933 to 1955. The story of Indra devi is interesting. She was a Russian aristocrat who came to India and learned dance first.Then

she wanted to learn yoga. At first Krishnamacharya refused to teach her based on traditional grounds. At the

instance of the Maharaja, Krishnamacharya took her as the first female student. Indra Devi learned yoga in about a year to the satisfaction of her teacher and came to the USA to teach yoga. Indra Devi was called the "First Lady of Yoga " in the USA. Her book 'Yoga for Americans' and 'Yoga for you' became immensely popular and she later taught yoga in Argentina. Krishnamacharya ,after Indian independence and annexation of princely states to Indian Republic, left for Chennai [old name: Madras]in 1948 and taught many students. One was his own son T K V Desikachar who had become a great yoga teacher later. I was a science student in Vivekananda Collge, Mylapore, Chennai and had the privilege of witnessing Krishnamacharya giving free yoga lessons in the college. Krishnamacahrya taught in a open yard near the college cafeteria---a space used for taking lunch by the students. I did not learn from him in a formal manner---a missed opportunity I regret very much.[ I learned yoga from my father's nephew in Bangalore during summer months.] [Incidentally I also belong to "Iyengar" sect--a Vaishnava

sect among Hindu brahmins and my wife belongs to Thirumalai clan among Iyengars.] Krishnamacharya trained many great masters who became prominent teachers in India and the west. Krishnamacharya

lived for more than a hundred years. Indra Devi met him during the centenary birth day celebrations of her master. Indra devi herself lived for 102 years.

Yesudian Selvrajan

was the son of a doctor in

Chennai and was a sickly boy. He learned yoga and his health became normal. He was one of the early advocates of yoga in the west. After getting his medical degree, he went to Hungary for higher studies at a wrong time ...1938 when the World War II was about to begin. After a hard time, he started teaching yoga to the local people. Then when he planned to leave Europe, he was offered a place in Switzerland to start his yoga classes, with support from Eliazabeth Haitch. Together they founded the first yoga school in Europe--- in Switzerland . His yoga book became famous Europe. and Selvarajan was the important teacher in

Swami Sivananda ,[1887-1963]

a great yogi and

jnani, had the tremendous capacity to spread yoga, along with his Bhakti and Karma yoga [selfless service] activities. Himself a doctor who practised in a plantation in Malayasia, he hailed from Tamil Nadu. He renounced his family life and went to Rishikesh to found the Divine Life Society, in 1936, with a large publishing house to publish his books.Many were introduced to yoga through his inexpensive books. He was the guru of several great yogis and preachers, including Swami Chinmayananda, Swami Vishnudevananda, Swami Satyananda [Bihar School of Yoga] , Swami Satchidananda [Yogaville]and Swami Venkatesananda . Among these, Swami Vishnudevananda became the most important hatha yoga teacher in Canada and the USA with his numerous Sivananda Yoga centers. Swami Sivananda's lady disciple was Sivananda Radha who developed the Yashodara Ashram in Canada, with focus on kundalini yoga. Swami Venkatesananda had his ministry in Africa and Australia. [I had the good fortune to hear Swami Sivananda as a small boy when the swami made All-India and Sri Lanka tour in the late 1950's. Later I have heard many lectures of Swami Chinmayananda on the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads.] Swami Vishnudevananda taught asanas and pranayam and the

use of mantras in the Sivananda tradition. His book "The complete illustrated Book of Yoga" became justly famous.Later he settled in Kerala. Swami Satyananda built several yoga programs from Bihar School of Yoga, in Monghyr in Bihar, India. It should be noted that the Sivananda's traditions are rooted in Vedanta, and hatha yoga is only a part of that practice. Sivananda himself gave much importance to Bhakti or devotional yoga and had a penchant for chanting and singing hymns.Further, Sivananda's disciples are renunciates or monks in the Shankara tradition, while Iyengar and other yoga groups are householder yogis.

At the risk of picking only a few teachers, I would include two teachers who have helped to spread yoga in the west. Diana Clifton is one of the early students of B K S Iyengar in London,in 1961. Iyengar used to teach during short visits to England. Diana was authorized by Iyengar to teach to others and thus became the first instructor in "Iyengar Yoga" there. She was also encouraged by Iyengar to teach in Los Angeles in USA. She taught hundreds of eager students and continued to practise in her eighties. Thus she became an inspiration ,not only to young students

but for seniors with various ailments.

Frank White, a Hollywood actor , took to yoga almost accidently when he was 65 years old. He suffered from various diseases . Yoga helped him to regain health and reverse aging. He became a certified teacher and taught for another 20 years in Los Angeles area. He also taught many seniors yoga as therapy. A documentary based on his life ," Fire of Yoga", produced in 2003, was inspirational to thousands of new comers to Yoga.

Yoga Gurus and Yoga Teachers Yoga gurus are those who take personal responsibility for teaching and training a yoga student. These gurus are typically in an ashram or residential institute setting in India or elsewhere. They demand devotion to the methods taught for a lifetime--often following a particular

tradition of yoga ,what is called "sampradaya"-- handed down the lineage by their previous gurus. Gurus also are like scientists, exploring new methods and innovating techniques ,thus expanding the scope and knowledge of Yoga. For instance ,several gurus have investigated yoga therapy for several diseases that were not known earlier and were less important.

T. Krishnamacahraya, Yogendra,Kuvalayananda, BKS Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois,Selvarajan Yesudian, Phulgendra Sinha ,T K V Desikachar, A G Mohan and some others belong to the category of Yoga Gurus.

Yoga teachers are concerned with teaching

a large number

of students, often in urban setting, with class hours and schedules ,and with testing and certification of teachers ,and so on.They have to follow certain ethical standards . In the last 50 years, roughly from 1950's, numerous teachers have set up 'shop' in almost all cities. It is inevitable that several variations in teaching would be introduced to suit local conditions. Thus some teachers have combined yoga with Tai Chi or aerobics,called by different brand names such as Yoga Fusion and Sports Yoga

.Sanskrit chants uttered by Hindu yogis are replaced by English Christian hymns. Some perform nude yoga and combine with tantric methods.Such changes make the question of "preserving purity of Indian yoga " very doubtful. What is more serious is that individual instruction and small groups of students have become rare. Yoga is taught in large halls ,much like a chemistry laboratory. Several DVD's replace books and manuals. at least for

beginner's yoga. Of course, often yoga has been commercialised that authentic instruction becomes unavailable . Yoga and the Diet Yogis always insisted on "satvic" diet which would not include meat and fermented items and any form of liquor. In India, yoga teachers are almost always vegetarians though a few exceptions in the North East states could be found. Modern teachers rarely discuss this, except for some ailments.Food prohibitions would greatly reduce the number of students taking to yoga in the West. Inappropriate diet would greatly reduce the efficacy of yoga. Some students become vegetarians along the way. Most yogis would attribute their longevity to yogic diet as well, besides asanas and pranayama. Easy Yoga, Gentle Yoga and Chair Yoga Extending yoga practice to seniors and those with less flexibility, mobility and strength, yoga teachers have developed simple practices using props, bricks, belts and also chairs. B K S Iyengar himself introduced props. This area of work is still growing , with more experience gained in numerous clubs. A few books have appeared on "Chair Yoga." I have also experimented with chair yoga and teaching a few seniors in their seventies using chair for

several poses. Several assessments are needed to establish the routines for different cases of seniors. I am sure many ingenious methods would be developed to make yoga easier and effective for many invalid people.

Some Classics on Yoga: 1 B K S Iyengar -- Light on Yoga [Yoga Dipika] 2 Swami Vishnudevananda -- The Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga --Three Rivers Press (1995) 3 Swami Satyananda Saraswati--- Asanas, pranayama, mudras and bandhas--Bihar school of Yoga, Mongyr, India. 4 Yesudian Selvarajan --- Yoga and health.. reprint -Harper Collins (2000) 5 Indra Devi -- Yoga and You 6 Apa Pant --Surya namaskars---Orient Longmans (1998) 7 Vanda Scaravelli--Awakening the spine--Harper One (1991) 8 Suza Francini ---The New Yoga for healthy aging --------------- Om Tat Sat-------