Aṣṭāṅga Vinyasa Yoga
“If someone can breathe, they can do Yoga.”
AŚTĀṄGA VINYASA YOGA
The term Ashtanga Yoga derives from the Sanskrit words Ashtau means eight in Sanskrit, Anga meaning limb. Ashtanga Yoga refers to the eight limbs as taught by the great sage Patanjali who was the first to systematise an approach to classical Yoga in his Yoga Sutras (200 BC).
Just as the Buddha taught the Noble Eightfold Path as a way to freedom from suffering, Patanjali envisions a holistic path with eight components to reach a state of Yoga.
Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga was originally taught by Patthabi Jois from Mysore, India. It is a dynamic and progressive sequence of āsanas linked together by the thread of the breath. To help the practitioner steadying the mind, specific practices – often referred to as the three anchors of practice – are integrated: Bandha (energetic intersections), Ujjayi Breath and Dristihi (gazing). The effort of this system is to offer a practice inclusive of all eight limbs of yoga - referring to Patanjali´s eight-limbed path.
AŚTĀṄGA YOGA –THE EIGHT LIMBS
The beauty of the eight limbs is that they teach us to integrate all aspects of Yoga, each addressing a different aspect of our personhood. They are all interrelated and arise simultaneously, yet they also map a logical progression in which each limb prepares for the next, echoing what in Buddhist thought is often called a gradual path.
The first two limbs are the Yāmas and Niyāmas, ten ethical guidelines for relating compassionately to our inner life, to others, and to the world. The very first Yāmas, Āhimsa, or non-harming, is the foundation of the entire yoga philosophy and the ground of any yoga practice.
The third limb, Āsana, is the physical posture practice most modern practitioners associate with yoga. Patañjali however defines āsana simply as sthira sukham āsanam, a steady and easeful posture, one stable enough to hold for meditation. Modern practice has grown far beyond this single seat into the wide range of postures we know today, yet the āsanas are still designed to balance and stabilise body and mind, allowing breath and prāṇa to flow with clarity and ease.
Prāṇāyāma, the fourth limb, is considered the bridge between external and internal yoga. It takes this transformative process further, teaching us to harness, direct, and channel prāṇic energy, closely linked to our awareness.
Pratyāhāra, the fifth limb, crosses the threshold to the inner world as we no longer habitually distract ourselves, push away from, or grasp at sense-objects. We gradually cultivate an ability to choose where we place our energy and attention.
Dhāraṇā (concentration), Dhyāna (meditation), and Samādhi, the final inner limbs, gradually move the practitioner toward a meditative state of complete integration and liberation.
Essentially, the eight limbs are a process of integration and clarity, allowing us to experience the truth of our lived experience beyond our assumptions and habitual patterns. It is this unconditional wakefulness to our actual human experience that reveals the nature of reality.