The meaning of Yoga is not found in a single definition but through several interrelated definitions that come together to form a vision of Yoga beyond words and concepts. Together, these definitions form a mandala, a circle of understanding that both encompasses and transcends all of the various shades of Yoga’s meaning, guiding us to its essence – the truth of our own Being which is simultaneously the truth of all things, which words can point to, but never express completely.

 

Yogaḥ saṁyogaḥ – Yoga is Union

The Sanskrit root of the word Yoga is yuj, meaning “to join or unite”. There are many cognates for the word Yoga in Indo-European languages including the English “yoke”, to join two things together, and the Portuguese “conjugar”, to join or unite. The concept of Yoga as union encompasses a broad range of meanings, each of which contributes to the understanding of Yoga as a whole. The ultimate meaning of Yoga as union is the joining of the individual soul, Atman, with the Universal Self, Brahman, which is the recognition that the ultimate purpose of each individual’s life journey is to unite with their true Being which is simultaneously the Universal Self and Source at the heart of all things.

We begin this journey of union at the most palpable level – union with our own body. Although we relate to the body as “I” and “me”, our relationship often lacks any real depth or intimacy. In fact, our body is often treated as a slightly foreign object, used by the everyday personality in its quest for survival, reproduction and social hierarchy. Through Yoga in general, and through the techniques of Hatha Yoga in particular, we unite with our body deeply, optimizing its functioning, thereby transforming it into an appropriate vehicle for the journey of union with our true Being.

This union with the body serves as a foundation for uniting with our own breath through pranayama, the science of yogic breathing. As we develop mastery of the breath, we balance the nervous system, reducing stress and cultivating the equanimity that serves as a foundation for our journey of union with our true Being. Union with our breath naturally awakens awareness of our body of subtle energy, an expansive dimension of being that allows us to transcend our everyday thoughts, feelings and beliefs, thereby loosening our rigid identification with the personality.

Uniting with our breath and body of subtle energy cultivates spaciousness within our psycho- emotional being that allows us to explore it with greater openness and objectivity. Ultimately, we will come to see that our everyday mind, called manas, is not our true identity, but the first step in working with limiting patterns of thought, feeling and belief is to unite with them more deeply through awareness of the tendencies that cause confusion and suffering. Through this greater intimacy with our psycho-emotional being, we come to see that the personality is actually a composite of layers of conditioning in the form of evolutionary survival instincts, culture, society and family completely distinct from our true Being.

This gradual recognition of the limiting nature of the conditioned personality naturally awakens our higher mind, called buddhi, that witnesses limiting thoughts, feelings and beliefs while neither repressing, reacting unconsciously or identifying with them as “I” and “me”. As we unite with this higher mind more completely, witnessing becomes natural and spontaneous, gradually releasing tendencies toward negativity, hostility and feelings of  defectiveness and insufficiency. This union with our higher mind through conscious witnessing is especially critical when we experience loss, pain and suffering, for behind every experience of limitation, there always lies the possibility of seeing the limiting beliefs that are the cause of psycho-emotional pain and suffering.

Through awareness and release of limiting thoughts, feelings and beliefs, space is created for understanding the meaning of Yoga as union in the ultimate sense of union with our true Being.  This union is not something we create or achieve, but is simply seeing clearly when all misperceptions, limiting beliefs, confusion and conditioning have been released. This true Self is pure conscious Being, inherently complete, the Universal Self at the heart of all things whose very essence is unity.

The nature of this Universal Self and the means to unite with it are clarified by other definitions of Yoga found in the Bhagavad Gita. The first of these is in Bhagavad Gita 2.50:

 

Yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam – Yoga is skill in action

Skill in action is essentially the ability to see clearly who we are not, the conditioned personality, and who we are, limitless true Being. This skill is expressed moment to moment in daily living through conscious witnessing, observing psycho-emotional patterns and tendencies while neither repressing, reacting unconsciously or identifying with them as “I” and “me”. Skillful action is also respect for our own conditioned patterns and tendencies by recognizing that they are deeply entrenched and therefore not released quickly and easily. Working with these patterns skillfully requires timing, patience and compassion for self and others, for confronting limiting beliefs too forcefully can actually empower them or send them deeper into hiding. Skillful action therefore encompasses acceptance and respect for our own history, recognizing that every step, no matter how painful, has been part of our journey of awakening. Skill in action is also integrating positive qualities such as love, compassion and generosity into daily living, so that whenever negativity arises, we do the exact opposite of our initial tendency which might be reactivity, defensiveness or hostility. This skillful action in daily living allows us to see with absolute clarity that fulfillment and meaning will never be found at the level of the personality but only through union with our true Being.

Skill in action naturally leads to equanimity, which is highlighted in the next definition of Yoga, from the Bhagavad Gita 2.48.

 

Samatvam yoga ucyate – Yoga is equanimity

Through union with our own body, breath and mind, and our ability to act skillfully, there is a natural increase in psycho-emotional stability along with a reduction in confusion, stress and anxiety which allows us to live with greater equanimity. The essence of equanimity is the ability to encounter challenges, issues and problems as opportunities for transformation and awakening rather than as emergencies that need to be resolved by changing people or things in our surroundings. This change in attitude is key to union with our true Being, for as long as we see life’s meaning in success and achievement, we will be forever trying to fix and improve our surroundings, searching and struggling while never seeing that we are the problem and also the solution we seek. This 180º change in attitude allows us to see every interaction and activity as an opportunity for greater recognition of our true Being by not reacting, and instead stepping back to see the tendencies and conditioning that cause the same “problems” in different disguises to occur repeatedly. Equanimity begins as a practice requiring constant remembering, but, as the conditioning that causes suffering is gradually released, we experience equanimity continually as a natural reflection of union with our true Being.

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, 2.3, broadens our understanding by focusing on Yoga as a means for uniting with the stillness which is the essence of our true Being.

 

Yogaś citta vṛtti nirodhaḥ – Yoga is the stilling of the activity of the mind

Union with our body, breath and mind together with growing skill in action and enhanced equanimity naturally lead to a stilling of the mind. Yoga practice cultivates stillness by reducing the confusion, distraction and conditioning that keeps us from seeing the essential silence and peace of our true Being that is always present and waiting. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali present a multifaceted methodology for bringing the mind into stillness by releasing limiting conditioning at all levels of being. The Yamas, the ethical precepts, reduce inner and outer conflict. The Niyamas, spiritual observances, provide a road map for the journey awakening. Asana, the Yoga postures, remove stress and tension from the body while optimizing its functioning. Pranayama cultivates calm and tranquility while awakening us to our body of subtle energy. Pratyahara draws the senses inward, reducing distractions from our surroundings. Dharana, concentration, cultivates psycho-emotional stability and Dhyana, meditation, allows us to experience the wholeness, integration and peace which are reflections of our true Being.

Each of the limbs of Yoga, when practiced diligently and sincerely, prepares us for complete stillness of the mind which is experienced in samādhi, the essence of Yoga practice from the perspective of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

 

Yogaḥ samādhiḥ – Yoga is samadhi

Samādhi is deep meditative absorption in which we focus exclusively on the object of our meditation and also merge with that object completely, so that the meditator and object of meditation unite as a single entity. There are various levels of samādhi, and as we deepen our practice, our object of meditation becomes increasingly more subtle until it is transcended completely and we experience only pure conscious Being, beyond the realm of thought, concept, theory or belief. In this deepest level of absorption, all movements of the mind, whether positive or negative, naturally come into stillness, which is not void in any sense but is infused with truth, meaning, wholeness and peace that absorbs us so completely that it becomes our sole reality. At this level of samādhi all of our definitions of Yoga merge to form a Mandala of union with our own true Being which is simultaneously the Universal truth at the heart of all things. This experience gradually infuses every activity and every moment of living with the essence of truth that is our life’s purpose and destiny.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

by Joseph Le Page

Integrative Yoga began in the early 1990’s as a training program in Yoga and mind-body health. The mind body health movement was gaining acceptance through an understanding of the ways that both positive and negative mind states affect both health and healing. Of course, this is something that Yoga had understood for millennia. The Yoga Vasistha from the 5^th century presents this simply and clearly: “good health comes from good thoughts and illness is the effect of negative thinking”. So, although mind-body health is not new, scientific research into the effects of attitudes and lifestyle on health is relatively new. Integrative Yoga Therapy, founded by Joseph Le Page in 1993, was the first training program to explore the interface of Yoga and mind-body health and healing. The first Integrative Yoga Therapy training in Brazil was held in 1996.

The students in this program were mostly Yoga teachers who wanted to understand the mind body dimension and include it in their work both with therapeutic groups and in one-on-one Yoga Therapy sessions. What we discovered was that the Yoga teachers entering our Integrative Yoga Therapy Training Program lacked many areas of knowledge in Yoga theory and practice that provide a foundation for more advanced studies. Some lacked a technical understanding of the Yoga postures; others lacked an understanding of the spiritual context of the Yoga practice and many lacked teaching and communication skills. Joseph Le Page and Lilian Aboim created the Integrative Yoga Teacher Training Program to meet the need for a fully prepared teacher of Yoga for the health of the whole person. This comprehensive Yoga Teacher Training program has been offered at Enchanted Mountain Center in Garopaba, Santa Catarina since 2003.

There are a number of core principles that form the foundation of the Integrative Yoga Teacher Training Program and make it unique:

Yoga for the health of the whole person – Integrative Yoga classes provide a balanced approach to health for all dimensions of the person, physical, energetic, psycho-emotional and spiritual.

Yoga poses within the context of overall human development – The yoga poses are powerful vehicles for health and healing and our students develop in depth mastery of them, not as ends in themselves, but as means for becoming a whole human Being.

Experiencing the benefits of Yoga class in daily living – The skills and insights students gain about themselves and their lives in Integrative Yoga allows them to take the benefits of the class beyond the Yoga mat and integrate them into daily living as an enhanced sense of appreciation, inner peace, fulfillment and meaning.

Integration of all Facets of Yoga in the Yoga class – The health and wholeness cultivated through Integrative Yoga is supported by a balanced integration all the Hatha Yoga tools and techniques in each class including asana, pranayama, mudra, affirmation, relaxation and meditation.

Yoga classes appropriate for multiple levels – Integrative Yoga teachers develop the skills to offer Yoga classes at a wide range of abilities and also to adjust the class to individual needs so that different levels can practice effectively in the same class.

Classes with themes that give each experience focus and meaning – These themes can relate to particular areas of practice such as developing greater strength or balance, and can also be used to cultivate specific qualities such as Self-esteem, inner peace and clarity. These qualities are sometimes supported by mudras e affirmations that allows them to be integrated more fully.

 

Experiential learning – During the Teacher Training Program, all subjects including Yoga Philosophy and anatomy and physiology are taught experientially, by doing and feeling in the mind and body, instead of intellectually or theoretically, thereby allowing them to be integrated completely.  The teachers can then apply this experiential approach to learning in their own classes.

Teachers graduate fully equipped and ready to teach – because of the in-depth nature of the program and a ten-step methodology that covers every aspect of Yoga pedagogy from greeting the students to final relaxation, new teachers of integrative Yoga complete the course fully prepared to offer Yoga classes to the public. Each new teacher conducts a full class to a small group of fellow students before the conclusion of their training program.

Supportive teaching resources – Integrative Yoga Publishing offers a wide range of support materials for Yoga study including the Yoga Teacher Toolbox and Mudras for Healing and Transformation, among the most widely used texts for all teacher training programs both in the US and Brazil. New products are constantly being developed and introduced.

Focus on the student rather than the teacher – Some forms of Hatha Yoga are hierarchical and dogmatic with a focus on the organization and a guru or teacher. Integrative Yoga focuses on the unique individual needs of each student as a means to whole person health and healing without any form of religious hierarchy.

Each Yoga teacher is unique – some forms of Hatha Yoga teach a uniform sequence or sequences and the student molds themselves to that methodology. At Integrative Yoga, we provide a solid foundation in all aspects of Yoga teaching that allows each of our teachers to develop their own unique, creative approach to Yoga teaching based on their interests and their student’s needs. This individualized approach also reduces dramatically the possibility of injury.

Creativity and enjoyment in Yoga classes – Integrative Yoga teachers learn a wide range of special techniques ranging from Somatic movements to partner Yoga, Yoga with slings and the use of the cards from the Yoga Toolbox and Mudras to make their classes an absorbing and creative learning experience that student return to ongoingly.

Self-knowledge – The well-rounded focus on all the aspects of Yoga supported by the experiential methodology allow teachers and students to cultivate a lived experience of the essence of Yoga through a growing sense of inner freedom, autonomy, inner peace and a knowing of our life’s true purpose and meaning.

 

 

 

 

Along the spiritual path, we move from the identification with the limited personality to an experience of our limitless true being, from fragmentation to wholeness, from doubt to clarity and from suffering to freedom. Most spiritual traditions present the cultivation of positive qualities as an important support for our spiritual journey. We begin by cultivating these qualities consciously and, as conditioning is released, we gradually come to see that these positive qualities are reflections of our own true being.

The following spiritual qualities have been especially helpful in our own journey toward healing and awakening. Each of these qualities is supported by a specific mudra along with its accompanying inspiration, meditation and affirmation.

1. Commitment, Sthirata – Making the spiritual journey our first priority.
2. Openness, Vipulachetana – Gaining a wider, more open perspective of ourselves, life and other people.
3. Faith, Shraddha – Developing confidence in our true inner being, allowing it to guide our spiritual journey.
4. Acceptance, Kshanti – Welcoming all that happens in our lives wholeheartedly as a learning and a blessing.
5. Compassion, Karuna – Recognizing our essential unity with all beings.
6. Discernment, Viveka – Distinguishing clearly between our limited personality and our limitless true being.
7. Equanimity, Samatva – Resting in our center securely so that we are not shaken by life’s ups and downs so easily.
8. Spiritual Energy, Shakti – Cultivating the vitality that supports our spiritual journey.
9. Self-Mastery, Vashitvam – Releasing identification with our conditioning to become the masters of our own destiny.
10. Freedom, Moksha – Integrating wisdom and compassion, allowing us to experience the freedom and unity that are the essence of our true being.

 

 

By Joseph Le Page and Lilian Aboim

*Introduction of Chapter 15, Mudras for Healing and Transformation

Yoga is enigmatic in that it is both a vast field of study and an expression of the deepest part of our own being. Yoga is a discipline that requires years of dedicated effort; it is also the art of effortlessness in which nothing needs to be done. Yoga is an ancient science developed by people of great wisdom in the distant past; it is also our everyday life and as near to us as our own breath. Yoga is a philosophy and psychology of great depth; it is also as simple as living a life of truth and freedom.

Because of its multifaceted nature, the definitions of yoga are also multifaceted. Rather than seeing these as contradictory, we can compare them to the Indian story of the blind men who were asked to describe an elephant. Each touched the elephant in a different place and came up with a different description. All were true, but each failed to describe the entire elephant. By looking at a number of different aspects of the definition of yoga, we will be able to better understand this multifaceted gem.

Yoga comes from a Sanskrit word yuj, meaning to link or join together. The root word is related to our English word yoke, as in the joining of two oxen to pull a cart. When we discuss what exactly is being linked together, it takes us immediately to the very heart of yoga. Yoga makes a distinction between our everyday self, the self that includes our physical body and our personality, and a larger or cosmic Self, the entire web of creation of which we are a small strand, a drop in the infinite ocean of life. This larger Self is usually distinguished from the smaller self by the capital S at the beginning of the word. The individual self is sometimes referred to as Jiva, while the cosmic Self is called Brahman. Yoga brings these two together as a single unity. When fully identified and integrated with the cosmic Self, the individual self is called Atman.

From the perspective of the universal Self, yoga is actually linking together two things that have never been separate. From the perspective of Brahman, all of life is one unity with no separation anywhere. The function of all the various techniques of yoga is to bring us into connection with and help us remember and become increasingly aware of a unity that is already always present.

A main resource for defining and understanding yoga is Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. These 195 short aphorisms compiled some 2,000 years ago give a concise and, at the same time, in-depth portrait of the system of yoga as a whole. In the second sutra, yoga is defined as control of the modifications of consciousness. These modifications are all the thought patterns and emotional patterns that keep us tied to the illusion of the limited self and keep us separate from an experiential understanding of the larger Self.

So, yoga is the vehicle that helps us see through patterns of thought and emotion that obscure the experience of unity. Yoga is also the experience of unity itself. Yoga as a vehicle is important because we use it to get where we’re going. Yoga as the experience of unity is fundamental since this is our ultimate destination. It is important not to confuse the vehicle with the destination. In spiritual lore, this mistaking the path for the goal is expressed as confusing the moon with the finger pointing toward the moon. The vehicle is fundamental for the journey, but at some point we’ll need to leave the vehicle to arrive fully at our destination.

 

*extracted from the Teacher Training Manual