The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice
by T. K. V. Desikachar
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Book Summary Information
Author: T. K. V. DesikacharEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1999-03-01
ISBN: 089281764X
Number of pages: 244
Publisher: Inner Traditions
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780892817641
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice
Book Review: Required reading for understanding yoga
Summary: 5 Stars
I am dismayed that so many members think of yoga as part of a new age mentality that is the antithesis of religion or an alternative to any faith. "The Heart of Yoga" by Desikachar does much to dispel this myth. Yoga is not a religion, although for the vast part of its existence has been practiced by people who have adhered to Hinduism. Yoga is a comprehensive approach to mental and physical health, which may fall under the rubric of alternative health systems, but as it has existed for millennia, there is nothing "new" about its age.
Desikachar's book discusses the history of yoga and its practicality for today. A copy of Patanjali's "Yoga Sutra" is included in the appendix of the book. The Yoga Sutra is a collection of inspirational maxims for how to approach life. In some of their writing they acknowledge one's connection to a divine entity, or a concept greater than our selves, but it never defines this entity or commands any sort of conceptualization for what many would refer to as God.
Yoga is more than just a series of poses, which have gained popularity as an exercise fad. It is a philosophy that commands the respect of life and recommends dietary practices to purges the body of yama, which we could be referred to as toxins; the accumulation of which make a person prone to disease and mental anxiety. Poses also have therapeutic benefits in that they release hormones and antibodies in addition to toxins, by compressing, stretching, and releasing various glands and muscles of the body. Desikachar writes about the history of experienced yoga teachers, who did not design one series of yoga poses for every one, but looked at the needs of particular individuals and assigned poses based on their needs; such as did the person have trouble sleeping, digesting food, or a physical ailment that needed to be addressed. He offers suggestions for poses that can help address common maladies, as well as a series of poses that address the mot popular affliction that people from the modern world suffer.
The book also spends much time on teaching the reader on how the physical practice can be spiritual; that one's approach or aversion to a particular pose may reflect a person's approach to challenges in life. One finishes the book learning how to make meditation out of movement; a practice which increase perception of ourselves and our environment.
Summary of The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice
The first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to viniyoga--yoga adapted to the needs of the individual.
? A contemporary classic by a world-renowned teacher.
? This new edition adds thirty-two poems by Krishnamacharya that capture the essence of his teachings.
Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, who lived to be over 100 years old, was one of the greatest yogis of the modern era. Elements of Krishnamacharya's teaching have become well known around the world through the work of B. K. S. Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois, and Indra Devi, who all studied with Krishnamacharya. Krishnamacharya's son T. K. V. Desikachar lived and studied with his father all his life and now teaches the full spectrum of Krishnamacharya's yoga. Desikachar has based his method on Krishnamacharya's fundamental concept of viniyoga, which maintains that practices must be continually adapted to the individual's changing needs to achieve the maximum therapeutic value.
In The Heart of Yoga Desikachar offers a distillation of his father's system as well as his own practical approach, which he describes as "a program for the spine at every level--physical, mental, and spiritual." This is the first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to the age-old principles of yoga. Desikachar discusses all the elements of yoga--poses and counterposes, conscious breathing, meditation, and philosophy--and shows how the yoga student may develop a practice tailored to his or her current state of health, age, occupation, and lifestyle.
This is a revised edition of The Heart of Yoga.
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