The word ‘Yoga’ comes from Sanskrit language which means union of your mind, body and spirit. Yoga includes some form of breath control exercise and meditation techniques which are designed for body and mind relaxation. The main aim of yoga is bring inner spirituality in your life and work. It helps you to gain health, happiness, harmony and knowledge which indirectly brings progress in your life and encourages you to continue the practice. There are different styles of yoga which are followed in western yoga classes some of the most common are Adho Mukha Svanasana, Adho Mukha Vrksasana, Chakrasana and many more. Following yoga offers you great health benefits help you to develop your flexibility, strength and balance in daily life. One of the most common forms of yoga is asana which mainly focuses on mental and spiritual health rather than physical activity. Because of the increasing health benefits of yoga, more and more people are following the yoga trend including celebrities and fashionist.

History

It is believe that yoga was originated from the eastern countries date back 300 B.C. where evidence of yoga and its postures are found on artifacts. Yoga was first composed in Rig-Veda which include divine harmony, prayer and exercise for healthier and greater being. Yoga was started after the development of civilization. For better understanding of yoga and its history, we will step down into four periods: the Vedic Period, Pre-Classical Period, Classical Period, and Post-Classical Period.

Vedic Period: It is started from the Vedas which is a holy script of Brahman and Hindu.  The Vedas consists of oldest techniques of yoga teaching called Vedic yoga. Following of Vedic yoga teach you to live in divine harmony and ability to see the reality through intensive spiritual practice.

Pre-Classical: In this period, the Upanishads was created which describe your inner truth resulting in extreme spiritual behavior. The Upanishads includes the ultimate reality, the transcendental self and their relationship. Gautama Buddha started preaching meditation and physical postures from sixth century B.C.

Classical Period: The yoga sutra was developed in the second century to define classical yoga. This script states some of the basic principles of yoga which are as follows; Yama, Niyama, Asanas, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, Samadhi.

Post-Classical:  In the early 19th century yoga was spread in the west. In 1930, yoga was studied as a part of eastern philosophy and by 1960 Indian teachers started implications of yoga. Till today, Yoga continues to spread its teaching all over the world crossing the boundaries.

Advantages of Yoga

There are proven and potential benefits of yoga which help increase your mental health and other health disorder both for adults as well as pediatrics. Long-term yoga practitioners reduced the symptoms of heart disease, heart failure, enhance cardiac rehabilitation and lower cardiovascular risk factors. Yoga helps to be less fatigue and keeps you in better mood which further affects your anxiety, quality of life and spiritual growth. Simple meditation and simple breathing exercise helps you to manage stress, impulsiveness and emotional situations. Some of the major benefits of yoga are listed below:

• Asana is the most popular and ancient form of yoga exercise which includes stretching muscles help you increases your body flexibility. Yoga exercise increase motion and lubrication in your joints. 
• There are other yoga exercise are more energetic which help you improve muscle tone. Downward and upward dog poses build your upper-body strength and standing poses foster strength in your abdominal muscles. Regular following yoga poses construct primary strength in your abdominal muscles.
• Yoga gives you better posture and develops core strength.  Yoga increases body awareness which helps you understand your body better so you can adjust your posture.
• Yoga improves lung capacity and benefits your breathing. It also improves your sports performance and lengthening your breath.
• Yoga provides more calm to your body and mind and reducing your mental and physical stress. There are some meditations and deep breathing techniques which creates a feeling of calm and relaxation.
• It increases your concentration power and ability to focus mentally and physically. It also builds your mood and makes you feel happier and more contented in your life. It helps you overcome your depression and boosting your oxygen level and overcomes your obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• Yoga has a positive effect on heart disease to lower blood pressure and slow heart rate. Yoga has a key component in heart disease improving your cholesterol rate while boosting in immune system of your body.
• Yoga is more popular followed in the West countries which have an adjacent treatment on various medical conditions from heart disease to mental pressure. Yoga has also proven beneficial for insomnia and multiple sclerosis.
• Last but not the least; yoga is very helpful to build your strong learning and memory capacity. It helps you to solve your aging problem, sense of self-acceptance and improve energy levels. 
• It mostly strengthened your cervical spine to make your posture more balance and flexible. Increase of motion in yoga nourishes your joints, release tension from your head making it much lighter and creating joy in your life.

Disadvantages of Yoga

• One of the old myths of yoga is that it helps you to burn your calories and fat faster. But the fact is yoga makes you fit and maintain your body physics.
• There is no national certification program for yoga instructor so never know who is your teacher and their qualification. There are some weekend courses but most yoga expert does not agree with those standards. 
• Yoga is not easy to learn. It has to be followed and practiced regularly to meet it benefits which may be quiet a hard task for working people.
• Going for yoga classes is a costlier than other fitness options. Private yoga classes are bit more expensive in addition we need to buy yoga mats and a carrier, straps, blocks and clothing which can tax your budget.
• Finding a trained instructor is not affordable and another disadvantage of yoga. People opt for yoga want faster result so switch to strict diet and continuous yoga exercise which can harm your body adversely.
• Sometime people lack interest and ability to do yoga because of some hard postures which can give you serious injuries. Some yoga postures include folding your body half which is impossible for heavy weight people.

Present day Yoga has become popular in the whole world. After people realizing the importance and health benefits of yoga the whole world got addicted to yoga. Now, every country tends to follow yoga and its teachings. Swami Shivananda, Swami Rama, Shri Kuvalayananda, Sri Krishnamacharya, Yogi Arabindo, Sri Sri Ravishankar are key personalities who spread yoga all over the world. In the near future yoga will play major role in the formation of peaceful world and healthy future generation.

• Written by Amit Mitra.
• In category Personal Care.
• 11 years ago.

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