What is Yoga?

As a yoga teacher, when I meet someone who has never done yoga but thinks they know what it is, I often hear, “I’m not flexible. I cannot do yoga—I can’t even touch my toes.”

But is yoga about touching your toes? Is it about bending your body into shapes we think of as performed in acrobatics or gymnastics? Sometimes. Sometimes, yoga poses resemble contortionist moves, but not often and not regularly.

Ok, so if yoga isn’t about contortion, acrobatics, or gymnastics, and I don’t have to be able to touch my toes, then do I have to be able to hold my breath until I am blue in the face?

Not really. Is there a part of yoga that involves guiding and controlling your breath with your mind? Yes, absolutely. Do you have to hold until you’re blue? Most definitely not.

So, yoga involves sitting cross-legged with my eyes closed for a really long period of time. Mmmmm, not exactly. Your eyes don’t have to be closed, your legs don’t have to be crossed, and you don’t have to be there for a really long period of time.

Well then, what is yoga?

Before I tell you what yoga is, I want to qualify my definition. While not wrong, the explanation I am giving you here is incomplete. It is intended as an introduction to what yoga is.

What yoga is in its entirety fills books and no one blog post can share everything that yoga is.

What yoga is for our purposes is an ancient body of knowledge that originated in India and has been passed down over 1,000’s of years. This body of knowledge gives us ways to live life to live with love and freedom from suffering.

Yoga is a journey; you cannot be good or bad at it.

It is a path; it is not a destination.

It is a practice; it is not a goal.

What will happen when you begin yoga?

Your yoga journey/practice/path will begin with a physical practice (asana). It will involve creating self-awareness, mindfulness, a bit of breathing, and creating a general sense of gratitude along with an attitude of hope. Your yoga will bring more peace and balance into your life.

So, if you think of yoga as standing on your head, holding your breath, or sitting in silence and you think you cannot do it, I say try it because who doesn’t want to live with more peace and balance?