Varieties of yoga - a description and differences. Kriya Yoga. Bhakti Yoga

One of the cornerstones of spiritual needsman - is to understand the meaning of his existence and the existence of the world. In youth, this process occurs with a burning interest in the surrounding space, relationships between people, finding oneself, breaking templates. The majority of people, after experiencing "childish issues" of comprehending being, are engaged in current affairs, they are building life in the "here and now" plane. But for irrepressible personalities the importance of basic questions does not fade with the years. In search of answers, many people turn to ancient practice - yoga.

Unknown sources

The origin of yoga is so ancient thatTo determine the period of its inception to date, no one can. For a long time it was believed that its appearance coincides in time with the writing by the philosopher Patanjali of the text "Yoga Sutras," roughly this was in the II century BC. Not so long ago I had to part with this postulate.

Excavations carried out on the territory of Hindustan inthe location of ancient cities, whose age is about 4 thousand years, allowed to find ancient drawings on which people are depicted in different poses of yoga. So the origin of the teaching was moved in time for an indefinite period. This fact confirms that yoga is the most ancient philosophical and religious conception of mankind.

What is yoga?

Yoga is a concept so multidimensional that itsdefinitions as many as teachers. In the general concept it is defined as the path to the goal, where the goal is to connect with the Creator (the Supreme Reason, God, samadhi, etc.). Teachers appeared at different periods of history, bringing their own vision of practice to the teachings and achieving great successes on the way. So there were varieties of yoga. Their number helps each newcomer to find his own way of mastering philosophy, to go through the stages of spiritual growth, to gain physical health and respect for himself and the world.

There are many kinds of yoga, and newspecies, but they all have the same goal. To understand which of the practices suits a particular person, it is worth to visit different directions and listen carefully to your feelings. For some people, hatha yoga is the best option, where the harmonization of consciousness takes place through the body. For those who have developed imagination, it will be more useful to have a variety with an intensive course of visualizations or singing of mantras. Teachers and instructors of yoga say that the main thing on the road to perfection is practice and a bit of theory.

Breathing Yoga

Breathing yoga surprisingly calmsmind, clarifies consciousness, stabilizes the general state. In the human body there are more than four thousand energy channels. Purify and harmonize the flow of energy through the body in the shortest time helps the complex pranayama - breathing exercises. In addition, correctly performed exercises cure almost all diseases of internal organs, endocrine and hormonal systems. The condition for obtaining the effect is the guidance of an experienced instructor, carefully selected set of exercises, taking into account the individual characteristics of the organism. To harm yoga can be as severe as uncontrolled taking of medications.

You can start the exercises at any age,at any physical condition, but it is necessary to know the contraindications. For example, for people who have heart problems, pranayama is strictly forbidden with a delay in breathing. One of the relaxing, liberating consciousness, calming respiratory practices, available to everyone, is the initial course of nidra-yoga. In the course of the lessons a person learns to breathe full yoga breathing, including the entire volume of the lungs, gaining the skills of concentration, meditation while relaxing the entire body. Breathing yoga helped many get rid of the bad habit of smoking and in record time to get rid of accumulated toxins.

Yoga of liberation

Jivamukti yoga is a new direction,originated in the West. Spouses David Life and Sharon Ganon, after long travels in India and training in the ashrams of the leading yogis of our time, opened their own yoga direction, adapted for people of the western mentality. The first schools were opened in 1989, first in New York, and after - throughout America.

Jivamukti Yoga has five principles, mastering andthe fulfillment of which helps to get liberation from the wheel of revivals, from the deeds committed in previous incarnations. Philosophy helps the practitioner to embark on the path of goodness, love, which contributes to the improvement of karma in the present and, as a result, helps to achieve enlightenment, bypassing the succession of subsequent incarnations.

In the process of training, students of a new speciesyoga practicing asanas, singing mantras, doing pranayama. Also lectures on yoga philosophy are taught, meditation classes are conducted, spiritual music is listened to. This direction is the first in the history of Western yoga, which pays attention not so much to the body as to the worldview, spiritual practices, it is more concerned with the soul, not with health.

In this version of yoga there are five fundamental principles:

• Ahimsa. Non-violence, harm to yourself, the surrounding world, other people and animals. The principle of nonviolence.
• Bhakti. The realization that the root cause of life is God \ Self-realization \ Samadhi. It is comprehended through chanting of mantras, prayers, practice of asanas for setting up a physical body.
• Dhyana. Concentration / contemplation / meditation is a way of connecting with the universe.
• Nada. The development of sound perception through focusing on listening to music, silence, voice.
• Shastra. Studying the theory and philosophy of yoga through literature, Sanskrit singing, mastering knowledge, skills.

The Way of Religious Yoga

Bhakti-yoga is one of the oldest practices. The Hindu tradition considers that this path leads the yogin to enlightenment most quickly and effectively, this is the direct path to God. The word "bhakti" in Sanskrit means "love, devotion." To gymnastics the doctrine has no relation, this religious current is based on the service of the adept of the Deity.

The basis of practice is singing of the maha-mantra,a full circle is a repetition of prayer 108 times. The control is carried out with the help of beads of 109 beads, where the connecting circle of the bead marks the beginning of the prayer circle. It is enough for beginners to create a prayer of one circle in the morning hours. For yogis who go deeper into practice, meditation should become permanent.

Bhakti-yoga does not require special physical effort,mastering asanas and compulsory practices. Here, another approach is the willingness to serve God faithfully, to fulfill all the basic commandments, such as ahimsa, study of religious literature, observance of the Vedic rules in everyday life, and the maintenance of health through Ayurveda. At first glance, the path seems simple, but if you carefully analyze the causes of your actions, attitudes to particular events, the habits of modern life, then this path is through overcoming human vices, even if they seem inconspicuous.

Action and veneration

Kriya Yoga helps a person who has embarked on a pathimprove, achieve the realization of spiritual potential by harmonizing internal energies. To achieve the main goal, practical methods are used, consisting of 144 types of activities (kriyas), grouped into five branches:

• Kriya-Hatha Yoga. Includes the practice of asanas, consisting of 18 positions performed in pairs, mudra (hand movement), bandh (muscle locks located in the areas of the main chakras).
• Kriya-kundalini-pranayama. The technique of awakening the flow of energy through the seven chakras of man.
• Kriya-dhyana-yoga. The technique of meditation, cleansing consciousness, increasing concentration, concentration, awakening of supernormal abilities.
• Kriya-mantra-yoga. The inner singing of mantras, which awakens intuition, intelligence, facilitates the opening of the chakras.
• Kriya-bhakti-yoga. Activities aimed at serving and worshiping God.

Kriya Yoga reveals and perfects all five aspects of the human being: the physical, the mental, the intellectual, the vital, the spiritual.

Path of the Masters

Surat-shabd-yoga is one of the most ancient practices. There are two main translations of the name from Sanskrit: "yoga of light-sound flow / vibrations" or "path of masters". There are a lot of rumors and legends about this practice. In direct access there are no practical instructions as to what happens. In ancient books, there are only hints of the existence of this type of yoga.

Basic knowledge was transferred from the teacher to the studentverbally and secretly. It is well known that the main kind of practice in this kind of yoga is inner meditation. In many sacred ancient books one can find the analogue of the phrase "In the beginning there was the Word", on these sounds the concentration of the practitioner takes place. Scientists have not so long ago proved that in the universe there is a certain sound, expanding into infinity.

In Surat-Shabtd Yoga there is a concentration oninternal vibrations of light and sound, no external stimuli or concentrators are required for practice. This suggests that this kind of yoga is more suitable for people who have reached certain levels of skill. For this type of occupation, according to experts, Mandatory presence of the Teacher, dedicated to esoteric knowledge, is required.

The path of knowledge

Jnana-yoga, or zhznjana-yoga, is described inancient books and belongs to the classical types of spiritual practices. The main way to comprehend the truth is to educate the mind, to destroy the three-dimensional illusions of the existing world through meditations, the study of ancient books, the teachings of enlightened teachers.

This kind of yoga teaches us to comprehend the world byobservations, reflections and to check one truth of the other, and also gives an understanding that the truth is only that which the individual has realized himself. Jnana yoga teaches the adept to doubt the visible world, in his own observations and conclusions, fosters the desire to compare every step and every knowledge with the fundamental principles of the universe.

freedom of choice

Yoga is the way to a lifetime. The road is mastered only by the one who follows it, and it is possible to decide which way of comprehending the truth can be achieved only by starting to practice. Do not forget that Orthodoxy, the traditional spiritual practice for Russia, allows you to achieve no less successes in the quest to know the world and its structure.