Yoga (Sanskrit: Category: :wikt - :???|???, IAST: yóga, ) refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines originating in India, to the goal achieved by those disciplines, and to one of the six orthodox (?stika) schools of Hindu philosophy."Yoga has five principal meanings: 1) yoga as a disciplined method for attaining a goal; 2) yoga as techniques of controlling the body and the mind; 3) yoga as a name of one of the schools or systems of philosophy (''); 4) yoga in connection with other words, such as hatha-, mantra-, and laya-, referring to traditions specialising in particular techniques of yoga; 5) yoga as the goal of yoga practice." Jacobsen, p. 4.Monier-Williams includes "it is the second of the two S??khya systems," and "mental abstraction practised as a system (as taught by Patañjali and called the Yoga philosophy)" in his definitions of "yoga".

Major branches of a yoga include Raja Yoga, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Hatha Yoga.Pandit Usharbudh Arya (1985). The philosophy of hatha yoga. Himalayan Institute Press; 2nd ed.Sri Swami Rama (2008) The royal path: Practical lessons on yoga. Himalayan Institute Press; New Ed edition.Swami Prabhavananda (Translator), Christopher Isherwood (Translator), Patanjali (Author). (1996). Vedanta Press; How to know god: The yoga aphorisms of Patanjali. New Ed edition. Raja Yoga, compiled in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and known simply as yoga in the context of Hindu philosophy, is part of the Samkhya tradition.Jacobsen, p. 4. Many other Hindu texts discuss aspects of yoga, including the Vedas, Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Shiva Samhita and various Tantras.

The Sanskrit word yoga has many meaningsFor a list of 38 meanings of the word "yoga" see: Apte, p. 788., and is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj, meaning to control, to yoke or to unite.For "yoga" as derived from the Sanskrit root "yuj" with meanings of "to control", "to yoke, or "to unite" see: Flood (1996), p. 94. Translations include joining, uniting, union, conjunction, and means.For meaning 1. joining, uniting, and 2., union, junction, combination see: Apte, p. 788.For "mode, manner, means", see: Apte, p. 788, definition 5.For "expedient, means in general", see: Apte, p. 788, definition 13. Outside India, the term yoga'' is typically associated with Hatha Yoga and its asanas (postures) or as a form of exercise. A practitioner of Yoga is called a Yogi (unisex term) or Yogini (for female).

Hatha Yoga (Sanskrit ????? ), also called Hatha Vidya (????????), is a particular system of Yoga introduced by Yogi Swatmarama, a sage of 15th century India, and compiler of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. In this treatise Swatmarama introduces Hatha Yoga as 'a stairway to the heights of Raja Yoga', hence a preparatory stage of physical purification that renders the body fit for the practice of higher meditation. The Asanas and Pranayama in Raja Yoga were what the Hindu Yogis used to physically train their body for long periods of meditation. This practise is called shatkarma. The word Hatha is a compound of the words Ha and Tha meaning sun and moon ( ????? ???????? ?????????????????? ?????? | ?????????????????????????? ???????? || ), referring to Praana and Apaana, and also to the principal nadis (energy channels) of the subtle body that must be fully operational to attain a state of dhyana or samadhi. According to the Monier Moneir-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary, the word "hatha" means forceful. It is a strong practice done for purification. In other respects Hatha yoga follows the same principles as the Raaja Yoga of Patanjali including moral restraint yama and spiritual observances niyama. Hatha Yoga is what most people in the West associate with the word "Yoga" and is practiced for mental and physical health throughout the West.

Bikram Yoga, also known as Hot Yoga, is a style of yoga developed by Bikram Choudhury and a Los Angeles, California based companyCorporate registration for "Bikram Choudhury Yoga, Inc." Number: C2288343. Bikram Yoga is ideally practiced in a room heated to 105°F (40.5°C) with a humidity of 40%. Classes are guided by specific dialogue including 26 postures and two breathing exercises. Classes last approximately 90-minutes. Beginners may take Bikram yoga classes.

Choudhury currently lives in Beverly Hills and teaches at his self-founded Bikram's Yoga College of India in Los Angeles. Before emigrating to the United States, Bikram was trained at the Bishnu Ghosh school in Calcutta, India.Hilary E. MacGregor, Have You Had Your McYoga today? Los Angeles Times, July 7 2002.. Controversially, Bikram holds a U.S. copyright on his yoga, and yoga instructors must undergo a paid training and certification process to teach it.Mindy Fetterman, Yoga Copyright Raises Questions of Ownership, USA Today, July 29, 2006. Bikram has over 500 studios throughout the world, and there are still new studios opening up regularly. (Skajian, 2007).

Kundalini yoga is a physical and meditative discipline, comprising a set of techniques that use the mind, senses and body to create a communication between "mind" and "body". Kundalini yoga focuses on psycho-spiritual growth and the body's potential for maturation, giving special consideration to the role of the spine and the endocrine system in the understanding of yogic awakening. Sovatsky, 1998)

Kundalini is a concentrated form of prana or life force, lying dormant in chakras in the body. It is conceptualized as a coiled up serpent (literally, 'kundalini' in Sanskrit is 'That which is coiled.' Sanskrit kund, "to burn"; kunda, "to coil or to spiral"). The serpent is considered to be female, coiled up two and a half times, with its mouth engulfing the base of the Sushumna nadi.

In the classical literature of Kashmir Shaivism kundalini is described in three different manifestations. The first of these is as the universal energy or para-kundalini. The second of these is as the energizing function of the body-mind complex or prana-kundalini. The third of these is as consciousness or shakti-kundalini which simultaneously subsumes and intermediates between these two. Ultimately these three forms are the same but understanding these three different forms will help to understand the different manifestations of kundalini.Kundalini Yogas FAQ

Tantra (Sanskrit: ?????? ; "weave" denoting continuityNorbu, p. 49), tantricism or tantrism is any of several esoteric traditions rooted in the religions of India. The tantric movement has influenced the Hindu, Bön, Buddhist, and Jain religious traditions. Tantra in its various forms has existed in South Asia, China, Japan, Tibet, Korea, Cambodia, Burma, Indonesia and Mongolia. Although he cautions against attempting a rigorous definition of tantra, David Gordon White offers the following definition:

Tantra is that Asian body of beliefs and practices which, working from the principle that the universe we experience is nothing other than the concrete manifestation of the divine energy of the Godhead that creates and maintains that universe, seeks to ritually appropriate and channel that energy, within the human microcosm, in creative and emancipatory ways.

According to Tibetan Buddhist Tantric practitioner Lama Thubten Yeshe:

...each one of us is a union of all universal energy. Everything that we need in order to be complete is within us right at this very moment. It is simply a matter of being able to recognize it. This is the tantric approach.

Dahn yoga (also known as Dahn Hak or Dahnhak) is a Korean yoga system founded by Ilchi Lee. In Korean, dahn means "primal, vital energy," and hak means "study of a particular theory or philosophy."Dahn Yoga Education. (2006) Dahn Yoga Basics. Sedona: Healing Society. ISBN 978-1-932843-17-0 Dahn teachings are said to place equal emphasis on physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. News sources have described its exercises as "a blend of yoga, tai chi, and martial arts exercises."

:"Yoga is not a religion, yoga is the science of religions" B.K.S. Iyengar (Light on Yoga)

Iyengar Yoga, created by B.K.S. Iyengar, is a form of yoga known for its use of props, such as belts and blocks, as aids in performing asanas (postures). It is firmly based on the traditional eight limbs of yoga as expounded by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras, emphasizing the development of strength, stamina, flexibility and balance, as well as concentration (Dharana) and meditation (Dhyana).

Iyengar Yoga, a form of Hatha Yoga, focuses on the structural alignment of the physical body through the development of asanas. Through the practice of a system of asanas, it aims to unite the body, mind and spirit for health and well-being. Iyengar Yoga is considered a powerful tool to relieve the stresses of modern-day life which in turn can help promote total physical and spiritual well-beingB.K.S. Iyengar Yoga FAQ, 2006.

Iyengar Yoga is characterized by great attention to detail and precise focus on body alignment. Iyengar pioneered the use of "props" such as cushions, benches, blocks, straps, and even sand bags, which function as aids allowing beginners to experience asanas more easily and fully than might otherwise be possible without several years of practice. Props also allow tired or ill students to enjoy the benefits of many asanas via fully "supported" methods requiring less muscular effort.

Standing poses are emphasized in Iyengar Yoga. They build strong legs, increase general vitality, and improve circulation, coordination and balance, ensuring a strong foundation for study of more advanced poses.

Unlike more experiential approaches where students are encouraged to independently "find their way" to the asanas by imitating the teacher, an Iyengar Yoga class is highly verbal and precise, with misalignments and errors actively corrected. Iyengar has trained thousands of teachers, who complete 2-5 years of rigorous training for the introductory level of certification (higher-level certification may take a decade or more).

Mr. Iyengar has also developed extensively ways of applying his practice to various ailments, diseases, and disorders. Many of these sources of suffering, from chronic backache to immunodeficiency to high blood pressure to insomnia to depression, have specific programs of Iyengar yoga associated with them. These programs are formulated in their most advanced form at the center of Iyengar Yoga: the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute located in Pune, India.

R?ja Yoga ("royal yoga", "royal union", also known as Classical Yoga or simply Yoga) is one of the six orthodox (astika) schools of Hindu philosophy, outlined by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras. Raja yoga is concerned principally with the cultivation of the mind using meditation (dhyana) to further one's acquaintance with reality and finally achieve liberation.

Siddha Yoga is a new religious movement Religious Movements in the United States by Timothy Miller of the University of Kansas. The Watershed of 1965 - "In the early 1970s Swami Muktananda began visiting the U.S. to teach the followers who had sought him out in India, and soon his Siddha Yoga was a thriving American movement." that is based in part on the Hindu spiritual traditions of Vedanta and Kashmir ShaivismAccording to the organization itself: It has ashrams and meditation centers (meeting places) in a number of countries, including India, the United States, Australia, Great Britain and Japan.