Lineages:
(1) Yogananda Parmahasma---------Ghosh (brothers) (physical culture and body building)
I
Bikram Choudoroy (Bikram Yoga)
(2) Krishnamacharya (Mysore palace)
I I I
BKS Iyengar (nephew) Patthabi Jois (nephew) TKV Desikachar (son)
(Iyengar Yoga) (Ashtanga Yoga) (Viniyoga)
Pune Mysore Bombay
/ /
(Anusura) (power, hot & Jivamukti yoga)
(3) Swami Sivananda (flying yogi) Pattamahadai (Tamil Nadu)
I I
Swami Vishnudevananda Swami Satchitananda
(Sivananda Yoga-Canada) (Integral Yoga-USA)
(4) Yogi Bajan Lahore/New Dehli
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Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa/ et.al
(Kundalini Yoga)
(5) Swami Kripalu Gujarat
I I I
Amrit Desai Yoganand (Michael Carroll). Rajarshi Muni
(Kripalu Yoga) (Prana Kriya Yoga) (Kripalunanada)
KRISHNAMACHARYA
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. This discipline is considered a powerful tool to relieve the stresses of modern-day life which in turn can help promote total physical and spiritual well-being.
It can be said that Iyengar differs from the other styles of yoga by three key elements: technique, sequence and timing.
- Technique refers to the precision of the body alignment and the performance of pranayama.
- Sequence means the sequences in which asanas and breathing exercises are practiced. Following the specific sequence is important in achieving the desired result, because only the combination of certain poses and breathing techniques can ensure the expected positive effect.
- Timing is the third key element which defines the time spent in each pose or pranayama.
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 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 elderly, injured, tired or ill students to enjoy the benefits of many asanas via fully "supported" methods requiring less muscular effort.
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 teachers complete at least two years of rigorous training for the introductory certificate. They may complete subsequent intermediate levels and senior levels of certification, potentially entailing a decade or more of training.
Anusara School of Hatha Yoga draws from classical Indian texts, such as the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and the Bhagavad Gita, and reinterprets them from a non-dualistic viewpoint known as Shiva-Shakti tantra. Anusara School of Hatha Yoga's philosophy is then applied to more physical aspects of the asana practice:
The Three A's
The practice of Anusara School of Hatha Yoga is broadly categorized into three parts, known as the Three A's:
- Attitude, writes Friend, is the "power of the heart as the force behind every action or expression in an asana." It is "the aspiration to reawaken to our divine nature, and the celebration of life."
- Alignment, according to John Friend, is the "mindful awareness of how various parts of ourselves are integrated and interconnected." Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment are refinements of this principle.
- Action, according to Friend, is the "natural flow of energy in the body, which provides both stability and joyful freedom."
Universal Principles of Alignment
Anusara School of Hatha Yoga works with five major alignment principles. When assuming a yoga pose, Anusara School of Hatha Yoga practitioners make refinements on the pose's alignment by performing the principles in order. Within each principle, there are further refinements.
Universal Principles of Alignment
| Principle | Elaboration |
|---|
| Opening to Grace | The practitioner intends to place him/herself in alignment with the flow of Supreme Consciousness. For asana practice, this includes having an attitude of soft-hearted devotion, and open-mindedness. Refinements of this principle include, "inner body bright", "outer body soft" and "side body long." |
| Muscular Energy | A drawing of energy from the periphery of the body into a central location in the body, called a Focal Point. Muscular Energy seeks to increase stability, strength, and physical integration in the pose. |
| Inner Spiral | An expanding energy spiral. In the legs it runs from the feet up through the pelvis into the waistline area to rotate the legs inward, move the thighs backward, and widen the thighs and pelvis. In the arms Inner Spiral spins the forearms inward from anatomical neutral |
| Outer Spiral | A contracting energy spiral. In the legs it runs from the waistline area down through the tailbone and out through the legs and feet to draw the pelvis and thighs closer together, move the tailbone and thighs forward, and rotate the legs outward. In the arms, Outer Spiral spins the upper arms out and away from each other from anatomical neutral, refining the heart-opening action of the Anusara School of Hatha Yoga practice. |
| Organic Energy | An outward extension of energy from the Focal Point through the core lines of the body to the body's periphery, which increases expansion, flexibility, and freedom in the pose. |
Focal Points
Anusara School of Hatha Yoga's alignment principles highlight three Focal Points in the body:
- Pelvic Focal Point, located in the core of the pelvis.
- Heart Focal Point, situated at the bottom of the heart.
- Upper Palate Focal Point, found at the roof of the mouth.
In any given pose, only one Focal Point is active, that being the one nearest the most weight-bearing part of the pose. Muscular Energy draws into the active Focal Point, and Organic Energy extends out from it. In a pose where more than one Focal Point is equally weight-bearing, the pelvic Focal Point becomes the active one by default.
Energy Loops
In creating his style of yoga, John Friend noticed that there were further alignment refinements that corresponded to loop-shaped movements in the body. Looking at one's body in profile, each of these loops has its origin in the vertical center line of the legs, trunk, or head, rotating toward the back plane of the body and looping either upward or downward and back in the other direction (down or up) along the front plane of the body. Each loop intersects with adjacent loops above and below it and has a right and left component. The seven energy loops are:
- Ankle Loop, starting from the center of the ankle bone, running down to the heel, under the sole of the foot and back up to the ankle.
- Shin Loop, starting from the center of the ankle bone, moving up the calf to just below the knee, then returning down the front of the shin.
- Thigh Loop, starting at the pelvic focal point, running down the back of the thigh to just below the knee and back up the front of the thigh.
- Pelvic Loop, originating in the core of the lumbar spine, looping down the back to the pelvic focal point and back up the belly.
- Kidney Loop, beginning at the lumbar, running up the back ribs to the heart focal point and back down the front to draw floating ribs in.
- Shoulder Loop, originates at the upper palette, runs down the back of neck and shoulder blades, through the heart focal point and back up across the front upper ribs and throat.
- Skull Loop, starts from the upper palette and runs over the back of the skull and down the face.
The existence or historicity of this oral transmission cannot be verified, and the text itself has not been preserved. It is said to have been made up of stanzas using rhymed, metered sutras, in the manner common to texts transmitted orally in the guru-shishya tradition.
The text is said to have described several lists of many different asana groupings, as well as highly original teachings on vinyasa, drishti, bandhas, mudras and general teachings.
The name Yoga Korunta is the Tamilized pronunciation of the Sanskrit words Yoga grantha, meaning "book about yoga".
There is also evidence that the Ashtanga Yoga series incorporates exercises used by Indian wrestlers and British gymnastics. Recent academic research details documentary evidence that physical journals in the early 20th century were full of the postural shapes that were very similar to Krishnamacharya's asana system.In particular, the flowing surya namaskar which later became the basis of Krishnamacharya's Mysore style, was not yet considered part of yogasana.
Krishnamacharya has had considerable influence on many of the modern forms of yoga taught today. Among his students were many notable teachers of the later 20th century, such as K. Pattabhi Jois, B.K.S. Iyengar, Indra Devi, and Krishnamacharya's son T.K.V. Desikachar. Krishnamacharya was well known for tailoring his teachings to address specific concerns of the person or group he was teaching, and a vinyasa series for adolescents is a result of this. When working under the convalescing Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnamacharya set up a shala, or yoga school in the palace grounds and adapted the practice outlined in the Yoga Korunta for the young boys who lived there. Ashtanga Yoga has since been thought of as a physically demanding practice, which can be successful at channeling the hyperactivity of young minds. This system can also be used as a vessel for helping calm ongoing chatter of the mind, reducing stress and teaching extroverted personalities to redirect their attention to their internal experience.
Sequences & Series
Ashtanga Yoga is different from many yoga classes in the west in that the order of asanas is completely predefined.
A practice will comprise four main parts: an
- "opening sequence,"
- one of the six main "series",
- a back-bending sequence, and
- a set of inverted asanas, referred to as the "finishing sequence."
The opening sequence begins with 8 to 10 Sun Salutations and then several standing asanas. Next, the practitioner will do one of the six main series:
- The Primary series (Yoga Chikitsa: Yoga for Health or Yoga Therapy),
- Intermediate series (Nadi Shodhana: The Nerve Purifier) (also called second series),
- The Advanced Series (Sthira Bhaga: Centering of Strength):
- Advanced A (also called third series),
- Advanced B (also called fourth series),
- Advanced C (also called fifth series) and
- D (Sthira Bhagah) (also called sixth series).
The 6 series are designed to be practiced over 6 consecutive days, a different one each day. Newcomers to Ashtanga Yoga practice the primary series, after learning the standing sequence. The Primary Series is the most important series as it forms the basis of the entire system. Practitioners may advance to more difficult series over a period of years or decades, but the goal of this style is not to learn the more difficult asanas but rather to learn to maintain internal focus throughout the practice. A challenge to a simplified version of the practice being taught to public schoolchildren in the US as an unlawful promotion of religious beliefs failed.
Daily Practice
Daily or regular practice is highly emphasized in Ashtanga Yoga. Students are encouraged to practice 6 days a week, preferably in the morning, and to take rest on Saturdays as well as the days of the full and new moon (commonly referred to as moon days by ashtanga practitioners).
Mysore Style
Ashtanga Yoga is traditionally taught in Mysore style (supervised self-practice, named after the city in India from which Ashtanga originates). In this self-led style of practice, each student moves through the practice at his or her own pace and level, as directed by the instructor.
An individual with an established Ashtanga practice might take between an hour and two hours, depending on his or her own personal speed; whereas a beginner will likely have a shorter practice. Yoga studios that teach Mysore-style practice are sometimes difficult to find.
It is more common to find classes devoted to a specific series, often at a standardized pace, guided by an instructor. However, even traditional Mysore-style teachers offer "led" classes either weekly or monthly.
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POWER YOGA
Power Yoga, taking from its Hatha Yoga roots, consists of both a standing and sitting sequences of movements linking the usage of physical movement, breath-work or pranayama (Sanskrit: प्राणायाम) and meditation. Power Yoga strikes a balance between the originating values of yoga (Sanskrit: योग) found in India and the North American societally driven demands for physical exercise.
Power Yoga is often practiced in a hot room held at a temperature approximate to 105 °F or 40.6 °C (László & Smith, 2009).
Power Yoga has been argued to be the fundamental style of Hatha yoga that allowed for cultural acceptance of yoga in North America. According to the North American Studio Alliance, 30 million people are practicing yoga in the United States of America. This includes practitioners not just of Power Yoga, but the entire practice of Hatha Yoga. Its popularity has led the sharing of sequences and movement across all of the following forms of Hatha Yoga.
Power Yoga sequences can vary dependent on the other Hatha Yoga knowledge held by the teacher, sometimes adhering to the Ashtanga Primary Series or working into variations thereof. Power Yoga was founded by the following people, (which except for Baptiste were all once students of K. Pattabhi Jois):
Jois disagreed with providing access to all poses to all students and referred to Larry Schultz as "The bad man of Ashtanga Yoga." Jois criticized Power Yoga for "degrading the depth, purpose and method of the yoga system", thereby turning the practice of asana into what Jois considered was "ignorant bodybuilding". Jois sought to distance himself from the new Power Yoga and said in a letter he wrote in 1995 to Yoga Journal Magazine: "Power is the property of God. It is not something to be collected for one's ego...The Ashtanga yoga system should never be confused with 'power yoga' or any whimsical creation which goes against the tradition of the many types of yoga shastras (scriptures). It would be a shame to lose the precious jewel of liberation in the mud of ignorant body building."
Viniyoga ™ is a comprehensive and authentic transmission of the teachings of yoga including asana, pranayama, bandha, sound, chanting, meditation, personal ritual and study of texts. Viniyoga ™ (prefixes vi and ni plus yoga) is an ancient Sanskrit term that implies differentiation, adaptation, and appropriate application.
SIVANANDA YOGA (link) -Swami VishnuDevananda
Yoga means union of the mind, body and spirit with the Divine and while this refers to a certain state of conciousness both individual and Universal, it is also a method to help one reach that goal.
We teach a traditional, exact and easy-to-learn system that aims at naturally achieving the goal through creating a healthy body and mind that leads to spiritual evolvement.
FIVE POINTS OF YOGA
- Proper Exercise (Asanas) - Yoga poses help develop a strong, healthy body by enhancing flexibility and improving circulation.
- Proper Breathing (Pranayama) - Deep, conscious breathing reduces stress and many diseases.
- Proper Relaxation - Helps keep the body from going into overload mode, easing worry and fatigue.
- Proper Diet - Eating simple, healthy and vegetarian foods that are easy to digest notably have a positive effect on the mind and body, as well as the environment and other living beings.
- Positive Thinking (Vedanta) and Meditation (Dhyana) - These are the true keys to achieving peace of mind and eliminating negativity in our lives.
GHOSH
Bikram Yoga is the 26 postures Sequence selected and developed by Bikram Choudhury from Hatha Yoga.
It has been proved and experienced by millions that these 26 postures systematically work every part of the body, to give all the internal organs, all the veins, all the ligaments, and all the muscles everything they need to maintain optimum health and maximum function. Each component takes care of something different in the body, and yet they all work together synergistically, contributing to the success of every other one, and extending its benefits.
These studios are built in such a way that you always get the proper heating which help you to do your postures optimally. Bikram calls these studios as “Torture Chambers”.
KRIPALU YOGA (link) -Amrit Desai
The Teachings of Swami Kripalu
Swami Kripalu was a devoted yogi with an inquisitive mind who explored every facet of the yoga tradition. During his lifetime, he generated a large body of teachings that fall into two major categories: a universal set of teachings encouraging everyone to cultivate personal health, well-being, and a virtuous character; and a set of teachings for serious aspirants desiring to study the potent form of yoga that he practiced.
Here is a sampling of Swami Kripalu’s essential teachings.
Healthy Lifestyle: Swami Kripalu was a lifelong student of the Bhagavad Gita, which teaches yogis to couple their spiritual practices with a wholesome lifestyle. Many of his teachings were focused on healthy lifestyle and Ayurveda.
Importance of Daily Practice: By example and in his teachings, Swami Kripalu stressed the need for personal practice. He believed that direct experience on the mat or meditation cushion helped to catalyze growth and bring the teachings of yoga to life.
Different Approaches for Different Natures: Swami Kripalu taught that spirituality can never be a one-size-fits-all endeavor. This respect for the individual lies at the core of Kripalu’s approach to helping people discover and pursue their unique expression of life.
The Path of Love: Swami Kripalu walked what he called “the path of love.” As he said, “Truly, the wise proclaim that love is the only path … and the only scripture.” In particular, he emphasized the task of creating loving relationships with those closest to you: family, friends, and coworkers. This kind of love is real, tangible, and not at risk of becoming a spiritual abstraction.
Self-Observation: Swami Kripalu taught that all contemplative practices are designed to foster what he called “self-observation without judgment”—what Kripalu Yoga refers to as “witness consciousness.”
The Importance of Prana: Swami Kripalu taught that the soul emanates prana, a subtle life force intimately tied to the breath that animates the body and illumines the mind.
Compassion for Self and Others: The word “Kripalu” means “being compassionate.” Swami Kripalu was renowned for the depth of his compassion and his genuine love of people.
Service: Swami Kripalu saw service as a natural outgrowth of love and an effective tool for personal and spiritual growth. Kripalu’s work, at the retreat center and in the world, embodies this teaching.
Role of Spiritual Centers: Swami Kripalu characterized retreat centers as “laboratories that establish truth by experiments … Like the temples of the past, today’s spiritual centers will serve as the source of yoga and spiritual culture to spread all over the world.”
The Yoga Society of Pennsylvania
Indian-born Amrit Desai came to the United States in 1960 to attend the Philadelphia College of Art. A close disciple of a renowned Indian yoga master named Swami Kripalu, Desai taught yoga classes to a growing number of yoga enthusiasts in the Philadelphia area. In 1966, Desai and nine others formed the Yoga Society of Pennsylvania, a nonprofit organization organized to advance the science and philosophy of yoga. Within a few years, Desai had trained numerous Americans as teachers and the Yoga Society was offering 150 yoga classes a week. Along with classes, the Yoga Society made yoga books and other educational resources available to students, an activity that continues today in the Kripalu Shop.
KUNDALINI YOGA (Link) (Yogi Bajan)
Dharma Yoga (Dharma Mittra)
Dharma Yoga is a modern interpretation of classical Eight-limbed or Hatha-Raja Yoga, deeply rooted in ethical precepts that includes elements of flowing Vinyasa, inversions and held poses that will help you to discover concentration, meditation, abiding contentedness and deep healing relaxation.
Dharma Yoga was created by Sri Dharma Mittra in 1975. The physical posture practice (Asana) tones and invigorates the body and mind, leading to enhanced flexibility, strength, balance and concentration. Breathing exercises (pranayama) and meditative techniques regulate the heartbeat, de-stress the nervous system and calm the mind. Guided deep healing relaxation or Yoga Nidra relieves stress, slows down the thoughts, calms the mind and recharges one’s physical body. A complete practice that will lead to radiant health, a peaceful life and, eventually self-realization. Dharma Yoga is traditional, yet contemporary — perfect for the fast-paced world of today.
A yoga master who has dedicated his life to the karma yoga or selfless service of sharing the accumulated wisdom gained through constant practice and teaching over a half-century at his school in New York and around the world.
Sri Dharma Mittra has dedicated most of his life in service to humanity teaching yoga, the ancient knowledge of how to attain radiant health and develop spiritually. Since 1967, he has been teaching classical yoga: advanced postures, Yama and Niyama, and how to lead a content, simple and happy life.
Sri Dharma was born in 1939 in the small, remote village of Pirapora, Brazil and was raised Catholic in a poor family of 5 children. In his early teens, he became involved in esoteric teachings and yoga through books his younger brother was studying. From 1958 through 1964, Sri Dharma served in the Brazilian National Air Force and practiced bodybuilding, wrestling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
In 1962, he took top honors in a national bodybuilding contest, achieved second place in powerlifting and was awarded the title “Mister Minas Gerais” (the state in Brazil he is from).
As above, Sri Dharma had only practiced yoga through books in his late teens when his younger brother Sattya went to New York City to meet and commence studies with their future Guru (teacher; spiritual preceptor) in 1962.
Sattya wrote to Sri Dharma about Sri Swami Kailashananda a.k.a. Yogi Gupta, and extended an invitation for him to come to New York City, stay with him and meet the man they had both been hoping to meet. Sri Dharma took leave of his mother, left the Air Force, sold the bodybuilding gym he owned and managed, and he gathered together just enough money for the flight to the United States.
On September 14, 1964, he and his brother met on MacDougal Street near Sattya’s Leroy Street apartment in the heart of Greenwich Village, filled with the colors of the 1960s. The very next day, Sri Dharma had a private consultation with the Guru with his brother serving as translator.
After meeting his Guru, Sri Dharma immersed himself in intense study and practice of the classical Eight Limbs of Yoga and dedicated ten years of his life to the full-time practice of Karma Yoga. After three-and-a-half years, Sri Dharma was initiated as a Sannyasi (one who renounces the world in order to realize God). During his years as a renunciate, he had the esteemed honor of being the personal assistant to the Guru, attending to all his needs.
In 1967, Sri Dharma was asked to teach intermediate and advanced classes in Asana (postures) and Pranayama (breathing exercises) at the Yogi Gupta New York Center both for his fellow disciples and the general public. He was also involved with preparing food, manning the juice bar and was the main handyman. Sri Dharma demonstrated Yoga Asana at the lectures the Guru offered to the public in the ’60s and ’70s in hotel ballrooms all around New York City. With Yogi Gupta’s blessings, Sri Dharma left the ashram in 1974 to found the Yoga Asana Center in 1975, known of now as the Dharma Yoga Center. Sri Dharma left the ashram to live his destiny — a life dedicated to sharing and spreading the truth, knowledge and light of God through yoga in the most humble and quiet of ways. Over the years, the Dharma Yoga Center was located at many locations throughout Manhattan. It is currently located on the 6th Floor of 61 West 23rd Street. For many years, Sri Dharma was the only yoga teacher in New York City teaching advanced yoga postures. Teachers from other schools and ashrams have always come to him to learn, practice, and then teach elsewhere. Sri Dharma is truly a sweet, gentle master who sets the greatest example of yoga by living what he teaches and asking nothing in return. He continues to be that same selfless, shining example today.
No Lineages:
Globalized Yogis &the Middle Class (international/televised)
Nationalist Yogis
