What exactly is yoga? Do you have to be a vegetarian with rock-hard abs to do it? Here's an easy guide to what yoga is, what it isn't, and who's doing it.
What yoga is not
Yoga is not about the way you look. Instagram may be full of stunning, fit young yogis in the newest activewear, but yoga isn't about appearances. Nor is it reserved for vegans in their twenties or health food bloggers. Yoga is for everyone, of every shape and size, gender and religion.
What does yoga mean?
The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit word yuj, meaning 'to bind', 'to control', or 'to yoke'. This slightly awkward translation is most often interpreted as 'union'.
Yoga's aim is twofold: unifying the mind, body and spirit of the individual, and unifying that individual with the collective consciousness. It's about physical and mental wellbeing, as well as spiritual contentment through a sense of connection to others.
Yoga definitions and interpretations
The classic definition of yoga is stated in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Patanjali defines yoga as chitta vritti nirodhah — 'yoga is the cessation of the whirring mind', meaning that the state of yoga is a still mind. It remains, to this day, one of the go-to definitions of yoga.
There are two modern definitions of yoga worth knowing.
The first is that yoga is the discipline of happiness. This definition resonates because the effect is cumulative: maintain the discipline of practising daily and you feel the difference. Yoga is about raising yourself up and beyond the ceaseless chattering of the monkey mind, and increasing the moments of seeing clearly and choosing wisely. Even a few of those moments a day is enough to find a sense of perspective and contentment with what is.
The second is that yoga is the architecture of peace. This definition comes from the photographer Michael O'Neill, who goes on to describe it as "a series of postures that bring the practitioner closer to touching the infinite." His film and book of the same name are a good introduction to the roots of yoga and its most influential personalities — from New York Ashtanga teacher Eddie Stern to Indian yoga legends B. K. S. Iyengar, Shri K. Pattabhi Jois and T. K. V. Desikachar. Worth reading and watching whether you're a beginner or an advanced practitioner.
In either case, yoga is the method, or the discipline. Peace and happiness are the result.
Where yoga originated
We don't know the precise birth date of yoga, but we do know it's a practice that dates back to around 800–500 BCE.
We also know where yoga began: in India. The earliest recorded systematised teachings were compiled around 200 CE in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The sutras — meaning 'threads' — are the sage Patanjali's collected wisdom on the theory and practice of yoga.
What yoga can do for you
Research into yoga has grown substantially over the past two decades, covering its physical, mental and spiritual effects. Studies have looked at everything from stress reduction and cognitive function to flexibility and lower back pain. All that bending and stretching also builds muscle strength, and depending on which style you practise, it can build stamina too.
Different yoga poses work in different ways. Standing poses build strength, twists are good for mobility through the spine, and reclined poses are especially calming — helping to quiet the mind and settle the nervous system. A balanced class will give you a bit of everything, but you can also look for classes that focus on a particular benefit. Online classes are often good for this because they can be filtered by benefit and body part.
Yoga also teaches perspective — to remember to breathe, to think of the bigger picture, and to trust in the innate harmony of things.
What yoga does to your body
Here's the science bit. Much of the research points to yoga's effect on the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which lowers heart rate and blood pressure and helps us relax. It acts as a counterweight to an overactive sympathetic nervous system (SNS), which handles crisis and triggers the fight-or-flight response — the state most of us spend far too much of our time in. Every time you roll out your yoga mat, you're doing your nervous system a favour.
So — will yoga change your body? Most people who practise regularly would say yes, for the better.
Who owns yoga?
Some people might have trendier yoga mats, and some might have a hefty collection of Namaste t-shirts, but the truth is that no one owns yoga. Yoga is for everyone, young and old, and there's no better time to start than now. Even the most advanced yogis — the ones balancing their entire body weight on one finger — started somewhere. They weren't born in yoga pants.
There's a vast range of yoga classes out there to try, or you could practise at home — just don't eat too much beforehand, as yoga and a full stomach do not mix. Yoga with Adriene on YouTube is a lovely, accessible teacher breaking it all down for free, and her Beginner's Yoga series is a good introduction. If you like what you see, it's worth getting to a real class — nothing beats a teacher seeing what you're doing and giving you hands-on, personalised help.
Where is yoga most popular in the world?
It might be no surprise that yoga is still most popular in India, its birthplace. There, hundreds of millions of people practise yoga daily — not necessarily leaping up and down a mat for two hours, but setting aside twenty minutes every morning for some basic breathing exercises and simple stretches.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi established International Yoga Day in 2015 as a way of promoting yoga's role in building harmony between people and nature. The event has grown each year, with participation now spanning most of the world — proof that yoga is for everyone, and more popular than ever.
There are yoga events in the most unlikely places — galleries, museums, concert halls. Check the events pages of your local museums and galleries, or better yet, ask them to put one on.
What yoga should I start with?
Despite what you may have seen on the internet, you don't have to eat avocado and have a messy top knot to be a yogi. There are dozens of different styles of yoga, many with classes specifically for beginners — slower paced, with easier poses.
The oldest is Hatha Yoga, which offers a good starting point for any beginner. Although 'Hatha' in Sanskrit refers to any type of yoga that teaches physical postures as part of its practice, a Hatha class will typically cover all the bases: slow, simple, involving gentle stretching, easy breathing exercises and seated meditation.
There are plenty of other styles if Hatha isn't for you — from the dynamic, fast-paced Ashtanga, Vinyasa Flow and Hot Yoga, to the more relaxing Restorative Yoga, Yin Yoga and Yoga Nidra.
Whatever style you land on, you'll want a mat that grips when you do. Here's our guide to choosing one.
