| The Yoga is traditionally divided into eight aspects or | | | | to the work of B.K.S. Iyengar, the wealth and the depth |
| helps, also said Astanga. | | | | of the asana start being again appreciated. |
| Transcribed in the Yoga Sutra by Test Patanjali, the | | | | Pranayama: it is the art of the Yoga respiration. |
| helps am inter-related; each of them has several | | | | He consists in the regulation and in the refinement of |
| facets which reveal themselves through the study of | | | | the inspiration, the exhalation and the apnea. Learning |
| the texts and with the practice. They progressively | | | | to audit and canalize the vital breath induces an |
| lead to the highest consciousness stadiums and to the | | | | introspective and opens the doors of the spiritual |
| spiritual life; the disciplines which constitute them are | | | | knowledge. |
| gradually have more interior. | | | | The pranayama it is possible to learn only after |
| The steps, branches or aspects of the Raja Yoga are | | | | reaching a good level of mastery of the asana. The |
| the following: | | | | breath is formed by the air raw element and from the |
| Yama: understands the moral precepts of:not violence | | | | prana, the vital strength what pervades the universe. |
| (ahimsa)truth (satya)do not steal (asteya)chastity | | | | The prana is the connection ring between the human |
| (brahmacarya)not avidity (aparigraha) | | | | organism and the cosmos. Since the prana is |
| These beginnings of rectitude are universal, and | | | | compound of energy, all the traditional witnesses on |
| constitute the foundation of the Yoga. The essence of | | | | the Yoga warn practising the pranayama without a |
| the Yama is not to damage any living creature with | | | | guide and before than the pupil am ready. |
| the thoughts, the words and the acts. | | | | Pratyahara: it is the withdrawal of the senses from the |
| The translation of the concepts is only approximate: | | | | outside world in the himself. |
| each of them has a wide meanings and applications | | | | The outside distractionesses are not able to exceed |
| range, which changes according to the circumstances | | | | the threshold of the internal world. |
| and the personal progress level. | | | | Dharana: it is a state of uninterrupted concentration, in |
| Niyama: they are the personal practices which must | | | | which the mind is constantly focussed on a point or a |
| be observed:purity, cleanliness of the mind and the | | | | particular object. |
| body (sauca)satisfied (santosa)fervour for the object | | | | To reach this state, a constant practice is necessary. |
| of the study, perfection, burning effort (tapas)study of | | | | Dhyana: it is the meditation. |
| the himself (svadhyaya)abandon to God of all the | | | | The duration of the concentration increases till the mind |
| thoughts and the shares (Isvarapranidhana) | | | | reaches to melt with his object and admires it |
| The practices of the Niyama establish the discipline of | | | | ceaselessly. |
| the daily life. | | | | Subject and object become an All in one. |
| Asana: they are the Yoga positions. | | | | Samadhi: it is a state trascending further on the |
| The asana (sukham) come described as buildings | | | | meditation. |
| (sthira) and cheerful. | | | | The psychological processes stop and the conscience |
| To obtain the mastery and the perfection, a prolonged | | | | is completely absorbed in the soul. It is the truth and |
| continuos effort is necessary. The body and the mind | | | | beatitude state. Samadhi is the peak of the Yoga |
| move in harmony and assimilate with the infinite. All the | | | | practice, and reaches the himself of thin. It is divided |
| rivalries of the mind cease existing. | | | | into various levels of spiritual evolution, connected to |
| Patañjali does not mention the asana with their | | | | ambits away more raised away. |
| name, but it supposes a long tradition of their practice. | | | | The maximum level "Samadhi without seed" is defined: |
| Some positions are mentioned in various comments to | | | | in the mind wishes are not several tracks of the |
| his work and in other witnesses on the Yoga. | | | | shares; this state is also defined kaivalya, that is the |
| In India, after Patañjali, the systematic and precise | | | | isolation of the soul from the matter. |
| practice of the asana died out. In recent years thanks | | | | |