Yoga Blog Beginnings
Our Yoga at the temple was often called Zen Yoga by Swami Premanda of Shiva Ashram, or IIjima Sensei used to call it Bukkyo Yoga; I've also heard it referred to as Dharma Yoga, Japanese Yoga or Buddhist Yoga. But actually we have many Yoga traditions in our past and practice. So let's just call it Yoga.
There are many traditions and aspects of Yoga. In some schools different aspects are accentuated and in others they are diminished or taken out all together. Especially in the West some of the more religious aspects might not be accepted by those of other religions, so for them it's best to leave the religiosity of yoga out of it or at least lay it to the side.
They are all Yoga in my eyes. But for me Yoga includes it all, and though all of it matters, it may not all matter the same all the time. Yoga, as it was taught to me is Union or to yoke together all aspects of life. To be unified with all that is... with reality as it is. For some this could be devotional Bhakti Yoga with a Divinity, or simply to Reality, or often to the Truth itself.
We had 4 paths of Yoga:
1. Karma Yoga; or the Yoga of Action and Activity.
2. Bhakti Yoga; or the Yoga of Devotion.
3. Jnana Yoga; or the Yoga of Wisdom.
4. Raja Yoga; or Royal Yoga in which we work with the Alchemy of Energy.
All of these have their place in the practice i follow. They all flow together in one way or another, and perhaps come together in Raja Yoga.
There are many traditions and aspects of Yoga. In some schools different aspects are accentuated and in others they are diminished or taken out all together. Especially in the West some of the more religious aspects might not be accepted by those of other religions, so for them it's best to leave the religiosity of yoga out of it or at least lay it to the side.
They are all Yoga in my eyes. But for me Yoga includes it all, and though all of it matters, it may not all matter the same all the time. Yoga, as it was taught to me is Union or to yoke together all aspects of life. To be unified with all that is... with reality as it is. For some this could be devotional Bhakti Yoga with a Divinity, or simply to Reality, or often to the Truth itself.
We had 4 paths of Yoga:
1. Karma Yoga; or the Yoga of Action and Activity.
2. Bhakti Yoga; or the Yoga of Devotion.
3. Jnana Yoga; or the Yoga of Wisdom.
4. Raja Yoga; or Royal Yoga in which we work with the Alchemy of Energy.
All of these have their place in the practice i follow. They all flow together in one way or another, and perhaps come together in Raja Yoga.
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