Read about the contributions of five generations of Yogacharya Sundaram’s family to the worldwide growth of yoga.
To comprehend yoga in its entirety, one needs to understand yoga philosophy, the base on which yoga was developed.
Yoga has evolved for over 5000 years. Initially, multiple concepts and ideas were tested and over time, these became integrated into Indian society.
Initially, the concepts which are embedded as yoga philosophy were initially passed down verbally as poems and practices from teacher to student. Later, when writing was invented around 1000 BC, these concepts were documented, codified and integrated into various sacred texts.
Since yoga philosophy and the concepts supporting it have universal applicability, they saw integration into India’s cultural socio-system called sanātana-dharma. Consequently, all aspects of living in India – from birth to death became a fusion of concept, people and practice.
Therefore, when developing the field of yoga, it is important to understand yoga philosophy, yoga concept and the socio-system in which it flourished. This understanding will allow the practitioner to adapt his or her practice to conform to the classical and proven principles of yoga.
Hence, any discussion on yoga is incomplete without an understanding of the spiritual basis on which yoga was developed – the Veda, Vedāṅga, Vedānta etc. and some of the classical texts such as Śrīmada-bhagavad-gītā.
In this page, we not only simplify complex concepts such as the Vedas, but also bring simple and easy translations of Yoga texts such as Patanjali yoga sūtra, Hatha yoga pradīpika etc. Acknowledgement – School of Yoga is profoundly grateful to Saṃskṛta scholars and academics
Pijus Kanti Pal (pal.pijuskanti@gmail.com) and Dolon Chanpa Mondal for their support in Saṃskṛta transliteration and quality control.
For the Saṃskṛtam text of Śrīmada-bhagavad-gītā, Dolon Chanpa Mondal has followed the work of Śrī. Anilbaran Roy for typing the text.
