Believed to have originated in India, yoga is considered an ancient form of active meditation in the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. This ancient practice links mind, body, and spirit through a combination of postures, breathing, and conscious relaxation and meditation (National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine [NCCAM], 2017; White, 2009).
By emphasizing postures (to strengthen the body), controlled breathing (to create a chemical and emotional balance in the body and mind), and meditation (as a form of prayer), yoga stimulates powerful healing abilities in its practitioners.
Iyengar (2006) explains that yoga’s goal “is nothing less than to attain the integrity of oneness—oneness with ourselves and as a consequence oneness with all that lies beyond ourselves. We become the harmonious microcosm in the universal macrocosm. Oneness, what I often call integration, is the foundation for wholeness, inner peace, and ultimate freedom” (p. xiv).
Derived from a Sanskrit word meaning “yoke, “constellation,” “conjunction,” or “union,” yoga is the integration of physical, mental, and spiritual energies that enhance health and well-being. It is a way to live in harmony with nature, and good health is the result (Leddy, 2006; Miryala, Micozzi, Vlahos, & Singh, 2010; Seaward, 2013).
One of yoga’s greatest gifts is an increase in body awareness that happens when individuals link their body movements with their breath. As Iyengar (2006) says, “The yogic journey guides us from our periphery, the body, to the center of our being, the soul.
The aim is to integrate the various layers so that the inner divinity shines out as through clear glass” (p. 3).
With the growing popularity of yoga in the West, researchers are studying the benefits of therapeutic yoga (also called integrative yoga therapy). It is used as an adjunct treatment for specific medical conditions such as clinical depression, heart disease, and relief of symptoms of asthma, back pain, and arthritis (WebMD, 2017).