The Truth About Yoga That Trains Your Mind and Body

Yoga has spread all over the world and people can practice it everywhere, from the gym to the office and even outer space. However, here are some interesting facts about yoga that many people may not know.

More than just a great workout, yoga can help people improve their mental and spiritual health. This ancient practice of mind and body flexibility has taken the world by storm and influenced some of the greatest minds in music and art. Let's explore some facts about yoga that you may not know.

Some yoga exercises have been around for over 3000 years.

The earliest mention of yoga practices comes from religious texts called the Vedas, specifically the Rigveda, written around 1000 BC. Yoga originated in the northern regions of India. Yoga at that time looked very different from the Western yoga we know today. It focused more on meditation and breathing exercises.

Yoga means restraint

In Sanskrit, योग ('yoga') comes from युज् ('yuj'), which means yoke. The original yoga practices were all about restraining or 'restraint' of the senses and clarifying the mind.

The idea of ​​restraint is not necessarily a prison but rather refers to self-control and self-discipline.

Another historical interpretation of the word is yuj samādhau (concentration). It is better described as 'all possible states of awareness, whether ordinary or extraordinary'.

There are many types of yoga around the world.

Throughout its history, yoga has been practiced by many different cultures and religions. Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism all use yoga as a core practice in their religions.

In Hinduism, there are jnana yoga, bhakti yoga, karma yoga, kundalini yoga, and hatha yoga. Each type of yoga represents a different method for achieving spiritual awakening, self-discipline, or connection with a deity.

Yoga became popular in the West in the 1890s.

Swami Vivekananda is credited with bringing yoga to the West. In 1893, he traveled the world, spreading his knowledge in Europe, North America, and even Japan.

In 1896, after many years of touring, he simplified his understanding of yoga for a Western audience and published Raja Yoga. The book was very successful and became the basis for the Western understanding of yoga.

A yoga session attended by 147,952 people took place in India in 2023

On June 21, 2023 (International Yoga Day), 147,952 people gathered in Gujarat, India to break the world record for the largest number of people attending a yoga session.

This amazing event was conducted by Gujarat State Yoga Council and Team Surat, breaking the previous record of 54,522 people set in 2017.

David Pac

Update 16 January 2025