There are many different forms of yoga, but one of the most commonly practiced types of yoga in the West is known as Hatha Yoga. Hatha yoga is designed to concentrate on not only the physical body, but also the way toward finding self realization. What Hatha yoga teaches us is that we can gain control over our bodies in order to gain control over our minds.

Yoga is sort of like a magical fitness program that is capable of doing more than helping us lose weight. It also helps us to balance our emotions, to sharpen our intellect and to bring about peace of mind as well. The attention that is paid to the physical body with an emphasis on the postures or asanas is what makes Hatha yoga such a popular part of our world culture. You do not have to be a spiritual person in order to be capable of practicing yoga. Instead what you can do is to begin with the Hatha yoga asanas or poses and then just see where they end up leading you.

If you make the decision to practice Hatha yoga regularly, not only is your body going to respond by becoming more flexible, but your mind is going to become more flexible as well. As we open our minds up to the concepts of Hatha yoga and the philosophies surrounding the spiritual practice, we become much more open to the possibilities in our lives. We learn how to let go of the past, and we learn what it will finally take for us to let all of the baggage go behind us. Resistances will then break down in such a way that new energies will be allowed to flow into these open spaces. Ultimately, by exercising discipline, patience and practice, we will see more benefits in our lives than just fitness.

Hatha Yoga is derived from the Japanese words Ha and Tha, which mean Sun and Moon respectively.

Hatha yoga is designed to emphasize the balance between opposing forces within the body, such as the masculine energy in the body, the sun, and the feminine energy in the body, the moon, as well as left and right, exhalation and inhalation, sadness and joy and so on and so forth. By balancing these opposing forces, it is believed that we can restore our body to a much more natural equilibrium.

This form of yoga involves forward bends that are chased by backward bends, standing postures followed by inversions, contractions followed by expansions and movements to the right followed by movements toward the left, each with an opposite, each with a need for balance and harmony. Men and women alike can benefit from this unique form of yoga, which does not have to be spiritual at all, but which can be largely rewarding simply by harmonizing the body the way it is meant to be.

Photo Credits: myyogaonline

Originally posted 2009-08-07 03:22:49. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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exhalation, feminine energy, fitness program, hatha yoga asanas, inhalation, intellect, japanese words, masculine energy, open spaces, opposing forces, peace of mind, philosophies, postures, resistances, self realization, spiritual person, spiritual practice, sun and moon, world culture, yoga hatha