Asanas

This article is an excerpt from my forthcoming book The Definitive Yoga Sutras. It provides a general definition of the term asana and explores the difference between asanas and exercise.

Asana means “seat” in Sanskrit. In Yoga, the different poses or postures are called asanas.

There is only one sutra in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali that mentions the word asanas. It says: Sthira sukham asanam. Sthira means “steady” and indicates a static pose without movement. While sukham typically means “happy,” it means “comfortable” or “relaxed” in this case. This sutra indicates that The Yoga Sutras are referring to static poses, not done in the spirit of competition. The posture should be steady and comfortable.

Physical Culture is called vyayama

There is a strong focus on postures in yoga studios and in yoga teachers training programs. These asanas are often practiced in a dynamic manner, solely for the purpose of promoting physical health. The system of Yoga, however, was designed by the sages for the purpose of attaining the summum bonum of life: the immortal Self. Physical culture cannot lead to Liberation. If it were so, then all the Olympic gymnasts and circus artistes would be liberated beings. Exercises and dynamic asanas cultivate a healthy body and flexibility, but they do not lead to purification of the mind. The system of Yoga is a complete system of physical, mental and spiritual health; it is not merely physical culture. The differences between physical culture and asanas as preparation for advanced spiritual practices is elaborated in Table below. Physical culture is called vyayama in Sanskrit.

An asana has a bhava

There are two broad categories of asanas: cultural and meditative postures. Asanas performed correctly cultivate a bhava. Bhava means “attitude,” “stance” or “mood.” There are four bhavas:

Dharma, integrity, authenticity

Jnana, knowledge

Vairagya, non-attachment

Aishvarya, confidence, strength

Asana, gymnastics or dance? Photo David Hofmann, Upsplash

Static postures cultivate these bhavas. If you sit in the meditative postures Svastikasana ( Auspicious Pose) or Sukhasana (Easy Pose), you are cultivating the bhava of dharma. The pose Yoga Mudra cultivates non-attachment, whereas Vrikshasana (Tree Pose) cultivates self-knowledge. If you practice Bhujangsana (Cobra Pose), it cultivates the spirit of strength and confidence. All static asanas can be divided into these four categories, depending on the kind of bhava they cultivate in a relaxed environment.

Dynamic postures have no bhava

Dynamic postures on the other hand have no bhava. If practiced in a spirit of competition, they could cultivate egoism or cause physical injuries. The Yoga Sutras are referring only to static asanas. As explained in The Yoga Sutras, practice of static asanas is only one of the eight limbs. Therefore, unlike today’s yoga studios and yoga teacher training programs in which heavy emphasis is placed on asanas, the complete system of Ashtanga intended asana practice to be complementary and not dominant. While dynamic asanas performed in the manner of gymnastics are beneficial for physical health, so are gymnastics, walking, jogging, training in fitness studios, and sports such as swimming, cycling, tennis and football. Even six hours of dynamic asanas or other sports daily will not lead to a transformation at the level of the mind and personality. Dynamic asanas performed only for the sole purpose of promoting body culture are to be equated with sports.

Difference between Asanas and Vyayama

(Source: The Definite Yoga Sutras by Radhika Shah Grouven)

To understand what asanas really mean, you need to go back to the origin of the word. In ancient times when Sanskrit was commonly spoken, it was customary to ask a guest to “take a seat” or “asana.” To this day, in various parts of India, people gather together in meetings by sitting on the floor in various asana positions like Sukhasana, Gomukhasana (Cow Pose) or Vajrasana (Thunderbolt Pose). Thus, asana siddhi does not mean perfecting contortions or gymnastics; it means being still. Relaxation of effort means that a meditative pose should be effortlessness; you are comfortable and the pose does not cause aches and pains. If you force yourself to sit in the posture, there is tension. Meditation in an asana is only possible when there is a certain level of proficiency in that posture, so that you are relaxed and not continuously thinking about the pain in your muscles or cramps in your feet. Instead the mind rests gently on an internal object of focus, until you acquire a state of equilibrium and the Infinite comes forward naturally and spontaneously. The Infinite is the Individual Consciousness within.

a meditative practice may not be meditation

When you are doing dynamic movements, you cannot focus your attention on the subtler levels of consciousness within. There are many forms of traditional practices, such asTai Chi that are meditative. A meditative practice is different from the state of meditation as defined by The Yoga Sutras (Section III.1-3). An orange candy tastes fruity, but orange candy is not a fruit. The candy is orange in color, it has a citric smell, it has an orange flavor, but it is not an orange. Similarly, dynamic asanas and other dynamic forms of practice such as dance may be meditative, but they are not meditation. To be able to sit still in meditation and know yourself, you need to master a meditative posture that can lead you to the subtler levels of practice. My book Mastering Pranayama elaborates on different postures suitable for systematic meditation.

Asanas are preliminary practices

In the sutras related to asanas, The Yoga Sutras is referring to preparation of the body for subtler practices of meditation. Practicing both cultural and meditative asanas in a static form is good preparation for meditation and the spiritual path. Those who aspire for self-knowledge should learn to practice asanas in a static way, so that they can achieve asana siddhi and be able to sit for longer periods of time. They should balance active lifestyle with physical movement, including incorporating any suitable physical exercise that they ideally find enjoyable. A few examples include jogging, swimming or dancing. Or one could choose from among sports such as tennis, basketball or soccer. The key point is that the health depends on balancing the time spent sitting in meditation with the time the body is kept active. This balance is all the more important in today’s world in which so many of our other daily activities include sitting for longer periods of time, such when traveling or working at a desk. If you sit in meditation daily, the ratio of sitting to movement should be 1:4. This means if you sit for one hour, you should be physically active for around four hours. This includes all physical activities including household chores.

As Sutra II.48 of The Patanjali Yoga Sutras says, when the asana is motionless and effortless, the mind naturally and spontaneously meditates on the Infinite and then all dualities are transcended. This sutra is another way of saying “Be still and know that I am God.” This is known as asana siddhi. The meditative asana is another gateway to Individual Consciousness.