Over 2000 years ago a great sage called Patanjali wrote the Yoga Sutras. Amongst the world wide yoga community this is considered a very important insight into the yoga system. The word yoga is a Sanskrit word meaning ‘union’, it is where the English word ‘yoke’ comes from. This yoga system therefore, as explained by Patanjali, is a method of unifying the individual soul in love with the Supreme. In this endeavour he cites an eight fold path which will help the soul on her journey. The most familiar of these eight steps is asanas or yoga poses. This is given third place on the path of yoga, the first two places are the yamas and niyamas. The yamas or codes of conduct help us live peacefully with others and the niyamas purify our personal habits and the way we think
The yamas are:
Ahimsa or non-violence
Satya or truthfulness
Astaya or non-stealing
Brahmacarya or control of the senses
Aparigraha or non greed
This niyamas are:
Saucha or cleanliness
Santosha or contentment
Tapas or austerity
Swadhyaya or study of the sacred scriptures
Iswara Pranidhana or worship of the Supreme
