Yoga 5 stages of history

The origins of Yoga are still not fully explored but previous research shows that it was developed over 5000 years ago. 
Yoga is considered to have been developed during the time of Gautama the Buddha around 500 B.C. This was until archaeologists discovered the Indus civilization also known as the Indus-Sarasvati civilization credited with the development of Yoga. Archaeologists and researchers came to this conclusion after finding yogi-like figures engraved on seals made of soapstone. The Indus-Sarasvati civilization got its name from two major rivers the Indus and Sarasvati the later being the most commemorated in the Rig-Veda. The Rig-Veda is written in Sanskrit and it is this same language that has been used in the compilation of the original Yoga scripts. The language used in writing the Yoga texts relates directly with the Indus-Sarasvati civilization and this shows development of Yoga was during the same period of the civilization. The history of Yoga has been classified in five continuous stages and these are: Vedic, Pre Classical, Classical, Post Classical and Modern Yoga.

Vedic Yoga

The teachings in the Rig-Veda and three other hymnodist are referred to as Vedic Yoga. Rig-Veda is a combination of two Sanskrit words with Rig meaning praise and Veda meaning knowledge together they translate to praise of a higher power. This forms the basis of the Hindu faith as it is known today. The three other hymnodist which form the Vedic Yoga are: Yajur-Veda (Knowledge of Sacrifice), Sama-Veda (Knowledge of Chants), and Atharva-Veda (Knowledge of Atharvan).  Yajur-Veda contains sacrificial formulas which were used by Vedic priests. Sama-Veda has chants which follow the sacrifices. Atharva-Veda contains magical prayers and very powerful philosophical hymns. Sacrifices were offered to connect the living and the dead for ancient Indians. The people performing the sacrifice had to practice prolonged meditations for successful performance of rituals. The meditation for purposes of going beyond ordinary mind is the key to Yoga and during meditation a Vedic Yogi would have a “vision” if successful. An expert Vidic Yogi was referred to as a “seer” and they were able to see the depths of existence.

Pre Classical Yoga

Although it has its basis around the Vedic Yoga, the pre classical Yoga goes beyond. Bhagavad-Gita or the “Lord’s song” where Mahatma Gandhi an international reformer spoke from when he said “When disappointment stares me in the face and all alone I see not one ray of light, I go back to the Bhagavad-Gita. I find a verse here and a verse there and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of overwhelming tragedies-and my life has been full of external tragedies-and if they have left no visible, no indelible scar on me, I owe it all to the teachings of the Bhagavad-Gita”. The Bhagavad-Gita’s main teaching states that to be living means being active and if one is going to avoid difficulties for the individual and others then the behavior should be active and be above ego. The Ramayana and Mahabharata have their schools of thought developed from the Pre Classical Yoga. They have developed the basis for deep mental focus techniques which can be used to develop intricate knowledge about the body and the mind.

Classical Yoga

This is also known as Raja Yoga and is made up of 200 verses taught in Yoga-Sutra by Patanjali. It was written around second century A.D. The Yoga-Bhashya is the earliest written work associated with Vyasa and was written to explain Patanjali’s cryptic statements. Patanjali believed that each person is made up of spirit (Purusha) and Matter (Prakriti). He shows understanding of the principles of duality whereby Yoga brings the separation of the matter and spirit. India’s systems of philosophy embrace nondualism and this is contrary to Patanjali’s beliefs which are established on dualism where the two aspects are not the same.

Post Classical Yoga

This is a form of Yoga which combines all the other Yoga schools that were developed after Yoga-Sutra by Patanjali. Post Classical Yoga asserts the complete unity of every aspect this is contrary to the classical Yoga which has its basis on the independence of everything. This forms the core basis for the teachings in the Post Classical Yoga teachings of Vedanta which are also based on Upanishads teachings. Classical Yoga based on dualism principles is viewed as a short break from nondualistic teachings of early Vedic Yoga. These teachings assert that everything belongs to one same reality. Brahman is Sanskrit for the one reality which means “that which has grown expansive”. After Patanjali other Yogis took it upon themselves to figure out the hidden potential of the human body. Previous Yogis did not put their efforts on this potential but instead focused their energies in learning about outer body experiences where they leave the physical self and enter the spiritual realm consciously. Influenced by alchemy these new Yogis and Yoginis have shifted focus to understand body processes and develop methods to keep it healthy and refreshed to ensure its survival. Considering the body as a vessel carrying the immortal spirit pushed them to review advanced techniques geared towards rejuvenating the physical body to a level where it is made immortal. This led to development of other forms Yoga such as the Hatha Yoga and Tantra Yoga which have a growing number of adherents all over the world.

Modern Yoga

Believed to have been developed during the 1893 parliament of Religions in Chicago where a one of the masters (Swami Vivekananda) of Yoga made a lasting impression on the people who attended about the greatness of Jnana-Yoga. Previously other Yogis and Yoginis had crossed the geographical boundaries to Europe, but their influence did not reach Swami Vivekananda’s levels. This master’s influence on a majority of people led to other Yogis involvement in preaching about Yoga and its advantages. The other Yogis who followed in the Swami Vivekananda’s success were Paramahansa Yogananda, Swami Rama Tirtha, Yogendra Mastami and Ramacharaka. The first one arrived in Boston in 1920 and established a Self realization centre. He died or left his body at age 59 and his body showed no signs of decomposition for 20 days. The second was a teacher who established a center on Mount Shasta located in California but drowned in the Ganges River at age 33. The third arrived in America in 1919 and went ahead to demonstrate the elegance of Hatha Yoga and established a branch of the Indian organization Kaivalyadhama in America. The fourth Yogi who apparently was a combination of two people a student and his teacher came to the fore in the 1920s. The student was Paul Brunton and the teacher was Baba Bharata. Their books can be located in select used bookstores.