Faking It: Yoga

I decided to post this artcle from dose.ca


Ben Carrozza
Dose


Everyone’s talking about it—now you can, too. We’ll give you the basics on all the hottest topics and help you fake it until you make it.

This week we're faking on Yoga.

With everyone from MADONNA to corporate CEOs to baseball pitcher AL LEITER (?) saying how awesome it is, Yoga is everywhere it seems. And there’s you not knowing a thing about it. Read on to sound like you know what you’re talking about—maybe even throw in a British accent like MADONNA, people love it.

Looking hot is a side effect, only: Despite what that creepy STING will tell you, the original and only purpose of yoga was to experience spiritual enlightenment.

So, it doesn’t have anything to do with yogurt? In the ancient language of India, the word yoga means "yoke" or "union," describing the melding of mind and body to create a greater connection with one's own soul in its purest state.

The Other Sutra: The sage PATANJELI has been credited with writing the Yoga Sutra, a 2,000-year-old treatise on yogic philosophy. A collection of 195 statements, the Sutra provides a kind of philosophical guidebook for dealing with the challenges of being human. Keep in mind that there were obviously a lot less challenges two millennia ago.

It’s not just called yoga? Most classes you’ll find in the western world teach one of the many types of hatha yoga, a physical discipline which focuses mainly on asanas (the funky postures and stretches) and breathing in order to prepare the body for spiritual enlightenment. For the record, self-molestation is not a spiritual pursuit.

Yup, a tree: In ancient India, yoga was often compared to a tree, and the six schools of yoga its branches. Hatha yoga is one of the six branches; the others include raja (meditation), karma (humilty), bhakti (devotion), jnana (wisdom), and (everyone’s favourite) tantra (ritual).

The part you’re most likely to remember: Tantra yoga is probably the most misunderstood or misinterpreted of all the yogas—the Goth baby sister of the yoga family, if you will. Tantra is the branch (remember the big ole Yoga tree?) focusing on ritual, which includes consecrated sexuality. The word to focus on here is "consecrated," which means to sanctify or set apart as something holy. In tantra, the student is to experience the Divine in everything they do. Ironically, although tantra has become associated exclusively with sexuality (thanks, STING), most tantric schools actually recommend celibacy. Suddenly not-so interesting, huh?

What’s all the sweating about? You might think the steamiest yoga is that tantra one, but the truly “hot” yoga is Bikram. Bikram yoga is a series of asanas performed in an extremely hot environment—somewhere around 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This apparently helps prevent injury from overstretching (but not the embarrassment that goes cheek-to-cheek with ass sweat). The heat is meant to replicate India's climate, and promotes sweating, which in turn (according to Bikram’s humble creator, BIKRAM CHOUDHURY) helps move the toxins out of the body.

Never have your handshake trumped by an esoteric Eastern bow again! Before you head out into the world all plump with yoga goodness, you’ll need one final thing: Namaste. Namaste isn’t some kind of Indian soda or some new way the kids are saying “nasty,” it’s a bow of greeting. The gesture Namaste is one’s acknowledgement of another’s divinity. The word breaks down as: "Nama," meaning bow, "-as-," meaning I, and "-te," meaning you. So it literally means "I bow to you." To perform Namaste, place the hands together at the heart, close your eyes, and bow your head.