The Practice of Sivananda Yoga

Series Summary

The word "yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root yuj meaning "to bind, or join." Yoga is centrally the practice of union, whether you are joining the mind to the body, the human to the divine, or the individual to the infinite. The various styles of yoga that have made it to the West all share a common core: positioning the body into a particular posture while focusing mind and breath leads to physical and spiritual well-being. These arts of positioning the body have been passed on for thousands of years, and encompass one of the oldest cultural traditions known to exist. To practice yoga, then, is also to join with the ancient sages, drawing human history up into yourself and connecting with the past.

This free video series will teach you step-by-step a Surya Namaskar Sun Salutation and over a dozen other Sivananda poses to begin or continue your yoga practice. Expert Cynthia Mastry will show you many poses, including uttanasana, sirsasana, dolphin, cobra, sarvangasana, halasana, and more. She uses her students to demonstrate poses while she offers tips and other insight into a personal practice of Sivananda yoga. You will also learn various triangle and warrior poses, good for balance and stability. Become part of the tradition today!

Video Transcript

"Hello. My name is Gina Kennedy. I am a Sivananda style registered teacher. I was lucky enough to go to the beautiful Ashram in Nassau Bahamas to do my training. Today, we're going to be exploring Sivananda style Yoga. Sivananda Yoga was designed by Swami Vishnu Devananda. A Swami is a spiritual leader. He came here in nineteen fifty-seven to America from India. He was sent by his Guru, Swami Sivananda himself. Sivananda Yoga is a wonderful style of Yoga. It emphasizes on breath, relaxation, the twelve poses and also vegetarianism. The twelve poses, we will go through individually. We will also look at modifications and variations of the poses. Breath retention is very important through the poses and also is the relaxation. After every pose, basically you will be going into relaxation. So, I hope you really enjoy Sivananda style Yoga. Feel the health benefits and I hope you enjoy."