There is a lot of misunderstanding about what Yoga is, and what Yoga can do for us. In the West,
Yoga is, a lot of times, advertised as a physical practice for us to stretch, to relax, to feel good in
our body, to sleep better, to release stress and anxiety…but that is an extremely reductionist view
of this body of knowledge. All of these occur as a byproduct, not as the goal.
In modern context, Yoga is also often reduced to what happens on the mat, but in fact, Yoga is
not separate from daily life. If you reduce the practice to the mat, you are not really understanding
it and its potential. It has no beginning or ending, it is essentially how we hold life within ourselves.
It shows up on how we show up, how we speak, how we act, how we think, how we process our
emotions, how we deal with conflict. In fact, life itself is the field of Yoga. Therefore, you do not go
to Yoga, you live Yoga.
Yoga is about increasing awareness, clarity, depth, and understanding about ourselves, our
essential nature, the nature of the cosmos, and beyond. It is about making conscious what is
unconscious. Yoga is designed to transform our life, the one who is living, to shake our narratives
and attachments, what we think we know, and to move us towards evolution. It is not about the
clothes we wear, how we can perform asana, and how flexible we can become. In reality, being
able to bend our body says nothing about our inner state. True flexibility is mental and emotional
adaptability, not physical range.
An advanced practitioner is someone who is awake, calm, disciplined, aware, and who holds
silence within, becoming one with that field of silence. Any external appearance without inner
transformation is meaningless. It is important to understand that the body is a tool, not the
destination. The real goal is mastery of the mind, stillness of thought, realisation of the Self.
And stillness of thought does not mean stopping thoughts completely. We cannot stop thoughts
by suppressing the mind, that can create even more turbulence in the mind. Yoga, through
meditation techniques, for example, teaches us to observe thoughts without attachment. With
abhyasa (consistent practice), stillness is a result of awareness, not control.
Spiritual growth involves struggle and discomfort. And it does not happen overnight. Therefore,
Yoga is not a quick fix, even though we do feel benefits straight away, the real magic takes time
and commitment. How could that be any other way, taking in consideration the complexity of the
Self and Reality? And the whole technology needs to be applied. If Yoga means “union”/“unity”,
how come only a part of it would give us the whole? For unity to be found, the whole/integrative
approach needs to be taken in consideration. Otherwise, we mistake the branch for the whole
tree.
The entry point can be any of the preferred “branches”, a lot of the times it is asanas, the physical
postures, and that is fine. But whatever the entry point is, if one is really interested in Yoga, at
some point, one needs to transcend the preferences and lean in the direction of the whole
technology. Getting out of the comfort zone is of paramount importance for growth. If one cannot
let go of what one prefers and keeps avoiding what does not like, resisting it, giving justifications
for doing so that way, one is missing the point. Staying in the bubble of desires (like/dislike) is not
making real progress.
Furthermore, Yoga is not about massaging our ego, and agreeing with us to make us feel good
about ourselves or validated. It intends to dissolve the ego instead. It is not about just smiles and
laughter. It is about increasing our capacity to be present with what hurts, to stay with what arises,
holding space to our feelings, emotions, and thoughts, and not trying to numb them, escape
them, or suppress them. Definitely, it is not about toxic positivity, which is a result of
misunderstanding of the teachings, of the sacred wisdom.
There is no Yoga separated from the sacred wisdom. The wisdom is the core, and the practices
are the preparation of the body/mind to receive the wisdom. And the wisdom is not philosophy
either, because it is not theory or something to be believed. They are dynamic and organic
teachings to be cognised, verified, experienced, and lived.
There is also an idea that Yoga is only for certain people. Again, that is totally wrong thinking.
Yoga is for anyone willing to observe themselves honestly. Every human already has the potential
for realisation. It is not about becoming something/someone else, it is about discovering what we
already are. As long as you are alive and willing, Yoga is for you.
Another misconception is considering that Yoga is about achieving “special” experiences. In the
Himalayan Yog-Vedantic Tradition, visions, bliss, or altered states of consciousness are
considered distractions if one clings to them. Experiences come and go, the real goal is the
unchanging awareness behind them. Yoga is not about peak experiences, it is about stable
realisation, cognition of who you are and who you are not.
Discipline (tapas) is important to creates freedom from compulsions, regressive habits…It
educates the mind, and usually it is misunderstood as rigid or limiting. Actually, discipline
strengthens will and clarity. True discipline expands our life, it does not shrink it.
Last but not least, Yoga does not mean withdrawing from life. It is not about escaping life, it is
about engaging with it skilfully. It is about learning how to perform our duties, but without inner
disturbance, or attachment for the results. It is the precious cognition that we co-create our
experience, we take the action, and we can control it, but we cannot control the results, the
outcome. The true understanding of this is the different between inner bondage and inner freedom
in action. We learn how to do our best, and we learn how to let go. It is a conscious choice to
travel light, but with involvement, responsibility and accountability.
Yoga is the science of consciousness. And consciousness is all there is. Consequently, there is
nothing that Yoga does not touch. It definitely takes place on the mat, if one is willing to dive deep
instead of performing. But especially it is beyond the mat…and both cannot be separated!
