INFORMATION ON INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY

                   INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY

Yoga Day 2019 | International Day of Yoga, celebrated annually on 21 June, is when the nation unites to celebrate an ancient and traditional practice that retains global importance even in modern times. The UN established International Day of Yoga to celebrate not just the ancient practice but also the various forms it evolved into over the decades and its prominence worldwide

Traditional classifications of yoga:

Ashtanga Yoga: Ashtanga Yoga is the most ancient and traditional form of yoga.These help in the overall development of the mind, body and soul and are believed to be a vehicle to help achieve salvation. These are:

Yama, or following moral codes

Niyama, or self-study and purification

Asana, or posture

Pranayama, or breath control

Pratyahara, or sense control

Dharana, or concentration

Dhyana, or meditation

Samadhi, or absorption into the universe

Karma Yoga: Karma Yoga is the practice of meditating and completing tasks solely for the journey of completing them without any attachment to the end result. This practice, achieved through seva, or service to the society, involves putting in 100 percent effort only to feel the joy of serving others, rather than to achieve a goal.

Jnana Yoga: Jnana Yoga is the approach of attaining salvation through logic and rational thinking. To practice this form of yoga, one must gain practical knowledge as purely theoretical knowledge is not sufficient. Jnana Yoga can be practiced by learning and reflecting on yogic teachings and meditating on these to attain salvation.

Bhakti Yoga: This form involves using every aspect of the body — both mind and spirit — to offer undying devotion to the divine entity that the practitioner believes in. Bhakti Yoga is considered a means of prayer and the ultimate goal of union with god. It can be practiced through chanting, poses and prayers.

Mantra Yoga: As the name suggests, this is a method of practicing yoga by chanting a mantra. Mantras act as a signpost to discipline a wandering mind. By engaging completely in mantras, one can connect closely with the divinity within. To correctly perform this form of yoga, the mantra must be recited in a specific metre. Silently recalling the mantra while meditating is considered the most effective way to invoke it.

Different forms of yoga.