The origins of yoga date back thousands of years. Some scholars say it developed around the sixth and fifth centuries BCE. Since its inception the practice of yoga has grown and evolved in many different ways, and we here at iyoga.online aim to continue to push the evolution of yoga into the 21 st century.
In the early days, in order to practice yoga one would have to become a renunciate, a person who left the trappings of ordinary life to follow a path in search of a spiritual awakening, and the practice was passed down from those who had come before to those who would follow. Over time, princes and kings would bring yogis under their patronage, and, in exchange, the ruler and his court would be given teachings in yoga.
This arrangement was sustained for centuries, keeping yoga isolated as it was considered to be fit only for certain people of specific castes. It wasn’t until Swami Vivekananda brought yoga to the Parliament of World Religions held in Chicago in 1893 that the wider world was introduced to the concepts of yoga.
In the 20 th century, as the independence movement in India grew and a flowering of Indian arts and culture grew along with it, the practice and study of yoga became more popular. B.K.S. Iyengar, the founder of the Iyengar yoga system, was among the earliest teachers to offer yoga classes to the general public. These classes were more focused on the yoga asanas and greatly expanded the reach and interest in the study of yoga.
Iyengar was also among the first to offer classes to women, facing significant backlash from many corners of society at the time. However, he was determined to bring yoga to a wider audience as he saw the benefit yoga could have for everyone.
After some time, Iyengar and other Indian teachers such as Pattabhi Jois, founder of the Ashtanga yoga system, and T.K.V. Desikachar, who developed the Yin yoga system, brought yoga to the West. Here in the West, the dominant form of yoga practice became the practice of asana as a form of exercise, and it’s this type that many have come to see as synonymous with yoga. Over the last few decades of the 20 th century, yoga spread exponentially, reaching to the farthest corners of the globe. Now over 36 million people in the US alone count themselves as yoga practitioners. Through the efforts of these early teachers, eventually yoga expanded from it’s origin as part of a regional culture until it became the worldwide phenomenon we know it as now.
It’s our aim at iyoga.online to bring the practice of yoga to even more people using the potential that the 21 st century puts at our fingertips. Where in the beginning, to practice yoga one had to leave society, eventually yoga made it’s way into the higher reaches of society, until finally becoming available to society-at-large. Using the potential that the internet gives us, yoga can be brought to even more people by bringing it directly to them in their homes. We believe in the benefits of yoga and aim to expand the opportunities for more people to practice yoga. Over time, yoga has flourished in many settings all over the world, and we believe yoga can continue to flourish by reaching even more people and bringing them the benefits of a yoga practice that we know and believe in. Come and join us as we begin our journey!
Recent Comments