Yoga & Meditation

The word "yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root "yug" —to join, or yoke — two or more things together. There are many schools of yoga, all designed ultimately to guide and facilitate the spirit in its relationship with God, the divine, or the higher self. The native yoga paths are part of the Vedic culture we refer to today as Hinduism.

Although transplanted into many different cultures, yoga remains at its core, a path for transcending the ordinary mind, in order to merge with the infinite. Meditation is the heart of yoga.

Meditation means 'to join together or to yoke. It describes a state of consciousness, when the mind is free of scattered thoughts and various patterns . The observer (one who is doing meditation) realizes that all the activity of the mind is reduced to one.

Yoga was first put into written form in the Yoga Sutras around 200 AD, by a man named Patanjali. The word sutra means to thread or to condense, so a sutra is a sort of an aphorism. Prior to Patanjali's writing, yoga was passed down by word of mouth from guru to disciple.

Written in Sanskrit, the Sutras have been translated into many languages and there are literally dozens of translations of Patanjali's work, some of the best are I.K. Taimni's "The Science of Yoga," T.K.V. Desikachar's translation included in "The Heart of Yoga," and one of the simplest translations, "How to Know God : The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali," by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood.

Featured Providers ...

	Perdita Chan
	Yoag Yoga
	1482 Holt Ave.
	Los Angles	CA	90035
	310-570-3395	perdita@yoagyoga.com
	http://www.yoagyoga.com
Perdita Chan is a certified Massage therapist and Yoga instructor. She has created “yogasage” a unique therapy that combines yoga and massage to relieve stress and tension. Yogasage gives you more flexibility and deeper relaxation. It also helps you with back discomfort and improves your posture. Perdita taught at the Yoga Studio in Santa Barbara, YMCA in Montecito and private health clubs. She has had her private practice for 10 years and helped many people with physical problems. Her approach is low impact, gentle and spiritually guided.

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Helpful Links

Many Paths: One Goal. There are a variety of paths and practices of yoga, but at the heart, all have the same objective — the transcendence of self in order to merge with the higher self, or God.

Yoga Paths | Yoga Styles | What Is Ashtanga?

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