This week we discussed the Sutras, which are arguably the first written text that forms the foundation of yoga beliefs. For another yoga class, I briefly studied the sutras. We went over the eight limbs of yoga, which shows how much more there is to the yoga practice. The Sutras talk about liberation and the philosophy of yoga, which is important to know if one wants to get more out of their yoga practice.
I think seeing and understanding the Sutras helped me get more out of my yoga practice. This showed that instead of attending a class, thinking it was relaxing and sometimes a good workout, I am now able to understand more about my body and mind during the practice. Pranayama, or breath control, was something that I started incorporating more into my practice. This helped me have stronger breath and sync breath to movement, which is an important aspect of vinyasa yoga.
The yamas and neyamas are other limbs of yoga that I started to incorporate into my practice since learning about them. Though these two limbs already aligned with my morals, it was interesting learning more about them. It is interesting that the sutras or yoga philosophy in general are not typically talked about in yoga class. However, things like meditation, breath control, and asanas, three of the eight limbs, are widely used without undertanding the philosophy's origin.
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