While its roots are in a meditative practice originating in India, yoga has spread around the world, made popular by celebrities who have adopted and adapted it to enhance their abilities to train the mind and remain supple.
Among its practitioners are Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and Canada’s PM Justin Trudeau and business leaders including Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn, Marc Bienoff of Salesforce and Arianna Huffington of Huffington Post.
They have shared that yoga has helped them strategise company visions and plan the future.
Avid yoga practitioners who have helped to further its reach include entertainment celebrities, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, Robert Downey Jr. and Jennifer Aniston, who have used it for various reasons, ranging from body sculpting and exercise to addiction therapy.
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History of Yoga
Early references to yoga are from the Indus-Sarasvati civilisation in India going back about 3,000 years. Yoga’s history can be divided into these main periods:
- Pre-Classical: Spiritual texts, the vedas which date back to 2500-1500 BC mention yoga as a way of connecting the spiritual to the material worlds.
- In the Classical yoga era, Patanjali who’s known as the Father of Yoga organised the practice into eight paths covering attitudes to environment, self-reflection, posture, breathing, focus and meditation
- The Post Classical Yoga (500-1300AD) puts more focus on Asana or posture and it was during this time that more body-centred practices were introduced
- The modern yoga period in the late 1800s and early 1900s marked a change again as yoga masters travelled to the West and increased its popularity
- The hippies of the Western world popularised Indian ashrams in the 1960s. Among them, the Beatles brought celebrity sparkle to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Rishikesh in 1968
Interesting Takes on Yoga
- Yogi masters did not use yoga mats before the 1980s
- World Yoga Day was declared in 2014 at the United Nations as June 21
- The word Yoga comes from Sanskrit meaning ‘yoke’ or ‘union’
- Many yoga poses today such as ‘Downward Dog’ or ‘Sun Salutation’ are not found in the ancient texts
Different types of Yoga:
- Hatha yoga: It tends to be slower and more gentle as basic yoga poses are held one after the other.
- Ashtanga yoga: is a fast paced and vigorous style of yoga that follows a sequence of postures linked by the body’s breath.
- Hot yoga: This style consists of postures and breathing exercises performed in a heated room.
- Iyengar yoga: The emphasis is on precise alignment and use of props to achieve optimal benefits from each asana.
- Kundalini yoga: The focus is on the base of the spine, with the goal to liven dormant energy through dynamic movements, breathing techniques and meditation.
- Vinyasa yoga: This form is faster. It strings different poses together and synchronises breath to movements.
- Yin yoga: This is a much slower form of yoga and the poses are generally between 3-5 minutes.
Where you can practice Yoga in Singapore:
Some yoga studios in Singapore offer more than one type of yoga, so it’s best to call and check on the type of yoga you wish to try out.
You can also sign up for Class Pass or the Mind and Body apps.
These offer you choices of places to go and there are usually try out sessions.
Here’s a guide:
- Hatha yoga: Pure Yoga, Purna Yoga, Our Yoga Place
- Ashtanga yoga: Ashtanga Yoga Nilayam, Yoga Shala
- Hot yoga: Real Yoga, Yoga Inc, 2 Be Yoga
- Iyengar yoga: BKS Iyengar Yoga Studio, Como Shambala
- Kundalini yoga: Jal Yoga
- Vinyasa yoga: Hom Yoga, Yoga Bar
- Yin yoga: Warrior Studios, True Yoga
